Le Mans 24 Hours - Race Report - Hour 18

08:00 LMP2: And another pit stop, this time from the #46 Thiriet TDS Oreca and Matthias Beche, running 4th in class. No sign yet of Scott Tucker getting the #33 back to the pitlane.

08:00 GTE Am The #61 reignited in the garage, but is now being repaired.

The #88 Porsche was earlier pushed behind the barriers just after the Forza Chicane.

08:02 GTE Pro The #51 Ferrari was being refuelled when Vickers' car arrived in flames. Fisichella was immediately sent on its way, and the Italian came back in for his rubber when the all-clear was signalled.

08:04 LMP1: Trouble for the #1 Audi of Marcel Fässler - into Arnage the Swiss driver has to avoid a spinning Corvette and goes into the gravel trap. Fässler avoids the Corvette, but then clips the tyre wall damaging the left rear legality panel and wing.

08:07 GTE Pro The #74 Corvette has a spin and hits the tyre wall at the Porsche Curves. Tommy Milner immediately pits. The TV replay shows the Corvette losing it unaided.

08:07 LMP2: A whole spate of slightly bizarre incidents around the track, mostly involving GT cars, but also one of the lead Audis, and now the #45 Boutsen Oreca, which has suffered a puncture and subsequently lost the entire carcass of the tyre. Briere is making slow progress back to the pits and has lost position.

08:08 LMP1: Latest retirement is the #15 OAK Racing Pescarolo 01 Judd.

08:09 LMP2: Briere gets the Boutsen #45 back to the pits for fresh boots.

08:09 GTE Am The #61 Ferrari is already back in the race, with Vickers still at the wheel.

08:11 GTE Pro The #66 JMW Ferrari has joined the list of official retirements.

08:12 LMP1: Audi Sport Team Joest getting ready for the #1 to pit - rear end damage to be fixed there.

08:13 LMP2 Beche in #46 is pulling away from Ragues in #26 steadily, the gap now over 10 seconds.

Meanwhile #45 is in trouble again on its outlap, jinking around and seemingly it either has another puncture or something in the right rear suspension has broken.

08:15 LMP2 #35 appears backwards at speed in the Porsche curves but doesn't hit anything.  The camera pans round to show #74 facing the wrong way too in a very dangerous place just off the apex and it would appear that these two have made contact.

08:19 GTE Pro The #74 Corvette has rejoined with Milner at the wheel. However, the car is next seen facing the wrong way in the middle of the Porsche Curves - possible contact with the #34 Morgan? Milner reverses out of danger and waits for an opportunity to rejoin. He does so, and then drives back to the pits with rear end damage.

That scraping noise you can hear is the Corvette mechanics reaching the bottom of the spare parts bin.

08:21 GTE Am Tracy Krohn has taken over the third-placed #57 Ferrari.

08:22 LMP2 #45 arrives back at the pits and the rear right is indeed showing a pretty extreme amount of disconnect and camber angle.

Charouz has taken the #25 ADR-Delta Oreca past #41 due to a full service and driver swap to Zugel for Greaves.

08:22 GTE Am The Felbermayr mechanics begin to pack up as the #88 joins its Pro sister car on the deceased list. The #70 Corvette is now fourth and the #79 Lizard fifth. Paul Daniels has just pitted the #55 Porsche  from sixth with

08:23 rear right damage.

08:26 GTE Am Borret pits the #70. Palttala gets in the #55 Porsche and takes the car back out after a swift repair from the JWA crew.

08:27 Audi's now 1-2-3-4 - apparently that happened before, but with all the incidents happening in the last 30 minutes it went by unnoticed.

08:27 GTE Pro Fisichella is now up to 17th overall and still has a lap on Farnbacher despite the extra stop.

08:31 LMP2 Tresson is ninth in P2 now, Scott Tucker an official retirement.

08:34 LMP2 Mailleux takes over from Tresson but goes into the Forza chicane too hot, crosses the car up and then understeers into the tyres on the brakes with light contact.  It is recovered by the snatch vehicle.

08:35 LMP1: 3:25.124 for Loïc Duval - fastest lap time of the race so far.

08:36 GTE Am After 17 and a half hours of racing, the #67 IMSA Porsche and the #50 Larbre Corvette are separated by less than two seconds, with Julien Canal about to once more grab the lead as he is lapping much quicker than Anthony Pons.

08:38 LMP1: Fässler is finally in - car wheeled back into the box to have the rear end bodywork replaced - quick turnaround for the #1 and the Audi is back on track.

08:39 LMP2: Tucker's retirement apparently a case of....running out of fuel.

08:40 LMP1: 3:24.740 - another fastest lap time for Loïc Duval in the #3 Audi R18 ultra.

08:42 GTE Pro Fernandez pits the Aston from third in class and Darren Turner brings the Vantage back out still in the same position.

08:43 LMP1: Jonny Kane - 3:31.778 - fastest time for the #21 Strakka Racing HPD.

08:44 GTE Pro Fisichella puts another lap on the Aston.

08:44 LMP1: 3:24.189...improvement of the fastest lap for Duval again.

08:45 GTE Am Patrick Pilet posts a 3:56.596 in the #79 Lizard Porsche.

08:47 LMP2: Status Grand Prix Lola comes to a stop just after the Mulsanne Chicane. Yelmer Buurman is stationary on the right hand side - not looking good.

08:47 LMP2 The #30 StatusGP Lola slows to a halt just after Mulsanne Corner. The car had been seen weaving earlier in the lap - fuel?

08:48 GTE Pro Dominik Farnbacher has handed the #59 Luxury Ferrari over to Jaime Melo.

08:49 LMP1: Fastest lap of the race for the JRM car just set by Brabham - still several seconds off the pace of the Strakka HPD.

08:54 LMP2: Tor Graves taken over the #25 ADR-Delta from Jan Charouz and returned to the track in sixth, dropping a position during the pitstop to Christian Zugel , who's risen to 5th in the #41 Greaves Zytek.

08:55 GTE Am- The #83 JMB Ferrari gets a 2 minute stop-go penalty for a pitlane infringement

08:57 LMP2: We have a very tight on-track duel for position, with less than half a second between Thiriet (#26) and Ragues (#26) as they negotiate Arnage.