Saturday, September 19, 2020

24 Hours of Le Mans: Hour 16

We look at the privateer Am costs and how expensive and prohibitive they are.  That's going to be something to work on, and the car sales have been hit hard due to the pandemic.  It is a shame to not see Silverstone on the calendar.  James Allen has spun and had tire damage.  Meantime, we go onboard the #91 Porsche.  The guardrails around the track have had to be rebuilt as well.  The boys from Red River Sport have been through the ringer.  238 laps done and dusted for Toyota #8 at half past 5AM.  We've seen more LMP2 pit stops.  Kazuki Nakajima has been told to regenrate the energy to leave on hybird power exiting the pit lane.  The car is still smoking, but that is something the engineers will remind the drivers about.

Kazuki Nakajima stays in the car.  What is your favorite Le Mans?  It is hard to say.  They're all so different.  The #47 Cetilar LMP2 is in the lead.  The air is cold and dense, and the cars work well in the cold, crisp, dense air.  The #26 Aurus is in the lane.  We are not at a beach in Sardinia.  Head to Jota Sport and see about the Goodyear vs. Michelin tire battle.  It is hard to be a mechanic now and try to get a nap during "zombie land" because a car will come in.  Filipe Albuquerque is concerned about something.  Are they doing one lap or one stint? 

Job van Uitert is only 45 seconds or so behind him.  Racing drivers are funny when they get news they don't want to hear.  Whoa!  That was a close, close shave with the #22 machine.  Filipe Albuquerque's stint is over and it will be Phil Hanson.  Jota is headed for the lane and so is Nielsen Racing in car #24.  United are back on track.  It appears Anthony Davidson is in the Jota car now after his pit stop.  Anthony Davidson, we know he will try to chisel away at the gap.  There was an issue with the door at United Autosport on the sister #32 of Job Van Uitert, splitting the strategy.  What does Antonio Felix Da Costa have to say about his stint?

It's a battle between the two tire makes, and Da Costa says its' been a rollercoaster the whole time and they had a pit stop that was flawed.  Da Costa says the grip on the road comes and goes.  The tires get dirty and they need to be cleaned up afterwards.  If you get marbles on the tires, like bits of chewing gum, the contact patch isn't there.  Thomas Laurent is running in the Signatech Alpine down in ninth in class.  As soon as a driver gets back into the car, they run on adrenaline, but the moment between waking up and getting in the car is brutal.

Toyota #8 leads the motor race overall, ahead of Norman Nato two laps down, with Louis Deletraz third, and then the #7 Toyota, six laps down in fourth spot after a turbo failure.  Then comes the #22 United Autosport LMP2 car ahead of his team mate Job van Uitert.  Anthony Davidson took over the #38 Jota car.  In LM GTE Pro, the Aston Martin and Ferrari scrap still goes on.  The #91 Porsche is up to fourth in LM GTE Pro as Sam Bird has had issues. Right on his back door is the lead GTE Am Aston Martin for TF Sport, the #90, Charlie Eastwood at the keyboard.  Then comes the #98 Aston Martin with Ross Gunn and the #77 Dempsey Proton Porsche of Matt Campbell.  We shall hear again from Chris Parsons, in the A.M. light hours.  A toute a l'heure.  

We have Sam Hancock and Tom Gaymore in the booth for the next hour.  In LMP1, we have Toyota and Rebellion going for it, but it is one Toyota vs. two Rebellion's, but the #8 are not out of the woods yet.  We are going to begin to see the personal best sector times improved.  The light won't be too impactful on lap times.  The track is getting grippier and we have had a dry night.  Until the morning dew settles, happy hour is OK.  But when dew comes, then happy hour is over.  Phil Hanson is pushing and there's nothing more demoralizing when you have nothing left in the locker to give and you hear your rival is faster!

There's a fire in the Iron Lynx Ferrari garage in the #75 Ferrari, the Iron Lynx car that has had a fraught race and the air jack isn't working.  Job van Uitert is chipping the margin away to Phil Hanson.  Don't stress the components and don't risk it.  With the #91 Salzburg liveried Porsche, it has been in the garage 6-7 minutes, getting taped up with a de-laminated floor.  They've been replacing electrical cables as well.  Job van Uitert is in the garage as well.  He's got somwthing going on as Maxime Martin is in the Aston Martin in the pit lane.

In replay, that Iron Lynx Ferrari was smoking like a geyser.  A nose change going on on the #32 United Autosport car.  Toyota #8 makes a pit stop and we have the #98 in the lane, too.  It is in the garage.  A brake pad change for Aston Martin.  New discs and new calipers.  Ross Gunn stays in the car.  We wonder what is happening over at United Autosport as well, with team manager Trevor Foster.  The mechanical issues are out towards the upright for the Aston Martin than they would be towards the bell housing and the transmission.

The cars are up on the jack stands looking at the chassis.  Disaster for Aston Martin.  So, the #90 TF Sport Aston Martin will try their darnedest to fight the Porsche's.  Charlie Eastwood is clear out in the lead, in the middle of driving bliss.  He is driving very, vewry well, using very deliberate downshifts and minimizing engine braking.  Porsche have news on the #91 and it's an electrical issue on the car.  It's been a tale of woe is me for the Porsche, or woe are us.  They will be scratching their heads after a lack of pace and reliability, but this is a new car for them.

Eight hours left.  #98 is diagnosed with suspension failure. 

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