Le Mans practice and first qualifying
Live Text
Sort by
LMP1
Kobayashi's Toyota as well as Menezes' and Jani's Rebellions are the only three LMP1 runners to head out early on.
LMP1
Nakajima is also out on track to make the LMP1 party a four-car affair.
LMP1
Ruberti, back at Le Mans for the first time since 2015, makes his return to the circuit in the ByKolles.
LMP1
Jani and Menezes bring both Rebellions into the pitlane, with both cars returning to the garage.
Gary Watkins is now passing judgement on their liveries, which has become quite the talking point for Team Autosport.
Gary Watkins is now passing judgement on their liveries, which has become quite the talking point for Team Autosport.
LMP2
Just two LMP2s are back out on track right now - the #37 Jackie Chan DC Racing car and Alex Brundle in the #32 United Autosports entry.
GTE PRO
The GTE Pro cars are lapping in the 4m20s bracket right now, some 30s off their best times from earlier. Tommy Milner is currently the quickest of those on track in the #64 Corvette.
LMP1
Egor Orudzhev is heading out in the #17 SMP Racing BRE-AER BR1 for the first time since the session returned to green flag conditions.
Information
No-one has gone above 30 laps in the first two hours and 40 minutes of running, James Newbold reports that teams were hesitant to head out early on because the other side of the track to the pitlane was wet compared to the dry conditions elsewhere.
The sort of headache you only get at Le Mans.
The sort of headache you only get at Le Mans.
LMP1
Early LMP1 laps are on average around 20 seconds slower than their best efforts in the dry running.
Twitter
LMP1
Buemi is in the #8 Toyota for the first time. In terms of conditions, we reckon he's drawn the short straw there.
There's a dry line very slowly starting to emerge, but there's some definite tip-toeing for the LMP2 and GTE cars in the slower-speed sections.
LMP1
We've not mentioned the DragonSpeed #10 entry much and that's because it's only managed seven laps. Sometime IndyCar racer Ben Hanley is still in the pits.
Autosport
Stoffel Vandoorne is heading out for SMP Racing.
The HWA Formula E driver is a rookie in this year's field and here's the story of how he prepared for his debut
The HWA Formula E driver is a rookie in this year's field and here's the story of how he prepared for his debut
LMP1
Buemi, Vandoone and ByKolles' Ruberti are the only LMP1 runners circulating.
GTE PRO
The GTE Pro times are still a way off what they were before the rain showers. Jan Magnussen is the quickest on-track right now at the wheel of the #63 Corvette, but he's still down in the 4m15s.
LMP1
Jose Maria Lopez is about to do his first laps in the #7 Toyota.
LMP2
Good news for fans of Matthieu Vaxiviere - he's now circulating in the #28 TS Racing ORECA which was delayed by technical issues earlier in the session and had not completed a flying lap prior to the rain shower.
LMP1
Just the one tour for Lopez, who comes in for a fresh set of tyres after a momentary off just before the pitlane entry.
LMP1
We're about to head into the final hour and lap times aren't really improving - still 20s or so off their previous bests.
LMP2
Job Van Uitert is now on track in the #26 G-Drive ORECA, which sits second courtesy of Vergne's earlier time. The Dutchman skipped karting and went straight into car racing in his national Mazda MX-5 Cup in 2015, before finishing runner-up in the 2017 Italian F4 championship to Ferrari junior Marcus Armstrong. He's been picked for his Le Mans debut after winning the ELMS LMP3 title last year, so can he do the - cough - job here?
LMP1
Vandoorne pits after a short stint, as Berthon heads out for his first laps in the #3 Rebellion.
LMP1
Buemi and Lopez have both passed the 30 laps benchmark in each of the two Toyotas now.
GTE PRO
Just the one car on track in GTE Pro right now, the #81 BMW of Nicky Catsburg, whose last lap was a 4m02s - further evidence the track is improving.
Information
A tweet from the official WEC account states Krohn is "conscious and in good spirits. He is being taken to the hospital for precautionary checks".
LMP2
Slick tyres going on the #48 IDEC Sport ORECA which currently languishes in 19th of the LMP2 runners. But perhaps it's a little early, as Memo Rojas immediately locks his left-front into the Dunlop Chicane and has to use the run-off. His times will be interesting for the rest to keep an eye on.
Team Autosport is basking in the glow of the late-evening sun as pitlane activity has several cars switching to slick tyres for the final 50 minutes of running.
LMP1
Oli Webb has climbed into the ByKolles and heads out on track.
LMP2
Interestingly the first non-ORECA in the LMP2 pack is not a Ligier, but the Racing Team Netherland Dallara, up in fourth. F2 racer Nyck de Vries set the time - a 3m30.611 - just before the red flags, with Frits van Eerd of Jumbo supermarkets fame now in the car. The first of the Ligiers is down in eighth, the Panis-Barthez Competition example currently being driven by Julien Canal.
LMP1
Lopez runs slightly wide at the Dunlop chicane, still some tricky patches on the circuit as it continues to dry.
LMP1
Lap times in the LMP1 category are now getting to within 10 seconds of their benchmarks, are we set for some late improvements?
GTE PRO
GTE Pro times are back under the 4m00s mark now, but still a way off the 3m51s efforts we saw earlier.
LMP1
There's not a huge amount of track activity at the moment, LMP1 is providing a fair few runners.
The two Rebellions of Berthon and Jani, the two Toyotas driven by Lopez and Buemi, and the SMP Racing machines of Orduzhev and Vandoorne, as well as the ByKolles, are out on track.
The two Rebellions of Berthon and Jani, the two Toyotas driven by Lopez and Buemi, and the SMP Racing machines of Orduzhev and Vandoorne, as well as the ByKolles, are out on track.
LMP1
As soon as we post that, Lopez heads in for a tyre change. Timing is everything.
LMP1
Drivers have been told they can turn their rear lights off now the water's mostly cleared. The LMP1 field is lapping inside the 3m30s.
GTE AM
Ooh, an improvement! Matteo Cairoli has gone second-fastest in the GTE Am class on a 3m56.282s, putting him behind only the sister Proton Competition Porsche.
LMP1
Jani's Rebellion and Hanley's DragonSpeed are the only LMP1 cars not on track.
LMP1
Buemi's just put in a 3m25.231s lap, which is a shade under five seconds off the best lap time for the #8 Toyota.
LMP1
Buemi's started a trend now, most of the LMP1 runners are now within five seconds of their best times. Could be an interesting 40 minutes ahead...
Yellow flag
But now there's a double yellow a marshal post 12, which we make the exit of the first chicane of the Mulsanne.
Replays show a full spin for Van Eerd's Racing Team Nederland Dallara.
Replays show a full spin for Van Eerd's Racing Team Nederland Dallara.
By: Matt Beer
Published:
Page:
