Le Mans Virtual Hour 1: Van der Linde leads for E-Team WRT ahead of Veloce's Vandoorne

Van der Linde, who is sharing the #30 car with fellow GT driver Dries Vanthoor and sim racers Fabrice Cornelis and Arne Schoonvliet, had a slender lead of just under six second as the opening hour drew to a close.

The #30 car had started second on the grid in the virtual race, which is a collaboration between the World Endurance Championship, the Automobile Club de l'Ouest and Motorsport Games.

Mercedes Formula E driver Vandoorne closed the first hour running second ahead of Red Bull Formula 1 driver Max Verstappen, who is sharing with fellow F1 driver Lando Norris in the #20 Team Redline car.

The F1 duo held onto third at the end of the first hour after Verstappen initially moved from fifth to third inside the opening lap.

The #4 ByKolles car led in the early stages from pole position with ex-Formula E driver Tom Dillmann at the wheel, but he then had to serve a drivethrough penalty as he was deemed to have jumped the start, rejoining down in 17th.

Elsewhere in the field, the Fernando Alonso/Rubens Barrichello #14 entry dropped well down the order after Alonso pitted for repairs and to serve a one-second penalty for a collision with the #94 Porsche driven by Simona de Silvestro.

The incident happened on the entry to Tertre Rouge at the half-hour mark.

Other cars to suffer problems have been the #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing entry as Brendon Hartley spun off at Indianapolis (above), suffering extensive damage, while the #15 entry of father and son pairing Andy and Seb Priaulx suffered connection issues.

The GTE class was led by the #88 Dempsey Proton Racing Porsche at the end of the opening hour, with Loek Hartog clear by 10 seconds, followed by the #93 Porsche driven by 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours winner Nick Tandy that had started on pole.

You can follow all of the action live on Autosport, Motorsport.com and Motorsport.TV.