Peugeot resist Audi at half-distance

The sole Peugeot 908 HDi FAP and the No.2 Audi R10 TDi have swapped the lead repeatedly, both on track and in the pitstops, during the first 500 miles of the race.

Although Christian Klien currently leads for Peugeot, his advantage over Audi's Marco Werner is only five seconds after five hours of racing.

The No.1 Audi is now up to third despite joining the race two laps down thanks to Allan McNish's crash on the way to the grid prior to the race. The Scot redeemed himself with a charge through the field that saw the Audi back on the lead lap within just over two hours.

LMP2 championship leaders Timo Bernhard and Romain Dumas hold fourth overall and first in class, having recently passed Andretti Green Acura's Marco Andetti after a quick pitstop allowed the American to leap to the front.

The other two Penske Porsches run sixth and eighth overall, split by Michel Jourdain Jr in the Fernandez Racing Acura.

Acura remain on the back foot, with their title hopes David Brabham and Scott Sharp sidelined early when Sharp crashed just 16 laps into the race, and the de Ferran Motorsports car down in 11th after Gil de Ferran spun into the gravel just after the one-hour mark.

The race has been interrupted by a string of yellow flags for incidents, with the most spectacular crash so far being Stefan Johansson's final corner accident in the new Corsa Zytek. The car ended up with its front end perched atop the tyre barriers, but Johansson escaped without injury.

Results will remain provisional at the end of the race as Highcroft have filed an official protest against all five LMP2 Porsches, alleging that that the Penske and Dyson cars are using illegal fuel.