Endurance... the sports car racing blog: November 2019

Saturday, November 30, 2019

off-season IMSA news roundup

In Memoriam: Michael Brockman

We remember, longtime IMSA competitor, Michael Brockman, who also happened to be a Hollywood stuntman when he was not driving race cars.

https://sportscar365.com/imsa/michael-brockman-passes-away/?fbclid=IwAR3CaBe24bJ3oVy6-DOfqBXhq5iYp6pjc98EmC4Zif_CDmesnotiNbgBgzU

https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/photo/Mike-Brockman-USA.html

Rest In Peace, Michael Brockman.

Friday, November 29, 2019

2020 IMSA Entry List Tracker - November

From North American Racecar via Facebook, here's the updated entry list tracker for the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/north-american-racecar/2020-imsa-entry-list-tracker-november/2521360617983541/

Thursday, November 28, 2019

FIA WEC headlines

More important headlines from the FIA World Endurance Championship.

FIA Publishes 2020 Driver Ratings
https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/fia-publishes-final-2020-driver-ratings/

More Drivers Added to Bahrain Rookie Test Lineup

https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/more-drivers-added-to-bahrain-rookie-test-lineup/

WEC ‘Seriously Considering’ Kyalami as Future Round

https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/wec-seriously-considering-kyalami-as-future-round/

Dyson: “Long Wait” for Now-Confirmed LMP1 Return

https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/dyson-long-wait-for-now-confirmed-lmp1-return/

Neveu: Peugeot Hypercar Does Not Affect DPi Integration Talks

https://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/neveu-peugeot-hypercar-does-not-affect-dpi-integration-talks/

Wednesday, November 27, 2019

WeatherTech Championship 2020: Who's Going Where?

News you can use, and need to know, about who is where for the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship.

https://www.imsa.com/news/112019/weathertech-championship-2020-whos-going-where

4 Hours of Shanghai 52 Minute Report

Highlighted coverage of the 4 Hours of Shanghai, round three of the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance Championship. Martin Haven and Allan McNish call the race from the broadcast booth and Louise Beckett covers things in the pit lane.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Weekly Racing Roundup (11-25-19)

Audi R8 LMS Cup Asia finale, ACO hydrogen update plus news.

https://sportscar365.com/features/roundup/weekly-racing-roundup-11-25-19/

more IGTC news

More headlines from Intercontinental GT Challenge, in this Tuesday bonus post, and the final analysis on the Kyalami 9 Hours via this week's edition of the Double Stint Podcast, which also

EBM Likely to Return to Bathurst 12H; Other IGTC Races on Radar
https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/ebm-bathurst-12h-title-defense-likely/

Will Audi cope with the pressure of racing in clashing rounds in clashing championships? They will surely pull it off.

Audi "Very Much Challenged" by IGTC, GT Masters Clashes

https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/audi-very-much-challenged-by-igtc-gt-masters-clashes/

The latest Double Stint Podcast, again, recapping the Kyalami 9 Hours, and featuring an interview with one of the winning drivers, Nick Tandy.

Double Stint: Kyalami 9H Recap; Nick Tandy Interview (11-26-19)

https://sportscar365.com/sro/igtc/double-stint-kyalami-9h-recap-nick-tandy-interview/

Monday, November 25, 2019

Kyalami 9 Hours full race broadcast

The entire race broadcast of the Kyalami 9 Hours. Relive all the action of this wonderful motor race, as yours truly called it, in the blog entry, but, with the play by play talents of David Addison and John Watson in the commentary box, and Bruce Jones reporting on the action from the pit lane.

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Kyalami 9 Hours short highlights

The short highlights of the Kyalami 9 Hours, in case you missed it, with David Addison on the commentary. Stay tuned, for a full race replay, coming up soon.

Kyalami 9 Hours Race Recap

Saturday, November 23, 2019

Kyalmi 9 Hours winners

All the overall and class winners, from the Kyalami 9 Hours at Kyalami in South Africa, today, in a revival of the race, for the first time since 1982.

Overall/Pro: #31 Matthieu Jaminet, Dennis Olsen & Nick Tandy     Frikadelli Racing Team Porsche 911 GT3R

Silver Cup: #9 Romain Dumas, Dirk Werner, & Sven Mueller     KUS Team 75 Bernhard Porsche 911 GT3R

Am: #36 Henry Walkenhorst, Michael von Rooyen, & Gennaro Bonafede   Walkenhorst Motorsport BMW M6 GT3

National: #17 Kishoor Pitamber, Leonard Charles Thompson, &Michael Stephen Pablo Clark Racing Ferrari 458 Italia GT3

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 9 (the finish)

Masses of water still being displaced and we see tire tracks now. 58 minutes now remaining in the Kyalami 9 Hours. So, we are getting close to the end of this one. Porsche #9 takes its last stop. Augusto Farfus and company could be good to go to the end. It has stopped raining. This is the Lechner Racing Silver Cup Porsche. Lars Kern, takes over from Saul Hack. Luxembourg driver Dylan Pereira now at the wheel of the Lechner Porsche. Pablo Clark has picked up the safety car in front of the race leader. That's the Pablo Clark Racing #17 Ferrari, Michael Stevens at the wheel of it, sharing with Kishoor Pitamber and Leonard Charles Thompson. They are doing a driver change with 54 minutes to go. This car is racing against itself, and they just need to get back home in one piece. They've learned how to do endurance racing so they can come back here next year and know how things work.

Puddles are still around Sunset corner. The safety car continues to lead them around. Now, Mercedes' hopes are brightening for the manufacturers cup again. The headlights bleach out the camera lens. Augusto Farfus leads this motor race with one more possible pit stop. Mercedes have rolled the dice. No word from Race Control about a planned restart. They go downhill through Crowthorne. Maxi Gotz could still win the championship, as the rain ebgins hammering down again with just 49 minutes left. This time of year in South Africa, it's the rainy season. This race was resurrected after 37 years, and in 1973, there may have been rain, that year, when Reinhold Joest and Herbert Muller won in a Porsche 908/3 spyder. Here's a list of all the winners, from Wikipedia, from Grand Central and Kyalami.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyalami_9_Hours

Slow down, lads. We're paddling through the water again. Kudos to the camera crews and the marshals for sticking it out through the lightning, thunder, and rain. As soon as we get the race done, the rain will stop, and we'll go home, and still say, "wow, that was an awesome race!" 45 minutes to go, uphill into Leeukop and down the hill. We're going to finish this race in nine hours. We have run 241 laps, 687 miles. The current lap time behind the safety car is 3:25. Yelmer Buurman could inherit the lead if we don't throw a green flag. We should not risk it. We will wait for five minutes to go for the race to go back to green because of all the standing water.

International flights are stacking up over the Johannesburg airport at the moment. They come out of Barbecue and Farfus, Buurman, and Lietz are the top three. There are little spits of rain, but barely any, even though the volume of water is big. We have had tons of surprises. The rain has pretty much stopped. There is not a drop of rain anywhere, but we can't just start the race yet. The beauty of rain, is it makes racing unpredictable. This is a race of survival really, with just over 35 minutes left. 243 laps complete now. 692 and a half miles. This is a test for fuel consumption on the safety car, too. The safety car has run out of gas in other endurance races.

Less than half an hour to go now. Yelmer Buurman leads Richard Lietz with 27 minutes to go. The safety car is still on the road. We are going to go racing at the end of the 246th lap. 701 miles into the race. The safety car is in. 25 minutes to go. We're back underway. This will be a sprint race now. Richard Lietz wants by Yelmer Buurman through Crowthorne's. Buurman leads over Lietz and Tandy. Drive through penalty for the local #17 Ferrari. Tandy is going around the outside for second of Richard Lietz. Lietz says now. Yelmer Buurman runs wide. He has no buffers from the Porsche's. Nick Tandy decides discretion is the better part of valor over Richard Lietzs as we run down the Mine Shaft at racing speed. This is it now, four cars going for the lead. Audi wanted rain. Now, they have it.

Porsche are getting alongside Richard Lietz. Lietz goes outside, and this takes points away from Mercedes. But none of the drivers in the #20 can win the championship. Dennis Olsen in the #31 car might go ahead. You race for Porsche. This puts Catsburg up another place in the BMW. Maxi Goetz is now down to fourth. Nick Tandy wants to win this motor race. This will be a grandstand finish. 248 laps done. 707 miles. Now, Nick Tandy has passed Richard Lietz for the lead and this might give Dennis Olsen the championship. Nick Tandy is pulling away from Richard Lietz now. Tandy has bolted. This is a Porsche decision, to allow Tandy to win the title in Intercontinental GT Challenge.

This will be a Porsche victory as Matt Campbell is attacking Ricky Collard in the Aston Martin. Matty Campbell is really giving Ricky Collard everything he can handle. They slither again through Crowthorne and into Barbecue. Into Clubhouse again, and the battle rages on. More lightning in the sky. It is definitely there. The sole remaining Bentley has Jules Gounon at the wheel of it in 13th overall. Richard Lietz presses on in second place. Nick Tandy must keep Richard Lietz at bay. Christopher Haase is moving up on Yelmer Buurman. Through Leeukop again. 250 laps on the board. 713 miles. Porsche can sweep all of it. The manufacturer's cup, the driver's cup, and the Silver Cup. Maxime Martin has had a bad day and is in 15th in the overall.

The Lechner Porsche is leading Silver Cup at the moment. Nick Tandy now leads by 5.4 seconds. Dylan Pereira has run a very good race today. The gap is 6.3 seconds. Lietz is defending, but Catsburg has gone by. He is up to second. BMW goes ahead of Porsche. Can Catsburg make up seven seconds and go for the win? Can he battle Nick Tandy? Could BMW beat Porsche to the top of the podium? Catsburg is not any quicker than Tandy. Joao Paulo d'Oliveira is out of the race. We've lost Nissan #35 for KCMG. Wow! Nicky Catsburg has taken three seconds off of Nick Tandy! It's the Nicholas and Nicholas show! Tandy is getting challenged big style.

