Premat trails Sarrazin by just 12 seconds (but owes us a pitstop), this pair now 2 laps ahead of Bouillon's Pescarolo.

The troubled #10 Lola Aston Martin pits, engine cover off once again

The recovering McNish Audi and Minassian Peugeot are dicing, McNish fending off the 908 into the first chicane but Minassian getting it done into Curva Grande with a very gutsy run up the inside of a very wide R10.

The Erdos vs Theys battle is still going strong, less than a second between the two after a full 10-15 minutes nose to tail. That's the battle for fifth in class with Kane ahead in the #46 Embassy WFO1 - The top three in LMP2 currently #31. 32 and 35

After the latest round of stops GT2 looks like this - Lietz leads for IMSA performance 44 seconds ahead of Sugden for JWA Automotive and just five seconds back the two Farnbacher cars are scrapping hard, Kaffer's 430 just ahead of Westbrook's Porsche.

OK, you leave your laptop to do a bit of radio and all hell breaks loose!

Lets catch up by the classes.

In LMP1 the two major battles underway are for third place - Stuart Hall and Christophe Tinseau now duelling for that position after Manu collard appeared to be caught out by a gaggle of cars - including the race leader - the #16 car, third at the time ran wide, got its left hand side wheels on the grass and spun backwards through the first chicane escape road impacting the barrier on the inside of the exit of the complex - Game over for #16

The overall lead is still being exchanged with pitstops in cycle, Rockenfeller and Lamy still duelling but the Audi man finally ceding a place on the lead lap after almost 4 hours of running.

McNish and Gene are still in full on recovery mode, the pair exchanging ridiculously quick lap times and now 6th and 7th in LMP1

GT1 has been a ding dong duel throughout the race and the last few minutes have seen Enge get back onto terms with Beretta, take the lead bu then not manage top pull away at all 0.2 seconds the gap after 4 hours.  Peter Kox dropped back dramaticallt after a left rear blowout intoi the braking zone at the first chicane.

In GT2 the fast recovering Virgo ferrari suffers its third left rear puncture just as it grabs back fourth position, the best class battle in GT2 is the two Farnbacher machines less than a second apart lap after lap after lap.

Paul Daniels' JWA Porsche dropped back with yet another puncture

OK what about LMP2 - Elgaard leads comfortably from Lahaye in the #35 Pescarolo but now up to third is Jos Verstappen, storming back but with an Erdos / Theys combo just 30 seconds back waiting for someone to stumble.

Joey Foster is next up, the #46 WF01 having run for much of the last hour in third place in class before a longish pitstop.

