Do enjoy the video, though. THIS is how you drive a race car, at night.
Friday, June 20, 2014
A lap of the Nordschleife in the dark
Fearless? Crazy? A little bit of both? That's what you have to be, in order to drive The Nurburgring, (otherwise known as The Green Hell) in the dark. Here, Dutchman Nicky Catsburg does just that in his BMW Z4 GT practicing for this weekend's running of the ADAC Nurburgring 24 Hours, a race for which, you will see the results of the winner, right here, on Endurance... The Sports Car Racing Blog, after it happens. There is a video stream, too. But, sorry. Unlike Le Mans last weekend, yours truly is NOT going to stay up all night for this one.
Do enjoy the video, though. THIS is how you drive a race car, at night.
Do enjoy the video, though. THIS is how you drive a race car, at night.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
ADESS AG Working on LMP2, LMP3 Concepts
ADESS AG look to join Zytek and Ligier in the LMP2 class ranks. Check this out.
http://sportscar365.com/industry/adess-ag-working-on-lmp2-lmp3-concepts/
http://sportscar365.com/industry/adess-ag-working-on-lmp2-lmp3-concepts/
Tincknell: "I'll Remember This Day for the Rest of My Life"
Jota Sport driver Harry Tincknell, was overjoyed to be a Le Mans winners in class in LMP2.
http://sportscar365.com/lemans/elms/tincknell-ill-remember-this-day-for-the-rest-of-my-life/
http://sportscar365.com/lemans/elms/tincknell-ill-remember-this-day-for-the-rest-of-my-life/
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Seven to broadcast full Bathurst 12 Hour
Fans in Australia, will be able to see their home endurance sports car race, the Bathurst 12 Hours at Mount Panorama, in it's entirety, on TV, beginning next year.
http://www.speedcafe.com/2014/06/17/seven-broadcast-full-bathurst-12-hour/
Those of us who are fans in the U.S. may still have to settle for an online video stream of the event.
http://www.speedcafe.com/2014/06/17/seven-broadcast-full-bathurst-12-hour/
Those of us who are fans in the U.S. may still have to settle for an online video stream of the event.
Monday, June 16, 2014
ICYMI: 24 Hours of Le Mans highlights
In case you missed the TV coverage on Fox Sports, here are some short highlight videos from the 24 Hours of Le Mans, to go along with the five chapters of analysis on the race, written by yours truly, describing the events. Here, you will see, what actually happened, in some of the race's biggest moments.
http://sportscar365.com/features/videos/video-24-hours-of-le-mans-highlights/
http://sportscar365.com/features/videos/video-24-hours-of-le-mans-highlights/
Sunday, June 15, 2014
24 Hours of Le Mans Chapter Five
The GTE Pro factory Porsche pits. The #97 Aston Martin pits. Patrick Dempsey has completed his final stint of the race. There's a Porsche in the gravel. Not sure which one. Jordan Taylor still drives the #73 Corvette C-7-R. Mark Webber will take the Porsche 919 to the finish and Brendon Hartley will not take over the car again. They don't know why the car is off the pace. They need to keep going. Porsche has track position. They run first and fifth, sandwiching the two Audi's, and the sole remaining Toyota. The Aston Martin's have continued to have power steering issues.
We're approaching three hours to go. Could Porsche win for the first time since 1998? Herbert Ampferer was Porsche boss back then. Andre Lotterer almost overshoots the Mulsanne corner as the #8 Toyota tries to dodge traffic. Now, pit stop time for Porsche. Timo Bernhard stays in the car. This is a clean stop. Three more full fuel stops will be needed for Porsche. The same is true for Audi. Will one be a short fill? The unsung heroes are the tires. They can double, triple, and quadruple stint the ,Michelin tires. That's pretty amazing.
The #35 Ligier leads LMP2. Alex Brundle. Jann Mardenborough, and Mark Shulzitsky, could win in class. The #2 Audi pits. Benoit Treluyer was waved off, even though he was suited up. Andre Lotterer continues in the Audi. Less than three hours to go. Fifty laps to go, more or less. Porsche has the #14 machine in the pits. This is going to be quite the finish. The #58 Ferrari is beached at the Ford Chicane. This is the Sofrev car. There's a local yellow flag. Also, the #90 Ferrari for 8Star Motorsport is running well, too, with Frankie Montecalvo at the controls.
If the #95 Danish Aston Martin could win in LM GTE Pro, after Allan Simonsen's death, if his car should win, the fans will go crazy. The Ferrari got tossed onto the curb. Not sure who is driving at this point. Porsche still leads the overall, but Audi is coming. The AF Corse Ferrari still leads LM GTE Pro. Soheil Ayari was able to restart the #58 Ferrari and get back into the race. Something could be wrong with the Krohn Ferrari, and also, with the #97 Aston Martin, as the #1 Audi pits. Could Lucas di Grassi be the first Brazilian to win Le Mans?
This is going to be a fuel only stop, loading the tank with diesel. The #92 factory Porsche 911 RSR of Richard Lietz is in, second in LM GTE Pro. Jordan Taylor in the #73 Corvette C7R runs third in class. Ferrari seems to be the one to beat, as both Porsche and Corvette are pushing hard. Porsche AG bought half of Team Manthey, so they also want a factory GTE program. Jan Magnussen has taken over the #73 Corvette C7R to try and push the Porsche and the Ferrari. Porsche has had a misfire, and hopefully it's electrical as opposed to mechanical.
Jota Sport is running well, with Harry Tincknell driving. Allan McNish has been a mentor to Tincknell. The Ligier's run 1-2 in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Pretty amazing. The JS, of course, is for Jo Schlesser.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo_Schlesser
We are coming up on just three hours to go. Will it be Audi, or Porsche, spraying the champagne? We've got 40 laps to go, roughly. The margin is a second a lap. We've got a jolly good race on our hands here, blokes. This is a humdinger. Lotterer is coming. 33 seconds separate Porsche and Audi. Mark Webber leaps out of his chair. There's something wrong with the Porsche. They need a stop. There's a panic at Porsche. Could this affect the outcome of their race?
The mechanics wheeled a stack of hot tires out. If they stop now, they will have to do three more stops, and then, something might go wrong. Maybe the car isn't feeling right. Slow puncture? Vibration? This is going to be tough. This is nine laps of a 15 lap stint. They've been running 15 lap stints. Something could be wrong with the motor, too. Uh oh. Could Porsche be in jeopardy here? Lotterer passes for the lead of this motor race. Engineers are watching the telemetry. Have Porsche thrown this away? They put new tires on. Maybe it was just a slow puncture.
Stretch it to 14 laps instead of 13 laps to save fuel and not need a splash and dash. The #88 Porsche in LM GTE Am (second in class), has been handed a 45 second penalty for speeding in pit lane. This is the #88 machine of Khaled Al-Qubaisi, Klaus Bachler, and Christian Ried. Could the #79 Porsche 911 RSR finish top six in LM GTE Am with just two drivers? That would be quite the story for Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen, who had to move into the LM GTE Pro class, when their amateur driver Bret Curtis, could not start the race.
The Audi slides a shade but stays on the road. Andre Lotterer continues to drive. He has a 64 second lead. Can Porsche stretch their fuel mileage? Can they make it 14 laps or better? The top four cars in LMP2 are on the same lap. Two Ligier's, a Zytek, and an Alpine. The #61 Ferrari 458 Italia pits in LM GTE Am, with Marco Cioci at the controls. The #14 Porsche goes by the #20. It is losing efficiency through it's turbo. Could this be the kiss of death for Porsche in their return? They might have to wait until next year.
