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WEC 24 Hours of Le Mans

The 76th Le Mans 24 Hours

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The gap is out to 2:39 between Kristensen and Minassian as the Audi seems to have the edge in the conditions.
The No.7 car is off the road and forced to take to the extra tarmac to avoid hitting another car. Minassian rejoins without damage.
Replays show that Minassian spun on his own - a complete 360 degree spin while struggling for grip in the treacherous conditions.
The No.3 Audi rejoins the race after a lengthy spell in the garage.
The lead gap from first to second is out to 2:42 with Minassian losing over four seconds on that spin.
Light rain continues to fall at the top end of the Mulsanne straight.
The shower has now stopped at the first part of the Mulsanne straight. The drying process begins again.
Kristensen pulls a further four seconds ahead of the slick-shod Minassian. Peugeot are gambling that the Audi will be forced into a stop to change back from their lightly-cut tyre.
The No.1 Audi pits for intermediates. They took a full wet at the start of the downpour.
The No.7 Peugeot has missed one of the Mulsanne chicanes and gone straight on weaving through the tyre walls. Minassian rejoins the racetrack with no damage whatsoever.
The gap is now 2:28, with Minassian faster on that lap after cutting the chicane.
Minassian tip-toes round the opening section of the circuit that is somewhere between very damp and lightly wet.
The No.1 Audi of Frank Biela has spun entering the first of the Mulsanne chicanes. He rejoins with some help, weaves his way through the tyres that Minassian passes just a few moments ago and rejoins the circuit.
The sun is now shining on the pit straight.
Peugeot are covering all their options and are ready in the pitlane with full wet tyres should Minassian require them.
Thirty minutes of racing remain in a dramatic conclusion to the 2008 Le Mans 24 hours.
Minassian is currently closing on Kristensen by four seconds per lap but that rate needs to be much higher at this stage, with the gap still over two minutes.
The gap from Kristensen to Minassian stands at 2:19.836.
The No.3 Audi pits for the final time. Wet tyres come off. Difficult to tell from the shot on the monitor what tyres went back on that car.

The No.3 leaves the pits and rejoins still in fourth position.
The No.7 Peugeot comes into the pits one last time. The slick tyres come off and it's full wet tyres for Minassian until the end of the race.

He's away in a forlorn chase of the leading Audi with over three minutes to make up.
The Peugeot team may be hoping for a late shower to hit, with them best placed to deal with it on full wet rubber.
It's raining again on the Mulsanne straight!
The pace of the No.7 is not likely to be spectacular on the full wets. There are large portions of the circuit that are almost dry.
Nicolas Minassian is struggling badly on the drier parts of the circuit with his full wet tyres.
The No.7 Peugeot has a puncture!
The car is slewing from side to side on the Mulasnne straight as Minassian tries to bring it back to the pits at almost full speed.
The Peugeot team are ready to receive the No.7 Peugeot as Minassian heads towards the pits.
The No.9 Peugeot pits from third position. Franck Montagny takes on wet tyres and is away.
Tom Kristensen pits the leading Audi for what should be the final stop of his race.
Minassian arrives in the pitlane. The crew put on another set of full wet tyres and the Frenchman leaves the pits.
Tom Kristensen leads in the No.2 Audi with ten minutes to the flag.
Both cars resume their fight out on track for victory in the Le Mans 24 hours with just 10 minutes to go.

The No.2 Audi has a healthy lead of over a lap on the No.7 Peugeot.
Peter van Merksteijn is at the wheel of the class-leading LMP2 car in tenth overall. The Dutch RS Spyder has no challenge other than reaching the flag.
Tom Kristensen has started his final lap of the race.
The GT1 battle is going to be taken by Aston Martin. The 009 car is still a lap ahead of the No.63 Corvette, which has given the Aston a truly fascinating race-long battle.

In the end Ron Fellows won't round out his Le Mans driving career with a class win but his team pushed hard all the way.
The No.11 Dome is running to take the final lap.
Under two minutes left on the clock as Kristensen heads towards his eighth Le Mans victory.
Minassian unlaps himself a minute from the end of the race.
The chequered flag is ready and waiting for Tom Kristensen.
The No.2 Audi R10 driven by Tom Kristensen, Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello wins the 2008 Le Mans 24 hour race!

By: Geoff Creighton, Emlyn Hughes

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