As we have been going through hour nine here at Le Mans there have been a lot of pit stops especially in the LMP2 class. In the dark of night, we have also seen pit work for GTE Pro, especially Aston Martin. We are 25 minutes into the hour already watching the Porsche garage. There are pensive faces. It's not a happy place to be as we watch Antonio Felix Da Costa replacing Anthony Davidson, and there's new tires. In LM GTE Pro, we have the #51 AF Corse car in the lane with Alessandro Pier Guidi continuing. We have seen LMP2 pit stops from United Autosport, Signatech Alpine, and more.
Ooh. Huge closing speed from Porsche on the GTE Pro Ferrari for WeatherTech Racing. This is Porsche #91 who is in the lane, with the windscreen being cleaned. These cars are in the lower reaches of LM GTE Pro. The Porsche blows the second element of the chicane, the Dunlop chicane. Cetillar is now in the lane for service with car #47 and we also see DragonSpeed. Track limits are still a huge debate. It's a bothersome thing to talk about even though it is at stewards discretion which means it usually goes without penalty. The #98 Aston Martin was in from the GTE Am lead and handed the class lead to Charlie Eastwood currently at the wheel of the TF Sport #90 Aston Martin. Ferrari #62 is in the lane. Red River Sport. Will Stevens has been parked for a long, long while and is now back out after having engine or driveline woes. Some cleanup in the Jota pit.
Wings are being changed for the setups. More downforce is crucial in the rain and watch out for the plastic bollards for overcooking the exits of the corners. The bollards can damage the splitters in a major way. In GTE Am, the #90 Aston Martin has taken over the lead from Paul Dalla Lana in GTE Am. Fuel for the boys at TF Sport as Charlie Eastwood is still racing. He is a former World Karting Champion. Sofia Floresch is at the wheel now of the #50 car.
Panis Racing has their car into the pit lane and there is action at Toyota as the #8 car comes in. Kazuki Nakajima, I believe, continues driving? He's been in for a stint or two. I think. Ross Gunn is at the wheel of the #98 factory Aston Martin. We have a car off the road and gravel being spewed all over the place as the #11 Inter Europol Ligier is off the road. Charlie Eastwood has the advantage over Ross Gunn. Nicklas Nielsen in the #83 Ferrari is third in class, chasing the Aston. The motorcycles have points for their 24 Hours of Le Mans race, but it does not exist for the car version this year.
Nicklas Nielsen is in one of the many Ferrari's for AF Corse. Porsche #99 pits. Thats Inthrapavasak in the Dempsey Proton car, the third one they have entered for this motor race. Christian Ried is driving the #77 Dempsey Proton Porsche sharing with Ricardo Pera and Julien Andlauer. Nicklas Nielsen is in hot pursuit, look, of Paul Dalla Lana. This is the battle for second spot in LM GTE Am. Are we getting to the witching hour? Not yet. This is a great time of night to drive because of the cool weather. United Autosport #22 in the lane for another scheduled pit stop.
That's modern endurance sports car racing, running as fast as possible between pit stops. Maxime Martin continues to chase Alessandro Pier Guidi. This Aston Martin/Ferrari scrum has gone on all race long, and it is for the lead in class in GTE Pro. They fire through Karting curve, and this scrap has raged on and on and on for a good four hours now. This is brilliant racing, even if the Ferrari drivers are absolutely miffed about it. This battle is just spot on at the moment, and the Ferrari has less drag compared to the Aston Martin, while the Aston Martin has more power. Also consider the tire performance. Ferrari might just have a spot of bother with rear tire degradation.
Pier Guidi has to be frustrated with this Aston Martin as someone has spun, and its the #63 WeatherTech GTE Pro Ferrari! Aye aye aye! The team are putting the dollies under the car. He did outbreak himself out of La Chapelle. It could be a tad early for a brake change. It was hitting the deck with the legality plank under the car. Patrice Lafargue is ahead of Nicolas Lapierre in LMP2. The WeatherTech Ferrari is in the garage, being repaired. There was likely a front suspension failure on the #63 Ferrari. That was not a driver induced incident.
The #26 G-Drive Aurus is ahead of the #32 United Autosports Oreca. The #39 car which was in the hands of James Allen earlier, is in the pit lane. Not sure who is driving now. Nicklas Nielsen meanwhile is running very well in the #83 AF Corse GTE Am Ferrari. More service as well, for G-Drive. This is the #26 car. They are back up and running again. The Chapelle curve has been remodeled completely in the last two decades. More pit work for the #75 Ferrari as well. Again, our commentator Tom Gaymore, he came here two decades ago working with the Panoz Dave Price Racing team.
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