Le Mans 24 Hours,  Wednesday Free Practice 1

Hour 1

The first on track action was halted just after the hour mark when Raymond Narac had a hard off in the Porsche Curves aboard the #76 IMSA Performance Matmut Porsche.

Narac was out of the car immediately, seemingly OK, with damage to the left side of the car, the door missing and a flat floor panel missing too with the tyre barriers askew.  The car was recovered to parc ferme.

Under the red flag the #71 car which had been stopped on track with a rear puncture also made its way back to pit lane.

At that point the fastest man of all had been Loic Duval in the #10 Oreca Peugeot, a 3:30.096 over 2 seconds faster than their Test Day best.

The factory diesels filled the next six spots - #8 and #9 Peugeots to the fore.

Colard was the top petrol fuelled runner – matching the 3:36 from the Test Day in the #16 Pescarolo.

The top LMP2s were the three Nissan engined cars – Tom Kimber Smith’s earlier 3:45 bettered by both Oreca 03s, Alex Premat in the #48 Oreca car 11th fastest with a 3:43.2, a tenth faster than Soheil Ayari’s best in the Signatech car. Those times broadly similar to Test Day pace.

Erdos and Watts were next up – 3:49 and 3:51.

GTE Pro saw the BMWs in 26th and 27th place - #55 posting a 4:02.340 with #56 just a tenth slower.  Marc Lieb put the #77 Porsche third fastest.

GTE Am meanwhile saw Fabien Giroix top the times through the hour in the #60 Aston, his 4:08.065 was being challenged by the red flag by Darren law in the #81 Lizards Porsche.

The Aston AMR Ones were in and out throughout the session, very few laps completed and the #009 car spending time in the garage – engine cover off.  Both though finished the hour on timing screen one.  Also scraping in in 24th slot was Jan Lammers, climbing up the order in the Hope Hybrid.

Hour 2

The green flag flew after a 20 minute delay, only for the #74 Corvette to slow dramatically, smoke issuing from the left front corner followed by a burst of flame - the car slowly cruising back. It's a power steering failure.

The Pecom Lola looked to have had a tricky moment on track, pitting for attention to a water leak.

Lammers meanwhile had a quick spin - happily at rather less than 60,000 rpm.

Simon Pagenaud popped in the first sub 3:30 time of the day after 90 minutes - 3:29.558 for the #9 car.  A 3:30.9 from Minassian completed a Peugeot 1,2,3,4.

The #73 Vette also seemed to have hit trouble and was getting attention in the pits (rear suspension) - The #35 Oak Pescarolo had suffered a puncture too.

The #76 Porsche is being pushed the wrong way up pit lane, under a sheet while the session is in progress - The Kronos Lola Aston meanwhile has a throttle sensor failure.

Toni Vilander popped up to the top of the timing sheets in GTE with a 4:01.896 in the #51 AF Corse Ferrari.

Minassian took next turn at the top of the timing screen - 3:29.089 in the #8 908.

The Norma has stopped on track - we're presuming the Judd engined LMP2 and not the wife of the ex UK Prime Minister.

Roger Wills has an off exiting the Porsche Curves, clouting the wall in the #62 CRS Ferrari but getting back to the pits.

Hour 3

Tim Sugden is struggling back in the #66 JMW Ferrari 458 with a right rear puncture.

The #81 Lizards Porsche moves to the top of the GTE AM order with a 4:07.994 - Vilander meanwhile improved his best, still the fastest in GTE Pro - 4:01.658 - Allan Simonsen pops up- just a tenth shy of that mark in the #89 Hankook Farnbacher.

Jani and Belicchi both improve in the Rebellion Lola Toyotas, still a second or two shy of the Pesca's time - Belicchi though goes rather faster - a 3:35.904 gives him petrol bragging rights in the #13 car - still though 5 seconds shy of the 7th fastest diesel!

Davidson makes it a 1,2,3 for the factory Peugeots with a 3:29.7 - all three separated by less than 0.7 of a second.

The Level 5 Lola HPD has completed only a single lap thus far - a leak in the fuel filler hatch has been diagnosed but its a tricky fix.

We're hearing the #009 is done for this session - we'll try to find out more. - It's an oil system glitch - not an engine failure - They'll take their time to check out the issue and hope to be out later tonight.

Miguel Amaral has a big moment in the Porsche Curves, just managing to keep the Quifel ASM Zytek out of the wall.

The Race Performance Oreca improves, and so to does the #49 Oak Pesca - Nissan powered cards 1,2,3 in LMP2 - Judd BMWs 4,5 and 6th.

Jorg Muller improves in the #55 BMW - splitting the 458s, second fastest in GTE Pro.

Jonny Kane breaks the Nissan stranglehold on the top three - third fastest in ther Strakka HPD with a 3:44.

Jean Christophe Belloc meanwhile takes the #70 Larbre Porsche to the top of GTE Am with a 4:07.7

Richard Lietz pops up in the #77 Felbermayer Proton Porsche - a 4:01.376 fastest so far.

Anthony Davidson goes fastest overall in the #7 Peugeot - a 3:28.692.

Roald Goethe has a gentle spin in the Gulf Aston.

Roger Wills tells martin little that his seat had kept moving back on the runners before the off for the CRS Ferrari - they have left front suspension damage and need a radiator changed - They aim to be back out for this evening's session

At IMSA Performance it appears to be a case of driver error - the car is having the whole rear end rebuilt with engine and gearbox out and rear suspension removed at present.

Kane goes to the top of the P2 tree - a 3:42.863.

Davidson is setting fastest sector times but not improved lap times - Pagenaud closes the gap- a tenth back now from the fastest time - all three separated by less than half a second.

The order in GTE Am is reshuffled at the top of the hour - Belloc improves his time but is immediatelty bettered by the Nic Jonsson pedalled Krohn Ferrari - 4:06.328.

Hour 4

A Lotus update - both cars are improving steadily - #65 currently wiith a 4:09.6 and #64 with a 4:20.2 - then Martin Rich improves to a 4:19.4 and then a 4:17.3

Belicchi improves again with a 3:35.840 - Moreau is now second fastest petrol man - 3:36.260 in the #15 Oak pesca.

Magnussen posts the fastest GTE time thus far - 4:00.467 in the #74 Vette - Garcia improves too 6th quickest before Marco Holzer pops up second fastest in the iBird Prospeed Porsche.

Level 5 will not now be out before the end of this session.

Just as we get to thje final half hour of the session Andre Lotterer makes a BIG improvement and takes the #2 Audi to the top of the times in the #2 Audi with a 3:28.296.

McNish improves too, moving ahead of the Oreca Peugeot but improved sector times for both Montagny and Bourdais aren't converted into improved laptimes.

Warren Hughes has a big moment at the Dunlop Curve and get air in the Quifel Zytek but continues.

Farfus goes under 4 minutes in the #55 BMW - 3:59.028.

Jousse goes fastest in the petrol sort of sub-class - into the 3:34s.

The #88 Porsche has a gravelly moment in the hands of Faisal Abdulaziz.

The #79 Jota Aston cruises in with a left rear puncture.

McNish improves again and takes the #3 Audi 4th fastest.

Fabien Giroix makes a big improvement as we get into the last 10 minutes - fastest in GTE Am in the #60 Aston - 4:04.702.

Priaulx takes the #56 BMW under 4 minutes too.

Into the last 5 minutes and its bragging rights time - Bourdais's first effort puts him second quickest  - McNish hit traffic but Rockenfeller thrashed the #1car around in a 3:27.986 - Audi 1,2 at the end of the first 4 hours of free practice running.