Le Mans 2017: Thursday
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GTE PRO
Turner on his out-lap in the #97 Aston. Let's see what he can do. Its 3m51.860s was set in the previous session by Adam and the car is now fourth in class.
Driver Change
And to complete that round of driver swaps for Toyota, we now have Nakajima in the #8 example.
GTE AM
And to complete the set as we head for the final half hour, here's how the GTE Am ranks look.
GTE PRO
Stanaway now out of the pits on a mission to improve in the #95 Aston – it's in seventh at the moment, and its fastest lap so far of 3m52.117s dates from last night.
LMP2
Collard is now out in the #28 TDS ORECA. This is set to be the 46-year-old's 22nd Le Mans.
Information
A warning for Moore in the #34 Tockwith Ligier to respect track limits in the neighbourhood of the Porsche Curves.
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GTE PRO
3m51.619s for Turner in the #97 Aston - that's P3 in class.
LMP2
Thiriet is lapping in he #26 G-Drive/TDS ORECA that is on top in the class. Thiriet has been one of the quicker silver drivers. Currently, though, the fastest of the silver-graded drivers is Laurent in the #38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA after setting the time that put the car third.
LMP2
It's becoming an increasingly major talking point in LMP2, which is meant to be a pro-am category, that there are effectively all-pro line-ups. The regulations require each entry to have at least one silver-graded drivers. The silvers out there are a mixed bag, some more traditional and true amateurs, but there is also a premium on drivers rated in that category who are not really in that spirit. But those are the rules, so there's no problem with teams fielding the best eligible line-ups.
GTE PRO
Stanaway goes top with a 3m51.038s in the #95 Aston - that's the first lap so far to beat last year's pole time of 3m51.185s.
LMP2
Albuquerque improves to a 3m30.057s in the #32 United Autosports Ligier. That's in 18th.
LMP1
The LMP1 cars are currently lapping around five seconds slower than their best times at the moment, with it looking unlikely that there will be any further changes in the remaining 20 minutes. Then again, stranger things have happened...
LMP2
Albuquerque improves again to a 3m29.151s in the #32 United Autosports Ligier. That makes that car the lead non-ORECA in 14th.
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LMP1
One car that could improve still is the ByKolles. It has just returned to the track with Kraihamer at the wheel and is around 5.5 seconds slower than the fifth-placed #9 Toyota. Can it close that gap in the remaining moments? It could, but won't gain a huge amount by doing so as Webb's times earlier have seen off the LMP2 threat.
LMP2
Aleshin improves the #27 SMP Dallara's time to 3m29.659s - that betters the one Sirotkin posted earlier. It's in 15th.
GTE PRO
Ford GTs now look to be revving up for an assault on pole position - they're out on pitlane.
GTE PRO
Stanaway came back to the pits after his flyer, but Turner stayed out and is now top of the Astons with a 3m50.837s - two tenths faster. The #97 and #95 are now one-two in class.
LMP1
An interesting point is that out of the three types of car in LMP1 car it is only the ByKolles CLM that has not stopped or dramatically slowed out on track at all during practice or qualifying. Yes, it did spend a fair while in the pits earlier, but that is pretty impressive for a car that has a notorious reputation for being just a little bit unreliable...
LMP2
Senna puts the #31 Rebellion ORECA third with a 3m26.736s.
LMP2
Panciatici in the #35 Signatech Alpine and Brundle in the #37 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA both improve. They are eighth and ninth respectively.
GTE AM
Rees is back out in the #50 Larbre Corvette for another attempt - he's determined to keep that car on class pole.
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LMP2
Tung puts the #38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA back ahead of the #31 Rebellion with a 3m25.911s.
Outer extremeties of track limits are being tested in the final few minutes here.
GTE PRO
Mucke improves the #66 Ford GT to 3m51.991s, sixth in class. Briscoe is still the quickest of the Ford after his earlier 3m51.232s in the #69 car.
LMP1
Kobayashi has just got out of the #7 Toyota to a round of applause from his mechanics. Clearly Toyota is not expecting any improvements in the final few minutes of qualifying.
GTE PRO
Calado now throws his hat into the ring with a 3m51.028s in the #51 AF Corse Ferrari - he splits the Astons, going second.
LMP2
There's a car in the top 10 that isn't an ORECA! Aleshin puts the #27 SMP Dallara into 10th place.
LMP2
Menezes also improves in the #36 Signatech ORECA, but that's only good enough for 11th.
Information
Just eight minutes remaining - but there's still some improvements flying around.
GTE PRO
Bird now with a 3m51.086s in the #71 AF Corse Ferrari. Fourth quickest - not quite enough to displace Stanaway, just 0.048s off.
LMP1
While there are plenty of changes still happening in LMP2, GTE Pro and GTE Am, it looks like the LMP1 order is settled with six minutes to go...
LMP2
Moore improves in the #34 Tockwith Ligier with a 3m32.536s. That's down in 21st.
GTE PRO
Calado made a brief pit visit, then set off again. Estre also out there in the #92 Porsche.
Crash
Moore has gone off in the #34 Tockwith Ligier. He's in the gravel
GTE PRO
The yellow flag for the Tockwith might have scuppered Calado's hopes of improving.
Green flag
Moore has dug himself out of the gravel and is continuing - giving the car an aggressive wiggle as he cuts across a bit of off-track asphalt to get rid of the gravel he has picked up
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By: Matt Beer
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