Remember, if you win here, there's double points. Also, the team that wins Le Mans, usually goes on to win the FIA World Endurance Championship. Two hours, seven minutes, remain in this race. Lotterer pits. He will stay in the car. This is a fuel only stop for Audi. No need for tires. Mark Webber cannot reel in the Audi. He's having trouble. We now watch the battle for second in LMP2. Harry Tincknell and Tristan Gommendy are in this game. Tincknell is charging. The #51 Ferrari leads LM GTE Pro. It's an all Italian team.
AF Corse have taken sports cars by storm. Oh no! Webber has a problem! He's running on the hybrid powerplant. The fuel delivery could be an issue. He's a long way from home, and this could be the final straw for Porsche. They might just have to come back next year and try again. Lucas di Grassi will move his Audi to second. Low power. He's running on the battery. Less than two hours to go. The #1 Audi closes on a P2 car, and on Mark Webber as he tries to nurse the Porsche back to the pits. This race can be cruel. He's crawling. The Audi pits. Lucas di Grassi is down three laps to Andre Lotterer.
We'll see. di Grassi might make it to second. Marc Gene is ready. But, no driver change and no tires. Now. The Porsche is into the pits. The car will go into the garage. They know they won't win this race. They wanted a podium. The car is in the garage. I mean, they need a podium. The #14 car might still be in it. Audi runs 1-3, still. Mark Webber is in the garage. There was an oil flag being waved. Now, we might have a pass for the P2 lead. The #46 whistles past the #35. This is a battle for the class lead.
Kristian Poulsen stopped on track. But, he passes Alex Brundle. There could be a misfire on that #35 machine. The #38 car sits second in class. The Porsche is still in the garage. Webber has mental toughness after a rough F1 career. But, he has to be wondering what is going on and why he may lose this race. The #8 Toyota will close up on the #20 Porsche. Porsche has to know Anthony Davidson is going for it. Sergey Zlobin in the #27 car is in the garage. No work is being done on the #20 Porsche, meaning it could very well be game over for them.
It's game over for Porsche. Webber is out of the car. But, the green retirement form, will come out and be signed. One wonders if the #14 car can pick up the pieces. No rush for the #74 Corvette C7R as it pits. We begin to watch Anthony Davidson. He'll catch the Porsche, and assume third place. The #20 Porsche, is out. It's game over. One Porsche may get home. That's the #14 car with Marc Lieb at the controls. Porsche is not out of harm's way yet, though. Something could be wrong with the #14. Corvette will be disappointed, too. They wanted to win. They wanted to beat Porsche and Ferrari.
Ferrari's have been perfect. Tristan Gommendy pitted, and Harry Tincknell led. But, Oliver Turvey will take over the #38 machine. We know that Alex Brundle and his team mates, may have a wounded bird out there, too. Less than an hour and a half to go. Lucas di Grassi is three laps behind the #2 Audi. Porsche, will have to wait. With their situation, it was the V4 motor that let them down. It wasn't a hybrid system.
Now, we have the #2 Audi R18 eTron Quattro, pitting. We are looking to see a third win at Audi for Benoit Treluyer, Marcel Fassler, and Andre Lotterer. Audi doesn't have the fastest car. But they have everything prepared and polished. Andre Lotterer is looking for a third overall win at Le Mans. Audi have executed. Tom Kristensen has won this race nine times. No number ten this year. Maybe next year. But, keep in mind, with the new rules, the floodgates have opened. The #14 Porsche is in the garage. They have another problem that might not be related to what took out car #20.
Back to my earlier point. With these new rules of running hybrid technology, and bringing back cars that are this technologically advanced (just like in the Group C days of the 1980s), we might see more automakers come in and want to fight. Think about this. Nissan will come back next year. Ferrari, says they might want to return to sports car racing and take a piece of this pie. Audi, Porsche, Ferrari, Nissan, Toyota. Yikes! Think about that, folks. That's VERY exciting. Yours truly gets excited and gets goosebumps just thinking about that prospect!
Tons of factory cars, on the grid, at the same time. That would be amazing. The #92 Porsche 911 RSR pits. Barely an hour and fifteen minutes remain in this one, folks. The fans come back to the hillsides. The track is given back to the fans at the end of the race, and they storm it. That's a sight to see. Toyota will get to the podium. They want to become only the second Japanese automaker to win Le Mans, along with Mazda who won in 1991. The Aston Martin team has had a flawless run. The #1 Audi continues.
Benoit Treluyer will finish the race in the #2 car. Will Tom Kristensen take the car to the victory? The car is in the lane now. Tom Kristensen will take the car to the checkers in this closing hour of Le Mans. The team is exhausted. But they'll make it. We're coming to the last hour. One hour remains now in the 82nd 24 Hours of Le Mans. One more hour to enjoy one of the great tracks in the world that is public roads the rest of the year. Just 55 minutes remain in this one, chaps.
The class leading LM GTE Am #95 Aston Martin Vantage has had an electrical issue. Kristian Poulsen gets new tires. It's a throttle position sensor. It's a quick, simple fix. Antonio Garcia is still in the Corvette. The #66 Ferrari 458 Italia for JMW Racing is up to it's axles in the gravel trap. This is Corvette's final pit stop of the race. They'll make it on fuel. Corvette might get a podium out of this one. If the Ferrari has a problem, Corvette could have a chance. They put bear bond over the spot where they had an air jack issue last night. Jota Sport with Oliver Turvey at the controls, is in the lead of LMP2. He was called up on Thursday to come and race.
Could he win in LMP2? If you think you have Le Mans figured out, you might not. But, Oliver Turvey could be a lucky boy today. Rebellion will finish with their new R-One prototype, in only the second race for the car, and the first endurance race. The race is in the hands of the drivers with a shade over 40 minutes to go. Happy Father's Day to all the dad's out there, with 38 minutes to go at Le Mans. Marcel Fassler and Andre Lotterer will get their third win as a driving duo at Le Mans. Just over a half hour remains in the Le Mans 24 Hour race.
Tom Kristensen made a pit stop for fuel and a cleaning of the windscreen. Audi is good to go for the photo finish. The #95 Aston Martin wiggles in Mulsanne corner. But, the car will get to the finish and very likely win the LM GTE Am class. Rebellion Racing will take a fourth place finish. We're getting to the final laps. You can;t close your eyes in this race, as a fan, because if you do, you'll miss something. Finishers have really achieved something, even if they're not on the podium.
This race is better than what we had last year. More competition. A safer race. This is a new book being written with hybrid technology, and also, like I mentioned, the influx of new car makers who might enter. Ooh. A P2 car goes off the road. The new regulations really work. This is one of the most exciting Le Mans races that yours truly has ever seen. With the prototype cars, the technology will come to road cars. You can't buy an Audi eTron, a Toyota TS040 or a Porsche 919 in the showroom. But, you can buy cars with the technology in those cars.
Oliver Turvey pits once more for half a tank of fuel. Will Porsche send the #14 car to go across the line and be classified in the debut for the 919 Hybrid? They just might do that. Less than ten minutes to go. After two huge crashes, yours truly was very doubtful these guys would make it. Plus, they had turbos and fuel injectors fail. Now, LMP2 is going to come down to the wire. The #14 Porsche 919 Hybrid will get to go to the checkered flag. They will finish, but not under the checkers.
