We will be at halfway at the end of this hour but now have a Full Course Yellow on the speedway. The #11 Win Autosport LMP2 entry is stranded on the road. Josh Pierson, Harry Tincknell, and Jonathan Bomarito are sharing the car. This is going to be a short yellow with a closed pit lane. Steven Thomas wants to get to the paddock. Now, Tristan Nunez will need fuel and has not pitted for 46 minutes. He will have to go for it under green, so he does not have to take emergency service and be sent to the tail end of the queue in DPi. Car #11 has been rescued. This is actually the first entry for PR1/Mathiasen. John Potter has been running very well with Magnus Racing, now in an Aston Martin Vantage. Potter shares with Andy Lally, Spencer Pumpelly, and Aston Martin hot shoe Jonny Adam, an Aston Martin factory pilot.
Green flag. Tristan Nunez ducked to the pit lane and so, Helio Castroneves has taken the erstwhile lead. A lucky break for the #31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac. They will get him back out on the lead lap. Bamber pressing Vautier and yes, he makes the move stick! Yikes! Don't lollygag. Keep pushing hard. In laps and out laps are vital in these cold conditions. Helio Castroneves stretches the margin over Bamber and Vautier. Now then, spin there, for the #39 CarBahn with Peregrine Racing Lamborghini making contact with the #21 AF Corse Ferrari. Luis Perez Companc was caught out and now has big damage to the right rear corner of that automobile.
That CarBahn Lamborghini is a former Paul Miller Racing entry and Paul Miller Racing has swapped to BMW with an M4 GT3 but are not here because they have to prep their car and will be at the next race, the 12 Hours of Sebring. Tristan Nunez passes Alex Palou and moves up a place behind the sister #48. So, we saw some argy bargy there between Mike Skeen and Alessandro Pier Guidi. Skeen is a very talented driver at the same pace as GTD Pro. Drive through penalty for one of the GTD cars and a penalty as well for the #20 High Class LMP2 entry. Now, for the lead, it is a scrum between Helio Castroneves and Earl Bamber.
The Acura's have more top speed and better transitional characteristics in the Bus Stop than the Cadillac's do. Through the Le Mans chicane, especially. Think big picture. There is more than half this race to run. 45 minutes until halfway. Every car in DPi save for the #5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Cadillac has been a lap down at one time or another as this motor race continues here at the Rolex 24. Congratulations, we've made it to Sunday morning. There's a long, long way to run left here ladies and gentlemen. Alessandro Pier Guidi did give a bit of a whack to Mike Skeen. A warning issued by the stewards to Alessandro Pier Guidi. Everyone should be able to race fairly.
Dodging and weaving around the GTD cars, we can see Castroneves moving ahead of Bamber. The Acura just has a little edge in the braking zones. At Hardpoint Racing, they have a plush unicorn handwarmer. There is just no time though in DPi with the fuel stints. No mistakes can be afforded on pit stops. Ganassi rotates three pit crews through the race for both of their cars. Bamber is not letting Castroneves out of his sight. Felipe Nasr in GTD Pro as a Porsche factory driver, is pressing Jack Hawksworth for the class lead. Bamber is really harrying Castroneves. Bamber is really catching Castroneves. He tapped the brakes early anticipating the traffic to get a lunge off the corner.
The leaders are going to lap Alex Palou soon. Bamber moves past Castroneves. Castroneves has to pit and do so sooner than the #02 Cadillac does. The #60 is in the pit lane. Castroneves will stay in the car, fuel and tires I beleive for the #60. Maybe just fuel, and the two leaders are both pitting at the same moment. Castroneves slides in the warmup lane. Both the #02 and #31 Cadillac's have spun! Nunez back in the fight but losing time. So, Nunez back up and running but will have to play catch up. Another spin in the Le Mans chicane and that is the #81 DragonSpeed LMP2 and he gets back in the race. Not sure who is driving.
Marcus Ericsson on cold tires was the one who spun and collected Tristan Nunez. #01 is in the lane and we also saw Tristan Vautier off the road too in the #5 JDC Miller Mustang Sampling Cadillac. Now, a lead change and now, a penalty for Meyer Shank Racing and Alexander Rossi cycles to the front in the #10 Wayne Taylor Racing Acura. Mike Rockenfeller is third in the #48 Ally Cadillac for AXR and Hendrick Motorsports. The incident between Ericsson and Nunez is under review. Ericsson will be penalized likely for the argy bargy with Nunez. Now, Philip Ellis is leading GT Daytona in the #57 Winward Mercedes AMG GT3. They are legitimately confident with a full-time program for 2022 more than likely.
Mercedes, Porsche, Acura, McLaren in GTD. Philip Ellis, Kyffin Simpson, Zacharie Robichon, and Ollie Millroy. Kyffin Simpson is from Barbados/The Cayman Islands. We have a genuine battle for second between Mike Rockenfeller and Richard Westbrook. The #66 Gradient Racing Acura NSX GT3 is being shared by Kyffin Simpson, Till Bechtolsheimer, Marc Miller, and Mario Farnbacher. Action Express moving back up. Tristan Nunez now fourth right behind teammate Mike Rockenfeller. Alex Palou says the #01 Cadillac had no power at CGR but then fixed the issue. They remain on the lead lap. We have the #26 Muehlner Motorsports LMP3 entry off the road and under Full Course Yellow with just 20 some odd minutes to the halfway mark, more like ten. This is the #26 shared by Americans Nolan Siegel and CR Crews, Cameron Shields from Australia, and Ugo de Wilde of Belgium.
The wheel came off Nolan Siegel's LMP3 car. Radio trouble for the #10 Acura and we see Filipe Alnuquerque into the car. GTD Pro and GTD cars pitting. Richard Westbrook now leads in the #5 JDC Miller Motorsports Cadillac over Mike Rockenfeller in the #48 Action Express/Hendrick Motorsports Cadillac. Bourdais and Castroneves come next followed by Mike Conway now in the #31 sister Action Express Whelen Cadillac. Extra pit work going on for the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes AMG GT3 in GTD. Possibly a front brake change going on for that car.
We are nearing halfway, finishing the 11th Full Course Yellow in this race. Gilbert Korthoff Racing are running well as a young team in their first endurance event. Mike Skeen sharing with Scott Andrews, Stevan McAleer, and James Davison. Richard Westbrook is now in the lead of the motor race in the #5 JDC-Miller Motorsports Mustang Sampling Cadillac and here comes Mike Rockenfeller. Sebastien Bourdais and Helio Castroneves scrapping with each other. Stragglers in GTD traffic as well, look. Castroneves will get a run on Bourdais who could very well be a sitting duck into the Le Mans chicane. Rockenfeller half a second ahead of Castroneves. The #60 MSR Acura is hooked up despite earlier tire pressure troubles.
Tire pressure is a really touchy subject as a minimum cold tire pressure has been set by Michelin and mandated by IMSA stewards. Halfway home in the Rolex 24.
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