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24 Hours of Le Mans
The 76th Le Mans 24 Hours
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Klien is back on the pace again, setting a 3:25, two seconds quicker than leader Gene.
On the lap that he spun, Christian Klien eventually cut the beam with a mighty 6:59.252 once he was retrieved from the gravel.
As you can see he is immediately back on the pace after that incident, but has dropped to third place.
As you can see he is immediately back on the pace after that incident, but has dropped to third place.
Klien choses not to pit for clean-up, setting a 3:36 lap. The Peugeot team head back in to the garage.
The Peugeot team are ready to receive the No.9 car of Klien in the pits.
As drama breaks out once again in Le Mans, Marc Gene is the new leader from Tom Kristensen in the No.2 Audi.
The tractor is attached and pulling the ex-leader of the race out of the gravel.
Klien gets going again after making a three-point-turn.
Klien gets going again after making a three-point-turn.
Christian Klien has spun off in the No.9 Peugeot. The car is beached in the gravel and Christian is clearly frustrated, banging his fists together in the cockpit.
Three marshals are there immediately and are attempting to push the car out of the trap.
A tractor unit is now on the scene and ready to fish the stricken machine out.
Three marshals are there immediately and are attempting to push the car out of the trap.
A tractor unit is now on the scene and ready to fish the stricken machine out.
Christian Klien has dropped the leading Peugeot in the Ford Chicane, handing the advantage to Marc Gene in the No.7.
The No.9 leader is in the gravel trap ...
The No.8 Peugeot in the hands of Stephane Sarrazin has continued its relentless charge through the lower order.
Sarrazin has recently overtaken the all-Japanese Dome Judd entry and is now seventh in the race.
Next on the Frenchman's list is the leading petrol car - the Team Oreca Matmut car which has performed excellent and is leading the petrol race by over two minutes.
Sarrazin has recently overtaken the all-Japanese Dome Judd entry and is now seventh in the race.
Next on the Frenchman's list is the leading petrol car - the Team Oreca Matmut car which has performed excellent and is leading the petrol race by over two minutes.
Down in LMGT2, the No. 82 Risi Competizione F430 leads in the hands of Jaime Melo. The No.77 Porsche, driven by Alex Davison, is running second, on the same lap as the leading Ferrari, around 25 seconds behind.
The No. 32 Barazi Epsilon is slow on the circuit in the latter half of the lap. Michael Vergers is at the wheel and is trying to get the car back to the pits.
In GT1 the 009 Aston Martin DBR9 has pitted. There has been a driver change as well and Andy Garcia is back out in that car.
The No.63 Corvette retakes the lead in class and currently has a 65 second lead over Garcia.
The Magnussen Corvette has also moved up in general classification, and runs in 19th overall.
The No.63 Corvette retakes the lead in class and currently has a 65 second lead over Garcia.
The Magnussen Corvette has also moved up in general classification, and runs in 19th overall.
Darkness draws in over the Circuit de la Sarthe, with little daylight remaining as we approach the end of the seventh hour.
The leading car is in and Christian Klien brings the No.9 onto pitroad. He will stay in the car and rejoins the race.
Mike Rockenfeller pits the No.3 Audi. He takes fuel and new Michelins and is back on track.
The gap extends slightly in the last couple of laps, as Christian Klien now has a 6.8 second gap over Marc Gene.
The No.7 pits, fuel only, no driver change and Gene rejoins the race.
The No.7 pits, fuel only, no driver change and Gene rejoins the race.
The No.19 Chamberlain Synergy car is about to get going again after a lengthy period in the garage for repairs. Bob Berridge is now taking to the controls.
Tom Kristensen lies third in the first of the Audi R10s, 1 minute 21 seconds off the lead.
The No.1 and No.3 Audis remain in fourth and fifth positions.
The No.1 and No.3 Audis remain in fourth and fifth positions.
Up front the two Peugeots continue their demonstration. Marc Gene was a couple of seconds quicker than Christian Klien on the last timed lap and the gap between them is now 3.9 seconds.
The GT1 battle rages down the order, with Corvette fighting against the Aston Martin DBR9s.
In recent laps the closeness has faded, but the top three cars in class are still covered by a time difference of 85 seconds.
The 009 Aston with David Brabham at the wheel leads (20th overall) is 24 seconds ahead of Jan Magnussen in the No.63 Corvette.
Third in class is the other Aston, the 007 car. Karl Wendlinger is circulating in that car and lies 1 minute 25 seconds behind Brabham.
The No.64 Corvette of course has now dropped away from this lead battle after the alternator change that we mentioned earlier.
In recent laps the closeness has faded, but the top three cars in class are still covered by a time difference of 85 seconds.
The 009 Aston with David Brabham at the wheel leads (20th overall) is 24 seconds ahead of Jan Magnussen in the No.63 Corvette.
Third in class is the other Aston, the 007 car. Karl Wendlinger is circulating in that car and lies 1 minute 25 seconds behind Brabham.