Nicky Catsburg has nothing to lose. If Tandy is second, he and Dennis Olsen can still win the championship. Richard Lietz is being dragged along by Nicky Catsburg and he is trying to stay in touch with Catsburg who is still second. Tandy is still leading. The road is drying well with just eight minutes to go. We believe Porsche wiull end up on 133 and Mercedes on 127. But if BMW goes ahead of Porsche, then Mercedes wins. They are equal to the thousandth of a second in the second sector. It is very, very close. Nick Tandy picks up some time. The lead gap is 6.4 seconds. Tandy may be pulling the pin, pushing the bye bye button. Genaro Bonafede could stay leader of the Am Cup. Double yellow flags waved at Clubhouse for the stopped Nissan #35.

We will get three laps to go. Through Leeukop again. Dennis Olsen could now be champion along with Nick Tandy. Nicky Catsburg is losing time. Just take your spot when the flag falls. Augusto Farfus will beat Dirk Werner. Nick Tandy completes lap 257. 732 miles. He ran fastest lap on lap 130. Two more laps to go. It is drying, and the road is grippier. Dennis Olsen and Matthieu Jaminet watch and wait. Poor Maximilian Buhk. He did nothing wrong. The electronics went out on the car. He probably flew home immediately. Nick Tandy is on lap 258, and this is the last lap of the Kyalami 9 Hours, returning for the first time since 1982. What a race and what a great event! We shall be back, next year and in the future.

Final lap now. Around Sunset and into Clubhouse for the last time. Dennis Olsen will be the only double winner in Intercontinental GT Challenge this year. Through Leeukop one last time. He put the car on pole. The driver's Cup has been easy, and Dennis Olsen will win the championship, and the race is won by Frikadelli Racing. Dennis Olsen, Nick Tandy, and Matthieu Jaminet! Dennis Olsen is the champion, and the Kyalami 9 Hours is back in business!

Gennaro Bonafede, Henry Walkenhorst, and Michael Van Rooyen win the Am class for Walkenhorst Racing with their BMW M6 GT3, car #36. Poor old GPX. You have to feel for them. Porsche are manufacturer's champions. Dennis Olsen, is Intercontinental GT Challenge champion! He won Bathurst and won the finale at Kyalami, book ending the season. He is IGTC champion! He is the only double winner. 14 drivers take race wins. Porsche are IGTC manufacturer's champions!

The winning driver's head for the podium. It was a really tough day for Mercedes. Everyone has a tough race, and poor old Bentley really got snookered as did Mercedes. Provisionally, Porsche has the manufacturer's championship. We may be right in saying Porsche are the champs. The event, the hospitality and everything else, has been great. We have a long-term deal racing at Kyalami. We did go racing at the end of the motor race which was great. It is a return of a great sports car race that we have seen.

Stay tuned, ladies and gentlemen, for official results.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 8

A big roar from the crowd as Afanasiev is back in the race. Locals say this storm will be quick. Porsche may be back into this thing with less than two hours left. Josh Burdon is off the road, in the #35 Nissan GT-R. Why are these chaps going off the road under a safety car? That's puzzling, mate. We are still repairing the barriers, as the lightning keeps flashing while the pavement keeps on steaming. The Nissan has to be snatched up as we have said. Who is the bloke with the webbed feet? Ricky Collard, the Briton, knows about wet tracks. Richard Lietz, and Christopher Haase, are going for it. Audi have said all weekend, "we need rain!" Well, blokes, you have it now. Go for it. Nissan #35 is in the lane now. Now it fires up and accelerates away. No damage. Sergey Afanasiev has lost spots in the Silver Cup, and is a lap down. This is doing no good for Mercedes. Katsumasa Chiyo and Joao Paulo de Oliviera did not know what was going on.

Has it stopped raining? Yes. Is there still water on the road? Yes. So, good news, and bad news. We still have lightning out there, too. We shall have about six more minutes of the safety car. Don't throw yourself into the lion's pit with this wet road as we go through Leeukop again. Downhill through the Mine Shaft is going to be tough as there are diagonal rivers down there, and in Crocodile, too. Porsche, BMW, BMW the top three. We are still under the safety car. Kevin Estre is the first driver a lap down as we have 222 laps, 633 miles, on the board. The rain is coming down again, and we are going to keep running behind the safety car. It's tipping down with rain again, as another little squall comes down. There's nothing to do at the moment for the marshals really.

We shall be under the safety car, until this rain quits. We are just playing Follow My Leader right now. We're singing in the rain, like Gene Kelly right now. All weneed now is for the safety car to rotate. The Porsche safety car is on road tires, and the GT3 cars are treaded racing rain tires. The rain is tipping, pelting, hammering down. There's loads of rain as we watcha replay of the #29 Land Motorsport Audi in the lane. One hour and 45 minutes left. If you get some fuel now, you can short pit later before the end of this motor race. Top up the tank and you're gold. Now, the rain is getting heavy again.

This rain is like Spa Francorchamps a couple of years ago. Look at the shots there. Get Gene Kelly out there, to do "Singing In The Rain"! Come on, lads. You need a dinghy. Now, maybe people will be asking for a red flag. Let's see. Aquaplaning, no visibility, and it's impassible. The safety car is crawling, trying to get traction for itself through Sunset. Water gathers inside the semi cambered corners. What will Alain Adam, Race Director, do? Alain Adam is from Belgium, so he knows nasty weather from Spa Francorchamps for the 24 Hours. The rain continues to tip down as someone turned on ye old faucet. This will be a late finish. Is there anything that says we can call the race after 3/4 distance. We've done 81%. If the conditions get worse, we can call the race and declare a winner.

225 laps in the bag. 641 and 1/'4 miles done. The drivers are fearing losing control of their cars. Visibility and aquaplaning will be the issue. We are running at 60 kilometers an hour, 37 miles an hour. Maybe slower. The bow wave as the front splitter of the Porsche is acting like a surfboard, is incredible. It's churning water like crazy. If we red flag this motor race, and we could just have a seven and a half hours of Kyalami. It is not as heavy for the rain, but standing water is the fundamental issue, and so is visibility. Is visibility safe to race at high speed with rivers all over the circuit. Will there be a curfew? Will we have to stop the cars, shut the motors off, and say, "you win" to whoever is leading, and we all go home and hit the sack?

The rain has all but stopped. Points as of now. Maxi Goetz would take the title and Dennis Olsen would be given second. The fourth place driver, Maxi Goetz is Champion Elect. Visibility unchanged, as the rain is easing off little by little. Shades of the races at Sebring in the IMSA and FIA World Endurance Championships from earlier this year. Everyone is wondering what will happen. There is less rain down on pit lane. What is the visibility level? That is the biggest question about this situation. It is not raining, but there are still puddles on the road.

If we go racing the points situation could change. Maxi Goetz is the leader on 64 points. Porsche could provisionally win the manufacturer's cup over Mercedes by a single point. The ambient and track temps will be cooler. We won't be able to dry the track because of the cooler ambient temps. Porsche #9, leading the Silver Cup is in the lane and so is the #42 BMW M6 GT3 from Schnitzer, with Martin Tomczyk at the wheel of it. #42 has been taken over by Augusto Farfus. Lars Kern, a test and development driver for Porsche is saying that the rain is getting really bad. Also, these drivers will want coffee or hot chocolate, to get rid of the shivers. These GT3 cars leak like a sieve. We have an hour and a half left.

We are not running Japanese monsoon tires. We are running standard tread block tires that are used in America and Europe. The puddles in the pit lane are disappearing. The track is drying. Over the history, we had a regulation 6 hour race. In 1958, this race was at a track called Grand Central. It moved to Kyalami. More lightning and thunder is coming. The race might just be continued. It will take 15 minutes or so to clean the track up and then, give us a final hour to race to the flag. Everyonee agrees to continue. Step back. Take a deep breath, and don't worry. Nick Catsburg has gone to pit lane. Now, Maxi Goetz has gone to second. This might have swung the pendulum back to Mercedes for the manufacturers cup.

Through Leeukop they turn. Richard Lietz leads and will be the pioneer. But, if he goes too fast, he'll spin out. Take it easy, chaps. If you go too quick, it'll be over and out, done and dusted. We've been under yellow for almost an hour. No more rain is falling. We'll be at the end of hour eight in less than 20 minutes. We are not getting the bow waves of water like we were 15 minutes ago. Richard Lietz has a notional lead of 3.4 seconds. Lars Kern is driving the Silver Cup leading car, two laps behind the overall leader, and they want a class win. They are sitting pretty for a class win. More lightning, and more rain, and more thunder. I give up.

We can finish under the safety car, but the rain has surely returned. You can hear the thunder in the background! Boom! They go through Barbeque. Thunder and lightning more apparent. Another boomer. The drivers are complaining, legitimately, about aquaplaning. Nissan #35 has pitted and a couple other cars, too, just to reset the stint clock. An hour and 15 minutes now left to go. The teams are stressed about this as they are looking at weather radars. Alain Adam, Race Director, still has to make a decision. It would be very hard to run a team in a rainy race.

The track is not quite flooded, but almost. Yelmer Buurman will replace Maximilian Goetz in the Mercedes #10 and there's the #9 Porsche for Lechner Racing as well. The rain is getting worse, but it has eased off just a bit. The lightning and the thunder are still there. Good old rumbles of thunder everywhere. Boom! Bang! Crash! It would be much easier in the daytime, but you'd have a deluge just as much. In weather like this as a driver, you get disoriented. You can't find out where you are, and then, you hear other cars around you and you don't know who it is. Every lap and every mile counts with 70 minutes to go.

