Le Mans 24 Hours 2015 The 83rd Le Mans 24 Hours
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Webber's average pace during the stint he just finished was a 3m22.459s - so about eight-tenths slower than Fassler managed in the #7 Audi.
Webber brings the race-leading #17 Porsche in, handing the lead to Rast in the #9 car.
More importantly, Webber's quicker stop (by four seconds) has helped him extend his gap to Fassler in this pitstop cycle, so he's 19s clear of the #7 Audi now.
More importantly, Webber's quicker stop (by four seconds) has helped him extend his gap to Fassler in this pitstop cycle, so he's 19s clear of the #7 Audi now.
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Davidson takes the blame for the damage that has cost the #1 Toyota a lot of time:
"I have to put my hands up; it was my fault. I touched a Ferrari going through the Porsche Curves trying to carry momentum. It was bodywork to bodywork, corner to corner.
"A slight misjudgment in the timing meant that it peeled off my right front bodywork which ruined the balance of the car. I should have pitted really but I carried on pushing to save the time so I could at least run until the end of the stint.
"It just understeered on me in turn six [end of the esses]. I touched the grass and sideswiped the barrier which bent something on the left rear suspension.
"I am annoyed with myself. Thanks to the crew for repairing the car quickly and getting us back into the race."
"I have to put my hands up; it was my fault. I touched a Ferrari going through the Porsche Curves trying to carry momentum. It was bodywork to bodywork, corner to corner.
"A slight misjudgment in the timing meant that it peeled off my right front bodywork which ruined the balance of the car. I should have pitted really but I carried on pushing to save the time so I could at least run until the end of the stint.
"It just understeered on me in turn six [end of the esses]. I touched the grass and sideswiped the barrier which bent something on the left rear suspension.
"I am annoyed with myself. Thanks to the crew for repairing the car quickly and getting us back into the race."
Davidson Le Mans 2015
Fassler's average during that stint was a 3m21.601s. By contrast, Webber's in the #17 Porsche was 3m22.459s.
Speaking of pitstops, the Murphy squad has pitted again, with Berthon getting back aboard the team's ORECA 03R, in place of Patterson.
He was pretty happy with his run to start the race earlier this afternoon.
"I am very happy with my first stint. It could not have gone better," he sad.
"I didn't have to push, made sure I didn't clip any kerbs hard and drove as sympathetically as possible to save on fuel and tyres.
"Even so, I was still able to make up places. It’s just the way we wanted to start this race."
He was pretty happy with his run to start the race earlier this afternoon.
"I am very happy with my first stint. It could not have gone better," he sad.
"I didn't have to push, made sure I didn't clip any kerbs hard and drove as sympathetically as possible to save on fuel and tyres.
"Even so, I was still able to make up places. It’s just the way we wanted to start this race."
The pursuit of Webber is put on hold - Fassler pits the #7 on schedule. Rast, 35s off the lead, inherits second in the #9 Audi.
Over the last five laps of that stint, Fassler took a second a lap out of Webber.
Fassler smells blood, and Webber's lead is down to 10s as the Audi puts in a second 3m19s lap in a row.
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@Audi__Sport: "Too close to call: Just 10 seconds between the leading Porsche No. 17 and Audi No. 7 Marcel Fässler Thrilling first quarter of the race."
A potential spanner in KCMG's so-far smooth works? It's under a pitstop investigation.
Some distance from pitlane, work is continuing on the stricken Greaves Gibson. A number of mechanics have headed over towards the Esses in a bit to help Hirsch find a battery within the car that will be an adequate substitute for the failed primary battery.
It's been likened to attempts to get back to earth in Apollo 13 (sorry for a potential spoiler if you haven't seen the film), with a flurry of power sources being turned off, changed and then back on again.
It's been likened to attempts to get back to earth in Apollo 13 (sorry for a potential spoiler if you haven't seen the film), with a flurry of power sources being turned off, changed and then back on again.
In his first stint, Jarvis averaged 3m23.038s. His second stint is significantly more rapid.
A pair of front-running pitstops. Howson stops for KCMG, with another 12-lap stint in the book, while Bird pits from fourth. He's rejoined behind Patterson in the Murphy entry.
Fassler is doing a good job in his first stint, averaging 3m21.766s, with his last lap in the 3m19s.
Webber's lead was stable around 15-16s over Fassler, but he's lost out badly in the final sector with traffic, allowing the Audi to close the lead to 12s this time around.
Rast sits third in the #9 Audi, 32s off the lead.
Rast sits third in the #9 Audi, 32s off the lead.
