FR3.5 and Euro F3 title deciders, Petit Le Mans, Talladega NASCAR
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Yellow flag
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Ende's problem is of the gearbox variety, which has brought his Oreca to a halt and resulted in another caution period.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Magnussen makes a stop from second in the GT class. He loses a place to Liddell in doing so.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Doesn't look like Ende came away from that unscathed as he's limping his way back to the pits at the moment.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: And Bennett in the #05 Core autosport serves a stop go penalty for the same infringement. In the meantime, Ende has a moment coming over the top of the hill and comes to brief halt on the grass.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: The #55 BMW RLL of Martin serves a stop and go penalty for a late pit entry. He is running fifth in class at the moment and it hasn't done much to change that.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Top driving by Graf who filters his way through traffic to pass the Rebellion.
Green flag
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: And we're back up and running, on lap 138 of 394. Conditions are very difficult at the moment, but Graf is putting enormous pressure on Prost on the restart through backmarkers!
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: And just as Prost gets on the lead lap he's in the pits... and so is Graf again! Intermediates go on the Pickett.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Interestingly, Prost hasn't followed suit for Rebellion. The majority of the GT field are now in the pits and some are gambling on slicks as drizzle begins to fall.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Pits open for prototypes and Graf brings the leading Pickett in for what is a lengthy stop as the crew replace the rear wing. No tyre change.
Yellow flag
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Entire GTC field has been allowed to pass around and rejoin the back of the safety car train, so hopefully we'll be back under way soon.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Three hours completed and here's how things currently stand:
LMP1: 1 Pickett (Graf/Luhr/Dumas); 2 Rebellion (Heidfeld/Jani/Prost); 3 Dyson (Burgess/Dyson/McMurry).
LMP2: 1 Level 5 (Dumbreck/Kane/Cosmo); 2 Extreme Speed (Brabham/Lazzaro/Sharp); 3 Level 5 (Tucker/Briscoe/Tucker)
LMPC: 1 RSR (Ende/Junqueira); 2 BAR1 (Marcelli/Cumming/Johansson); 3 CORE autosport (Bennett/Kimber-Smith/Wilkins).
GT: 1 Risi (Beretta/Malucelli/Liddell); 2 SRT (Goossens/Dalziel/Farnbacher).
GTC: 1 Flying Lizards (Pumpell/Snow/Canache Jr); 2 TRG (Stanton/Faulkner/Keating); 3 AJR (MacNeil/Bleekemolen/Bleekemolen).
LMP1: 1 Pickett (Graf/Luhr/Dumas); 2 Rebellion (Heidfeld/Jani/Prost); 3 Dyson (Burgess/Dyson/McMurry).
LMP2: 1 Level 5 (Dumbreck/Kane/Cosmo); 2 Extreme Speed (Brabham/Lazzaro/Sharp); 3 Level 5 (Tucker/Briscoe/Tucker)
LMPC: 1 RSR (Ende/Junqueira); 2 BAR1 (Marcelli/Cumming/Johansson); 3 CORE autosport (Bennett/Kimber-Smith/Wilkins).
GT: 1 Risi (Beretta/Malucelli/Liddell); 2 SRT (Goossens/Dalziel/Farnbacher).
GTC: 1 Flying Lizards (Pumpell/Snow/Canache Jr); 2 TRG (Stanton/Faulkner/Keating); 3 AJR (MacNeil/Bleekemolen/Bleekemolen).
Rain
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: The rain continues to fall intermittently, but there's no change to wets for the Jorg Muller BMW...brave, stupid, or forced? We'll soon see. Pits are closed now.
Yellow flag
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: A spinner on the exit of Turn 1, and it's the #18 LMPC of Charlie Shears. He was fourth in class, and that's a shame. He looks stuck...A full-course caution required.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: It all gets a bit hectic at Turn 10. Mowlem runs wide as he gets lapped by the GT leader, who in turn is just ahead of a squabbling Jorg Muller and Goossens. Goossens passes the BMW, but then has to give way to the Rebellion LMP1. Phew!
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: It looks as though the #56 BMW stayed on slicks, too, because there's nothing in the laptimes of the erstwhile GT leaders. The Risi Ferrari and #55 BMW are now squabbling over the lead, but they're a pitstop behind.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: One car that has lost the lead is the #1 Extreme Speed LMP2. The #552 Level 5 machine now leads in the hands of Peter Dumbreck after Brabham took over the Extreme Speed car, which has made an extra stop.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Big, big, big call from the GT leaders. The #91 SRT Viper pits, but doesn't take on wets despite more rain falling. He's out and slithering around...will this lose him the lead?