The proverbial damp squid has arrived. But, we will have a Porsche battle at the front. Nissan #18, and Porsche #911 are in the lane. Porsche #31 has had a charmed life, and the #20 car has been in it the whole time, much like they were when they won at the Spa 24 Hours. Richard Lietz, Matthieu Jaminet, Earl Bamber, Ricky Collard, Yelmer Buurman, Augusto Farfus, Nicky Catsburg, Christopher Haase, Edoardo Liberati, and Dirk Werner, are your top ten. The two leading Porsche's are in the lane. So is the Aston Martin. Short stop for #20 and same for #31. Earl Bamber goes to the lead followed by Augusto Farfus, and Yelmer Buurman.

This is evryone's last pit stop. We have one stint to go. Those who stopped earlier, have jumped ahead, leapfrogging the #20 car. Nick Tandy will finish the race in #31. We are headed for the final hour, and we have had the rain for an hour and a quarter now. More cars bail for the pit lane one last time. No pit exit lights, so marshals are waving flags to let the driver's know. Earl Bamber drops down the order. Augusto Farfus leads Yelmer Buurman. Mercedes #10 could be in the pound seats for the win. We can continue under the safety car if need be. One hour now left in the motor race.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 7

Estre has pitted. So his the Timo Bernhard team Porsche. It's dark now, with less than three hours to go. 194 laps, 553 miles. Porsche won in the final Kyalami 9 Hours in 1982 with the Group C Porsche 956. A Group C car around the original circuit must have been amazing. More lightning, but we have not seen any rain. Valentin Pierburg loses his turning point and goes off the road onto the grass outside the circuit. Christopher Mies is the leder of this motor rce right ow. Again, we are in full darkness now. Most of what you can see, is headlights. Mies in the pit lane, in Audi #29 for Land Motorsport. Kevin Estre runs a 1:46.3, and Luca Stolz is faster at 1:44.7. Stolz is on fire right now, figuratively speaking. He's mowing this field down, trying to catch the race leader. Marvin Kirchhofer is in the top six in Aston Martin #62 he is sharing with Ricky Collard and Hugo de Sadeleer.

Down to Ingwe ands we see Estre running just a tad slower than Stolz. Stolz is cooking right now. Luca Stolz is the man who is bringing his car, his Mercedes, to the finish, as we see grrat pictures here at Kyalami in the darkness. Kelvin van der Linde is being hounded by Kevin Estre. Estre has to work for this. van der Linde won't let him by for free. Luca Stolz is closing, fast! He still can't do it. Kelvin van der Linde ain't gonna give you an inch there, sunshine. van der Linde finally gives way, and some hip and shoulder from Estre. The Porsche mechanics were screaming to the marshals, "get this bloke out of the way, now!" Kevin Estre can finally pick up the pace. Lightning flashes around the track, and surely, thunder crashes as well. Through Sunset, and into Clubhouse. But, going through Sunset in the dark, is very ironic, and does not make a whole load of sense now, does it?

It's real darkness with less than three hours to go. All you have is your headlights. It's as dark as say a track like Sebring in Florida. 200 laps done, and Kevin Estre leads by 3.4 seconds. 200 laps, 570 miles. Now, a pass in progress for second, and the BMW of Mikkel Jensen passes Luca Stolz on the exit of Barbecue! Oh my gosh! That was courage, personified! Mies/Haase/Winkelhock, under investigation for their pit stop time by the stwards as the cars wriggle again through Crocodile. Dylan Pereira is trying to pass Katsumasa Chiyo. More lighting in the dark sky over Kyalami, at night. Luca Stolz presses on. Audi #29 is seventh in the overall. Driving standards flag for Vervisch with respect to his coming together with the GPX Porsche, the #20 car.

Estre is 6.8 seconds ahead of Jensen. We have not seen the Silver Cup leader, the #6 Black Falcon Mercedes AMG GT3, in the hands of Lamborghini Super Trofeo champion, Sergey Afanasiev of Russia, sharing with Hubert Haupt of Germany and Germany's Patrick Assenheimer. The lightning flashes, and the thunder crashes. No night time fishing or golf. You don't want to get zapped. We are two hours and 40 minutes from getting into some wine from South Africa, which I am hearing is very good. Good food, good wine, and racing. There is no major racing on Sunday in South Africa. This race, and the Formula 1 Grand Prix, were always run on Saturday.

204 laps done now. 581 miles. Dillon Pereira under investigation for speeding in the pit lane. Michael Van Rooyen has done a lot of racing in South Africa. Genaro Bonafede has also been organizing races here in South Africa. It's unreal how many of these professional teams have made some errors on the pit lane. We are still dry despite the lightning we have seen in the sky. The wind is blowing and it is cooling, but we have not seen raindrops yet. The sky is still clear. Drive through penalty for Dylan Perreira, with Saul Hack in the car, for speeding in the pit lane. Saul won't be happy about taking that penalty. Ferrari #17 in the lane. This is the Ferrari 458 Italia Group N national car, with the non turbo V8.

This is Pablo Clark Racing, being assisted by Kessel Racing. Again, it is a South African trio. Michael Stephen, Leonard Charles Thompson, and Kishoor Pitamber. Lots of racing left now. Rain is coming, as the air is dry. It is a short burst of rain, but it will come down hard. There's more lightning in the sky. If it rains, anyone on the lead lap could still possibly win this motor race. The lightning is spectacular. Slowly, taunting everyone, is the rain, as we look at Crowthorne. 210 laps done, 598 and a half miles. Matthieu Jaminet runs 47 seconds back. Less than two and a half hours to go.

The rain is falling, and we have a car off the road. It looks like it is a Bentley. It's the #108, Rodrigo Baptista at the controls. It's at the top of the hill through Barbecue. Baptista is out of the car. We might have a safety car coming up. There might be a deluge coming. Will there be a Full Course Yellow? Wow. The lightning is very dramatic. We are now under Full Course Yellow. We are now on lap 213. That is the medical car. Not the safety car. 607 miles. Pit stop time, and we will see slick tires, as there is no rain just yet.

Mikkel Jensen and Kevin Estre both in the lane. Luca Stolz also in. Fuel only for the top two. The Bentley is being retrieved, while the sister car came to the garage for a brake change. Also, we saw pit stops for BMW Schnitzer, and the Luca Stolz driven Mercedes for SPS Automotive Performance, car #10. The rain is tipping down now! We are under Full Course Yellow, going from slicks to wet tires from Pirelli. It's Biblical rain. The pit lane is jammed. This is a mess. Kevin Estre is now in the pit lane, and maybe he went by it when th rain began to come down. Mikkel Jensen is also still on the course.

Kevin Estre steps out of the car, and he hands over to Richard Lietz or Michael Christensen. Not sure who. I think it will be Richard Lietz. What will we do, chaps? Time lost, and the car is waved away. He will keep the lead despite a very incoherent pit stop. Maybe the radios got scrambled. #42, the Schnitzer BMW is also making a stop. It is down and away. Kevin Estre did go off the road coming down through the Mine Shaft. Earl Bamber brought the Dinamic Porsche in for wet tires. Maybe the rain has stopped for the moment. We will see. Richard Lietz leads the race. Both BMW's are second and third. #34 followed by #42.

The track is awash, but it could dry up. Hot race track, cold rain = steam. We are under the Safety Car, now. It is our fourth FCY/Safety Car of the motor race. Richard Lietz is indeed driving the #20 car. Lietz and Kevin Estre said they needed an extra lap, almost spinning out on slicks in the rain. Not a good thing. This race has delivered in the excitement department. There is so, so much history of this race. More rain. More lightning. It's been quite the day of racing. Wet weather in the daytime is doable. Wet weather at night, is much harder. The Black Falcon team is yelling at the marshals to push the car, but no one is down there. Golly. There's debris on the road, and darkness. Ricky Collard is running well in the Aston Martin as Earl Bamber and Valentin Pierburg are in the lane, to reset their stint time, zeroing the clock for another 65 minutes.

It is time get the car pushed out of the gravel. A GT3 car is very heavy. They need a snatch vehicle. Here comes the field behind the safety car. So, we wait. Don't go off the track and puish the car back. Meanwhile, sweep the water up.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 6

Full Course Yellow. The story never ends. The sun is setting as we recreate the fabled Kyalami 9 Hours. We continue under the safety car. The light fades, gradually. There are so many small shards of carbon fiber around. The #108 Bentley has been given the black and orange meatball flag for making repairs. The #76 Aston Martin is in the lane, Enam Ahmed at the wheel of it. We are neutralized under the safety car, now. Are the wing struts for the Bentley, secure? They should be. The rear right fender is off. The scrutineers want the Bentley in the lane for a check over. We continue under the safety car. Hey, Steve, we have to do a little polish on the car. Now, the #188 Aston Martin is also back in the lane. That's the West/Goodwin/Ledogar car. Rodrigo Baptista has to be upset, and he's being consoled by team mate, Jordan Pepper from the #107 crew.

Safety car in this lap and we'll go back to green. We are back to green flag racing, and the Bentley is now in the lane. Kevin Estrew is pressing hard, over Luca Stolz and here comes Laurens Vanthoor. Dennis Olsen is coming back into the picture after the safety car. He's been a real runner in this stint, has Dennis Olsen. Fred Vervisch is elbowed out by Christina Nielsen. She shares the sister Strakka Mercedes, car #43, with Dominik Baumann and Adrian Henry D'Silva. We are officially in darkness. Headlights on, chaps. Kevin Estre leads. Stolz, Vanthoor, Imperatori, and Jensen, the top five. Estre leads by 2.2 seconds. 165 laps on the board, 470 and 1/4 miles completed. Bentley #108 is in the lane, assessing the damage. They are having issues trying to put new bodywork under the rear wing.