Audi will get victory number 13. Can Audi catch and overtake Porsche? Can Porsche win another one? We'll see. Can you program a dynasty? Well, it's a way of thinking. Can you teach computers to think? An organization behaves, and manages itself in a certain way, that makes them successful. It's easier to teach if you've got loads of money. Oliver Turvey is trying to hang on to an improbable class win. Give them new regulations, and they can work with them. Technology brings the speeds up on these marvelous race cars.
Fassler, Lotterer, and Treluyer, will win their third race. It will be the third win for Lena Gade, too. Porsche returns, and their rivals and sister brand from Audi, cheer. Gianmaria Bruni will get his third class win in GTE Pro. Second for Giancarlo Fisichella, and Toni Vilander. For Aston Martin, they will win in honor of their friend, and fallen team mate, another Dane, Allan Simonsen. Kristian Poulsen, David Heinemier Hanson, and Nicky Thiim.
Audi wins lucky #13! They're only three away from their on-track rivals, Porsche. 379 laps complete. 3,214 miles. Welcome to the new era at Le Mans. Checkered flag, and then, one more lap. This is the 13th Audi win at Le Mans! Benoit Treluyer, Andre Lotterer, and Marcel Fassler, do it! Put weight on the car so we don't fail tech inspection. Poor old Toyota. They're going to have to try again next year. The diesel is heavy. Maybe, Audi will switch back to gasoline power like they had with the Audi R8. Toyota gets on the podium, too.
Le Mans gives the winner a chance to do one more victory lap. Lucas di Grassi seems happy to finish second. Maybe next year will be his year. So, here are the overall and class winners:
Overall/LMP1: #2 Fassler/Lotterer/Treluyer Audi Sport Team Joest Audi R18
eTron Quattro
LMP2: #38 Turvey/Dolan/Tincknell Jota Sport Zytek Z11SN-Nissan
LM GTE Pro: #51 Bruni/Vilander/Fisichella AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia
LM GTE Am: #95 Poulsen/Heinemeier-Hanson/Thiim Aston Martin Racing
Aston Martin Vantage GTE
What a race this has been! Another phenomenal Le Mans event. Every year it gets better. Audi overcame adversity and won this thing, again. Lucky 13! Porsche is going to be pushing, and so is Toyota, and Nissan, next year. Le Mans is so special. You will have goosebumps, a tear in your eye, and a crack in your voice. I can guarantee it. Lena Gade who is engineer, she gets her third win with this team as an engineer. Wow!
You could not predict this race. It was amazing. All the frantic chaos happened early, and you didn't expect it. It was a lot of fun. This is where your mind starts to open up, when you are getting your accolades. Jaguar had their moments, losing the races, and then, winning it. This was a great race. Tom Kristensen will be back to Le Mans. Two German giants with new technology came. So did Toytoa as a darkhorse. It was the first of many surprises, including rain, and cars crashed. Skies cleared, and high speed racing resumed.
The speed differential was 40 miles an hour. The long dusk blended into night, and out of the night, Porsche led, but had to dash to the finish, and they broke. Audi swept into a lead, and won. We leave wanting more. But, that will have to wait until next year, fans. Au revoir, for now, from Le Mans. Yours truly, is wiped out, and needs some sleep!
We're approaching three hours to go. Could Porsche win for the first time since 1998? Herbert Ampferer was Porsche boss back then. Andre Lotterer almost overshoots the Mulsanne corner as the #8 Toyota tries to dodge traffic. Now, pit stop time for Porsche. Timo Bernhard stays in the car. This is a clean stop. Three more full fuel stops will be needed for Porsche. The same is true for Audi. Will one be a short fill? The unsung heroes are the tires. They can double, triple, and quadruple stint the ,Michelin tires. That's pretty amazing.
The #35 Ligier leads LMP2. Alex Brundle. Jann Mardenborough, and Mark Shulzitsky, could win in class. The #2 Audi pits. Benoit Treluyer was waved off, even though he was suited up. Andre Lotterer continues in the Audi. Less than three hours to go. Fifty laps to go, more or less. Porsche has the #14 machine in the pits. This is going to be quite the finish. The #58 Ferrari is beached at the Ford Chicane. This is the Sofrev car. There's a local yellow flag. Also, the #90 Ferrari for 8Star Motorsport is running well, too, with Frankie Montecalvo at the controls.
If the #95 Danish Aston Martin could win in LM GTE Pro, after Allan Simonsen's death, if his car should win, the fans will go crazy. The Ferrari got tossed onto the curb. Not sure who is driving at this point. Porsche still leads the overall, but Audi is coming. The AF Corse Ferrari still leads LM GTE Pro. Soheil Ayari was able to restart the #58 Ferrari and get back into the race. Something could be wrong with the Krohn Ferrari, and also, with the #97 Aston Martin, as the #1 Audi pits. Could Lucas di Grassi be the first Brazilian to win Le Mans?
This is going to be a fuel only stop, loading the tank with diesel. The #92 factory Porsche 911 RSR of Richard Lietz is in, second in LM GTE Pro. Jordan Taylor in the #73 Corvette C7R runs third in class. Ferrari seems to be the one to beat, as both Porsche and Corvette are pushing hard. Porsche AG bought half of Team Manthey, so they also want a factory GTE program. Jan Magnussen has taken over the #73 Corvette C7R to try and push the Porsche and the Ferrari. Porsche has had a misfire, and hopefully it's electrical as opposed to mechanical.
Jota Sport is running well, with Harry Tincknell driving. Allan McNish has been a mentor to Tincknell. The Ligier's run 1-2 in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Pretty amazing. The JS, of course, is for Jo Schlesser.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jo_Schlesser
We are coming up on just three hours to go. Will it be Audi, or Porsche, spraying the champagne? We've got 40 laps to go, roughly. The margin is a second a lap. We've got a jolly good race on our hands here, blokes. This is a humdinger. Lotterer is coming. 33 seconds separate Porsche and Audi. Mark Webber leaps out of his chair. There's something wrong with the Porsche. They need a stop. There's a panic at Porsche. Could this affect the outcome of their race?
The mechanics wheeled a stack of hot tires out. If they stop now, they will have to do three more stops, and then, something might go wrong. Maybe the car isn't feeling right. Slow puncture? Vibration? This is going to be tough. This is nine laps of a 15 lap stint. They've been running 15 lap stints. Something could be wrong with the motor, too. Uh oh. Could Porsche be in jeopardy here? Lotterer passes for the lead of this motor race. Engineers are watching the telemetry. Have Porsche thrown this away? They put new tires on. Maybe it was just a slow puncture.
Stretch it to 14 laps instead of 13 laps to save fuel and not need a splash and dash. The #88 Porsche in LM GTE Am (second in class), has been handed a 45 second penalty for speeding in pit lane. This is the #88 machine of Khaled Al-Qubaisi, Klaus Bachler, and Christian Ried. Could the #79 Porsche 911 RSR finish top six in LM GTE Am with just two drivers? That would be quite the story for Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen, who had to move into the LM GTE Pro class, when their amateur driver Bret Curtis, could not start the race.
The Audi slides a shade but stays on the road. Andre Lotterer continues to drive. He has a 64 second lead. Can Porsche stretch their fuel mileage? Can they make it 14 laps or better? The top four cars in LMP2 are on the same lap. Two Ligier's, a Zytek, and an Alpine. The #61 Ferrari 458 Italia pits in LM GTE Am, with Marco Cioci at the controls. The #14 Porsche goes by the #20. It is losing efficiency through it's turbo. Could this be the kiss of death for Porsche in their return? They might have to wait until next year.