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Now Beretta is back in front again! Superb move under braking for Turn 10, and makes it stick this time. Nice battle this. The other Muller in the other BMW, meanwhile, has pit from second.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Blimey, what a tussle! Beretta drives straight past Muller on the straight down into Turn 10, but overcooks it and the BMW gets him back when they plant the throttle on the exit.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Kimber-Smith has hit the front of LMPC in the car he's sharing with Bennet and Wilkins. In GT, Jorg Muller has finally got the better of Olivier Beretta, who ran wide and allowed the BMW to nip into fourth.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: We just realised the last three posts began with a question. That will stop now. It's quietening down a bit (mid-class GT battles aside), but Prost is still pounding round a good 2/3s faster than Graf. This is shaping up rather nicely for later on.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Remember the #8 LMPC? Let's refresh the old memory. It led the class for a grand period of time, but spun exiting the pits on cold slicks just before the two-hour mark and dropped down the order.
To Cumming's credit, he's fighting back and if fourth in class and ninth overall.
To Cumming's credit, he's fighting back and if fourth in class and ninth overall.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: And how about that epic GT battle? It's less epic, now. Goossens has put more than 7s between himself and Muller's BMW. There's a good battle between Beretta and Jorg Muller though, for fourth.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: How has Prost fared since stepping into the Rebellion? Rather well, as it happens. He's lapping quickly, and has taken a few seconds out of Graf on the last few tours. He's still over a lap behind, but it's encouraging, especially as there is such a long way to go in this race.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: The worst thing about the weather so far is that it's rained enough to warrant a change of tyres, then dried up fairly swiftly afterwards. That's not to see we'd welcome a massive deluge - just a bit of consistency...
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: 100 LAPS! Give yourselves a hearty pat on the back for making it this far - but not too hearty. This is just over quarter-distance. Thanks for sticking with us, but we're not done yet!
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Following suit is the leader, and Graf brings the Pickett HPD to a stop. No driver change here, just another late switch to slick tyres.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Jani brings the Rebellion car into the pits. He's changing from wets to slicks, that's a late change. Looks like Jani's vacating the car for Prost, too.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: A penalty for the #551, driven by Scott Tucker, but that car will maintain third place in LMP2. Tucker's a lap and a half behind the lead Level 5 car and its Extreme Speed equivalent. 30s separates those cars.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: That full-course caution period, and the pitstop melee that has since ensued, has done little to the P1/P2 and GT orders, but the GTC and PC leaders have changed drastically.
Pickett Racing, ALMS
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Here's your two-hour update:
LMP1: 1 Pickett (Luhr/Graf/Dumas); 2 Rebellion (Jani/Heidfeld/Prost); 3 Dyson (Dyson/Burgess/McMurry).
LMP2: 1 Level 5 (Cosmo/Kane/Dumbreck); 2 Extreme Speed (Sharp/Lazzaro/Brabham); 3 Level 5 (Tucker/Briscoe/Franchitti).
LMPC: 1 Nunez/Shears; 2 Kimber-Smith/Wilkins/Bennett; 3 Rayhall/Smith/Negri
GT: 1 SRT Viper (Farnbacher/Goossens/Dalziel); 2 RLL BMW (Edwards/Muller/Auberlen); 3 Corvette (Garcia/Magnussen/Taylor)
GTC: 1 Faulkner/Stanton/Keating 2 Pumpelly/Snow/Canache; 3 Bleekemolen/Bleekemolen/MacNeil
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: There's a stonking battle going on for the GT lead now, with Goossens in the #91 Viper all over the #56 RLL BMW of Dirk Muller. Nothing between them, fantastic!
Johnny Mowlem (two laps down) was briefly between them, but Goossens swiftly through. Let battle recommence!
Johnny Mowlem (two laps down) was briefly between them, but Goossens swiftly through. Let battle recommence!
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: The #48 Porsche is out of the penalty box - but that's because it's being towed away. Oh dear.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Drama in GT! Holzer is stopped in the penalty box, but it's because of a mechanical problem apparently. Bizarre.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Slick stop for the #93 Viper but problems for the DeltaWing - looks like that will be wheeled into the garage. At best, it's a lengthy stop.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: The #62 Risi Ferrari is in, and that damage from the brush with Magnussen earlier on means the 458 looks a little patchwork quilt at the moment! A host of cars are pitting now, presumably for slick tyres.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: There's a definite dry line on the circuit, but it's a brave move nonetheless. Graf has a two-lap advantage over Jani in LMP1; Cosmo leads LMP2; Holzer is now the GT leader after the pitstops and full-course yellow sorted the order out; Rayhall and Armindo continue to head PC and GTC respectively.
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: Slick tyres! Both Corvettes are in and onto dry tyres. Interesting move.
Green flag
ALMS - Petit Le Mans: We are racing again at Road Atlanta!
By: Scott Mitchell, Jamie O'Leary, Glenn Freeman, Dan Cross, Matt Beer
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