Hour 4 Positions

1 8 Team Peugeot Total  LAMY Pedro SARRAZIN Stephane Peugeot 908 Hdi-FAP LMP1 ==141==
2 2 Audi Sport Team Joest  PREMAT Alexandre ROCKENFELLER Mike Audi R10 TDI LMP1 0.010
3 15 Creation AIM  KERR Robbie JOUANNY Bruce HALL Stuart Creation - Aim LMP1 ==136==
4 17 Pescarolo Sport  PRIMAT Harold TINSEAU Christophe Pescarolo Judd LMP1 1.262
5 31 Team Essex  ELGAARD Casper NIELSEN John Porsche RS Spyder LMP2 ==134==
6 18 Rollcentre Racing  TAPPY Duncan ICKX Vanina SHORT Martin Pescarolo Judd LMP1 0.742
7 1 Audi Sport Team Joest  CAPELLO Rinaldo McNISH Allan Audi R10 TDI LMP1 ==133==
8 7 Team Peugeot Total  GENE Marc MINASSIAN Nicolas Peugeot 908 Hdi-FAP LMP1 12.541
9 35 Saulnier Racing  RAGUES Pierre LAHAYE Matthieu Pescarolo Judd LMP2 25.498
10 34 Van Merksteijn Motorsport VAN MERKSTEIJN Peter VERSTAPPEN Jos Porsche RS Spyder LMP2 ==132==
11 25 RML  ERDOS Tommy NEWTON Mike Lola MG LMP2 26.729
12 27 Horag Racing  LIENHARD Fredy THEYS Didier LAMMERS Jan Porsche RS Spyder LMP2 29.891
13 46 Embassy Racing  KANE Jonny FOSTER Joey WF01 Zytek LMP2 1:06.762
14 40 Quifel ASM Team  AMARAL Miguel PLA Olivier Lola AER LMP2 ==131==
15 4 Saulnier Racing  NICOLET Jacques FAGGIONATO Marc HEIN Richard Pescarolo Judd LMP1 7.469
16 44 Kruse Schiller Motorsport de POURTALES Jean NODA Hideki Lola Mazda LMP2 ==130==
17 59 Team Modena  GARCIA Antonio ENGE Tomas Aston Martin DBR9 LMGT1 ==128==
18 72 Luc Alphand Aventures  BERETTA Olivier MOREAU Guillaume GOUESLARD Patrice Corvette C6.R LMGT1 0.938
19 10 Charouz Racing System  MÜCKE Stefan CHAROUZ Jan Lola Aston Martin LMP1 ==126==
20 5 Team Oreca Matmut  ORTELLI Stephane AYARI Soheil Courage-Oreca Judd LMP1 ==124==
21 73 Luc Alphand Aventures  BLANCHEMAIN Jean-Luc DUMEZ Sebastien MANOPOULOS Patrice Corvette C6.R LMGT1 26.468
22 55 IPB Spartak Racing  RUSINOV Roman KOX Peter Lamborghini Murcielago LMGT1 ==123==
23 45 Embassy Racing  HUGHES Warren HABERFELD Mario WF01 Zytek LMP2 8.168
24 76 Imsa Performance Matmut  NARAC Raymond LIETZ RIchard Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 ==122==
25 16 Pescarolo Sport  COLLARD Emmanuel BOULLION Jean-Christophe Pescarolo Judd LMP1 ==121==
26 90 Farnbacher Racing  EHRET Pierre KAFFER Pierre Ferrari F430 GT LMGT2 27:36.463
27 91 Farnbacher Racing  NIELSEN Lars Erik WESTBROOK Richard SIMONSEN Allan Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 27:37.398
28 85 Snoras Spyker Squadron  DUMBRECK Peter KELLENERS Ralf VASILIEV Alexei Spyker C8 Laviolette LMGT2 ==120==
29 99 JMB Racing  AUCOTT Ben DAOUDI Stephane Ferrari F430 GT LMGT2 17.744
30 96 Virgo Motorsport  BELL Robert BRUNI Gianmaria Ferrari F430 GT LMGT2 ==119==
31 33 Speedy Racing Team Sebah  BELICCHI Andrea POMPIDOU Xavier ZACCHIA Steve Lola Judd LMP2 4:04.693
32 95 James Watt Automotive  DANIELS Paul PALTTALA Markus SUGDEN Tim Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 ==118==
33 98 JMB Racing  KUTEMANN Peter BASSO Maurice CASADEI Mauro Ferrari F430 GT LMGT2 ==117==
34 94 Speedy Racing Team  CHIESA Andrea LEUENBERGER Benjamin Spyker C8 Laviolette LMGT2 50.608
35 32 Barazi Epsilon  BARAZI Juan VERGERS Michael REES Fernando Zytek 07S LMP2 ==116==
36 30 Racing Box  DIDAIO Marco FRANCIONI Filippo Lucchini Judd LMP2 ==115==
37 77 Team Felbermayr-Proton  LIEB Marc DAVISON Alex Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 ==114==
38 41 Trading Performance  OJJEH Karim GOSSELIN Claude-Yves SCHROYEN Julien Zytek 07S LMP2 ==94==
39 75 Imsa Performance Matmut  BALANDRAS Richard LECOURT Michel BELLOC Jean-Philippe Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 ==86==
40 20 Epsilon Euskadi  BURGUENO Angel DE CASTRO Miguel-Angel Epsilon Euskadi Judd LMP1 ==73==
41 37 WR / Salini  SALINI Stephane SALINI Philippe ROUSSEL Patrice WR Zytek LMP2 ==71==
42 6 Team Oreca Matmut  PANIS Olivier LAPIERRE Nicolas Courage-Oreca Judd LMP1 ==27==
43 88 Team Felbermayr-Proton  RIED Christian FELBERMAYR H. Jr FELBERMAYR H.Sr Porsche 997 GT3 RSR LMGT2 ==22==
44 26 Bruichladdich Radical  ROSTAN Marc PETERSEN Jens LUEDERS Jan-Dirk Radical AER LMP2 ==6==   