Steven Kane, sitting in the car, very upset that he isn't racing right now. Estre is only clear of Stolz by 1.8 seconds. The clouds gather, and darkness looms here at Kyalami. Alexander Imperatori is in fourth in the overall and is coming, fast. Mikkel Jensen turns an absolute best sector time! Wow! Track temp has dropped. Air temp has dropped. Darkness is coming. This race is coming alive even more than it already has been. This race still has many twists and turns. Porsche #20 has led on the hour mark, through four of the five hours we've run. Martin Tomczyk runs seventh as the cars race through Crocodile. Katsumasa Chiyo is holding up Mikkel Jensen and Dennis Olsen, both. Martin Tomczyk is coming, as they speed through Clubhouse and through the esses.

They pour through Mine Shaft and on to Crocodile. Imperatori is closing up on Vanthoor. Not a drop of rain. We were worried for a long while. But so far, no rain to worry about yet. You can never tell. Vanthoor and Imperatori are flying right now. Katsumasa Chiyo is off sequence, and Chiyo is playing a blocker for team mate Alexandre Imperatori trying to keep Mikkel Jensen at bay. Out of Barbecue Bend and into Sunset, we see the battle between Luca Stolz and Kevin Estre. Wriggling through Crocodile and back into Cheetah, Estre is defending. 170 laps, 484 and 1/2 miles. Lightning in the distance! Oh boy! We could gt rain. There may be some thunder booms around as well.

Things are changing all the time once again. This is why GT3 racing is so wonderful. Porsche #20 still leads through Leeukop. Thunderstorms scheduled for 7PM? Hmmm. When it rains in South Africa, it really rains. More dust going through Barbecue. Marvin Kirchofer is in the lane, in the Aston Martin, promoting two of the South African drivers. Now, we have Vanthoor and Imperatori battling, 173 laps in. Mile marker 493. Mikkel Jrnsen tries to pasas Chiyo san and Chiyo went off the road and back on again! The cork is out of the bottle as Mikkel Jensen was flying, and poor old Chiyo's eyes will be like saucers!

He's off the road, and in the dirt thinking, "dang it!" He's back on track. The South African driver who was promoted, Saul Hack driving the #9 Lechner Racing Porsche. Kevin Estre is finding time, or, Luca Stolz is fading. Three and a half hours to go. Fred Vervisch is 13 seconds in-arrears of Martin Tomczyk. We expect something to turn this race on it's head. Maybe the rain will. It could be coming, as we have seen evidence of lightning around the circuit. #34 and #18 still battle. Fourth, fifth and sixth, covered by a blanket through that final sequence of corners between Crocodile, Cheetah, and Ingwe.

Chiyo wanted to dive into Mine Shaft, but there was no way he could have made it work without calamity. The #34 BMW continues to become more impressive. They have risen to the occasion. Who pulled the pin on that car? Equally, Nissan #18 is in the picture as we see darkness, and rain. Reveling in the sunshine of returning sports cars to Kyalami, and now, rain will spoil the party in a way. No dice for the Nissan to try to pass the BMW. The Nissan is back at it, but no. Mikkel Jensen is really going for it, through the change between daylight and darkness. Bentley #107 pitting. It is fading away, stint by stint.

Kevin Estre continues to hold Luca Stolz at bay with three hours and 20 minutes left. Laurens Vanthoor is warned about track limits. Mercedes still has two points ahead of it's competition from Porsche. Aston Martin are not registered. They do not score points in the manufacturer's cup for these races. Mercedes might take the cup by two points. Check that. Porsche will beat them. But, we've got a shade over three hours, which is the standard distance for a Blancpain GT Europe endurance race. Mercedes could still; win over Porsche, but we shall see. Through the gloom, look, we have Porsche vs. Mercedes vs. BMW. Laurens Vanthoor goes tghrough the slower traffic. Come Ledogar in the Aston Martins lets him by.

Dennis Olsen still wants to pass Alexandre Imperatori. We still have the distance left of an averag Blancpain Endurance event. The gap has ballooned to 3.7 seconds between Kevin Estre and Luca Stolz. More lightning is flashing around the track as it is getting darker here at Kyalami. The Audi's have been struggling for straight line performance. Through Leeukop another time. Headlights on, in the dark, looking to the background of Johannesburg. This race, is a classic, when it was an international race back in the 1960s. Great facility here at Kyalami. It's a world class race track.

Many drivers are making their first visit to South Africa, no matter where they come from. Pit stop time, look, for Rinaldi Racing. We could get 40 cars for this race in the future, but the track needs a bigger pit lane if that's so. Andre Bezuldenhout says the third gear in the transmission of the #09 Porsche, did go out after the car spun in qualifying. Bezuldenhout is really happy, as this race is bringing motorsport back to South Africa. Well done to the people who have organized this race, and well done to Perfect Circle. They'll be back next year. Pit stop time, look, for the #36 Henry Walkenhorst driven BMW. That's one of his cars. Michael van Rooyen will get into the car.

The #108 Bentley is back on track despite the damage, as Nick Tandy continues to languish behind the Nissan. Pardon me, Dennis Olsen. Different driver, same situation. He's still languishing. We are in the zone of the cars diving in for new tires, maybe slicks. The rain could be letting uyp. Down the hill and still, the #31 car, he just does not have enough in the locker. Puncture for the Audi #25! Deary me! Forget double stinting tires! That was ugly. The tire has deflated, and it was as flat as a pancake.

Dennis Olsen is also in the lane. Bentley and Audi have both had punctures. The amount of clag on the road is astonishing. The wind is picking up as we have resumed the battle between Porsche and BMW. Dominik Baumann is now in the #43 Strakka Racing Mercedes. Six hours gone. Three left. It is now dark as the #911 Porsche pits. A standard service it seems. Down and away.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 5

Oliver Jarvis continues to push with the Nissan. 129 laps on the board, 368 miles. Oliver Jarvis is running in the better of the two KCMG Nissan GT-R's so far. Nick Tandy has recorded a lap of 1:30.876 as Dries Vanthoor goes off the road. The Lumirank is out of kilter due to Hugo de Sadeleer having transponder issues on the Aston Martin. de Sadeleer has buckets of straight line speed, though. Slow motion shots through Crocodile look really cool, but there's tons of dust being kicked up. Maxime Soulet in the #107 Bentley is warned for track limits since the reset. Christian Krognes hits the pit lane from second spot. Nick Tandy can now chase down Michael Christensen in a fair fight.

Dust on track at Barbecue Bend. Now, double stinting for the tires for the Walkenhorst BMW. The #22 Rinaldi Ferrari is a lap adrift, but it is a car we have not seen. WTM Racing powered by Rinaldi with South African David Perel in his home race, and German drivers Jochen Krumbach and Leonard Weiss. We see cars continually running wide at Cheetah corner. The team manager of the #62 R-Motorsport Aston is being summoned to the stewards for stint time violation. Nick Tandy bounding over the curbs. That sausage curb at Sunset is where that was. Tim Torsten Muller had to do a Control, Alt, Delete and restart the #40 SPS Automotive Performance Mercedes AMG GT3, sharing with fellow German Valentin Pierburg and Portugal's Miguel Ramos.

Pit stop time for the Dinamic Porsche and the Schnitzer BMW. In the manufacturer's cup, Porsche may beat Mercedes. They are ahead, at 136 points over 129 points for Mercedes. Both Porsche's from the lead have spun! Michael Christensen was tagged by Nick Tandy, and both of those blokes rotated! That was an avoidable fracas. Is there damage to the diffuser on Christensen's car? There is some damage to Tandy. Christensen slows, Tandy clsoes up, tags Christensen, and they both rotated. Tandy did not slow down enough. Dries Vanthoor and Hugo de Sadeller scrap through Sunset. Vanthoor is not close enough and de Sadeleer stays ahead as Oliver Jarvis is monstering Markus Winkelhock through Barbecue!

Winkelhock tried into Sunset and couldn't quite make it. More action as Markus Winkelhock is being monstered by the Nissan and Christensen and Tandy are both in the lane at lap 136. 388 miles done and dusted. Oliver Jarvis now has managed to pass Dries Vanthoor. Vanthoor just can't make it work. New boots on the #31 Porsche. That incident, between #20 and #31 is under investigation by the stewards. This is very similar to the Vettel and Leclerc scrape up in the F1 race in Brazil last weekend. Tandy has lost time after going dancing with Michael Christensen. Michael Vergers is the driving standards advisor, a former sports car and open wheel racer from England.

Ricky Collard, his stint aboard the #62 Aston Martin was being looked at. Yelmer Buurman is still at the wheel of the #10 Mercedes now in the lead. Luca Stolz has not taken the controls of that car yet, and maybe is reserved if there's rain in our future. It does not look like it now. We've got four hours and 41 minutes to go. Markus Winkelhock goes off the road and back on through Sunset. He was way wide in the dirt on the outside of Sunset there. He's a lucky chap as the barrier is moved back from where it used to be years and years ago. Dries Vanthoor is now at the wheel of the #25 WRT Audi. Dennis Olsen may be in the Frikadelli #31 Porsche. Dennis Olsen is now 13th overall, and Olsen will have to take a penalty. He will be fuming! It wasn't his fault. Dries Vanthoor is now taking over the lead and the Mercedes runs 139 laps and drops out of the top ten.

Laurens Vanthoor is now back at the wheel of one of the other Porsche's. Olsen takes the penalty. Take your medicine. Keep going. Dennis Olsen tries making a move on Oliver Jarvis, through the Mine Shaft and back through Crowthornes. Olsen goes outside in Sunset, and he's prying the door open into Clubhouse, but no. Audi, Mercedes, and BMW are still fighting for the title. Romain Dumas is now at the wheel of the #911 car sharing with Dirk Werner (another championship contender), and Sven Muller.

Sheldon van der Linde has gone ahead of Christian Krognes. BMW may have another pit stop in the future as Dries Vanthoor clears Enam Ahmed in one of the Aston Martin's. The gap is 1.9 seconds. Oliver Jarvis pits from second place and we have an Audi 1-2 with four and a half hours to go, and no rain yet, thankfully. Dries Vanthoor has brought the #25 Audi to the lane. The Land Motorsport Audi takes over the race lead. Four and a half hours to go. Christopher Mies will get aboard the #29 Land Audi as we see a very close shave between Oliver Jarvis, and a Mercedes, and there's a shredded right rear tire on the #108 Bentley with Andy Soucek at the wheel!