Remember, if you win here, there's double points. Also, the team that wins Le Mans, usually goes on to win the FIA World Endurance Championship. Two hours, seven minutes, remain in this race. Lotterer pits. He will stay in the car. This is a fuel only stop for Audi. No need for tires. Mark Webber cannot reel in the Audi. He's having trouble. We now watch the battle for second in LMP2. Harry Tincknell and Tristan Gommendy are in this game. Tincknell is charging. The #51 Ferrari leads LM GTE Pro. It's an all Italian team.
AF Corse have taken sports cars by storm. Oh no! Webber has a problem! He's running on the hybrid powerplant. The fuel delivery could be an issue. He's a long way from home, and this could be the final straw for Porsche. They might just have to come back next year and try again. Lucas di Grassi will move his Audi to second. Low power. He's running on the battery. Less than two hours to go. The #1 Audi closes on a P2 car, and on Mark Webber as he tries to nurse the Porsche back to the pits. This race can be cruel. He's crawling. The Audi pits. Lucas di Grassi is down three laps to Andre Lotterer.
We'll see. di Grassi might make it to second. Marc Gene is ready. But, no driver change and no tires. Now. The Porsche is into the pits. The car will go into the garage. They know they won't win this race. They wanted a podium. The car is in the garage. I mean, they need a podium. The #14 car might still be in it. Audi runs 1-3, still. Mark Webber is in the garage. There was an oil flag being waved. Now, we might have a pass for the P2 lead. The #46 whistles past the #35. This is a battle for the class lead.
Kristian Poulsen stopped on track. But, he passes Alex Brundle. There could be a misfire on that #35 machine. The #38 car sits second in class. The Porsche is still in the garage. Webber has mental toughness after a rough F1 career. But, he has to be wondering what is going on and why he may lose this race. The #8 Toyota will close up on the #20 Porsche. Porsche has to know Anthony Davidson is going for it. Sergey Zlobin in the #27 car is in the garage. No work is being done on the #20 Porsche, meaning it could very well be game over for them.
It's game over for Porsche. Webber is out of the car. But, the green retirement form, will come out and be signed. One wonders if the #14 car can pick up the pieces. No rush for the #74 Corvette C7R as it pits. We begin to watch Anthony Davidson. He'll catch the Porsche, and assume third place. The #20 Porsche, is out. It's game over. One Porsche may get home. That's the #14 car with Marc Lieb at the controls. Porsche is not out of harm's way yet, though. Something could be wrong with the #14. Corvette will be disappointed, too. They wanted to win. They wanted to beat Porsche and Ferrari.
Ferrari's have been perfect. Tristan Gommendy pitted, and Harry Tincknell led. But, Oliver Turvey will take over the #38 machine. We know that Alex Brundle and his team mates, may have a wounded bird out there, too. Less than an hour and a half to go. Lucas di Grassi is three laps behind the #2 Audi. Porsche, will have to wait. With their situation, it was the V4 motor that let them down. It wasn't a hybrid system.
Now, we have the #2 Audi R18 eTron Quattro, pitting. We are looking to see a third win at Audi for Benoit Treluyer, Marcel Fassler, and Andre Lotterer. Audi doesn't have the fastest car. But they have everything prepared and polished. Andre Lotterer is looking for a third overall win at Le Mans. Audi have executed. Tom Kristensen has won this race nine times. No number ten this year. Maybe next year. But, keep in mind, with the new rules, the floodgates have opened. The #14 Porsche is in the garage. They have another problem that might not be related to what took out car #20.
Back to my earlier point. With these new rules of running hybrid technology, and bringing back cars that are this technologically advanced (just like in the Group C days of the 1980s), we might see more automakers come in and want to fight. Think about this. Nissan will come back next year. Ferrari, says they might want to return to sports car racing and take a piece of this pie. Audi, Porsche, Ferrari, Nissan, Toyota. Yikes! Think about that, folks. That's VERY exciting. Yours truly gets excited and gets goosebumps just thinking about that prospect!
Tons of factory cars, on the grid, at the same time. That would be amazing. The #92 Porsche 911 RSR pits. Barely an hour and fifteen minutes remain in this one, folks. The fans come back to the hillsides. The track is given back to the fans at the end of the race, and they storm it. That's a sight to see. Toyota will get to the podium. They want to become only the second Japanese automaker to win Le Mans, along with Mazda who won in 1991. The Aston Martin team has had a flawless run. The #1 Audi continues.
Benoit Treluyer will finish the race in the #2 car. Will Tom Kristensen take the car to the victory? The car is in the lane now. Tom Kristensen will take the car to the checkers in this closing hour of Le Mans. The team is exhausted. But they'll make it. We're coming to the last hour. One hour remains now in the 82nd 24 Hours of Le Mans. One more hour to enjoy one of the great tracks in the world that is public roads the rest of the year. Just 55 minutes remain in this one, chaps.
The class leading LM GTE Am #95 Aston Martin Vantage has had an electrical issue. Kristian Poulsen gets new tires. It's a throttle position sensor. It's a quick, simple fix. Antonio Garcia is still in the Corvette. The #66 Ferrari 458 Italia for JMW Racing is up to it's axles in the gravel trap. This is Corvette's final pit stop of the race. They'll make it on fuel. Corvette might get a podium out of this one. If the Ferrari has a problem, Corvette could have a chance. They put bear bond over the spot where they had an air jack issue last night. Jota Sport with Oliver Turvey at the controls, is in the lead of LMP2. He was called up on Thursday to come and race.
Could he win in LMP2? If you think you have Le Mans figured out, you might not. But, Oliver Turvey could be a lucky boy today. Rebellion will finish with their new R-One prototype, in only the second race for the car, and the first endurance race. The race is in the hands of the drivers with a shade over 40 minutes to go. Happy Father's Day to all the dad's out there, with 38 minutes to go at Le Mans. Marcel Fassler and Andre Lotterer will get their third win as a driving duo at Le Mans. Just over a half hour remains in the Le Mans 24 Hour race.
Tom Kristensen made a pit stop for fuel and a cleaning of the windscreen. Audi is good to go for the photo finish. The #95 Aston Martin wiggles in Mulsanne corner. But, the car will get to the finish and very likely win the LM GTE Am class. Rebellion Racing will take a fourth place finish. We're getting to the final laps. You can;t close your eyes in this race, as a fan, because if you do, you'll miss something. Finishers have really achieved something, even if they're not on the podium.
This race is better than what we had last year. More competition. A safer race. This is a new book being written with hybrid technology, and also, like I mentioned, the influx of new car makers who might enter. Ooh. A P2 car goes off the road. The new regulations really work. This is one of the most exciting Le Mans races that yours truly has ever seen. With the prototype cars, the technology will come to road cars. You can't buy an Audi eTron, a Toyota TS040 or a Porsche 919 in the showroom. But, you can buy cars with the technology in those cars.
Oliver Turvey pits once more for half a tank of fuel. Will Porsche send the #14 car to go across the line and be classified in the debut for the 919 Hybrid? They just might do that. Less than ten minutes to go. After two huge crashes, yours truly was very doubtful these guys would make it. Plus, they had turbos and fuel injectors fail. Now, LMP2 is going to come down to the wire. The #14 Porsche 919 Hybrid will get to go to the checkered flag. They will finish, but not under the checkers.
Audi will get victory number 13. Can Audi catch and overtake Porsche? Can Porsche win another one? We'll see. Can you program a dynasty? Well, it's a way of thinking. Can you teach computers to think? An organization behaves, and manages itself in a certain way, that makes them successful. It's easier to teach if you've got loads of money. Oliver Turvey is trying to hang on to an improbable class win. Give them new regulations, and they can work with them. Technology brings the speeds up on these marvelous race cars.
