Watch the opening 5 hours of the 2012 24 Hours of Le Mans, where strategy, speed, and endurance shaped the early battles of this legendary race. From manufacturer rivalries to the challenges of the Circuit de la Sarthe, these first hours set the stage for an unforgettable edition of the world’s greatest endurance event.
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SportsTranscript
00:00:00Lola, both companies in trouble, one more serious than the other. Lola is in administration.
00:00:06We hope that somebody picks up that magnificent racing brand and that is going to have to get
00:00:11called in here. We've got an upright issue, I'm afraid, and one of the Toyotas here didn't quite
00:00:17catch the number on track. He's going to have to come in. They won't allow that to go on much
00:00:22longer. That's not going to stay on board. Yeah, when you say upright, yeah, it's actually part
00:00:27of the wing and it's that rear regulation plate, isn't it? It looks like it, or it's actually
00:00:33the, it is that rear wing. It's the leading edge of the wing upright here. Well spotted, Carlton.
00:00:40And I think that's going to be, they're going to get the call. They're not even going to
00:00:46wait for it, they're going to take it in anyway. And they won't do a stop, well, they know they're
00:00:49on five. And in he comes. Dr. Ulrich then saying, ah, yeah, some good news for us at last.
00:00:56In fact, the eight cars just come in, they're going to get busy, and the sevens sail by.
00:01:01They're going to wait for, to be officially called in on this one. Perhaps they're not
00:01:06particularly worried about it. Unless, unless race direction's concerned it's going to fly
00:01:11off. I don't think there's too much here. This is a routine stop, of course, for the eight
00:01:15car. This is Sebastian Buemi. He is the first of the, what, six, this is the sixth stop for
00:01:22this car. Yep. So we saw them waiting, thought that they were going to call in the car with
00:01:27the upright issue on the wing, but no, the seven car, we're just staying with it right
00:01:31now. Yeah. Yes. I think the problem is, Carlton, if they have to change it, it's not just going
00:01:37to be a question of taping it up. They have to change the whole back end. Exactly. It's
00:01:40all integrated, I'm afraid. Yep. So here we are, riding on board that car with Nick Lapier.
00:01:46There we are. Nice little shot of that. It's probably pretty secure at the bottom, but for
00:01:49some reason, it's come loose at the top. Yeah, well, it's taken some real stress out there. Oh,
00:01:55it's gone. Okay, we can get on with it. I've just seen it ping off. Yep. Now, if Liz is here,
00:02:00we'd say, Liz, would this affect the handling of the car? And she'd probably give us hugely
00:02:03technical reasons why it would, but for us as race fans, we'll think, well, this guy
00:02:07would have been twitchy though. This guy's a race driver. He can cope with it. People
00:02:11have radioed him and told him, you've just lost a little wing tab, you know, just try
00:02:15and compensate for it. Here we go. Back to Toyota, just making a slick manoeuvre there, and
00:02:21that was the moment it pinged off. It didn't damage anything. What was interesting was how
00:02:26the aero at the back of the car sucked that winglet back. It almost got into his own back tyres,
00:02:31such as the whirlwind going on. Yeah, you've got this tunnel that follows the car, which
00:02:35is why the P1 drivers particularly don't want to follow each other too closely. It doesn't
00:02:39matter with the Aston and Corvette and Ferrari who's been following each other all afternoon
00:02:43because they're GT cars, but these cars, I mean, they are just aerodynamic rockets, as
00:02:48we say, you know. I mean, someone yesterday said, these cars, first time I saw the Audis,
00:02:53hey, it reminded me of Flash Gordon in the 1930s with their rocket ships. Exactly. I don't know
00:02:58who it was, but I presume he was from Uzbekistan. Yes, exactly right. The access gives it away.
00:03:06Something like a rat ball or borach, I can't remember what it was, but anyway, here we are.