The tire is shredding, and the wheel has been ripped to shreds! Wow! The rear fender is gone and is off the car and on the pavement of the racing line! The tire went bang, and deflated. It was super heated and exploded. He's back out with lighter weight. Will it be underweight if it wins? It's the new Bentley Continental GT two and a half, looking more like a Morgan or a Caterham. Christian Krognes leads over Sheldon van der Linde. It's a BMW 1-2. Schnitzer vs. Walkenhorst, 148 laps, 422 miles. #31 almost hits the Nissan! Olsen is really going for it. Fred Vervisch is being pressured, and so is Joao Paulo De Oliviera. Romain Dumas covers Dennis Olsen as well! Olsen brakes late and passes Romain Dumas.

We're just over halfway in this race. Richard Attwood won the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans with a Porsche 917 by running a conservative pace. That's the good way to run an enduro, but today, you've got to go for it. Joao Paulo de Oliviera is running ahead of Dennis Olsen, but de Oliviera understeers, and he's off the road! One up, and three down, after running wide! Romain Dumas has gone by. This is wild! Drive to the edge of adhesion on the Pirelli tires! Romain Dumas is 11th overall. Four hours and 20 minuts on the board as Christian Krognes leads by three seconds over Sheldon van der Linde. Tons of clag on the side of the track.

Katsumasa Chiyo is set to take over the #35 KCMG Nissan. Vervisch vs. Olsen for ninth overall and for points for the title. Sheldon van der Linde balked by one of the Mercedes. Luca Stolz is out of sequence, behind one of the Bentley's. #108 is the Bentley will damage. Michael Christensen can start reeling in Christian Krognes. The #42 BMW of Sheldon van der Linde is back in the pit lane. A driver change for the car. Who is getting in? It is full service. But, there's something going on. More battles as Dennis Olsen is nose to tail with Fred Vervisch. Vervisch is there, and Olsen dives by!

BMW #42 is back on track, and Martin Tomczyk is now at the controls. Christian Krognes pits the #34 Walkenhorst BMW M6 GT3. Mikkel Jensen or Nicky Catsburg will get into that car. Maybe there will be need for brake pad changes before this race is over. Nissan #35 in the lane, and Chiyo san will take over from Joao Paulo de Oliviera. A flapping bonnet for the #42 Schnitzer BMW. Michael Christensen leads from Hugo de Sadeleer. Third is Oliver Jarvis followed by Laurens Vanthoor, and then Maxime Soulet. The BMW is stopping before the #20 Porsche. Will the Porsche lose or gain?

#188, the Aston Martin, still has Alexander West, the Swede, at the wheel. He shares with Chris Goodwin from England and Come Ledogar from France. Luca Stolz is really quick in the #10 SPS Automotive Performance Mercedes. Bentley #108 is due to hit the pit lane. The #34 BMW has a failed drink straw. Christian Krogne's helmet was de-laminating due to the heat. Yuck! That's got to be a terrible feeling. A wilting helmet! We are working lap 158. 450 miles done. Full Course Yellow, for debris, possibly.

The light is beginning to fade, and we're going top have darkness in an hour. There's cloud around, but no rain yet. Mikkel Jensen did a best First Sector time, but it is irrelevant due to the Full Course Yellow as Laurens Vanthoor has hit the pit lane for service, while Kevin Estre will take over the #20 GPX Porsche. He blistered the opposition in his first two stints, in the wet, at the Spa 24 Hours. Porsche #31 is in the lane, Dennis Olsen still at the wheel. Same for the #25 WRT Audi. This Full Course Yellow is for debris, and there will be a safety car. Has Porsche #31 worked its way back into the game? Maybe.

#20 in the lane from the lead on lap 159. Are there tires? Yes. New tires for #20 and new driver. A new driver, and a new set of boots, only makes sense. Kevin Estre is back in the lead, possibly, as we see the KCMG Nissan also in the lane. No safety car yet. Oliver Jarvis brings the #18 in, the aforementioned KCMG car. Debris has to be swept up at the Mine Shaft, and it is in progress.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 4

Michael Christensen passes the lapped Ferrari. Tristan Vautier is off the road! He's in the barriers! Now, Christian Krognes is monstering the Porsche of Michael Christensen! That's a massive shunt into the barriers. Game over for Strakka Racing. That is near Mine Shaft. The white flag is at the top of Leeukop and the marshals are warning the drivers. Itr's wall off the road, past the gravel trap. Maybe we won't need a Full Course Yellow. For the moment, look, the cars are still racing. The lead car is slowing compared to the cars behind it! What is that? It's the ebb and flow of this motor race. Crazy stuff. Perfect racing conditions. A day or so ago, we were in a deluge of rain. All of this, is not helping Mercedes in the manufacturer's championship. Four Porsche's vs. two Mercedes'. Four bullets, vs. two. Stuttgart can celebrate either way.

Ah. We do go Full Course Yellow as the marshals try to remove the Strakka Mercedes. Christian Krognes takes the gamble, diving for the pit lane on lap 102. 291 miles done. Krognes drove through the lane. No pit stop? That's odd. He pulled in and the team was not ready to service the car. Audi #29 in the lane for Team Land. They have a drive through penalty for not grounding the car on one of the previous stops. This is a tire change, but it might have done the drive through. It's down off the air jacks, and is sitting there, so maybe it is taking the penalty now. He's back in the race now.

BMW #34 has reset the driver stint clock for a fresh 65 minutes. Schnitzer did this at the Suzuka 10 Hours if you watched the video of that race. You have to think on your feet. Back in the '60s, you went through the motions, but now, it is a race for the flag. You can't just chill out and enjoy your sausage roll for lunch and say, "OK, we're good." We remain under Full Course Yellow. The safety car is on standby. That 2010-2014 997 model 911 is of course paying tribute to the Porsche 917 that won here in 1969, of Richard Attwood and David Piper. It's an older car, and they want to get to the finish. Go Perfect Circle! There is a Porsche 917 here at the track at Kyalami, being displayed. There were only 25 of those cars built.

We are now back under the Safety Car. We are readying for the restart. Christensen, Tandy, Krognes, Gounon, Campbell, Vanthoor (Dries Vanthoor), Burdon, Jarvis, Soucek, and Sheldon van der Linde. Porsche, Porsche, BMW, Bentley, Nissan, Nissan, Bentley, BMW. The tire wall is being reconstructed and rebound with conveyor belt so the tires don't split and scatter all over the place. There's still more time needed to repair the barriers. We have not had any double winners in IGTC. Every race so far has seen a different winner at Bathurst, Laguna Seca, Spa, and Suzuka. #35 has had a ten second penalty added to it's next pit stop. We continue under the safety car.

We have had a few pit stops. Hubert Haupt and Oliver Jarvis have both been in the lane. Ten second penalties as well for a couple more cars, one of which is the #36 Walkenhorst Motorsports BMW, the Walkenhorst/Von Rooyen/Bonafede car. Kyalami has always been a great track, but it is now a blend of the old and the new. The track is cleaned up and barriers repaired. We're set to resume the motor race. Mike Christensen backs up Nick Tandy and hits the gas pedal early. Tandy runs wide at the exit of Barbeque, and into Sunset, Tandy is slightly offline, and Krognes does the crisscross and makes the move! Krognes did an amazing job there! Last year's Spa 24 winner. Matty Campbell tries the Bentley out of Leeukop, but no dice.

Sheldon van der Linde is pressing past Andy Soucek into Ingwe. Poor old Jake Dennis can't get through the lapped traffic. He's swamped. Campbell is off in the dust! He's doing some off roading there, look. Sven Mueller is in a hurry as well, look, pressing Andy Soucek. Michael Christensen leads, but is being hounded by Christian Krognes. Nothing has changed at the sharp end, but it could. Stay tuned. Jake Dennis is fourth in line, but is a lap down, 16th overall. Dennis Olsen is ahead in the driver's cup right now. Maxi Buhk may just have to settle for third in the points. Krognes has the afterburners on right now! He could win, maybe. But, we still have just under five and a half hours left.

Jules Gounon will pass Jake Dennis. Poor old Jake Dennis is just way down the order. Remember, Matt Campbell beat Jake Dennis to the victory in the season opener, the Bathurst 12 Hours, back in February. Nick Tandy is getting a response from Christian Krognes. No worries for Nick Tandy on the most recent pit stop about a position gained in an unorthodox manner. We wonder and wait if the weather gods are going to flip the script and bring some rain. So far, that has not happened. The Frikadelli team, is from the Nurburgring 24 Hours, but its being run by Manthey Racing, the factory GT3 Porsche team. Bentley #108 is on it's last warning for track limits. Andy Soucek, Steven Kane, and Rodrigo Baptista, the Spaniard, the Brit, and the Brazilian.

We are working lap 119. 339 miles run. Nissan #35 is in the lane. Josh Burdon will be serving a penalty. Bentley #107 is also in the pit lane, and will change over to another driver. Jules Gounon out, and either Maxime Soulet or Jordan Pepper, back in. Audi's are running ninth and tenth in the overall. Dries Vanthoor vs. Markus Winkelhock. Christensen is alive now, and he has to move Alexander West out of the way. No third gear for the #09 Porsche. Game over. Some snap oversteer from Krognes. He loses a shade of time relative to Michael Christensen in the lead.

Nick Tandy is still pressuring Christian Krognes. 124 laps done and dusted. 353 miles. Around 16 laps before the next round of pit stops. Just over five hours left on the clock. The halfway mark in this race will be in an hour or so. Dries Vanthoor reels in Yelmer Buurman. Nick Tandy closes on Christian Krognes. The rear wing flexes on Tandy's Porsche. Tandy runs wide over the curbs, twice, and he's off tghe road through the gravel trap! Tandy loses his composure and might be in a spot of bother. Yikes! He keeps going. Can he regroup? In replay, he exited the turn fractionally too early and goes off the road.