Stephane Ortelli suffers an absolutely enormous accident in the #5 Courage Oreca, the car breaking away (looking as if it suffered a failure of some description) as Ortelli applied the brakes. The car spearing to the inside digging in, getting airborne and flew, vertically over Allan Mcnish's Audi before destroying itself in a series of barrel rolls which took the car from the apex of the chicane, through the infield and over the track again before finally coming to rest on the inside on the exit of the chicane (coincidentally almost where Collard's car came to rest.) Ortelli was immediately moving in the car, moved to get out but was then told by a nearby medical crew to stay where he was after an accident of almost unbelievable violence. 

The accident of course brings out the Saftey car whilst Ortelli is taken by ambulance to the medical centre, and the very large amount of debris is taken away - Allan McNish radioed back to the pits to tell them that Ortelli had flown over his car and to scramble the medical crews, the two cars coming perilously close to contact.

In the queue behind the Safety Car Rockenfeller leads Lamy, Hall leads Tinseau, Capello, Elgaard and Gene are in line astern behind Ickx - the Pescarolo lying fifth.

Back up into fourth in LMP2, Joey Foster heads Erdos and Lammers  In GT1 Enge now has a lap on Beretta courtesy of a lucky break under the Safety Car.

GT2 has seen the demise of the Virgo Ferrari, the third blowout causing a lot of rear end damage to the #96 car.

Narac effectively has a lap lead over Westbrook and Kaffer, these two though still in line astern.

19 laps to go and the safety Car pits, as doe Capello, a right rear puncture for that car.

Erdos grabs fourth in class from Foster into the first chicane.

Rockenfeller hammers around pulling a slightly bigger gap out on Lamy, 3 seconds to the good next time around.

Disaster for Embassy racing as Foster pulls off the circuit at the entry to Lesmo 1 from fifth in class. Potentially a bigger disaster still for Lahaye, a lengthy stop go fopr the second in LMP2 car.

Vanina Ickx has a brief moment which drops her behind Gene.

 Lamy is pushing very, very hard, on the ragged edge through Parabolica, Rockenfeller though is pulling away a little, 1.8 becomes 2.3 and the 908 could be in trouble with officialdom as he passes a backmarker under yellow flags as the Embassy car is recovered.

Its a dogfight for the win now - 10 laps to go, traffic involved as the lead pair duke it out - the Audi is baulked through Ascari by the LMP2 pescarolo, that gives the Peugeot a better run through Parabolica, the Audi negotiating the Aston Martin ahead gives Lamy the run down the start finish straight but Lamy outbrakes himself through the chicane goes across the infield and takes the place, just as the screen flashes up Stop/ Go Penalty for #8 for the yellow flag infringement.

Rockenfeller goes by, the Peugeot doesn't pit and there is contact under braking into the first chicane, the R10 punctured left front and the Pug pits this time around leaving well ahead of the crawling R10, the gap now 46 seconds.

In GT1 Enge posts his fastest lap of the race, 13 seconds the gap after Beretta got a wave by to make up most of its lost lap.    

The third place battle is still well alight, the gap under a second with 5 laps to go. Hall has the pace on the straights, the new AIM engine is clearly a potent beast.

Again and again the Creation man fends off the Pescarolo and on the very last lap, Tinseau gets the inside line into the first chicane, Still Hall doesn't give way, toughs it out on the wrong line, makes it stick but runs wide and loses out after a fantastic scrap.

Its a Porsche 1,2,3 after a dramatic race, the Dunlop shod Essex racing car takes the win from Verstappen and lammers with Erdos fourth.

GT1 goes Aston Martin's way, 12 seconds ahead of the Beretta Corvette and in GT2 IMSA Perfomance take the win from a Farnbacher Racing 2,3, the team's Porsche beating the Ferrari. the #99 JMB Ferrari grabbed fourth and in a race dogged by punctures the Spykers finishing fifth and sixth.