Fassler, Lotterer, and Treluyer, will win their third race. It will be the third win for Lena Gade, too. Porsche returns, and their rivals and sister brand from Audi, cheer. Gianmaria Bruni will get his third class win in GTE Pro. Second for Giancarlo Fisichella, and Toni Vilander. For Aston Martin, they will win in honor of their friend, and fallen team mate, another Dane, Allan Simonsen. Kristian Poulsen, David Heinemier Hanson, and Nicky Thiim.
Audi wins lucky #13! They're only three away from their on-track rivals, Porsche. 379 laps complete. 3,214 miles. Welcome to the new era at Le Mans. Checkered flag, and then, one more lap. This is the 13th Audi win at Le Mans! Benoit Treluyer, Andre Lotterer, and Marcel Fassler, do it! Put weight on the car so we don't fail tech inspection. Poor old Toyota. They're going to have to try again next year. The diesel is heavy. Maybe, Audi will switch back to gasoline power like they had with the Audi R8. Toyota gets on the podium, too.
Le Mans gives the winner a chance to do one more victory lap. Lucas di Grassi seems happy to finish second. Maybe next year will be his year. So, here are the overall and class winners:
Overall/LMP1: #2 Fassler/Lotterer/Treluyer Audi Sport Team Joest Audi R18
eTron Quattro
LMP2: #38 Turvey/Dolan/Tincknell Jota Sport Zytek Z11SN-Nissan
LM GTE Pro: #51 Bruni/Vilander/Fisichella AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia
LM GTE Am: #95 Poulsen/Heinemeier-Hanson/Thiim Aston Martin Racing
Aston Martin Vantage GTE
What a race this has been! Another phenomenal Le Mans event. Every year it gets better. Audi overcame adversity and won this thing, again. Lucky 13! Porsche is going to be pushing, and so is Toyota, and Nissan, next year. Le Mans is so special. You will have goosebumps, a tear in your eye, and a crack in your voice. I can guarantee it. Lena Gade who is engineer, she gets her third win with this team as an engineer. Wow!
You could not predict this race. It was amazing. All the frantic chaos happened early, and you didn't expect it. It was a lot of fun. This is where your mind starts to open up, when you are getting your accolades. Jaguar had their moments, losing the races, and then, winning it. This was a great race. Tom Kristensen will be back to Le Mans. Two German giants with new technology came. So did Toytoa as a darkhorse. It was the first of many surprises, including rain, and cars crashed. Skies cleared, and high speed racing resumed.
The speed differential was 40 miles an hour. The long dusk blended into night, and out of the night, Porsche led, but had to dash to the finish, and they broke. Audi swept into a lead, and won. We leave wanting more. But, that will have to wait until next year, fans. Au revoir, for now, from Le Mans. Yours truly, is wiped out, and needs some sleep!
24 Hours of Le Mans: Chapter Four
We have a Ligier and an Alpine in sixth and seventh place respectively. It's 8:00 A.M. French time. We remember the late, great Bob Wollek, who almost won Le Mans, but never really could. He won in the GT class in 2000, but the winning car he was driving, was disqualified. Then, unfortunately, he was killed, after practice at Sebring International Raceway, riding his bicycle home from the track, getting hit by a car. Rest In Peace, Bob Wollek. The #1 Audi makes it's way through Arnage.
Porsche and Mark Webber remain a lap down. Stefan Mucke is catching Giancarlo Fisichella for the LM GTE Pro lead. The #75 Porsche loses a wheel, and a door. This is the Prospeed Competition machine in the hands of Francois Perrodo, Emmanuel Collard, and Markus Palttala. Palttala is familiar to Tudor United Sports Car Racing fans. Audi is still ahead of Porsche by a lap. Marcel Fassler just came out of the pits, and the French commentators called him Marcel "Fast" Fassler. The #75 Porsche lost a wheel and also, there was a pit stop for a Ferrari. That's the #81 8Star machine in LM GTE Am. Pardon, that's the #90 car in LM GTE Am. Paolo Ruberti is driving.
Frankie Montecalvo and Gianluca Roda share the car. The #38 Zytek Nissan of Oliver Turvey also pits. The chemistry has to work if you want to put a team together for Le Mans or for any endurance race. Throw the ego away. Respect and compromise with your fellow drivers. The gravel at Le Mans are actually huge, sharp rocks, that can puncture tires. The slow motion camera shots are amazing. Marc Gene is opening a three minute gap over Mark Webber. Gene runs in the 3:27 range. He's running in the 3:26 range too.
Mark Webber is coming close, too. The track is beginning to warm up so you find grip. A Porsche hits a bollard. By the end of the race, the green bollards will be scattered everywhere. It's amazing, the speed that can be carried through the Porsche curves. The tires are smaller. The body is narrower. But, the cars go quicker and quicker. They are pushing 1,000 horsepower. But, these cars are only 210 miles an hour. In the old Group C days, the cars could go 240-250 miles an hour with 700 horsepower in the old Group C days as the #58 Ferrari gets cockeyed in the chicane.
The #70 Team Taisan Ferrari is in the pits. Marc Gene pits and will stay behind the wheel. This is a routine, fuel only stop. Team manager Brad Kettler might make this his final Le Mans race, because he has the R8 GT program to work with back in the United States. Kettler is also a great friend to the Fox Sports broadcast crew. He's had lots of success with Audi at Le Mans. Kettler might be back. This race is so special. It's the crown jewel of sports car racing, and you are immersed in it.
You have to be passionate to run in this sport. It's hard on you personally, physically, and mentally. Webber is dropping back, just a shade. The #97 Aston Martin Vantage is in the pits and it looks like Bruno Senna will replace Stefan Mucke in the car. We still have six hours or so left in this one, which is the length of a standard FIA World Endurance Championship event. Gianmaria Bruni is flying. He's catching the Aston Martin hand over fist. Giancarlo Fisichella was on the wrong tire compound. Gianmaria Bruni, is on the right tires, and faster.
The #14 Porsche pits. But, how the 8Star Ferrari of Paolo Ruberti and the #51 AF Corse Ferrari of Bruni, it looked like a short track stock car race! Yikes! You know the amateur driver is slower. But there's something in your gut that says, "this isn't working". Plan on giving the gentleman driver, room. Going through the Porsche curves, it's cringe worthy if thre's a slower car there. The gap is closing. Bruni will catch the lapped Team Taisan Ferrari through Tetre Rouge. Patrick Long is also holding on by the skin of his teeth. The GT class cars are on edge through the corners.
They don't have the downforce that the prototypes do. Ricky Taylor climbs into the #50 Larbre Competition LMP2 car sharing with Pierre Ragues and Keiko Ihara. He'll understand a P2 car, when he's battling them in his Daytona Prototype spec car back home in the Tudor Championship. The race is red hot in LM GTE Pro. Bruni is trying to get by Senna. This is the shot down to Mulsanne corner. Senna wants to move over, but Bruni won't be denied.
Bruni was on three wheels on the curbs. We love watching. But, the crewmen say, "get off the curbs!" The shock setups are set for the curbs. But the curbs are high and sharp, and this race still has six hours to go. Audi #2 is in the pits. Mark Webber in the Porsche has gone a lap down. Marc Gene is cranking off the lap times, and then, the #2 car is gaining on Webber. The #36 Alpine Nissan goes to the garage, with rookie Paul-Loup Chatin at the wheel, along with Nelson Panciatici and Oliver Webb. Spencer Pumpelly is getting into the #66 JMW Ferrari 458 Italia.