Tandy has to be more cautious now between Crocodile and Cheetah. He's a tad slower than Christian Krognes. Four hours imminently done and dusted as Michael Christensen leads this motor race as the Audi's run virtually as one, trying to pass Hugo de Sadeleer in the #62 R-Motorsport Aston Martin. He has a transponder issue on the car, somehow.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 3

Matthieu Jaminet is all over Earl Bamber. Augusto Farfus is still at the wheel of the #42 Schnitzer BMW as they've made a pit stop. Earl Bamber is hitting the sausage curbs. There's sausage curb's everywhere, so drivers know to respect track limits. Jaminet makes a move on Earl Bamber. Earl Bamber is not racing as well as he could be, the New Zealander, who now calls Malaysia home. n ignition coil on the third cylinder was damaged on the GruppeM Mercedes. What a shame! It's a simple, cheap piece, that happens to fail. The race leading Bentley is in the lane. 35 laps for the Bentley on the latest stint. Maxime Soulet will take over from Pepper. Mercedes #10, Yelmer Buurman at the wheel of it, is steaming along, catching up. The Porsche's are likely to double stint their tires. Porsche will come back to their natural habitat, soon.

Only two mechanics change tires in IGTC. It's tough work in the heat in the pit lane. Edoardo Liberati has gained spots due to a short stop. Maxime Soulet will run ahead of the Nissan, but Liberati wants him. Liberati's tires are older, and have more wear. Christopher Mies is pressing Richard Lietz forthe lead of this race! Mies is pressing hard on Lietz headed for pit stops, and out of Leeukop, they dive through Crocodile. Both blokes will be in the lane, and Christopher Haase will; take over Audi #1. No pit stops for the Porsche's. They will do one more lap. Earl Bamber bails to the lane and Matty Campbell will take over. So, our guesses were incorrect. Mies has done a greast job. #9 and #911 are in the lane, too. Lietz and Jaminet will be in next time around.

Stradale Motorsport is the #13 Lamborghini Huracan GT3. The Schnitzer BMW goes by Matt Campbell, and Campbell gives up a spot to Augusto Farfus. Now, in the Lambo #13, it's a South African trio. Charl Arangies, sharing with Craig Jarvis and Dawie Joubert. Those are the blokes driving #13, in case you wanted to know. Both Porsche's now in the lane, Lietz followed by Jaminet, now on lap 74. Yelmer Buurman moves ahead of Matt Campbell! Yikes! This is for the championship! A tire stop for the #20 Porsche, and for the #31, a long stop for tires it seems. It's the right thing todo. Richard Lietz stayed at the wheel of #20. Nick Tandy takes Matthieu Jaminet's place in the #31 Frikadelli Porsche.

Christopher Haase has taken over from Christopher Mies in the #29 Land Motorsport Audi. Maxime Soulet runs third with Edoardo Liberati in the #18 Nissan GT-R in fourth overall. Bentley are in the pound seats at the moment. Richard Lietz leads this motor race by 22 seconds. Tandy is behind by a minute, actually. We have a cloud base beginning to roll in. It's 3:15 P.M. Rain may come, but let's wait an hour. Make hay, while the sun still shines, chaps. That's what you've got to do. Josh Burdon has uncorked two absolute best sector times! Holy cow! Kelvin van der Linde is in trouble, as the pit stop length has been reported to the stewards, including the South African local stewards John Walsh and Craig Masters.

Kelvin van der Linde is chasing Edoardo Liberati. Meantime, Yelmer Buurmn is doing the same for Augusto Farfus. He's monstering the Brazilian in the BMW. red Vervisch is now the leader of the points championship, by four markers as they run now. We'll see what happens. Matt Campbell is still struggling. He's 51.9 seconds away from th GPX Porsche in the lead of the motor race as Farfus is still defending over Buurman out of Barbecue Bend and into Sunset. Silvio Scribante is at the wheel of the #09 Perfect Circle Porsche at the moment. Richard Lietz continues to lead the motor race, and Maxime Soulet is slower on new tires! Good grief! That's really strange. Two different drivers may be the factor. I wonder what the engineers at Pirelli tires think.

On the Schnitzer BMW, it says "Godspeed Charlie", for the late Charlie Lamm, who led Schnitzer to tons of championships in GT and touring car racing as well as one win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, two decades ago. The track conditions here at Kyalami are perfect at the moment. Lietz is being pursued by Tandy, but the gap isn't closing too much. New tires for Christopher Haase and Tristan Vautier, as Haase is doing the chasing. Again, it's the gazelle being chased by the leopard or the cheetah.

The local South African Ferrari is in the way, again. He had to bail, for the factory cars. Up through to Barbeque Bend again, and we work lap 83. 236.5 miles in the book, through Clubhouse, and into the esses. Christopher Haase has tons of wins in GT cars, and in endurance races. Yelmer Buurman is still stuck in the middle, between Matt Campbell and Augusto Farfus. Of the 28 starters, 25 cars are still running. The Garage 59 Aston Martin has retired along with the GruppeM Mercedes and the Honda from Honda Team Motul. Christopher Haase is under investigation for something on the pit stop.

The #188 Aston Martin is still in the garage. It is being repaired. It'll go back out, with a new gearbox as it has to be shipped to Australia, to Bathurst, for round one of the 2020 Intercontinental GT Challenge when the new season comes, in February. The Mercedes does not seem to have a performance reply to the BMW. Strange. Yelmer Buurman wants to do it, but Augusto Farfus slams the door directly in his face. Farfus has been a successful touring car driver, and has those skills to fend off Buurman. Christopher Haase is chasing Tristan Vautier. He tries down the inside, but discretion is the better part of valor indeed.

Vautier is stuck behind Liberati through Ingwe. Unlucky #13, as the Lamborghini is off the road. Dawie Joubert at the controls. That car is going to have to come back. But, because of this, we now have a Full Course Yellow. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Full Course Yellow, now. The Lamborghini has hit a concrete barrier at Mine Shaft, and he skidded across the road to the other barrier. So, the only Lamborghini in this motor race is out. Game over, mate. Now, we have the GPX Porsche and also the #62 R-Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage in the lane. Ricky Collrd, Hugo de Sadeleer, and Marvin Kirchhoefer re the trio. Michel Christensen is in, and so is everyone else. Better to be born lucky than rich here.

Aston Martin, back on track, and more cars pour into the pit lane. Virtually everyone is in for a splash and dash to top up the tanks. Six hours and 20 minutes left on the board. Sven Mueller, Christopher Haase, Yelmer Buurman, Sheldon van der Linde, and others, have pitted. Sheldon van der Linde has taken over the #42 from Augusto Farfus. #25 will be given a time penalty on it's next pit stop. That's the WRT car for Dries Vanthoor, Kelvin van der Linde, and Freddie Vervisch. The Lamborghini is still being snatched by the safety workers. Dawie Joubert came from the inside across, and crunch! He hit the wall hard!

How he got out to th left side nof the road, into the clag, we don't know. Maybe it was a driver error. The safety car will pick up the field. We remain under Full Course Yellow, until he picks up the leader of the motor race, the GPX Porsche. The safety car is also a Porsche 911 GT3RS. So, it too, is fast. Christopher Haase has dropped to 11th overall and the #25 is tenth but will lose spots after the penalty. The road car Porsche looks puny compared to the GT3 race car. The Ferrari must go quicker at the head of the queu. Ferrari driver, please speed up! Even the safety car is being held up. Get the egg out from under your foot, sunshine.

Get with the program, buster. Pick up the pace, please! Maybe the radio is dead and the driver can't hear. Their teams have said, go by this bloke, and finally, the Ferrari driver nails it and goes faster. The #44 Mercedes has one backmarker between it and the leader. Nick Tandy has gained in a massive way. He's gained six spots, look! Holy moly! Tandy is going to go for it. With the pit stops, the next calculations for future stops, have been thrown out the window, working lap 93. 265 miles completed. Jake Dennis in the #76 Aston Martin for R-Motorsport has been lapped. Dennis sharing with Maxime Martin and Enaam Ahmed.

Safety car in this lap. We will go racing this time around. Matt Campbell might just be champion, but the points margin are really close. Michael Christensen can now press the throttle, and we're going back to green. Green flag, now. What can Nick Tandy do? They go through Crowthorne, and the #44 Mercedes is off the road and there's contact with Nick Tandy! Tandy is damaged! Yikes! That was a messy bit of argy bargy through Barbecue! Michael Christensen is moving ahead followed by Christian Krognes and Matt Campbell. Off the road there, for Jake Dennis. Dennis is pushing, and so is everyone else.

Tandy will dive around the Aston and gets balked by the Dinamic Porsche. A drive through penalty for Christopher Haase. The car was not grounded at the pit stop. We've seen a drive through penalty for the #188 Aston Martin as well that just got out of the garage. Vauiter made a mess of things through Crowthorne. Christopher Haase will get a drive through penalty. Tandy has gained time back due to the FCY and the safety car. We are now working lap 97. Matt Campbell is backing up the cars behind him. Tandy is one of those. Tandy goes for third and makes the pass. Tandy looks to catch the BMW. Nick Tandy is now third. This helps Dennis Olsen for the title. The BMW is right on the money through the esses.

