Le Mans 24 Hours - Wednesday - Free Practice Finally underway with track action, we've had a little bit of drizzle, particularly on the Mulsanne Straight apparently, but nothing to mean slicks aren't the right way to start. A couple of early hiccoughs for the Oreca AIM and the Lizards Porsche. The former was amongst the first couple of cars to get down to the end of the pitlane but it wouldn't fire up when the lights went green and had to be pushed back to the box. The latter suffereed a fuel hose problem, still spewing it out at a fair old rate when it was removed from the front of the car. This led to a big petrol puddle on the floor in front of the car. Starting the AMR parked just ahead of it was off the agenda until it could be cleared up. Minassian and Davidson were straight into the mid 3:30s on their first flying laps whereas Audi were making a steadier start. 20 minutes in and the #78 car is having the gear ratios changed. Davidson's 3:29 is the first and only sub-3:30 as Minassian gets a major twitch coming down from the Dunlop bridge on his out lap, masterfully controlled. Melo is nearly 5 seconds quicker than anyone in class - 4:05.122. This is quicker than anyone in GT1, but it's too early yet to tell how these two classes will stack up against each other. J-CB is fastest petrol with a 3:33.469. Jonny Kane leads P2, but times are not representative yet. Bergmeister and Bell push well inside 4:10, Minassian does a couple of quickest sectors (three sectors per lap) but never a hat-trick. Is this the start of the sand-bagging? We will try to keep a note of the quickest sectors, just in case it is.
Kristensen goes second with a 3:29.654, just 2/10ths behind Davidson. Matech GTs are first and second in GT1, Mutsch leading Gachnang around the track in formation. A good show so far for the rookie drivers, car and team. Leinders is third in class so the GT40s are looking good. IIdi spins the Lamorgini at the Dunlop chicane. Lieb takes over top in GT2 with a 4:04.845 and Panis quickest overall in the privateer Peugeot, a 3:28.450 without any fastest sectors. Enge then takes over the top of GT1 with a 3:59.221, the first to go under the 4:00 barrier. Pagenaud goes second and then fastest - 3:26.463, but Minassian is only a tenth behind. The Racing Box Lola stops more or less opposite the start of the pitlane, but only for a few seconds before continuing seemingly without any major problem. The Jaguar is yet to complete a tour of La Sarthe, the rest have. Marc VDS have apparently lost all of their electronic gear - screens, computers, data-logging, everything that was plugged in to wiring which apparently developed a fault and a minor fire ensued. They are urgently trying to source replacement equipment. The Highcroft is yet to do a proper lap and is currently propping up the timesheet. The other HPD is top of the P2s however with a 3:40.245, with Tommy Erdos closing in behind. A harmless spin coming out of the Ford chicane for Kennard in the KSM Lola. Montagny goes quickest - 3:24.322 after 65 minutes of the session - Jan Magnussen meanwhile tops the GT2 timesheet in the #63 Corvette, first man into the 4:03s (4:03.414) with Matias Russo popping up second quickest but a second slower. Showing that Corvette intend to carry on in GT2 where they left off in Gt1 Oliver Gavin pips Mags' time, the #64 Corvette posting a 4:03.266 and following on next time around with a 4:02.867 Highcroft finally get back out of the pits just after 5pm local time (after fixing a small oil leak). Brabham immediately posts the fastest LMP2 time of the session 3:39.999! Peugeot games are afoot - Davidson sets the fastest times overall thus far in sectors one and two but pits at the end of the lap. Montagny though does finish a lap with a pair of fastest sectors - 3:23.099. Lamy in the #3 car pops up in second fastest 3:24.447. The Jaguar has a clutch problem, which has prevented the car starting the session - One hour in they had identified where the problem was and were just about to discover what it was. Montagny goes quickest - 3:22.876 - that's fastest than last year's pole position time! Kristensen meanwhile puts the #7 Audi 3rd fastest (3:25.508) The Young Driver Aston Martin Pits with a rear right puncture. Its an HPD powered 1,2,3 in LMP2 with the Quifel ASM Ginetta Zytek fourth fastest (and just pipping the LMP1 Beechdean Mansell car!) Romain Grosjean has a big accident in the #60 Matech Ford GT at the start of the Porsche Curves, the Ford fully locked up as it came into view and spinning through the edge of the gravel trap and taking out the far end of the tyre barrier and armco. Grosjean is out of the car and apparently OK - The Ford has lost its rear wing and has significant rear end damage - Red Flag According to the timing screens the Marc VDS Ford appears to be stranded out on the circuit too - It was, the car stopped on the circuit on the Mulsanne and is now being recovered to the pits - as is the Autocon Lola. It appears that some fluid is being cleared up immediately prior to where Grosjean locked up and span the GT40. The session will apparently restart at 6pm local time. It is still dry but there are some big clouds around, some of them quite dark. 6pm on the dot and the track is indeed re-opened. Leventis only gets as far as the end of the pits and goes into the gravel. Andretti spins dropping down from the Dunlop chicane and causes some minor derangement to the rear wing. Hopefully he will not now push it down the Mulsanne as the wing has clearly been damaged. The only car not to have done a quick lap is the #19 Autocon Lola, gearbox problems on the first