00:03:11Cars just come in, by the way, for luxury racing. A lot of people tipping luxury to do a job
00:03:16here, there in the pits. Hope we can get down there. I wouldn't mind seeing some more GT changes,
00:03:23actually. Along the way, we're sticking with the bar. And what we do get down is that's
00:03:27much with the 67 here. And they've got a bit of a problem, haven't they? This is a headlight
00:03:33changer. It certainly looks that way. Full pod to be dealt with. It's not just a bull for
00:03:3914 shillings. That's a new one. Yeah. It's a very pretty car, just going through the picture,
00:03:46that number 30 car. We haven't actually seen a lot of that this afternoon, have we? But that
00:03:50is the, that is that, that status Grand Prix Lola, which Alexander Simms, Yelma Berman
00:03:56and Romain Iannette are on board. And that's the Irish car. It looks absolutely gorgeous.
00:04:02Probably the best looking car here. A lot of people talking that vehicle up, actually, for
00:04:06a class honours. Quality outfit, the Murphy 1 machine. They're on the podium at Spa. Yeah.
00:04:12Why not? Why not repeat the feat? Absolutely. This is the place to do it, isn't it? So the
00:04:16team, team run, of course, status Grand Prix by Teddy Yip Jr., son of Teddy Yip of Formula
00:04:24One fame in the old days. David Kennedy runs it. He's a Le Mans veteran, raced with Mazda
00:04:28for many years. Simon Kayser is the team manager and the technical director, Rob Arnott, who I
00:04:34remember for Formula Ford racing days. Seven cars in, just come in. Here he is, on board
00:04:39with him now. Suddenly goes to electric power. He hasn't just lost power. Yeah, this is all
00:04:45to do with the regulations that say the car must be able to get itself the whole length of
00:04:49the pit lane under its hybrid electrical power. That's a regulation every time. They don't
00:04:54have to do it every lap, but for some reason they choose to for the technology. There we
00:04:59are coming. Let's hope we just stay and see what they do. Will they change the whole back
00:05:02end or are they just going to ignore it? It's quite a big piece, isn't it? Well, it's got
00:05:06a funny tab at the top. It has, yes. And I wonder whether that bit didn't have the print stick
00:05:11applied to it. I would imagine it's hit by a piece of chunky rubber on the track or something,
00:05:15or a stone, and that probably just dislodged it. This is the eight-car back up to speed
00:05:20now. Sebastian Buemi, here from Formula One. A lot of Formula One drivers here this weekend.
00:05:26There are cars seven and eight, by the way, absolutely locked together on the track. All
00:05:32right, we've got an interview at a second. Niklas, you're running seven for the moment, just
00:05:38behind the Audi Toyotas. Do you think it's possible to go get them? No, we know, we know
00:05:44on base we have no chance against them, so we have to do our own race and run as strong as
00:05:49possible. So far, everything is going up to plan. So, no, we're where we expect to be.
00:05:54So far, the race is good for us. Is the car running really good with the setups? Because
00:05:59we saw many cars change because the track is changing a lot. Well, it's obviously difficult,
00:06:06but so far, my teammates don't seem to complain so much, so we're pretty happy. Hopefully, we'll
00:06:11stay the same for the race, the rest of the race. Thank you very much. Thank you. There we
00:06:14are. Another son of a famous man. It's all very well having a name that could open doors,
00:06:19but you do have to stand up and be counted once you step through it. And there's a man
00:06:23who certainly has. Same can be said for Alex Brundle, Martin's son. They're racing in the
00:06:2942 car, don't forget, with Lucas Ordonez, a man who did all his racing on electronic games. Got part of the
00:06:37GT Academy. This is sponsored. Amazing. Came through last year. Got himself a podium finish. And yes,
00:06:48who knows what might happen this time by with the 42 car. It could well be that they're heading for
00:06:54victory. People talking them up. Radio Ramon are very, very fond of that 42 car. And talking on it as potentially a class winner.
00:07:04It's hugely competitive, by the way, LMP2. Right now, though, cameras just loving the action of the P1s. It's Trullier and the number one Audi that are in the lead with the Toyotas of
00:07:17wearing a lappy air. Yeah, I'm nipping at his heels. You just said exactly what I've been thinking all weekend. The cameras are in love with this car, aren't they?
00:07:24Yeah. This beautiful blue and white. When they announce the programme, cars are red and light. All the posters around demand red and white. The cars arrived through at the test day, blue and white. How clever was that for marketing?