Thomas Blam and Eric Ingraham from Flying Lizard are here, helping out their drivers at JMW in the Ferrari. Gianmaria Bruni runs fast lap in LM GTE Pro at 3:55 flat (3:55.090). Senna is bringing the fight back to Gianmaria Bruni. Senna looks to the inside but can't quite make it. Just under six hours to go, and these guys are running the fastest laps possible at this moment. Bruno Senna is not letting Gianmaria Bruni out of his sites. The #97 car goes to a different fuel map. Oh! Marcel Fassler sweeps past the huge curb, straight lining the chicane.
The #53 RAM Racing Ferrari of Johnny Mowlem spins. The #1 Audi is in pit lane. Marc Gene stays in the car, and gets fuel and a clean windshild. Bruno Senna retakes the lead in LM GTE Pro. Tracy Krohn pits the #57 Ferrari 458 Italia. Tom Kristensen will do a stint after Marc Gene does one more tire stint. He's going for ten wins at Le Mans. Tom Kristensen is going for a potential tenth win. But, he realizes that five and a half hours to go in the race. Watch out, because the Audi's might be burning off the inside shoulder of their tires. There's lots of camber, producing wear.
The #73 Corvette pits and so does the #20 Porsche. Timo Bernhard will take over from Mark Webber. The #97 Aston Martin has a problem. There's steam out of the hood of the dcar. Bruno Senna and Aston Martin's hopes of winning GTE Pro at Le Mans could be dashed. They have a power steering issue. The wires become disconnected. Use zip ties to fix it. Aston Martin had another car go out with power steering failure. Hashtag, gutted. Trouble in paradise for Aston Martin. The #35 OAK Racing Ligier JS P2 pits.
The red curbs inside the yellow and blue, is new, and has a point on it. Some people are bouncing off that curb. If you hit too much curb, it slows the car as you have to blip the throttle. The shockwave rattles the chassis. Le Mans is now a sprint race, and you have to push every lap. We watch the #14 Porsche in the pits, as Neel Jani gets in the car. The Aston Martin is in the garage right now. Pit stop time for Audi. Andre Lotterer is in the #2 car now. The #8 Toyota is pitting now. There's a problem for the #35 OAK Racing Ligier JS P2 with the Nissan motor.
The #97 Aston Martin Vantage is almost ready to go after replacing the power steering pump. Problems continue for the #35 car that could change the order in LMP2. Less than five hours left. There's a car smoking on track. No changes up front at this point. We've got two sprint races from the Tudor United Sports Car Championship, yet to run. We see the Ferris wheel, which is a fixture here at Le Mans. The #35 Ligier JS P2 Nissan, is back on track. To change brake pads, use a big tool that works the opposite of pliers to get the pads out. Don't hit the brakes, because without a rotor, the pistons will pop out of the calipers.
That's why the driver has to keep his foot off the brake pedal. There's still a long way to go. Press your bets, and take more chances. The #2 Audi is flying. The sister car pits. They are doing quadruple stints, or they were, until now. The stints might be shortened. Gene did a quadruple stint. Shorten up the stints towards the end of the race. Timo Bernhard can't run the same laps as Andre Lotterer. The #2 Audi might get past the #20 Porsche. The #14 Porsche is quicker than the #20. It seems to have dropped in pace. The #92 Porsche 911 RSR pits with Richard Lietz at the wheel.
The driver's manual to explain the new Porsche, is 40 pages long. That's how complicated these new hybrid race cars are. Each driver has a setting they prefer for setting the electronics. Plug in a driver's setting. Set the parameters for each individual driver. The #20 Porsche heads back on track. The #97 Aston Martin is back on track. But they are fourth in class, five laps down. Gianmaria Bruni leads LM GTE Pro in the Ferrari. In LMP2, it's the #46 Ligier JS P2 of Thiriet by TDS Racing. Richard Lietz is two laps behind, and he could be in the running in these next four and a half hours. Run hard, but stay off the curbs. Be a bit more conservative on traffic.
The LM GTE cars have more space. All the cars have more space at Le Mans, because there aren't as many cars as at Daytona, Sebring, Watkins Glen, or Road Atlanta. Audi may threaten to pass the second place Porsche. Toni Vilander will take over te car from Gianmaria Bruni. The #73 Corvette is pitting, and completes the stop. Jordan Taylor remains at the wheel, third in LM GTE Pro. Tom Kristensen leads in the #1 Audi. Could Audi take another win? Could they have a 1-2 finish?
Jordan Taylor is still in the #73 Corvette. He is holding onto a podium place in LM GTE Pro. The #2 Audi is pitting. The leading P2 car pits. This is the Ligier for Thiriet by TDS Racing, cleaning the radiators. They've got some damage, too. The #20 Porsche splits the two Audi's. But it is unclear how long that will last. Spare a thought for Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen, being the only two driver team. This race is tough enough with three drivers. With two, it's a nightmare. Anything can and will happen in the last four hours of this race.
The #77 Dempsey Racing Porsche has been in the garage for a while. They thought they'd have as podium spot. Maybe not. Same story was written last year. The team does a rotor change. The #97 Aston Martin Vantage pits. Tom Kristensen is closing in on (and, yours truly hates to jinx this), a tenth win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in 17 years. The #1 Audi with Tom Kristensen aboard, makes another pit stop. No tires. Fuel only. The LMP2 leading Ligier is smoking. It looks like a rubbing or flat tire. Reports are a puncture. P2 still seems to be a class that nobody wants to win.
That's a trend. Tristan Gommendy is at the wheel of the #46. Now, the smoke stopped. Is it a suspension problem? It is. No puncture here. This was a suspension failure, as they put the car on the skateboards. Let's watch the #38 Jota Sport car that qualified second in LMP2. Simon Dolan is at the controls of the #38 Zytek Nissan. The Ligier's seem to have these problems. As for Simon Dolan, he's a financier. With Zytek, they have a new LMP2 coupe that will debut next year. Dolan shares the car with fellow Brits Oliver Turvey and Harry Tincknell. The Audi is stopped on course! What happened? It's now underway.
This is a reset. Control, Alt, Delete, just like a computer or a cell phone. Before, there was a fuel injector issue. He did a power cycle. Now, could this leave the door open for the sister Audi or for Porsche? This race is never over. Andre Lotterer is now on the same lap as Timo Bernhard. We've got about 56 laps left in this race. That's a little less than 500 miles. Stay out of the pits. Run your laps. Avoid issues. The #20 Porsche pits for fuel only. There's a new urgency at Porsche as Bernhard is going to stay in the car. The #42 Zytewk is slow out of Mulsanne corner. Chris Dyson is at the controls. He's cycling the electronics.
He doesn't want to stop, because then, he'll be out of the race. Dyson is definitely off the pace. Tom Kristensen pitted. The crew did not do anything more than standard service. They waved off the skateboards. They plan to bring the car into the garage. Kristensen is in the pits with a lap lead over the Porsche and their team car. This has to be quick. The dolly goes under the car. The Jota Sport car pits to change Harry Tincknell into the car. All hands on deck. It's an issue at the back of the car. Is it fuel injection again?
