Mark Webber is going for Kazuki Nakajima. The glare is starting to form, and so is blue sky, looking back from the mountains. Toyota is working on a new hybrid system, as we see Nakajima and Webber continuing their scrap. The skill level to drive these cars in these conditions, is top notch. You are on your tiptoes the whole time. The weather is clearing up. The Nakajima and Webber scrap will continue.
The line on the track begins to dry. In replay, we see Mark Webber straight line the Dunlop corner. In LM GTE Am, Patrick Dempsey runs off the road in car #77, spinning, and resuming the race. LMP2 teams are making moves into the pit lane. A wiggle under braking gives Romain Dumas an opportunity to challenge Oliver Jarvis. The Audi has superior traction at this point. Dumas closes on the #8 Audi. Romain Dumas wants by Jarvis, and soon. Oliver Webb is in pit lane. Porsche is going for it. Stuttgart takes the lead from Ingolstadt. Is Romain Dumas faster? Is Oliver Jarvis, cooling his tires?
The action has been hot and heavy in this contest so far. There hav been some spins and some close calls with drivers running wide, or going off the road. Mark Webber is off the road again. This same chicane has caught Webber out before. The #18 Porsche has passed the #8 Audi. Nick Tandy leads LMP2. The GT classes have not changed too much. Plenty of racing still to come as pit crews are mopping up the water. They've got the squeegees fully operational. Give a call to the #36 Alpin team who had a good run going before giving way to the #47 KCMG machine with Nick Tandy at the controls.
The #8 Toyota pits for the first time. Audi have never won a race in Japan, and they have only led once. Toyota #1 is in the lane. Now, Porsche has a fuel mileage advantage, over the others. The diesel motor in the Audi is much heavier than the turbo four cylinder in the Porsche. Paul Loup-Chatin is trying to pass Ricardo Gonzalez in car #28. Quite the battle in LMP2. Signatech Alpine are running well. In LM GTE Pro, Michael Christensen passes James Calado. More pit action. Webber is in the lane. This is a long stop for Porsche.
Porsche is using a higher downforce configuration than Audi or Toyota. Porsche runs three laps longer on fuel, than Audi. The #18 Porsche pits. Practice pit entrances. Romain Dumas was on the ragged edge entering the lane. Can the #7 Audi pass? The #7 Audi R18 eTron Quattro takes over the race lead. No tires for Romain Dumas and Porsche. 44 laps was the distance of that stint. Marcel Fassler still leads. But his lead is smaller. Mark Webber is not gaining. He's falling behind. Anthony Davidson has taken over the #1 Toyota. Stephane Sarrazin is in the #2 sister Toyota now.
All LMP1 Hybrid pit stops, were for fuel. No tires were changed. The #12 Rebellion of Mathias Beche is off the road. The super soft slick tires with no grooves, are good in drying conditions. But, they cannot be cooled in standing water. Nick Tandy is being chased by Paul Loup Chatin in LMP2. Chatin is doing all he can, throwing everything at Nick Tandy. Kazuki Nakajima says Toyota expects less rain to fall, and that's why they did an earlier driver change.
Transition into darkness. That's the idea. The racing line is widening even though it's wet. The #91 LM GTE Pro leading Porsch 911 RSR, is in. Michael Christensen will hand over to Richard Lietz. The #51 Ferrari also pits. No tires for Porsche in GTE Pro. Toni Vilander stays in the #51 Ferrari 458 Italia. The conditions are changing again. Marcel Fassler is being hounded by Romain Dumas. Johnny Adam has taken over the LM GTE Pro lead in one of the Aston Martin's. Fred Makowiecki has been disqualified.
We see another car that has gon off the road. That's Nick Tandy in the #47 car. In LM GTE Am, #72 will pit. This is the first green flag stop for Victor Shaytar. We have an hour and a half before half distance... midnight, our time in the Central Time zone in the U.S. Romain Dumas is slowing in the middle sector, due to traffic. Lap times are not improving in LMP1. But, they are double stinting tires. There will be drop off in performance on this second stint. Does Romain Dumas have a tire issue? His tires could be toasted, as his times began to fall.
This race has not settled down yet or gotten into a rhythm. Johnny Adam pits the Aston Martin in LM GTE Am. Victor Shaytar gets penalized for speeding in th pit lane. Romain Dumas' lead is fluctuating. Car #83 is going to pit. This is one of the AF Corse cars, switching drivers, G Drive is in the lane. With AF Corse Francois Perrodo takes over from Emmanuel Collard. No team orders at AF Corse. The manufacturers cup is the most important trophy as there are Ferrari factory drivers on the team. The track is not drying out as we have expected it to.
Audi still leads. Eight Tudor Championship drivers, are in this race. Meanwhile, we continue to look at tire wear, and, Mark Webber continues to push. Stuart Hall regains the class lead in LM GTE Am. Hall, followed by Emmanuel Collard, and Patrick Dempsey. This is Dempsey's first race at Mount Fuji. People are making mistakes in turn one, as we watch Oliver Webb and Nick Tandy battle into Coca Cola corner. Paul Loup Chatin is behind this scrum. So is Sam Bird. We have just over four hours left in this event, folks.
The #7 Audi continues to lead, as Nick Tandy tries to pass Oliver Webb. The gaps are very, very close. Audi, Porsche, Porsche, Audi. There is a drier line down the middle of the straightaway. The lead is four and a half seconds between Marcel Fassler and Romain Dumas. Nick Tandy runs off the road. The ESM cars run liner stern. Ryan Dalziel and Johannes van Overbeek, are actually racing for position. Dalziel was seven seconds quicker than van Overbeek on the previous lap. Audi continues to lead this race overall.
Have both ESM cars got intermediate tires? Or has one got intermediates on and one got full wet tires? van Overbeek's tires might be overheating. Nick Tandy is definitely closing up on second in class. Patrick Dempsey pitted the #77 Porsche 911 RSR and handed the car over to Marco Seefried. Top five at the moment, overall, is Audi, Porsche, Porsche, Audi, Toyota. Mark Webber started his sports car career, with Mercedes Benz. But, now, as a Porsche driver, he is really running well. It has been an interesting change of direction in Webber's career, changing from Formula One, to sports cars.
Open the Venetian blinds, and see the light. Porsche have used their momentum that they began here at Fuji, last year.
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