Everything, is bigger, in Texas. This includes endurance sports car racing as the FIA World Endurance Championship makes it annual pilgrimage to the United States and the running of the 6 Hours of Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. Here are the abbreviated race highlights.
The weather is hot and steamy as the drivers wish each other well on the starting grid, before the race. The cars roll off from their grid positions in pit lane as "Mr. Le Mans" himself, Tom Kristensen, waves the green flag. At the official race start, the #7 Audi of Marcel Fassler went into the lead. The back end of the team Audi R18 eTron Quattro, piloted by Frenchman Loic Duval, gets loose over the top of the hill. This opens the door for Mark Webber in the Porsche 919 Hybrid to make a move. It's not just Porsche and Audi going at it hammer and tongs early. The Toyota's also have good pace in the race's early stages.
In LMP2, Alex Brundle is doing a masterful job to work his way through traffic from the back of the field. He started caboose on the field, in 31st position, and is looking to put the G Drive car back into contention as the race goes on. Romain Dumas is passed by the #5 Toyota TS050 in the hands of Sebastien Buemi. The action heats up among the production based cars in the GTE classes, too. In GTE Am, it's a Porsche vs. Aston Martin fight. Aston Martin #98 driven by Formula 1 and sports car veteran Pedro Lamy, has the spot, and the #88 Abu Dhabi Proton Racing Porsche 911 RSR of Kevin Estre, wants the place. These two blokes, started on row thirteen of the grid in 25th and 26th overall, respectively.
In LMP2, there's a scrap for position, too. It's the #35 Signatech Alpine of Nelson Panciatici, fending off the attack from #43, the RGR entry of Bruno Senna, in a Ligier. It's RGR vs. Maxi DC Racing. While those boys were tussling, the two factory Audi's whistle right by and say, "thank you very much, boys. We're going to put a lap on you. Tee hee." This is what a difference of 400 horsepower will do. 600 horsepower in an LMP2, compared to 1,000+ in one of these spaceship LMP1 hybrid racers. Senna, decides, to hit the pit lane for routine service. After the first pit stops it was Stephane Richelmi holding the LMP2 class lead for Maxi DC Racing, having taken over from Nelson Panciatici.
In the lead, for Audi, it's the #7 car, in the hands of Andre Lotterer, with a 2.3 second cushion, over his team mate Oliver Jarvis, piloting the sister car, #8.
Now, we fast forward the tape, ladies and gentlemen, to the third hour of the race. Pedro Lamy is now back at the wheel of the Aston Martin, and we ought to give a shout out to Ricky Taylor in the #50 Larbre Competition Chevrolet Corvette C-7-R- he shares with Pierre Ragues of France and Yutaka Yamagishi of Japan. Bruno Senna is still scrapping with the Alpine of Stephane Richelmi, and makes the pass, just in the nick of time as the lead Audi's fly around him to put him a lap down. Pit stop time now, and with the shuffling, it's the sister Alpine team car, #36, in the hands of Gustavo Menezes, who takes the class lead.
Audi #7 gets caught in traffic. Not sure who is at the wheel at the moment. The sun begins to set, here in Texas, and we are headed towards the nighttime when the race will finish. Other than Le Mans, this is the only FIA WEC race, that has night running. Deary me. We have our first full course yellow. Race Director, Edoardo Freitas, informs the teams. Electrical failure for the #27 BR01. That car was started by the veteran Nicolas Minassian of France, sharing with Maurizio Mediani of Italy, in one of the few driving duos. Most teams in this race have a trio of drivers at the ready.
The car did restart and drive away. More pit action. Audi, in the lane. Both cars #7 and #8 in for routine service. Box, box, box. Status quo pit stops, except perhaps for the decision to run new, or scrubbed tires. The Audi's came back out again, #8 ahead of #7. The Toyota's are showing a turn of speed, but one of their drivers has his hands full not only with the #2 Porsche but also with a GTE Aston Martin V8 Vantage, making it three wide on the straight! Wow! The sun sets as the Toyota's are now fifth and sixth. Sebastien Buemi, and Mike Conway, are the respective drivers. Whoops. We've got the #86 Gulf Oils Porsche 911 RSR, off the road.
Mike Wainwright tried to exit the pit lane and did so, but on the uphill into turn one, he lost traction, and found the gravel trap. Another full course yellow. Wainwright shares his Porsche as always with fellow Brits Adam Carroll, and Ben Barker. Porsche takes an opportunity to pit, and so do both of the Audi's. You know the numbers. #7 and #8. But, there is a problem for Audi as Loic Duval, in the lead, coasts to a halt. Is it a major problem? Not likely. The car, like a computer, needs to be rebooted. The fastest lap time of the leading cars at this stage of the race is a 1:48.6. A bump probably upset the Audi, shutting off the system, and Duval reboots and is on his merry way again.
We now press fast forward again, and are on to the fifth hour, getting towards the end of this one and only appearance during the year, in the United States, for the world's fastest sports cars and their best drivers. The cause for Mike Wainwright's off course excursion in his Porsche, was as simple as a long brake pedal. You decelerate into the corner, the car turns, but does not want to brake. The brake pedal goes to the floor, and the driver says, "oh no! What now?" Thankfully, Wainwright slid off the road without hitting anything. Another incident, as we see tandem spins by the #45 Manor LMP2 car and the #66 Ford GT in LM GTE Pro in the hands of Stefan Mucke.
Not sure who was driving the #45 Manor (the sole entry for that team, in this race). The car was started, by Roberto Merhi. This incident, brings out another full course yellow. A new nose, for the Manor. As the fireworks lit up the Texas sky about Circuit of the Americas, that was the precise cue for the on track fireworks to also get underway, as we come to the conclusion of this motor race. Benoit Treluyer was charging at the front, but after contact with one of the Ford's, the aforementioned #66 entry, it's, a spin. Screech... off into the gravel, and finally... ker-runch, into the tire barrier. The Audi was off the circuit, but it was definitely game over for Treluyer.
This promoted the Toyota up one place. Later in the race, it's game over for Manor. The left rear suspension on the car, collapses, and leaves a trail of mosquito killing smoke, as the bodywork rubs on the deck. That was one of just two retirements in this whole event. 29 of 31 starters, will finish. Aston Martin sweeps both Am and Pro classes in GT, once again, here in Texas. Alpine #36, consolidates it's championship lead winning in LMP2, and the overall win, despite Audi's sheer dominance earlier on in the race, will go to Porsche, after some great late race pit strategy for the #1 car!
Three wins in a row, for Timo Bernhard, Mark Webber, and Brendon Hartley!
Overall/LMP1: #1 Bernhard/Hartley/Webber Porsche 919 Hybrid
LMP2: #36 Menezes/Lapierre/Richelmi Alpine A460 Nissan
LM GTE Pro: #95 Thiim/Sorenson Aston Martin V8 Vantage
LM GTE Am: #98 Dalla Lana/Lamy/Lauda Aston Martin V8 Vantage
Alpine wins LMP2 again, with Gustavo Menezes, Nicolas Lapierre, and Stephane Richelmi. It's a GTE sweep of both Pro and Am for Aston Martin. In Pro, its the duo of Nicki Thiim and Marco Sorenson, and in Am, the trio of Paul Dalla Lana, Pedro Lamy, and Mathias Lauda. That's a wrap, from here in Texas, y'all. We'll see you in the Land of the Rising Sun, in Japan, for the 6 Hours of Fuji at Fuji Speedway in a little less than a month's time.
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