Is it exhaust? Is it the turbo? In mere moments, Andre Lotterer will take the lead. Lotterer turned the fastest lap of the race. Timo Bernhard is trying to hold on in the #20 Porsche. Audi came with three bullets, and they might be down to one. This is going to be a race for the overall lead! Lucas di Grassi changes into the #1 car. Porsche will need to find more pace if they want to keep up with the Audi. The sister #14 Porsche is even running quicker. One more lap before #2 takes over the lead.
The #2 car is pitting for fuel and tires. Go after the tires. The fix for the #1 is a new item. Timo Bernhard is pushing, and I don't have to tell you... hard! The #1 car is being repaired. Consider the hardware and the heat. Timo Bernhard is now leading for Porsche, a minute and 40 seconds ahead of Andre Lotterer. Bernhard is more aggressive. We've got three and a half hours of this race to go. Toyota is knocking on the door with their one remaining bullet. Push components to the limit, to maximize energy efficiency. This is pushing these rocket ships to the breaking point.
This race is incredible. The #1 Audi leaves the pits after changing the turbo. The crew cleaned the underside of the #1 car's rear bodywork. Mark Webber will be the next man in the Porsche, and Brendon Hartley will take it to the flag, should they be able to win. Sebastien Buemi is also pshing in the #8 Toyota. The sister car was having the race they wanted, before stopping on track, and falling out. Sixteen cars, including the lead Toyota, are out of this race. The car was tucked into a safe zone, and couldn't be towed to pit lane. So, it was without doubt, game over.
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Audi Sport team boss says, yes, the turbocharger is a big deal. He claims there's a surprise incident going on. It's strange to lose a turbo. It could happen. But it isn't something you look at going bad. It's Audi vs. Porsche, definitely. Andre Lotterer will have to keep gaining on Timo Bernhard. How much fuel are you burning? Don't cross the threshold. The clock is either your friend, or your enemy, at this point in the race.
Porsche and Mark Webber remain a lap down. Stefan Mucke is catching Giancarlo Fisichella for the LM GTE Pro lead. The #75 Porsche loses a wheel, and a door. This is the Prospeed Competition machine in the hands of Francois Perrodo, Emmanuel Collard, and Markus Palttala. Palttala is familiar to Tudor United Sports Car Racing fans. Audi is still ahead of Porsche by a lap. Marcel Fassler just came out of the pits, and the French commentators called him Marcel "Fast" Fassler. The #75 Porsche lost a wheel and also, there was a pit stop for a Ferrari. That's the #81 8Star machine in LM GTE Am. Pardon, that's the #90 car in LM GTE Am. Paolo Ruberti is driving.
Frankie Montecalvo and Gianluca Roda share the car. The #38 Zytek Nissan of Oliver Turvey also pits. The chemistry has to work if you want to put a team together for Le Mans or for any endurance race. Throw the ego away. Respect and compromise with your fellow drivers. The gravel at Le Mans are actually huge, sharp rocks, that can puncture tires. The slow motion camera shots are amazing. Marc Gene is opening a three minute gap over Mark Webber. Gene runs in the 3:27 range. He's running in the 3:26 range too.
Mark Webber is coming close, too. The track is beginning to warm up so you find grip. A Porsche hits a bollard. By the end of the race, the green bollards will be scattered everywhere. It's amazing, the speed that can be carried through the Porsche curves. The tires are smaller. The body is narrower. But, the cars go quicker and quicker. They are pushing 1,000 horsepower. But, these cars are only 210 miles an hour. In the old Group C days, the cars could go 240-250 miles an hour with 700 horsepower in the old Group C days as the #58 Ferrari gets cockeyed in the chicane.
The #70 Team Taisan Ferrari is in the pits. Marc Gene pits and will stay behind the wheel. This is a routine, fuel only stop. Team manager Brad Kettler might make this his final Le Mans race, because he has the R8 GT program to work with back in the United States. Kettler is also a great friend to the Fox Sports broadcast crew. He's had lots of success with Audi at Le Mans. Kettler might be back. This race is so special. It's the crown jewel of sports car racing, and you are immersed in it.
You have to be passionate to run in this sport. It's hard on you personally, physically, and mentally. Webber is dropping back, just a shade. The #97 Aston Martin Vantage is in the pits and it looks like Bruno Senna will replace Stefan Mucke in the car. We still have six hours or so left in this one, which is the length of a standard FIA World Endurance Championship event. Gianmaria Bruni is flying. He's catching the Aston Martin hand over fist. Giancarlo Fisichella was on the wrong tire compound. Gianmaria Bruni, is on the right tires, and faster.
The #14 Porsche pits. But, how the 8Star Ferrari of Paolo Ruberti and the #51 AF Corse Ferrari of Bruni, it looked like a short track stock car race! Yikes! You know the amateur driver is slower. But there's something in your gut that says, "this isn't working". Plan on giving the gentleman driver, room. Going through the Porsche curves, it's cringe worthy if thre's a slower car there. The gap is closing. Bruni will catch the lapped Team Taisan Ferrari through Tetre Rouge. Patrick Long is also holding on by the skin of his teeth. The GT class cars are on edge through the corners.
They don't have the downforce that the prototypes do. Ricky Taylor climbs into the #50 Larbre Competition LMP2 car sharing with Pierre Ragues and Keiko Ihara. He'll understand a P2 car, when he's battling them in his Daytona Prototype spec car back home in the Tudor Championship. The race is red hot in LM GTE Pro. Bruni is trying to get by Senna. This is the shot down to Mulsanne corner. Senna wants to move over, but Bruni won't be denied.
Bruni was on three wheels on the curbs. We love watching. But, the crewmen say, "get off the curbs!" The shock setups are set for the curbs. But the curbs are high and sharp, and this race still has six hours to go. Audi #2 is in the pits. Mark Webber in the Porsche has gone a lap down. Marc Gene is cranking off the lap times, and then, the #2 car is gaining on Webber. The #36 Alpine Nissan goes to the garage, with rookie Paul-Loup Chatin at the wheel, along with Nelson Panciatici and Oliver Webb. Spencer Pumpelly is getting into the #66 JMW Ferrari 458 Italia.
Thomas Blam and Eric Ingraham from Flying Lizard are here, helping out their drivers at JMW in the Ferrari. Gianmaria Bruni runs fast lap in LM GTE Pro at 3:55 flat (3:55.090). Senna is bringing the fight back to Gianmaria Bruni. Senna looks to the inside but can't quite make it. Just under six hours to go, and these guys are running the fastest laps possible at this moment. Bruno Senna is not letting Gianmaria Bruni out of his sites. The #97 car goes to a different fuel map. Oh! Marcel Fassler sweeps past the huge curb, straight lining the chicane.
The #53 RAM Racing Ferrari of Johnny Mowlem spins. The #1 Audi is in pit lane. Marc Gene stays in the car, and gets fuel and a clean windshild. Bruno Senna retakes the lead in LM GTE Pro. Tracy Krohn pits the #57 Ferrari 458 Italia. Tom Kristensen will do a stint after Marc Gene does one more tire stint. He's going for ten wins at Le Mans. Tom Kristensen is going for a potential tenth win. But, he realizes that five and a half hours to go in the race. Watch out, because the Audi's might be burning off the inside shoulder of their tires. There's lots of camber, producing wear.
The #73 Corvette pits and so does the #20 Porsche. Timo Bernhard will take over from Mark Webber. The #97 Aston Martin has a problem. There's steam out of the hood of the dcar. Bruno Senna and Aston Martin's hopes of winning GTE Pro at Le Mans could be dashed. They have a power steering issue. The wires become disconnected. Use zip ties to fix it. Aston Martin had another car go out with power steering failure. Hashtag, gutted. Trouble in paradise for Aston Martin. The #35 OAK Racing Ligier JS P2 pits.