00:07:34We're going to take a quick break. Carlton Kirby, Mark Curl will be back in a moment.
00:07:41Welcome back. Toyotas having a bit of a party at the moment. They're in positions two and three. There it is, as if by magic. Obviously, the graphics people were thinking exactly the same thing. They're not our graphics people. Incidentally, it's what we're provided with by the organisers here. But yes, they are having a superb run. It's eight and seven. That's how they stand for it.
00:07:52That's how they stand on the track. That's how the numbers are running in positions two and three at the moment. The way and LaPierre. And they have done an outstanding job of taking this to Audi. Now, if they play the long game here, you never know. It may be the frailty of the new technology as far as the track.
00:08:10Germans are concerned. And maybe the capacitor was the way to go instead of the flywheel. These are questions that will be answered a little bit later on. We're just heading downstairs.
00:08:31We're just heading downstairs.
00:08:32Kazuki, the car looks really fast for the moment. You're pushing hard just behind the Audis.
00:08:39Yeah, I mean, yeah, we are in a really good moment at the moment. And yeah, we have a speed and yeah, not far from the top Audi. So it's actually quite impressive thing. And yeah, next turn is my turn. So I'm quite looking forward to drive the car.
00:08:54Is Sebastian happy about the setup of the car for the moment?
00:08:58I think so. Yeah. So that's the, I mean, if you see the lap time, you can see it. So yeah, we're in good shape.
00:09:05How do you feel? Do you feel confident to go for the first time in the car?
00:09:09Well, I think so. I mean, after some lap in the qualifying and the testing session, I think I'm quite ready. And now we still have daylight. So it should be all right.
00:09:19So it should be all right. Thank you very much.
00:09:2126 year old Kazuki Nakajima. Of course, another famous racing family, just as famous in Japan as the Brundles are here.
00:09:28His father Satoru for many, many years, a Formula One drive between 87 and 91. He had 182 Grands Prix.
00:09:36His brother Daisuke, he races in Formula Nippon in Japan. So very much a family affair. His first time here at Le Mans and his father, I'm quite sure, will be watching with great interest on Japanese television.
00:09:48Just looking at the stops, we're still waiting for that Ferrari to make its fourth stop. Can you believe it? Incredible.
00:09:5514 laps it was running, wasn't it, earlier on. I presume it's still sticking to that schedule.
00:09:59Presumably. It just can't, just can't stop stretching its legs and just sipping the fuel. Amazing.
00:10:06Now, Carlton, we're just getting our first warning of the race so far about respecting track limits. This was a big, big issue last year. Cars running wide.
00:10:13Curves have been raised in some places, but this is what they call the Ford SAs, post 131. We tend to call the Ford chicane.
00:10:22And Car 75 has been told you are to respect the track limits, and that's the Abdullah Al Faisal, Brett Curtis, Sean Edwards, Pro Speed Porsche.
00:10:34So if they don't respect those track limits, they can expect a stop-go penalty.
00:10:39Yeah. Right now, they are way back. They are 52nd. And in fact, they're next but last on track as we speak.
00:10:50The Pescarello, by the way, of Manuel Collard is back and in the pits. I'm afraid to tell you. The 16 car, they've had all kinds of issues.
00:10:58And I think before you know it, we might have Stuart Hall here having a chat.
00:11:01Well, this might be a German team, but it's Chinese whispers the whole way through, isn't it?
00:11:04It is, yeah. Yeah, because I'm very zen-like.
00:11:07Oh, yes, yes. One of the men we saw there is a former Eurosport colleague of ours, Thomas Voigt, who is now press officer for,
00:11:13motorsport press officer for Audi, having a chat with Dr Wolfgang Rundrich.
00:11:18So, Carlton, if you play your cards right, and I do, one day we could be working for a major motor manufacturer.
00:11:24Well, you never know your luck in our dreams.
00:11:27Yes.
00:11:28We work for the best TV company in the world. What more could we want?
00:11:31Precisely.
00:11:32Eurosport, 33 million audience at the start of the race, we were told to expect, and I'm sure every one of them is enjoying it.
