Saturday, June 16, 2018

24 Hours of Le Mans: Hour 17

Kamui Kobayashi won't slow down.  We are at the 1/3rd remaining mark.  BMW #82 has been pushed to the left hand side of it's garage, and we have an incident for the #88 Dempsey Proton Porsche.  Ooh!  Matteo Cairoli slams the barrier!  Screech! Bang!  Both of the Dempsey Proton cars have gone off in the same spot, on the same lap.  Matteo Cairoli was really pressing on hard.  Cairoli should try to safely cut across the road, and get that car fixed, but he'd have to go around 8.5 miles.  The sole remaining BMW M8 GTE has suspension trouble.  So, #81 is going to have to hang on as hard as possible.  Martin Tomczyk, Nicky Catsburg, and Phillip Eng will need a miracle.  Now, the crashed Porsche is the #88 Proton Competition car, as he went across the curb, and couldn't hold the car in the Ford Chicane.  He broke the right rear suspension on the car. 

Matteo Cairoli, Khaled Al Qubaisi, and Giorgio Roda, (two Italian's among the lineup), driving.  The #92 Porsche 911 RSR, "pink pig", had service, and had to wait for a safe release.  Oink, oink.  Kevin Estre went 14 laps, and Scott Dixon in the Ford GT #69, ran 13 laps.  Take advantage of the slow zone.  Ferrari #52 also had something going on.  The air at Le Mans, is damp, and we could get rain, even though we haven't seen rain yet.  The #54 Spirit of Race Ferrari had a brake pad change, and Giancarlo Fisichella handed the car to Francesco Castellaci.  There will be a position change here, soon.

Thomas Flohr needs to do more driving in the #54 car.  He'll have to do a large chunk of driving.  Thomas Flohr had dreamt as a kid, of doing the East African Safari Rally in a Porsche 911.  Now, the #86 Porsche 911 RSR, has overcooked it in Tetre Rouge with Mike Wainwright at the wheel of it.  CEFC TRSM had some damage to both their cars.  There was a clutch issue as well.  Clearly, there is a leak in the bell housing from a clutch seal or split hose or something.  Being a part of Le Mans, you have to finish.  Keep running.  Don't stop.  Trouble for Racing Team Nederland, who almost runs into the Rebellion.  Yikes! 

Oh no!  Major trouble for the #10 DragonSpeed car.  Ben Hanley smashes the BR into the wall.  Something on the road destablized the car, and... ker-runch!  He's broken the rear wing off that car.  Yeelows breed yellows.  That was a huge wreck, and knocked the tail off the automobile.  Egad!  The #7 Toyota is coming into Arnage.  The #86 Gulf Porsche 911 RSR is in the garage for a brake change, having been put on the dollies.  The crew is thrashing on that car.  Ben Hanley is in reverse, trying to move the car.  Wow.  He's rolling, and can get back into the lane.  He won't retire the car.  But how did it happen?

Itr is a shame for Renger van der Zande, and it's crabbing down the road, badly.  Ginetta will pick something up from DragonSpeed's misfortune.  Toyota #7 pits from the lead and Mike Conway will take over the car.  It is hard to get into the pit lane if they have crash damage.  The car is at a 30 degree angle and the left hand corner has been knackered.  Something broke.  The right rear wheel broke and went askew.  Rear left wheel, busted.  Almost every panel on that car, is toast. Send the DragonSpeed car to the scrapyard and put this race to bed.

The track temperature is coming back up to 15 degrees Celsius.  An incident at marshal post 29.  Car #7, stop and go, for going too fast in the slow zone.  Also for #8!  Dear me!  Toyota's get dinged for speeding.  One minute, stationary in the pit lane.  "For now, stay on track."  You have four laps to serve this penalty.  A pit lane penalty may not be served if the area adjacent to pit lane, is not open for it, under a safety car, or if the slow zone is adjacent to the lane.  Now, this means they would have to take it. 

Now, there are some inconsistencies here, maybe.  Look at time over distance = speed.  Toyota #8 is in the lane, for it's penalty.  #7 is 25 seconds behind.  Mike Rockenfeller passes Scott Dixon.  Dixon is closing up in the Ford GT vs. the Chevrolet Corvette C-7-R-.  Pit stop time in GTE Am for Matty Campbell.  The #81 BMW M8 GTE has a cooling problem.  They are in the garage.  Scott Dixon is pursuing Mike Rockenfeller, with a huge slipstream before the chicane, and he makes the pass and sticks it.  Scott Dixon, fifth place, done and dusted.  Porsche, Porsche, Porsche, Ford, Ford Corvette, Ferrari, Ferrari.  Will either of the Toyota's get another penalty?  #7 goes across the line, as the #1 Rebellion is chasing, ten laps behind the race leader, but on the same lap as the sister car.  Andre Lotterer in #1, and Thomas Laurent, #3. 

BMW #81 is back in pit lane.  Could they come back?  The #67 Ford GT pitted with Harry Tincknell replacing Tony Kanaan, the Brazilian IndyCar champ.  The #86 Gulf Racing Porsche is on an outlap with Michael Wainwright at the wheel of it. Ben Keating pitted the #85 Ferrari for fuel, and a tire and brake change.  A number of cars have been stationary in the pit lane.  The #5 CEFC TRSM Ginetta will be back on track soon, hopefully.  The #28 TDS Racing Oreca of Matthieu Vaxiviere is stopped, dead stick, right in the middle of the Ford Chicane, and we will have a slow zone to get that car out of danger.

The #35 SMP Racing Dallara hops the curbs in the Ford chicane.  Harry Tincknell is now sixth in LM GTE Pro, and he was ahead of his teammate Scott Dixon, allowing the Corvette #63 of Mike Rockenfeller into the fifth spot in class.  Daniel Serra is eighth in class in the AF Corse Ferrari.  Kevin Estre in the "Pink Pig" has taken the place from DragonSpeed.  #28 into the lane and a ton of gravel.  You need your bucket and spade after getting off the beach.  The car is spewing gravel.  The #80 Ebimotors Porsche is being raced by Fabio Babini, Christina Nielsen, and Erik Maris.  Ah.  Car #52 reported to the stewards for speeding in pit lane.

Will Giovinazzi be penalized?  What will the marshals decide?  Pippo Derani and Toni Vilander have co-driven this car with Antonio Giovinazzi.  Tracy Krohn in the #44 Eurasia Motorsports LMP2 car loops the car!  Kevin Estre had his heart in his throat through Arnage!  Phew!  That was close!  Nic Jonsson and Tracy Krohn have done thirteen consecutive Le Mans races together.  BMW #81 has five seconds added to the next pit stop, for a five second pit stop infringement. 

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