The red curbs inside the yellow and blue, is new, and has a point on it. Some people are bouncing off that curb. If you hit too much curb, it slows the car as you have to blip the throttle. The shockwave rattles the chassis. Le Mans is now a sprint race, and you have to push every lap. We watch the #14 Porsche in the pits, as Neel Jani gets in the car. The Aston Martin is in the garage right now. Pit stop time for Audi. Andre Lotterer is in the #2 car now. The #8 Toyota is pitting now. There's a problem for the #35 OAK Racing Ligier JS P2 with the Nissan motor.
The #97 Aston Martin Vantage is almost ready to go after replacing the power steering pump. Problems continue for the #35 car that could change the order in LMP2. Less than five hours left. There's a car smoking on track. No changes up front at this point. We've got two sprint races from the Tudor United Sports Car Championship, yet to run. We see the Ferris wheel, which is a fixture here at Le Mans. The #35 Ligier JS P2 Nissan, is back on track. To change brake pads, use a big tool that works the opposite of pliers to get the pads out. Don't hit the brakes, because without a rotor, the pistons will pop out of the calipers.
That's why the driver has to keep his foot off the brake pedal. There's still a long way to go. Press your bets, and take more chances. The #2 Audi is flying. The sister car pits. They are doing quadruple stints, or they were, until now. The stints might be shortened. Gene did a quadruple stint. Shorten up the stints towards the end of the race. Timo Bernhard can't run the same laps as Andre Lotterer. The #2 Audi might get past the #20 Porsche. The #14 Porsche is quicker than the #20. It seems to have dropped in pace. The #92 Porsche 911 RSR pits with Richard Lietz at the wheel.
The driver's manual to explain the new Porsche, is 40 pages long. That's how complicated these new hybrid race cars are. Each driver has a setting they prefer for setting the electronics. Plug in a driver's setting. Set the parameters for each individual driver. The #20 Porsche heads back on track. The #97 Aston Martin is back on track. But they are fourth in class, five laps down. Gianmaria Bruni leads LM GTE Pro in the Ferrari. In LMP2, it's the #46 Ligier JS P2 of Thiriet by TDS Racing. Richard Lietz is two laps behind, and he could be in the running in these next four and a half hours. Run hard, but stay off the curbs. Be a bit more conservative on traffic.
The LM GTE cars have more space. All the cars have more space at Le Mans, because there aren't as many cars as at Daytona, Sebring, Watkins Glen, or Road Atlanta. Audi may threaten to pass the second place Porsche. Toni Vilander will take over te car from Gianmaria Bruni. The #73 Corvette is pitting, and completes the stop. Jordan Taylor remains at the wheel, third in LM GTE Pro. Tom Kristensen leads in the #1 Audi. Could Audi take another win? Could they have a 1-2 finish?
Jordan Taylor is still in the #73 Corvette. He is holding onto a podium place in LM GTE Pro. The #2 Audi is pitting. The leading P2 car pits. This is the Ligier for Thiriet by TDS Racing, cleaning the radiators. They've got some damage, too. The #20 Porsche splits the two Audi's. But it is unclear how long that will last. Spare a thought for Cooper MacNeil and Jeroen Bleekemolen, being the only two driver team. This race is tough enough with three drivers. With two, it's a nightmare. Anything can and will happen in the last four hours of this race.
The #77 Dempsey Racing Porsche has been in the garage for a while. They thought they'd have as podium spot. Maybe not. Same story was written last year. The team does a rotor change. The #97 Aston Martin Vantage pits. Tom Kristensen is closing in on (and, yours truly hates to jinx this), a tenth win in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in 17 years. The #1 Audi with Tom Kristensen aboard, makes another pit stop. No tires. Fuel only. The LMP2 leading Ligier is smoking. It looks like a rubbing or flat tire. Reports are a puncture. P2 still seems to be a class that nobody wants to win.
That's a trend. Tristan Gommendy is at the wheel of the #46. Now, the smoke stopped. Is it a suspension problem? It is. No puncture here. This was a suspension failure, as they put the car on the skateboards. Let's watch the #38 Jota Sport car that qualified second in LMP2. Simon Dolan is at the controls of the #38 Zytek Nissan. The Ligier's seem to have these problems. As for Simon Dolan, he's a financier. With Zytek, they have a new LMP2 coupe that will debut next year. Dolan shares the car with fellow Brits Oliver Turvey and Harry Tincknell. The Audi is stopped on course! What happened? It's now underway.
This is a reset. Control, Alt, Delete, just like a computer or a cell phone. Before, there was a fuel injector issue. He did a power cycle. Now, could this leave the door open for the sister Audi or for Porsche? This race is never over. Andre Lotterer is now on the same lap as Timo Bernhard. We've got about 56 laps left in this race. That's a little less than 500 miles. Stay out of the pits. Run your laps. Avoid issues. The #20 Porsche pits for fuel only. There's a new urgency at Porsche as Bernhard is going to stay in the car. The #42 Zytewk is slow out of Mulsanne corner. Chris Dyson is at the controls. He's cycling the electronics.
He doesn't want to stop, because then, he'll be out of the race. Dyson is definitely off the pace. Tom Kristensen pitted. The crew did not do anything more than standard service. They waved off the skateboards. They plan to bring the car into the garage. Kristensen is in the pits with a lap lead over the Porsche and their team car. This has to be quick. The dolly goes under the car. The Jota Sport car pits to change Harry Tincknell into the car. All hands on deck. It's an issue at the back of the car. Is it fuel injection again?
Is it exhaust? Is it the turbo? In mere moments, Andre Lotterer will take the lead. Lotterer turned the fastest lap of the race. Timo Bernhard is trying to hold on in the #20 Porsche. Audi came with three bullets, and they might be down to one. This is going to be a race for the overall lead! Lucas di Grassi changes into the #1 car. Porsche will need to find more pace if they want to keep up with the Audi. The sister #14 Porsche is even running quicker. One more lap before #2 takes over the lead.
The #2 car is pitting for fuel and tires. Go after the tires. The fix for the #1 is a new item. Timo Bernhard is pushing, and I don't have to tell you... hard! The #1 car is being repaired. Consider the hardware and the heat. Timo Bernhard is now leading for Porsche, a minute and 40 seconds ahead of Andre Lotterer. Bernhard is more aggressive. We've got three and a half hours of this race to go. Toyota is knocking on the door with their one remaining bullet. Push components to the limit, to maximize energy efficiency. This is pushing these rocket ships to the breaking point.
This race is incredible. The #1 Audi leaves the pits after changing the turbo. The crew cleaned the underside of the #1 car's rear bodywork. Mark Webber will be the next man in the Porsche, and Brendon Hartley will take it to the flag, should they be able to win. Sebastien Buemi is also pshing in the #8 Toyota. The sister car was having the race they wanted, before stopping on track, and falling out. Sixteen cars, including the lead Toyota, are out of this race. The car was tucked into a safe zone, and couldn't be towed to pit lane. So, it was without doubt, game over.
Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich, Audi Sport team boss says, yes, the turbocharger is a big deal. He claims there's a surprise incident going on. It's strange to lose a turbo. It could happen. But it isn't something you look at going bad. It's Audi vs. Porsche, definitely. Andre Lotterer will have to keep gaining on Timo Bernhard. How much fuel are you burning? Don't cross the threshold. The clock is either your friend, or your enemy, at this point in the race.
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