The #50 car is being reported to the stewards for rejoining the race in an unsafe manner. Also, we have another car off in the gravel trap. Yellows breed yellows. Now, the Toyota, is in the gravel, and the lap times, are going down. This is the #1 Toyota of Mike Conway, and he's spun it, again! He went off at corner 14 and lost it again at 16. Pardon me. That's Kazuki Nakajima. Double yellows also for Khaled al Qubaisi. Another full course yellow,. chaps. Brendon Hartley pits the leading Porsche. Timo Bernhard, takes over the driving chores. The #18 also pits for fuel and tires. We are ready to go back to green.
Someone has had a razor blade/box cutter puncture a tire. Porsche is quick to maximum speed, but then, the Audi gets a later advantage. As the Porsche runs out of electrical energy, it gets swamped. Audi seems to have a slight advantage over the Porsche's. The Porsche cannot find a way past the Morgan LMP2 car. The LMP2 lead battle sees Alex Brundle take the lead, right alongside Pepe Derani! Into the braking zone, the Audi is also moving by. Brundle has gone through! The LMP2 battle for the championship, is not over yet!
The #1 Toyota is now pitting for new full wet tires. Who would have thought Alex Brundle, in an older Morgan chassis, would be leading LMP2? Brundle is in a guest entry, for this race. Audi, Porsche, Audi, Porsche, is what the top four looks like, at the moment. Benoit Treluyer is now the quickest man on track. Timo Bernhard has to fight to maintain position, and also, wants to keep the #7 Audi from taking a position to join it's team mate. Porsche could take the manufacturer's crown. But, the driver's championship, is still, wide open.
The Porsche will have an advantage down the straight. The Audi, will have the edge, in cornering. The gap is closing, and fast. We're back to these classic Audi vs. Porsche battles, that we've seen, all year. Neel Jani in the sister Porsche, is closing. The battle now, is for second spot. Ooh! Lucas di Grassi somehow, made a pass. The pressure is on. di Grassi, Bernhard, Treluyer. That's the top three. The driver's championship, is up for grabs. Porsche looks inside, and Audi, passes, actually. No fighting from Timo Bernhard.
It is possible to race in tough conditions, without smashing into your competition. The ebb and flow of the race, is amazing. Six hour races, are longer. But, they are worth your time to watch. Trust me. Ooh! James Calado was a pick, in this battle, in one of the Ferrari 458's. Audi has to take advantage. The #18 Porsche, is coming, and coming, fast. The Porsche gets balked by the #47 KCMG Oreca Nissan of Matt Howson. The Audi is ahead, but, Timo Bernhard is trying. It's Audi #7, Porsche #17, and Porsche #18. Team orders are working well. There have never been issues with team orders, in this kind of racing.
Timo Bernhard is having a visibility issue, as Neel Jani, is pushing, trying to fend off the Audi's. Porsche needs 44 points, total, to clinch the manufacturer's cup, after this race. The skies are clearing up a bit. But, in the next couple hours, if the track dries, it's going to get wild. We are almost halfway through this race. James Calado pits the #71 Ferrari. Benoit Treluyer is 4.4 seconds ahead of Neel Jani. Calado is indeed in the lane, and has exited. Mark Webber is going to have to finish this race in the #17 Porsche.
Michael Christensen is battling an LMP2 car... the car of Alex Brundle. GTE Pro vs. LMP2 for the tenth spot. Oh no! The #18 Porsche has run wide, off the road. Ooh. Neel Jani missed his braking point, and almost spun completely. He lost a full second. Audi and Benoit Treluyer, continue to lead. The #18 Porsche is stymied, and has to hold station for the time being. In replay, we watch Lucas di Grassi, get passed, by Timo Bernhard. There's a long way to go yet. The track, could dry out, in the last couple hours.
Down the long straights, Porsche gets great boost with their eight megajoule system. Acceleration is the Porsche's strong suit. Aerodynamic efficiency, is the strong point, for the Audi. Oh boy. The #50 Corvette C-7-R- is off course, again. Nicolai Sylvest, at the controls. Richie Stanaway is fourth in LM GTE Pro, and he could get a drive in an LMP1 car. The #12 Rebellion R-One runs wide. Nicolas Prost is at the wheel. Francesco Castellaci is being caught by Matthias Lauda. This is an inter-team Aston Martin battle. No team orders. But, definite rivals. They are customer cars.
The #95 car is not racing this weekend, and it won't be at the finale in Bahrain, next time out, either. Aston Martin Racing still runs 1-2 in class. Whoa. Andrea Bertolini goes off the road, in another one of the Ferrari's. One of the Aston's pits, for new, grooved tires. Are they full wets, or, plain wets? The extreme wet tires are coming off, and standard wets are going on the cars. They are not intermediate tires. Neel Jani is catching the leading Audi of Benoit Treluyer. It is getting darker. It will be dusk, by the time we finish this race.
An incident between the #28 LMP2 and #77 LM GTE Pro cars, are under investigation, by the stewards, just after the race started. Neel Jani moves past Benoit Treluyer for the lead! Treluyer was snoozing. Treluyer has a badly smudged windscreen. Car #26 serves a drive through penalty, investigating an exceeding of the 80 kilometers per hour full course yellow, speed limit. Did they run afoul of the rules? Yes. The team car of Gustavo Yacaman (car #28), has made a pass. Alex Brundle has been doing a great job, even though he has not raced for a good chunk of the year. Ryan Dalziel is also getting close to his maximum drive time, even though he's been leading, in class.
Sam Bird has taken over from Julien Canal in car #26 after the pit stop. We are headed to halfway in the 6 Hours of Shanghai. Neel Jani ahs retaken the lead, and is 2.5 seconds up on Benoit Treluyer. Toyota, is in the lane, now. Routine service for the team. These guys have had a fraught year, after winning the World Championship, last year. Lucas di Grassi, has been told that wet tires are ready, and they might go for intermediates. Will Audi Sport roll the dice? The gaps are opening and closing, between the leaders, at the same time.
The #71 Ferrari of James Calado, runs wide. The #7 Audi, pits.
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