Krognes, down the Mine Shaft, chases Christensen. Krognes has good pace, the former Spa 24 Hours winner in 2018. GPX won Spa this year. New tires and no pace? That's strange.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 2

Franco Scribante, Silvio Scribante, and Andre Bezuidenhout, they are the team drivers. But no ABS on the Perfect Circle Porsche. Bentley and Audi in the lane. Marcus Winkelhock, and Jordan Pepper. Estre and Olsen are half a second apart as Laurens Vanthoor pits from fourth. They are doing a driver change, switching over to either Earl Bamber or Matt Campbell, getting new tires. KUS Team75 Bernhard, and Lechner Racing pit, and so does Oliviera in the #35 KCMG Nissan. Both lead cars are in the lane, in tandem. One hour and five minutes done. Driver change for #20. But what about #31? Yes. Richard Lietz is into the GPX car and Matthieu Jaminet is in the Frikadelli car. They will change tires on the #20 machine. Wow. They said., "we'll double stint." Not now. Honda #30 is in the lane, too. That's the Cameron/Bonanomi/Baguette car. Bertrand Baguette, Dane Cameron, and Marco Bonanomi.

Now, Jordan Pepper and Gary Paffett lead as they did not change tires. But how long will it be before their old tires are knackered? Mercedes vs. Bentley vs. Porsche. 37 laps in the bag. Jordan Pepper leads his home race so far. Bentley will go short with one car and long with the other on their pit strategy. Earl Bamber is at the wheel of the #12 Porsche. The Dinamic car. He is pressing the Silver Cup leading Mrcedes. Not sure which number that car is. Hang on. That's the Patrick Assenheimer driven car headed around for another lap headed for Crowthorne. Bamber moves outside and makes the pass stick. Fresh tires are a good thing. Porsche is quicker on pace than the Benz. Richard Lietz in car #20 is the next motorcar on Bamber's shopping list.

Bamber will want a bite of that cherry, indeed. Matthieu Jaminet is now eighth after losing time in the lane. Jordan Pepper ran a 1:44.3, and Paffett, a 1:44.167. He's still on old tires. Traditionally, the Mercedes is very easy on it's tires. It's a good gamble for Mercedes. Coming out of Clubhouse, there's clag all over the road. It may be from the support race for the Volkswagen Polo's that took place before we started. Perfect Circle are having issues, and they are going to the garage. Not good. The ABS is not working. Nobody double stints tires at Spa Francorchamps for instance. But maybe, they can do so here at Kyalami. The Porsche leaders were going to change tires. The pressures have not been where they wanted. We need to stay dry for double stinting tires. If it rains, that idea is tossed out the window.

Christopher Mies has taken over thw Land Audi. Power steering issues for the Porsche #09. Bently #107 is still leading. Jordan Pepper is on a cruise in clear air at the moment. H's catching lapped cars. He goes by the #9 Porsche for Lechner Motorsports, with Saul Hack at the controls. They wriggle through Crocodile. The two Porsche's ahead of Maxi Gotz are pushing, and so is Christopher Mies, closing on Patrick Assenheimer back to Crowthorne. Mies is pressing hard. Saul Hack sharing with Lars Kern and Dylan Pereira. A South African, a German, and a Dutchman. Battles all over the road. Hard to follow everything.

Matthieu Jaminet and Marco Bonanomi had some argby bargy in turn 16, rattling over the curbs. Is that hard racing? Maybe. 46 laps now in the book. Nick Catsburg is all over Marco Bonanomi after Bonanomi's fracas earlier. Dane Cameron had a great first stint, and Bonanomi is actually working hard on keeping the car in position. We've been racing for almost an hour and a half. They slide through Leeukop. Maxi Gotz continues to push, and he's right behind Bamber, look, through Sunset. Bamber is being gapped by Richard Lietz. Maxi Gotz wants to make a move on Bamber through Crocodile, towards Cheetah, and onto the front straight.

Matthieu Jaminet is signaled with a driving standards flag from the stewards. It's an unfair maneuver by shoving the outside car offline. He will cop a penalty for that. Maxi Gotz will stay out for 15 more laps according to the strategy reckoning here. Edoardo Liberati in the other KCMG Nissan has done a best first sector time. Liberati is in the #18 car. The Italian sharing with Alexandre Imperatori of Switzerland, and Briton Oliver Jarvis. Lest we forget, the hometown hero, Jordan Pepper leads this motor race for Bentley. They did not change tires yet. They are consolidating their lead over the second place Strakka Mercedes, with Gary Paffett at the wheel of it.

The Bentley is very agile on it's tires. Oh no. Capital T trouble as Marco Bonanomi has passed Nicky Catsburg into Leeukop. Catsburg tried to pass Bonanomi before he had to know discretion was the better part of valor. Henry Walkenhorst in the sister Walkenhorst car, is ahead. Mr. Walkenhorst, who owns the team, is a car dealer for a living. Edoardo Liberati is going to have a go at Marco Bonanomi. It's Honda vs. Nissan. Through into Crowthorne another time. Maximilian Buhk, he never came to the end of the first sector on the first lap with his terminal trouble. He must be gutted.

Bonanomi makes the pass again through Leeukop. 52 laps now on the board. Bentley continues to lead. Johnny Westbrook, team boss for Perfect Circle, has been summoned to the stewards for a discussion. The temperatures are comfortable for spectators, but not in these GT3 cars for the drivers, so, they are using cool suits. The WRT Audi in it's zebra livery, is still struggling. Porsche's are still in front, and the #10 Mercedes is right there. The Bentley is still leading. We have quite the variety of cars in contention. Maxi Goetz might just be champ here today in IGTC. Matt Campbell is fighting with Maxi Goetz for the tiutle. This is the championship fight, right here. The bell has rung, and the fight is on. Ding, ding, ding.

Maxi Goetz is chasing Earl Bamber as well. A bloke flying under the radar is Christopher Mies in the Audi. He's coming into the third place battle. He is sixth overall now. There's some wisps of smoke from the Honda on the overrun through Crocodile. That vapor is coming out of the left bank of cylinders and that V6 motor might be getting sick. 57 laps now on the board. 162 miles now complete. Jordan Pepper, the hometown hero, is still leading the motor race. Lietz, Bamber, Goetz, and Mies are in the hunt. Audi got a 35 kilogram weight break yesterday, but it was something the blokes at Audi were complaing about. But, it is helping. The Audi, look, is in the top six. Trouble is, they don't have enough power. You need to bring some more power, and the blokes at Audi don't quite have it.

Honda in the garage, and well, oil smoke means the motor is busted. The race car is a combustion engine car, not a hybrid like the road car. Now, pit stop time for Mercedes #10. Goetz is out and into the car goes either Yelmer Buurman or Luca Stolz. It could be Yelmer Buurman, the Dutchman. Weather is 46% humidity and a temperature of about 29 degrees Celsius. 84.2 degrees Fahrenheit. We are working lap 60. 171 miles. Marco Bonanomi said there was a warning light on the dash. The pit crew are working on the car. It was a temperature gauge saying that something was in the red. That's very disappointing. Christopher Mies, meanwhile, look, is just 6/10ths behind Earl Bamber.

Nicky Catsburg wriggles through Crocodile in hot pursuit of Katsumasa Chiyo of Japan. Chiyo san is a former Blancpain GT champion. Chiyo wants by Patrick Assenheimer in the #6 Mercedes for Black Falcon, still on the original set of boots. Boots = tires. Christopher Mies wants by Earl Bamber headed to Ingwe. That's Leopard corner, remember. This is getting ugly. Be careful, lads. Chiyo is still stuck behind the Mercedes in Silver Cup. Assenheimer stays right and opens the door for Chiyo. Game over for the Honda. No more racing. It's retired due to oil failure. A connecting rod or a valve has malfunctioned. Christopher Mies, the meat in the sandwich. Lietz, Bamber, Mies. Matthieu Jaminet is still in contention. He was 2.7 seconds behind Mies in the Frikadelli Porsche.

We'll see Nick Tandy fly later on. He flew in the pole shootout yesterday. Earl Bamber goes up the curb. Mies has a look, trying to unsettle Earl Bamber. No dice, mate. They're still pressing each other. Bamber said, "hey Chris, I'm tired of seeing you in my mirrors, so I'll let you go for the moment. Here, mate, step through the door." Matthieu Jaminet is coming, as well. He's another hot shoe. Gary Paffett pits from second in the #44 Strakka Racing Mercedes at 65 laps, 185 miles. New boots for the Mercedes after the first set of Pirelli tires were double stinted. Mies on the attack, bounncing over the curbs. He made the move, and Mies was dirt tracking that Audi! Yikes!

Yelmer Buurman scores a 1:43.1, fastest lap so far. He's back to the races even though he's 16th overall. Pirelli's tires are running real well, and the drivers are running well, too, on a physical track. You aren't in an open cockpit prototype or a single seater. Matty Campbell is two points clear of Maxi Buhk for the championship, 60-58. Perfect Circle are back into the race now. We're back to the battle for second through fifth. An Audi vs. thre ePorsche's as Jordan Pepper needs to get to lap 72 for his next stint. He's been running extremely well. Bentley is back into the fight. They'll lose spots on the next stop they can regain.

Lamborghini #13 pits. We'll talk about them. I promise.

Kyalami 9 Hours: Hour 1

It was 1982, and it was the Group C prototype era. That was the last time sports cars on a professional level, were seen in a 9 hour enduro here at Kyalami. For the first time, in 37 years, one of the classic endurance races in sports car lore, returns. It's the Kyalami 9 Hours! Boogity, boogity, boogity! Let's go GT racing!

The race is on at Kyalami, and we've had drama already. Kevin Estre and Dennis Olsen are battling for the lead. We've already lost Maximilian Buhk in the #999 Mercedes! Maxi Buhk had a mechanical issue. BMW and Bentley are also up there. Dennis Olsen is indeed the leader. GruppeM has lost three laps. Olsen can win the title here. But we have just begun this motor race. We've run four laps. Dennis Olsen sets fast lap at 1:44.628 while Dane Cameron in the Nonda NSX is flying in sxith place, sharing with Marco Bonanomi and Bertrand Baguette. Chris Goodwin spun into the gravel and he has aright front tire and goes off the road. There's loads of bodywork damage on the car. The front splitter is an issue on the Aston, and the bonnet is off. Now, we have Marcus Winkelhock barely staying ahead of Maxi Goetz. The Nissan's are up there, too. Alexander Imperatori vs. Joao Paulo de Oliviera.

