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24 Hours of Le Mans
Le Mans 24 Hours Live Commentary and Updates
Minute-by-minute updates for the 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours.
The eagerly-anticipated centenary edition of the Le Mans 24 Hours is the first in which cars built to the new-for-2023 LMDh ruleset have been eligible to compete.
Toyota is seeking a sixth consecutive victory at the world's most famous endurance race, while Ferrari on its first factory effort in the top class in half a century and fellow returnee Porsche are gunning for their 10th and 20th victories respectively.
A field of 62 cars, including the Garage 56 NASCAR entry and 21 GTE Am machines on the category's Le Mans swansong, will take the start at the Circuit de la Sarthe at 4pm local time and race through the night.
Join us here for live updates throughout the race.
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Meanwhile Flohr has handed the #54 Ferrari that sits third in the GTE Am ranks back to factory driver Rigon, who now sits 2m39s off the lead.
Things have calmed down a little for the time being but it's still extremely slippery out there. But the #51 Ferrari is making the most of these conditions and has stretched out a lead of a minute over Duval in the Peugeot.
Another driver on a charge is Cairoli, who carved 13s out of Gatting's GTE Am lead last time around. The Dames driver is now 22s ahead of the rampaging 'Rexy' Porsche.
The lead pro-am LMP2 runner is fifth in the class overall. Since taking over from bronze Francois Perrodo, Ben Barnicoat has hoovered up Manuel Maldonado's Panis car and then pounced upon Rene Binder's Duqueine. Impressive stuff from the Brit in these foul conditions.
And now it's Westbrook's turn to have a spin in the #2 Caddy at Mulsanne Corner but he remains in fourth.
The #3 Caddy now has an off through the first Mulsanne chicane with van der Zande at the wheel as the rain continues to cause trouble.
The big winner through all of this is the InterEuropol car which now has a 29s lead in LMP2. Fabio Scherer has Tom Blomqvist closing though - the Briton was 12s faster last time around.
The #709 Glickenhaus has now been given a one-minute stop/go penalty for a technical infringement as the troubles continue for its cars.
Green flag
With Hull's car cleared the slow zones are removed and we're back to green flag conditions. This is perhaps the definition of trecherous.
Nielsen in the #50 Ferrari came back into the pits after his off at Indianapolis. That's put him down to fifth, and a long way back from team-mate and race leader Alessandro Pier Guidi.
Crikey, visibility on the Mulsanne Straight is absolutely dreadful.
Meanwhile, Petronbelli has been lifted back onto the road after his off from the GTE Am lead in the JMW Ferrari. Gatting leads Cairoli by 58s, with gentleman driver Flohr doing an admirable job in third 90s back. Richard Lietz is fourth in the Fassbender 911 in the last car on the lead lap.
Through the chaos in LMP2 Scherer now has a 44s lead over Blomqvist with Kubica third. Ugran has made it back to the pits after that hefty whack on his right-rear, but is dragged back to the box for what are likely to be lengthy delays.
So after that flurry of pit activity, the #51 Ferrari is still in the lead from the #94 Peugeot, then it's the #2 Caddy and the #7 Toyota. The #50 Ferrari is now down to fifth after its off.
Off track
And we have another car off, it's Chandler Hull in the Walkenhorst Ferrari who has spun at the second Mulsanne chicane. Bedlam, in a word.
Crash
Ugran stayed out but that decision could prove costly. He goes straight on at Indianapolis and is joined in the run-off by Lubin and Yoluc, the Turkey car careering straight into the right-rear of the Prema car as it tried to recover.
Pit stop
The #7 is the last of the leading contenders to pit for wet weather rubber.
Pit stop
Michelle Gatting now takes the GTE Am lead but comes immediately into the pits. Meanwhile erstwhile LMP2 leader Rasmussen has made it back to the pits after that costly blow with the barriers at Tertre Rouge.
And he's not the only one! A Porsche and the #50 Ferrari also go off at Porsche Curves from the leading contenders.
Crash
Crash! The GTE Am leading Ferrari of Giacomo Petrobelli has floated backwards into the barriers at the Porsche Curves. More carnage in the wet!
Pit stop
All of the top four in LM2 come into the pits, with Smiechowski followed in by Jarvis, Deletraz and van der Helm. Prema's Filip Ugran stays out though and takes the lead.
Pit stop
And sure enough Pier Guidi now pits from the lead in the Ferrari, but will this late stop cost it dear?
The rain is really getting heavy now and it's going to be treacherous for those still out on slicks.
Crash
Replays show Rasmussen was being super careful at Tertre Rouge with a United car to his outside before spinning and clouting the barrier with his front-right corner.
Pit stop
The Toyotas had only just pitted but now the #8 is back in to change onto wet weather tyres!
Pit stop
Cars are now heading into the pits including the #50 Ferrari, the lead #94 Peugeot and the #2 Caddy. But Pier Guidi stays out in the lead Ferrari as the manufacturer splits strategies.
Problems for Jota! The front bodywork has come loose on Rasmussen who is crawling around the second Mulsanne Chicane. Was it the result of contact?
The Glickenhaus has just limped itself all the way back to the pits and is wheeled into the garage.
Rain
It's raining very heavily now! Here we go again...
Richard is right, it was a shorter-than-expected stint for Rasmussen. He previously came in on lap 67, and then returned to the box just before the hour mark on his 71st tour.
Rain
Cheers Haydn, we take over as darkness is truly descending at Le Mans now and there are some reports of rain with some of the wipers coming on. Given the chaos this caused earlier, things could get very chaotic again soon...
It is time for our own change in the hotseats as James Newbold and Stephen Lickorish are refreshed and ready for the start of the night stint! Enjoy chaps!
Rasmussen in the leading #28 Jota LMP2 has just made what looks to be an unscheduled extra stop, which lets Smiechowski (Inter Europol) and the United Autosports car of Oliver Jarvis ahead.
Tandy once again has a pair of Ferraris bearing down on him at the front, with the #75 Porsche just 1.1s up on Pier Guidi in the #51 Ferrari.
Pit stop
The Toyotas pit together but with congestion in the pitlane there is a bit of moving and shaking for them to get serviced, so the stop is a little longer than preferred.
Trouble for Berthon in the #709 Glickenhaus, who has a tyre issue having just pitted and is now dropping down the order.
A smiling Sarah Bovy says she's really happy to have emerged from that stint without any problems. According to the Iron Dames driver, she couldn't see a thing when she jumped aboard during the wet chaos of the three-hour mark. She says the pink Porsche is running well, and the leaderboard confirms as much: it's currently third and that will get better when the next pitstops shake out.
It is advantage Ferrari as we approach six hours completed at the centenary Le Mans 24 Hours. Currently running fourth and fifth, within striking range of the trio ahead, but those ahead are all due to pit soon.
The #43 DKR Engineering LMP2 car that spun a little earlier is now running again. Arnold Robin's #72 TF Sport Aston, however, is listed as well and truly stopped after his Porsche Curves incident at around the same time.
Pit stop
A lap later Molina dives into the pits from the lead in the #50 Ferrari, followed in by the #94 Peugeot. Nielsen takes over from Molina and returns to the action in fifth behind the #51 Ferrari. The #94 is back out in sixth.
By: Autosport Staff
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