Mighty stint from Hulkenberg there - average lap was a 3m21.164s
Hulkenberg makes his first stop of this stint, having looked pretty strong so far in this run. That drops the #19 Porsche back behind the #18, by 1.6s.
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@24hoursoflemans: Spectators Medical Center
@24hoursoflemans: Spectators Medical Center
Hulkenberg breezes past Rast on the Mulsanne straight, moving the #19 Porsche up to third.
Albuquerque averaged 3m22.861s in that last run - remember, it was the final part of a quadruple stint so hardly fresh rubber.
So, the LMP1 battles at the moment:
Webber is fending off a 15-second lead over Fassler, while behind them, Rast has Hulkenberg for company at the start of his first stint in the race.
Webber is fending off a 15-second lead over Fassler, while behind them, Rast has Hulkenberg for company at the start of his first stint in the race.
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Nissan sounds surprised...
@NISMO: "After 6 hours, all 3 cars still running."
@NISMO: "After 6 hours, all 3 cars still running."
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Impossible to rule out any of the five GTE Pro cars that haven't had a major drama.
Even the #51 Ferrari, which lost quite a bit of time in the pits for reasons unknown to us, has just about managed to get itself back on the lead lap.
And even though Porsche lacks the outright pace of the other marques, it's within two minutes of the lead.
All to play for.
Even the #51 Ferrari, which lost quite a bit of time in the pits for reasons unknown to us, has just about managed to get itself back on the lead lap.
And even though Porsche lacks the outright pace of the other marques, it's within two minutes of the lead.
All to play for.
Hulkenberg is averaging 3m21.032s in the current stint.
Albuquerque pits from the lead in the #9 Audi. Out he gets after that quadruple stint, handing over to Rast.
The length of the stop means Webber is back in the lead with the #17 Porsche, and Fassler moves up to second - 15.7s off the lead - in the #7 Audi.
The #9 is 32s off the lead in Rast's hands, just ahead of Hulkenberg in the #19 Porsche.
The length of the stop means Webber is back in the lead with the #17 Porsche, and Fassler moves up to second - 15.7s off the lead - in the #7 Audi.
The #9 is 32s off the lead in Rast's hands, just ahead of Hulkenberg in the #19 Porsche.
Signatech Alpine, Team SARD Morand and Jota have all completed stops, they occupy third, sixth and ninth in LMP2.
Di Grassi pits the sixth-placed #8 Audi, handing it over to Jarvis.
The Corvette emerges ahead of the #99 Aston, but there's only a few seconds between them in the fight for the lead.
Bird's progress continues, he takes fourth place from Patterson.
Dumas pits the #18 Porsche having been around 15-16s behind third-placed Fassler beforehand. Hulkenberg moves the #19 car into P4.
In comes Taylor in the Corvette. It will be interesting to see where the class leader comes back out...
LMP1 leaders:
1 #9 Audi (Albuquerque)
2 #17 Porsche (Webber), +42s
3 #7 Audi (Fassler), +59s
1 #9 Audi (Albuquerque)
2 #17 Porsche (Webber), +42s
3 #7 Audi (Fassler), +59s
The #71 Ferrari has finally resumed, with Calado back in the seat - but its pitstop stay was so lengthy the #95 Aston has now overtaken it.
Turner pits from second in the #97 Vantage, which means Rob Bell will step in, the car will get new tyres and...yep, it's on its way. Rejoins behind the #99, as you'd expect.
Fassler has slipped to 1m01s behind Albuquerque. That's still just about a small enough gap to mean that the #9 Audi will slot back into third after its driver change.
Howson gets the job done as Thiriet pits in the second-placed TDS Racing ORECA.
Elsewhere, Bird is back up to fifth and Vanthoor has set a new fastest lap for the #34 OAK, a 3m39.601s.
Elsewhere, Bird is back up to fifth and Vanthoor has set a new fastest lap for the #34 OAK, a 3m39.601s.
The GTE Pro leader is in, and that's a fine three stints from Fernando Rees. The Brazilian vacates his #99 Aston Martin, which gets a new set of boots and then heads out in the hands of Alex MacDowall.
Rees Le Mans 2015
Current TV footage is focusing on KCMG's Howson, catching and looking to put a lap on the third-placed Signatech Alpine, which has Capillaire behind the wheel.
P3 Fassler is 58s behind the leading #9 Audi. So when Albuquerque comes in and that car makes a driver change, Fassler should move the #7 back ahead, as things were before the last pitstop sequence began.
Hulkenberg is flying in the #19 Porsche. Over the last three laps, he has been the fastest driver on track.
By: Scott Mitchell, AUTOSPORT staff, Mitchell Adam, Glenn Freeman, Edd Straw, Gary Watkins
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