flyer stranding the car on track. The Jaguar has not done any laps at all. Duval and Gene improve their Peugeots to the 3:26s to close on Kristensen, but Montagny and Lamy are streets ahead out front. Lamy stretches the lead even further with a 3:22.350, two quickest final sectors but 0.7 off in the first sector, so potentially the Peugeot can turn in laps in the mid 3:21's. Gene and Duval both leapfrog Kristensen - Peugeots now 1-4 and Audis 5-7 Brabham improves his lead of P2 with a 3:38.691. Tomas Enge report that the Ford GTs are very quick on the straight - That's fine but now the third Ford is in trouble, the #61 car, Rahel Frey spinning in the Porsche Curves and tapping the wall backwards but hard enough to remove the rear wing. The #70 Marc VDS car though is back on the move. Further woes in GT1 too as the #73 LAA Corvette goes straight off into the tyre barrier at Arnage, Xavier Maassen at the wheel, the car is pushed back and rejoins. Bruni splits the Corvettes in GT2 (4:03.007) but Beretta has improved to a 4:01.963. The #78 BMW pits with a deflated left front Dunlop. Jonny Kane gets the Strakka HPD to precisely a couple of tenths of the class leading Highcroft car. Wolf Henzler gets the #77 Felbermayr Proton Porsche in with the leading group in GT2 - 4th quickest Car #14 gets a warning flag - no surprise there the car has been guilty of some world class **** poor driving in the last few minutes. The Lamborghini, currently 13 seconds adrift from the BOTTOM of the GT1 times, has a right rear puncture but comes home safe. Hopefully rookie Iiri is just trying to get his 10 laps in before the team can turn the wick up. Rodriguez spins in #14 under the Dunlop bridge. Not really heeding the warnings then. Fassler becomes the quickest Audi and first to get ahead of a Peugeot (albeit the Oreca one) but then McNish trumps him with a 3:25.195. Beretta gets close to the 4:00 mark at the head of GT2 with a 4:00.888, fastest than all but the leading Aston in GT1. Duval makes it Peugeot 1,2,3,4 again, McNish 1.5 adrift. He is 3 seconds adrift of the leader Montagny though, improving to a 3:22.173. We think that the theoretical best is now 3:20.9. Watts takes shaves 7/100ths off Strakka's best to close to 1.5 tenths adrift of the other HPD. McNish closes to 0.3 seconds from Duval. Simonsen takes the Hankook Ferrari to fourth in GT2. Given the relatively benign conditions at present, that must be encouraging for this team's unique tyres. Darren Turner improves to a 3:28, so both AMR Lolas head up the P1 'petrol class'. The two Rebellion Lolas follow. 55 minutes to go and the Jaguar is on the move at last. The Lamborghini is starting to turn up the wick but a 4:14.499 is hopefully only the start. Duval puts the Oreca fastest with a 3:21.514 and we now think the Peugeots are capable of at least a 3:20.5. Montagny too improves 3:21.755 though still second fastest. Turner posts a 3:27.268 to leapfrog the #007 Lola Aston - 8th fastest and leading petrol runner. Thee screens flash up a message that the night qualifying session will also count towards qualifying rookie drivers. Antonio Garcia pops up in second place in the GT2 order, re-establishing a Corvette 1-2 as we get into the final 45 minutes oo the session. Montagny improves again - a further tenth shaved poff but still second - That's not good enough for Montagny though - he blitzes round again and sets an astonishing 3:20.034 Lotterer and Bernhard both improve their times but not positions as does Erdos in LMP2 - still third in LMP2 The Racing Box Lola has stopped on track (again) and Didier Andre has a big moment at the entry to the Porsche Curves, the Oreca Aim though missing the barriers and making its way gingerly back on track vie the access road. The Norma is getting laps under its wheels and climbing up the order as the drivers complete their required rookie laps. Still slowest in class as the session gets into the final 20 minutes but looking set to get in amongst the pack. The #70 and #61 Fords are both back out and running. Oh, hang on, #70 has stopped again! Stephane Gregoire brings the #'72 LAA Corvette up to second in GT1 but Enge stretches his advantage again, the #52 Aston down to a 3:58.456, still the only GT1 car faster than the fastest GT2! Hold it! Gregoire improves again and edges ahead of the #64 GT2 Corvette. Enge though improves again moments later - 3:56.839 Richard Westbrook makes a big improvement in the #97 BMS Porsche - 6th fastest in class. Marc Lieb goes faster still - The #77 Felbermayr Proton Porsche splits the Vettes again - 4:02.156 and then a 4:02.101 next time around. There are improvements in time for Bernhard (still 9th), Bouchut (still 14th) and Greg Mansell who finally gets the #5 Ginetta Zytek ahead of the HPDs Bourdais goes second quickest as we entter the final ten minutes in the #3 Peugeot - a 3:21.266 Tom Coronel brings the Spyker into the top ten in GT2 - Tommy Erdos is baulked in the Porsche Curves just as he looks to be in reach of a time that would have seen the RML Lola HPD leapfrog both the ARXs ahead
Alex Wurz has damaged the front splitter on the #1 908
David Hart Pits the #72 LAA Corvette with a right rear puncture. Coronel improves to an impressive sixth in GT2 right at the end of the session. Lapierre looks to improve from third at the very end of the session but falls short. Sarrazin looks set to improve his overall fastest time but pits after setting the fastest second sector of all. The wet weather predicted to arrive at 8pm hasn't shown up - If it stays dry for the start of the first qualifying session at 10pm we are going to see fireworks | 