The No.64 Corvette of course has now dropped away from this lead battle after the alternator change that we mentioned earlier.
The Team Essex RS Spyder is in trouble with a left rear puncture. He has made it to the pits with the team fortunate that the problem occurred late in the lap.
John Nielsen climbs aboard and takes the Porsche out with new tyres all round.
Jos Verstappen now leads LMP2.
John Nielsen climbs aboard and takes the Porsche out with new tyres all round.
Jos Verstappen now leads LMP2.
In LMP2, the battle continues between Team Essex and the Van Merksteijn car. Jos Verstappen is now at the wheel of the latter and is setting quick times.
The gap to Team Essex is currently 48 seconds, with Jos taking over four out of that on the last lap.
The gap to Team Essex is currently 48 seconds, with Jos taking over four out of that on the last lap.
Down the field, the No.8 Peugeot in the hands of Stephane Sarrazin is continuing to set front-running pace.
Sarrazin comes across the line and breaks the 200 second barrier with a stunning lap - 3:19.394.
The No.8 still lies in tenth position, and its next target is the ninth-placed Courage-Oreca Judd which is currently being driven by Olivier Panis, making his debut in the great race.
Sarrazin comes across the line and breaks the 200 second barrier with a stunning lap - 3:19.394.
The No.8 still lies in tenth position, and its next target is the ninth-placed Courage-Oreca Judd which is currently being driven by Olivier Panis, making his debut in the great race.
As the clouds slowly begin to roll in and the light fades, air and track temperatures will clearly become cooler, changing the track conditions as we move from light towards dark.
The lowest temperature expected overnight is 11 degrees Celsius.
The lowest temperature expected overnight is 11 degrees Celsius.
Kristensen pits the No.2 Audi, putting Klien back in the lead for Peugeot.
Tom Kristensen leads for Audi, setting good pace in the 3:24s while the Peugeots pit, but the No.2 will be due to stop shortly.
Franck Montagny pits the No.9 Peugeot from the lead. Having taken over at the top spot after a sensational string of laps, he hands over to Christian Klien and the car is away.
The Autosport.com news team onsite have alerted us to the rain that we mentioned at the start of the commentary arriving sooner than expected.
The latest rainfall radar backs this up, with rain moving into north-west France this evening. The green shaded area is part of a large area of showers and general rain that is out west in the Atlantic ocean.
The first of the light rain could reach the circuit within the next couple of hours, giving all the teams and drivers something extra to think about.
The latest rainfall radar backs this up, with rain moving into north-west France this evening. The green shaded area is part of a large area of showers and general rain that is out west in the Atlantic ocean.
The first of the light rain could reach the circuit within the next couple of hours, giving all the teams and drivers something extra to think about.
The No.7 Peugeot pits from second and Jacques Villeneuve, having lost the lead on this stint, hops out to be replaced by Marc Gene.
The No.3 Audi is the latest car to pit. Mike Rockenfeller stays aboard and takes fuel only. The car was running very close with the sister No.1 machine before that stop.
The No.64 Corvette is back underway after quick service by the team. Oliver Gavin has taken over at the wheel from Max Papis.
At the head of the field Franck Montagny begins to pull away in the No.9 Peugeot. The gap to the No.7 is at three seconds and is likely to increase over the coming laps.
Tom Kristensen is holding the gap to the front two at around one minute, in the Audi No.2.
Behind these three and a lap down, Mike Rockenfeller in the No.3, and Frank Biela in the No.1 entry are running in tandem as the daylight begins to fade at the circuit.
Tom Kristensen is holding the gap to the front two at around one minute, in the Audi No.2.
Behind these three and a lap down, Mike Rockenfeller in the No.3, and Frank Biela in the No.1 entry are running in tandem as the daylight begins to fade at the circuit.
The No.64 Corvette is in the garage with a problem. The very latest from the autosport.com news team at the circuit is that a change of alternator is needed.
Franck Montagny slips past Jacques Villeneuve on the Mulsanne straight and the No.9 Peugeot takes the lead of the 24 Heures du Mans!
It's nose to tail on the Mulsanne straight as Montagny is right on Villeneuve ...
Through the traffic the gap closes and the pair are together on the circuit as we approach the six hour mark.
At the completion of the 100th lap the race at the front tightens further.
Jacques Villeneuve continues to lead in the No.7 908 HDI, but a 3:28 lap has cost him badly, with Montagny setting another scorching 3:22.
The gap is now 3.6 seconds and is now a visual gap on the monitors.
Jacques Villeneuve continues to lead in the No.7 908 HDI, but a 3:28 lap has cost him badly, with Montagny setting another scorching 3:22.
The gap is now 3.6 seconds and is now a visual gap on the monitors.
Franck Montagny continues to charge with another 3:21, bringing the gap down further to 8.9 seconds.
99 laps completed.
99 laps completed.
Pedro Lamy pits the No.8 car and hands it over to Stephane Sarrazin, the pole-winning driver in that car.
By: Geoff Creighton, Emlyn Hughes
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