Le Mans 24 Hours - Hour 17

Drama For the race leader - Montagny on his out lap has flames bellowing from the right hand side of the car. The car stops at the start of the Mulsanne - it's game over for the #2 car.

And the #63 car has stopped too - Garcia stationary, again on the out lap for this car -  this time on the run to Indianapolis - which had been running second in GT2.

Bernhard pushes immediately - down to the 3:22s.

And the KSM Lola is into the tyres at Arnage too! Jean de Pourtales with the front bodywork deranged.

Right - to recap - Audi now lead Le Mans! Timo Bernhard leads Bernard Treluyer  - #9 leads #8; and to add insult to injury the third placed #1 car has damage to a panel on the left hand side of the car. And let's just reflect too that Audi R15s fill three of the top four places. 

In GT2 Marc Lieb has inherited second and Raymond Narac is third for a Porsche 2-3  - Giancarlo Fisichella is running in fourth.

Strakka will be into the top ten soon as the #2 Peugeot - clearly a retirement as Montagny walks away from the car - plummets down the order.  

The #1 Peugeot is now pushing hard - Lamy with a 3:21.640.

LMP2 is far from done either. Brabham sets a 3:34 382 - fastest time in the class - and is trying to put the Strakka car under pressure before pitting for a routine stop. Judging from the TV, the rear bodywork on the Strakka car looks loose - a problem for the class leader? It seems not - 3:33.742 last time around for Danny Watts.

Bruce Jones caught up with Franck Montagny in the paddock - "I wish the best to the #1 crew and hope they can get back to second and with some luck perhaps better. We had so many tests when all went right and today it went wrong."

The KSM Lola makes it back but without its front bodywork - it is pushed into the garage for attention. The Drayson Lola too is back in the pits.

The third in GT2 IMSA Performance Porsche has a problem - it is in the garage and will be passed by Toni Vilander in the #95 AF Corse Ferrari. Corvette leads Porsche and Ferrari for the GT2 top three. The Hankook Farnbacher Ferrari inherits fourth in class as the Porsche remains stationary.

Gene is pushing hard but has three minutes and 40 seconds to make up on the second placed #8 Audi of Marcel Fassler.

Let's not forget at this point that all three Lola Aston Martins are still riding high in the overall order - #007 is running sixth, with #009 in seventh and #008 in ninth.

Another impressive runner has been the #15 Audi R10 - eighth overall and lapping more and more quickly this morning; Albers with a 3:27.9 last time around.

The BMS Porsche pits with a left rear puncture - it gets a new tyre and rejoins.

The #40 Ginetta Zytek goes straight on at Arnage again - Miguel Amaral at the wheel this time. The car is pushed back and rejoins, but then hits the wall again in the Porsche Curves and does damage to the front left corner. The car eventually gets back to the relative sanctuary of the pit garage.

The #007 Lola Aston is in the garage from sixth!  Major repairs underway to the rear of the car - possibly gearbox-related.

The Drayson Racing Lola is in the garage too - Cocker reporting that the LM P1 is not handling well. The car then stopped on track but was brought back.  

Timo Bernhard is into the 3:22s again as we approach 8am.

The #63 Corvette diagnosis was a failed engine crank sensor.

The #75 Prospeed Porsche has a huge spin at Tetre Rouge and brushes the barrier, seemingly suffering little damage; but is spotted on course (by Tom Coronel aboard the Spyker) with a deranged rear wheel .

GG/PS

Hour 17 Update

Le Mans 2010 Hour Wow (17)

Hard to miss that seconds after the Peugeot went bye-bye, the No. 63 Corvette stopped in a cloud of smoke on the run to Indianapolis. It looks to be all over for Garcia as well as for Montagny. Now GT2 has gone from a Corvette 1-2 to Corvette 1, Porsche 2 (Lieb in the No. 77 Proton 997). The carnage continues when Jean de Pourtales stuffs the KSM Lola at Arnage.

The situation up front is that the No. 1 Peugeot (now in third) is the fastest car and is two laps down from the new leader, Bernhard in the No. 9 Audi. Theoretically, Marc Gene could gain and catch him - and of course risk another diesel bang-bang. Decisions, decisions.

There are also interesting matters brewing for the third podium spot (and possibly second) in LM P2. The Strakka HPD still leads handily in the class with the somewhat fragile No. 26 non-Honda in a good second place. Third is being fought between the No. 35 Oaka Pesca Judd and the Lolada of the RML team - the pattern of stops has a lot to do with who is where.

At 07:30 we have an indication of how things have changed. David Brabham spins a 3:34.382 in the green HPD - fastest lap in P2.

Wait, there’s more. The IMSA Performance Porsche enters the garage area. This promotes the No. 95 AF Corse Ferrari of Jean Alesi to third in GT2.  While the No. 76 was stopped it was also passed by the No. 97 BMS Porsche. That didn’t last long as Richard Westbrook suffered the most common malady of this race - a puncture. Then yet another car plowed off course. This time it was the oft-off No. 40 Ginetta, the incident coming at Arnage. Amaral got going again, only to understeer off again at the entrance to the pits.

JW