Le Mans 2017: Thursday
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Driver Change
We have the first noteworthy point for quite a while in LMP1, with Lotterer replacing Jani aboard the #1 Porsche.
LMP2
Sirotkin is now in the #27 SMP Dallara and has improved its time to a 3m29.760s to put it 13th.
We're now firmly into darkness running here at Le Mans. Remember, all drivers must complete three night laps to qualify and there were some who didn't tick them off yesterday
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GTE PRO
Briscoe goes to the top of GTE Pro times with a 3m51.232s in the #69 Ford GT.
LMP1
After 50 minutes of this session, the ByKolles has finally taken to the track with Webb at the wheel. Now can it reclaim the lead in the LMP1 Privateers' class? Oh, hang on...
LMP1
On a more serious note, two LMP2 cars have slipped ahead of the ByKolles on the leaderboard so Webb will seek to address that.
Driver Change
In a flurry of LMP1-related updates, all three Toyotas have changed drivers. In order of position, the #7 now has Conway on board, the #8 has Davidson and in the #9 is Kunimoto.
LMP1
We have an improvement from the ByKolles! It's back up to sixth with a 3m24.744s but that is almost 10s slower than the fastest Toyota.
LMP1
Another improvement from Webb in the ByKolles as he moves onto a 3m24.170s, finding another six tenths of a second.
LMP2
Guibbert hauls the #39 Graff ORECA up to ninth with a lap of 3m28.368s.
Driver Change
Hartley has now replaced Bernhard aboard the #2 Porsche. But asides from gains by the ByKolles, the order seems to have settled now.
Information
Just an hour left remaining on the clock in this year's Le Mans 24 Hours qualifying. Here's how the running's gone so far in this third session:
LMP1: There have only been three cars to improve during the first half of this final qualifying session. Nakajima has made it a Toyota 1-2 with a 3m17.128s to close to within 2.3s of the pacesetting #7. The second change is a marginal improvement from Lapierre in the #9 Toyota but that remains fifth behind the two Porsches. The ByKolles has risen to sixth overall with a 3m24.744s from Webb, but that effort is almost 10s slower than Kobayashi.
LMP2: Alex Lynn put the #26 G-Drive ORECA, run by TDS, on top spot early in the session by lapping two-tenths faster than Vitaly Petrov's time, set in the earlier session, in the #25 Manor. Thomas Laurent's time in the #38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA from earlier today remainS an unbeaten third, but behind him Mathias Beche improved the pace of the #13 Rebellion to secure fourth.
GTE Pro: It’s American muscle to the fore as Ryan Briscoe sits on provisional pole in the #69 Ford GT with a 3m51.232s he set with just over an hour to run, eclipsing the previous benchmark of 3m51.484s set by Antonio Garcia in the #63 Corvette. Michael Christensen ran the third fastest lap of the day, a 3m51.847s. Only six cars have gone faster than last night’s quickest time, a 3m52.117s by the #95 Aston.
GTE Am: Fernando Rees put the Larbre Competition Corvette on provisional pole with a 3m52.843s just before handing over to his Am team-mates to complete their mandatory night laps. Pedro Lamy is second in the AMR-run #98 Vantage on 3m53.233s. Townsend Bell spent much of the first hour on top of the timesheets and his 3m53.312s remains good enough for third.
LMP1: There have only been three cars to improve during the first half of this final qualifying session. Nakajima has made it a Toyota 1-2 with a 3m17.128s to close to within 2.3s of the pacesetting #7. The second change is a marginal improvement from Lapierre in the #9 Toyota but that remains fifth behind the two Porsches. The ByKolles has risen to sixth overall with a 3m24.744s from Webb, but that effort is almost 10s slower than Kobayashi.
LMP2: Alex Lynn put the #26 G-Drive ORECA, run by TDS, on top spot early in the session by lapping two-tenths faster than Vitaly Petrov's time, set in the earlier session, in the #25 Manor. Thomas Laurent's time in the #38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA from earlier today remainS an unbeaten third, but behind him Mathias Beche improved the pace of the #13 Rebellion to secure fourth.
GTE Pro: It’s American muscle to the fore as Ryan Briscoe sits on provisional pole in the #69 Ford GT with a 3m51.232s he set with just over an hour to run, eclipsing the previous benchmark of 3m51.484s set by Antonio Garcia in the #63 Corvette. Michael Christensen ran the third fastest lap of the day, a 3m51.847s. Only six cars have gone faster than last night’s quickest time, a 3m52.117s by the #95 Aston.
GTE Am: Fernando Rees put the Larbre Competition Corvette on provisional pole with a 3m52.843s just before handing over to his Am team-mates to complete their mandatory night laps. Pedro Lamy is second in the AMR-run #98 Vantage on 3m53.233s. Townsend Bell spent much of the first hour on top of the timesheets and his 3m53.312s remains good enough for third.
Yellow flag
Yellow flags at the second Mulsanne chicane. It's not clear why yet.
Crash
There has been some sort of problem for Hartley in the #2 Porsche as he is crawling along the track.
Crash
The #47 Villorba Corse Dallara, driven by Lacorte, has reportedly stopped by the second Mulsanne chicane.
Slow Zone
While the #47 Dallara is being recovered we have a slow zone in place.
It's no fun for Hartley to be touring in at that speed. Karun Chandhok had a fly-by-wire problem yesterday and got stuck in a safe engine mode that only allowed him to do 75-80km/h for the best part of a lap. With cars hurtling past at high speed and some blind corners, he did not find that an enjoyable experience. Hartley will have the same feeling.
LMP2
Panciatici improves to a 3m28.802s in the #35 Signatech ORECA. That car is still 11th.
Slow Zone
We still have slow zones in effect
LMP2
We're only one car away from having a sweep of the top 14 places by the 14 ORECAs in the field. ORECAs currently fill the top 13, and only the #21 DragonSpeed car is preventing that lockout.
Crash
The #2 Porsche of Hartley has now stopped.
Green flag
The Dallara has been cleared and the circuit is green again.
Squint, and you might just make out a stopped Porsche in the background.
LMP2
The #47 Villorba Corse car of Lacorte is continuing to crawl home. It's in the final sector.
GTE PRO
Just over a second separates the top nine cars in GTE Pro. But only three of them have beaten the quickest lap from the previous session…
Driver Change
We have a driver change in the ByKolles with Bonanomi getting a run now.
LMP2
Panciatici puts the #35 Signatech ORECA up to ninth with a lap of 3m27.794s.
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LMP1
Here are your LMP1 runners - now occupying the top six places - as we head into the final 40 minutes of the session.
LMP2
Barthez is out in the #23 Panis Barthez Ligier. He's a safe pair of hands (a great pun there when talking about the World Cup winning goalkeeper...)
LMP2
The aforementioned ORECA domination at the top of the LMP2 field is still led by the #26 TDS-run G-Drive car.
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GTE AM
So Fernando Rees thinks there is more pace on the table in GTE Am – none of the likely contenders out there at the moment, though, apart from Dries Vanthoor in the #84 Ferrari that's currently fifth in class.
Crash
Makowiecki appears to have spun the #91 Porsche at Mulsanne Corner.
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Lotterer has just pitted with a slow puncture and quickly returned to the track.
Driver Change
A couple more driver changes with provisional polesitter Kobayashi back in the #7 Toyota and it's Lapierre now in the #9 sister car.
GTE PRO
Ford's sudden burst of pace has shaken up the GTE Pro order.
With 34 minutes remaining, there is still plenty of time for some improvements even though it's dark.
By: Matt Beer
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