ILMC/ LMS, Silverstone - Second Hour

An hour and 4 minutes into the race Timo Bernhard passed the #7 Peugeot 908 of Sebastien Bourdais and brought Audi Sport Team Joest back into the lead of the race. But then the first warnings came over the radio about "heavy rain just outside the circuit at Stowe".

Tim Mullen dropped out of the top 3 in GTE Am just before making his scheduled pit stop. McNish, back on track after the suspension issue, was back at full speed and posted the fastest lap of the race on lap 29. The #2 Audi R18 TDI lapped the track, a 1:46.741.

The next driver to hit trouble was Patrick Bornhauser in the #50 Larbre Competition Corvette, who suffered a left rear puncture and had to go back to the pit.

An hour and 14 minutes gone when Sebastien Bourdais was back in front of Timo Bernhard coming out of Maggots and Becketts. The Peugeot moved to the inside and passed the Audi. Bernhard tried to keep up with Bourdais, but then he lost it under braking and spun off the track. The result was a sudden 15 seconds lead for the Peugeot.

After the GTE cars made their pit stops Makowiecki was back in the lead, followed by the #51 AF Corse Ferrari of Giancarlo Fisichella and the #77 Team Felbermayr Proton Porsche of Marc Lieb. In GTE Am Krohn Racing took the lead

Despite having a clear track Timo Bernhard was unable to catch up with the Peugeot and after 43 laps the gap between Bourdais and Bernhard was 20.625 seconds. Olivier Pla was a lap behind in third place. Behind Pla Piere Ragues and Jean-Christophe Boullion were fighting for fourth overall, the gap between the Rebellion Lola and OAK Racing Pescarolo half a second.

Roald Goethe caused a yellow flag at the Arena an hour and a half into the race. The Gulf AMR Middle East Aston Martin Vantage spun and Goethe tried to get his car pointing in the right direction, but then beached the #60 on the curbs. Yellow flags at turns 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 were the result as a snatch vehicle was sent out to retrieve the Vantage.

On lap 47 Bernhard suddenly lost another 6.5 seconds and the gap to the leading Peugeot increased to 30 seconds. The two Rebellion Racing Lola’s came in for their second stop just a lap later - earlier than any other LMP1 car and allowing the OAK Racing team to take third and fourth overall.

An hour and 40 minutes gone when the race director announced the AF Corse Ferrari #51 and the BMW #55 were under investigation for overtaking under yellow. Soon after the #41 Greaves Motorsport Zytek and the #26 Signatech Oreca were given the same message.

On lap 52 Bourdais pulled in for his second pit stop, handing over his car to Simon Pagenaud. This resulted in the lead going back to the #1 Audi....until Bernhard came in to hand the R18 TDI over to Marcel Fässler.

McNish was already back in 18th overall when he returned to the pit - and stayed in the car for a third stint.

The #66 JMW Motorsport Ferrari 458 Italia was given a 1-minute stop & go penalty for its contact with the #2 Audi Sport Team Joest Audi R18 TDI. We - and apparently race control as well - thought it was the Kessel Racing at first, but Rob Bell said he had received a big whack from the Audi and this decision by race control confirms it was the JMW car - which looks similar from the back. James Walker returned to the pit....where Jim McWhirter’s comments on what happened with Allan McNish and the Audi were not suitable to print here.

Mathieu Lahaye overtook Andrea Belicchi just before the two hour mark, making it an OAK Racing 3-4 again. But only briefly as Belicchi put in some fast laps again and passed Lahaye again on lap.

On the hour Pagenaud was leading - ahead of Fässler and Pla.