Race bulletin 4 - Mixed fortunes for Audi as dawn breaks
Dawn has broken at the 24 Heures du Mans but the sun has yet to make an appearance. The changeable weather conditions have made the race very challenging for all competitors: 49 of the 56 starting cars are still circulating.
Audi Sport Team Joest’s No.2 R18 e-tron quattro of McNish-Kristensen-Duval continues to have a one lap lead over the No.8 Toyota TS030 Hybrid of Buemi-Davidson-Sarrazin which, in turn, is one lap ahead of its sister car, the No.7. However, Audi’s current FIA WEC World Champions – Lotterer-Trèluyer-Fässler in the No.1 have not had such a smooth run in the 2013 edition of a race which they’ve won for the last two years. Brake issues and a broken windscreen wiper have seen them delayed in the pits and they are now in 8th place, 11 laps behind their team mates.
The LMP1 Privateers are still all running, despite gearbox issues for the No.12 Rebellion Lola Toyota and a brief trip into the gravel at the Ford Curves for the No.21 Strakka Racing HPD.
Two of OAK Racing’s Morgan Nissans brought LMP2 alive, with a very strong stint from Alex Brundle putting the No.24 back in the lead in this category, and this car is now 35 seconds ahead of the No.35 entry. ELMS entrant Jota Sport was putting up a strong challenge to this duo before front right suspension failure pitched Lucas Luhr through the gravel. Repairs have been made and the car is going again, but has dropped back to 8th in class.
Aston Martin and Porsche have shared the lead of LMGTE Pro in the last four hours, with the No.99 Aston now back on top ahead of the No.92 Porsche and the No.97 Aston. IMSA Matmut Porsche, with French Carrera Cup Champion Jean-Karl Vernay at the wheel, now has a half lap lead over the No.55 Ferrari and more than a lap over the No.61 AF Ferrari of Griffin-Gerber-Cioci despite the best efforts of the FIA WEC trio of drivers.
Fiona Miller