The Land Audi and the SPS Mercedesare battling as we come back towards Crowthorne. Marcus Winkelhockj is making his car very wide. Kevin Estre runs a 1:44.545, the quickest lap so far. The Porsche battle continues. Kevin Estre is inching away from Laurens Vanthoor as they go through Leeukop corner. The Audi is slower than it's pursuers at the moment. We've got debris on the road, look. It's from someplace in the midfield as the cars return through Barebecue Bend. Plunging downhill through The Mine Shaft they go. This race might be settling into a rhythm. The #12 Dinamic Racing Porsche 911 GT3R is up there as well as we've run seven laps.

Mikkel Jensen in the #34 Walkenhorst BMW M6 GT3 is flying as well. Farewell, #999 Mercedes. It's just impossible for that car to get back into the race. They were a championship contender. Martin Tomczyk is the cork in the bottle against Jordan Pepper. It's BMW vs. Bentley. Cars are all over, through the Mine Shaft into the Crocodile. Stephen Kane has Gary Paffett all over him. Dirk Werner is also flying, headed back to Crowthorne. Lapped cars are in the way, look. Maxi Buhk is out. Game over, chaps. Game over! Can you believe it! Buhk could have been the champion! Wow. The car let him down.

Lars Kern in the Lechner Racing Porsche is cooking right now. What a bad blow for GruppeM Mercedes. Olsen and Estre are pulling away from Laurens Vanthoor. In replay, we see the #999 Mercedes losing pace. He turns into Crowthorne, and the lights go out. How sad. New fastest lap holder, Laurens Vanthoor in third spot. Pick up the pace as you run ahead of Marcus Winkelhock. Kevin Estre closes up on Dennis Olsen. These blokes are flying right now. Just flying. Back through Leeukop once more. Joao Paulo de Oliviera, the Brazilian, in the Nissan for KCMG, is flying, too. This is the #35 car. Two fastest laps now, for Vanthoor. Incidentally, de Oliviera is sharing with Japan's Katsumasa Chiyo, and Aussie, Joshua Burdon.

The field is spreading out, finding a rhythm. It's warm here in South Africa, but Kyalami is not a high tire degradation track. When we get to the pit stops, we'll have short or long pit stops. 49 seconds or less, or more the a minute and a half. You have to wait if the stop is timed anywhere between those targets depending on if you go for tires or for tires and fuel plus a driver change. Jordan Pepper is chasing Mikkel Jensen, and Dirk Werner wants a piece of the South African hometown hero for Bentley. The Nissan's and Honda's are good through the first sector as they slide through Crocodile. Everyone has been told to respect track limits through the final corner at Cheetah.

Sunset, is one of the great corners on this track and they have gone through it once more. Joao Paulo De Oliviera is seventh, behind Dane Cameron. Alexandre Imperatori follows in the sister Nissan. de Oliviera is driving on a Pirelli tire for the first time in his career. There is no unrestricted testing in IGTC racing. 14 laps done and dusted. Poor old Chris Goodwin is still in the garage, and Alexander West and Come Ledogar, are all there, but they need to replace the gearbox, and Martin Tomczyk loses out to Dirk Wwerner while Steven Kane is slowing, and Gary Paffett passes right by into Sunset. There was argy bargy between the Bentley and the BMW. Through Clubhouse, there's loads of junk on the road.

Was the Bentley, tweaked at all? Werner goes inside, and Kane slaps the BMW. That was not too good, mate. Here, look, we see Fred Vervisch in 15th. Vervisch is one of our championship contenders. We will have to look at the weather. It could start raining at any point. Gary Paffett and Maximilian Goetz have both been warned about track limits. Stephen Kane is being balked by Fred Vervisch. But, Vervisch has the right to frustrate and monster Kane. Back through the Clubhouse again. Half an hour done and dusted. Tomczyk, Paffett, Vervisch, Kane, followed by Lars Kern. The Bentley's have not been as quick as other cars here. They've done really well in North America.

This is Bentley's 100th anniversary, but they have not won an enduro race in IGTC though they did win the 1,000 kilometer race at Paul Ricard in the south of France, back in June. Martin Tomczyk is still defending from the Mercedes, down into the Mine Shaft. Kevin Estre has gone to the lead through Crowthornes. He has gone by Dennis Olsen. Can Kevin Estre move away from Dennis Olsen? Laurens Vanthoor, meanwhile, has fastest lap. Marcus Winkelhock is staying with everyone right now. Could Olsen be having a braking issue right now? Estre has the lead of this motor race as mentioned.

He will build up a gap, surely. Jordan Pepper passes Maxime Martin in the #76 R-Motorsport Aston Martin as a lap is put on the Perfect Circle Porsche, the South African trio for a legendary team that raced here in the Kyalami 9 Hours with a Porsche 917 back in 1969, 50 years ago. They hope to get to the end of the race. That's their goal. Laurens Vanthoor is in the #12 Dinamic Motorsport Porsche sharing with Earl Bamber and Matt Campbell. Matty Campbell is another bloke who could win the championship. Dennis Olsen is the other driver who can win. Kevin Estre has been warned about track limits and so has Dries Vanthoor. Most of the blokes are going to be caught out at Cheetah, the last turn on the new course format here at Kyalami.

Martin Tomczyk is being hounded by Gary Paffett. Fred Vervisch is struggling to keep up with the other Audi's. Especially, the Land Motorsports car. The Balance of Performance may be out of kilter as far as the Audi's are concerned compared to what it would be at sea level, sans the elevation. Points as they run sees Olsen ahead of Campbell ahead of Goetz and then, Maxi Buhk is the one living a nightmare right now, as they run back through Crocodile, Cheetah, and Ingwe, which is Zulu for leopard. We've got 25 or so minutes before the pit stops happen. Stay tuned. One of the locally based Ferrari's moves over.

The national class South African cars, are going to be slower, even though they are GT3 cars. GT racing is so popular and exciting due to a successful Balance of Performance and the cars have anywhere from 550 to 600 horsepower. Kevin Estre uncorks the fastest lap of the motor race, not sure of the time. Adam Hardy, one of the FIA WEC Porsche engineers, is the GPX race engineer today. 1.7 seconds covers the top three cars right now, 23 laps run. We have not had an incident just yet. Three Porsche's in the top three. Go back to 1969, that Perfect Circle Porsche 917, was run by David Piper and Richard Attwood.

Dane Cameron continues to run very well in the JAS Motorsport Honda NSX GT3. It's been a regular car in IGTC this year. Dane Cameron is monstering Marcus Winkelhock at the moment. The race leading gap is precisely one second, Estre leading Olsen. Maximilian Goetz is another championship contender in the #10 SPS Mercedes sharing with Yelmer Buurman and Luca Stolz. The car is painted in the South African flag. Gotz is a GT3 champion in FIA and in Blancpain. He tried DTM, but that didn't work as well for him. Oliveira, the Brazilian, he is doing very well for his first time at the circuit. Mikkel Jensen has had some damage. No right rear fender. That's odd. But, it might not be a concern aerodynamically.

Gotz in the pit lane from 12th overall after a 26 lap stint. Tires, fuel, and porobably a driver change. This is an arly stop. But, there's space in the pit lane, too. SPS maybe played their joker card. No one has followed them to the lane, yet. Joao Paulo de Oliviera is matching his competition. The #17 Pablo Clark Racing Ferrari 458 Italia, in the South African national series, is in the lane. This is Pablo Clark Racing, with three South African drivers, Kishoor Pitamber, Leonard Charles Thompson, and Michael Stephen. 1:43.606, new fast lap for Joao Paulo de Oliviera. Strakka Racing in the lane, and it's Gary Paffett in the #44. He stays in the car, sharing with fellow Brit Lewis Williamson and Tristan Vautier of France.

Kevin Estre is being pressurized by Dennis Olsen. Olsen is still pushing, pushing, pushing. Laurens Vanthoor is back there as well. Vanthoor is staying on the battle, but impassively playing with the leaders like a lion playing with it's prey, a gazelle or something. Or even, a cheetah, chasing it's prey at top speed. We've run 30 laps and are nearly at the end of the first hour. Debris and dust out of Cheetah corner. The pace at the front is sizzling right now, ladies and gentlemen. Estre is holding onto the lead of this motor race, barely. Again, d'Oliviera is cooking right now and so is one of the Audi's. d'Oliviera is chasing the Stradale Racing Lamborghini.

Vervisch gets chopped by Martin Tomczyk. Vervisch tries, but decides to hold back. No. Here comes Vervisch again into Mine Shaft, and no dice for Vervisch. He's working at it, but can't get there. He's giving Martin Tomczyk a tough run for his money! We will check the driver lineup for Stradale Racing if things calm down here, as they scream into Crowthorne. Stephen Kane is right there along with Lars Kern and Patrick Assenheimer. The top three Porsche's are covered by just 1.3 seconds. Jeepers! Vanthoor is closer to Olsen than Olsen is to Estre. Maximilian Gotz is down the order. Now, pit stop time for Tomczyk and for Assenheimer. Will there be double stinting for tires?

BMW is going for a driver change and refueling. Augusto Farfus is now in the #42 BMW. Patick Assenheimer does a short stop. Tires though, for BMW. 33 laps done and dusted. Porsche still runs 1-2-3. Manthey is the nominal works team for Porsche. They are here to ensure Porsche will win the manufacturer's cup. Olaf Manthey's team is famous for running at the Nurburgring. The #36 BMW is in the lane, with South African Gennaro Bonafede, countryman Michael van Rooyen, and German team owner, Henry Walkenhorst. Marcus Winkelhock is five and a half seconds behind the lead battle.

Maxi Gotz goes quicker, 1:43.297.

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