00:11:39Oh, I think that's a lot of sandwiches and black coffee, which you will need.
00:11:44Big lock-up for the car being pursued here. It looks like it's one of the golf machines, a 28 car.
00:11:49Clearly got himself a little bit upset by seeing that light stack coming away.
00:12:00Dindo Capello about to speak to us from Audi number two.
00:12:03That is, it's running in fifth place. It is not the last-placed Audi.
00:12:08Let me tell you, Tom Christensen is out there at the moment in the two-car.
00:12:13Yes, the four Audi is running in sixth place.
00:12:18And I'm just wondering whether, we did ask the question from Justine, whether the 12 car has got any ambitions of beating some of the big boys here.
00:12:27There we are. That's in super slow-mo. So you can imagine how that strobe really, really does that job at full speed.
00:12:35Liz says that you can't see it with the naked eye. It's just too, too fast, but it's being slowed down.
00:12:3949 car in trouble. This one, if it wasn't for trouble, it'd have no trouble at all, as you've said before.
00:12:44This is the Argentinian-run PECOM RECA Nissan.
00:12:48And just going back to what you were saying about Trulia, Carlton has just popped in a 3.28, so he's getting close to his own fastest lap, which came on lap five of this race.
00:13:00We are now on lap 67. And he's just done the fastest lap of anyone out there, certainly in the last two hours.
00:13:07Most people running 30s, and he's increasing that gap. It is now, last time we looked, 63 seconds over the best of the Toyotas.
00:13:16I think they're feeling a little bit bullied by Toyota, and they're starting to put the hammer down maybe a little bit earlier than they'd hoped here.
00:13:23Just looking at the stops that they've had. Trulia has been in five times. It's six for Boemi and Lapierre.
00:13:31So it makes you wonder what he's going on the attack, because he's in lap fairly shortly.
00:13:36As soon as that happens, then it's going to be Toyota one and two on the board here.
00:13:40He's got one minute, ten seconds to play with. He can get in and out, as long as he's not changing tyres.
00:13:45But remember last year, this guy Trulia, Lotterer and Fassler, it was just them against the whole fleet of Peugeots after we lost McNish and Rockenfeller.
00:13:53And they rose to it. They just pushed harder and harder. And as the race went on, they went faster and faster.
00:13:59It's required no question of backing off.
00:14:01Absolutely. The 16 car stays in the garage, I'm sad to tell you.
00:14:06So it may well be that we have the lovely Stuart Hall coming to join us a little bit later on.
00:14:11That's our game, is Pescarella's loss, I'm afraid.
00:14:15Liz Halliday's about to rejoin us, and maybe she's caught up with Stuart. We'll find out in a moment.
00:14:19No, she's shaking her head. No, no.
00:14:21She said, I'm not going to go near that garage. Not a safe place to be.
00:14:25It was Volivant's only was on Liz's mind. Volivant's at dawn.
00:14:32Yeah, she's just dabbing her lips now with her napkin. She'll be back with us in a moment.
00:14:36Can we just call for make-up, please? She's about to come back on air.
00:14:40Liz now on the sofa. Nice to see the top and tail of the show will involve Liz.
00:14:48A great addition to the team, which is fantastic.
00:14:51Just watching the 73 car on the on-screen team, I should say.
00:14:55She's been here five years, just before she hits me.
00:14:57There they come back and on to the start-up finish straight here.
00:15:01The 42 car looking nice and pacey. Who's on the 42 at the moment?
00:15:06The 42 car. It's Sputnell Junior.
00:15:08It is, yeah. But look up at the front there. It's Oak Racing.
00:15:11And what a great run Jack Nicolet's team's having with those
00:15:14Morgan Pescarolo Nissans to give them their full titles.
00:15:17Of course, Jack Nicolet and Oak are part of Pescarola's.
00:15:20We wave goodbye to the Ferris world.
00:15:22No, it's our cameraman has actually bought a ticket.
00:15:25Oh, right.
00:15:26And decided to make a good vantage point.
00:15:29It's cheaper than hiring a boom.
00:15:31Yeah, he's changed a habit of a lifetime. He's actually paying for something.
00:15:35So, Oak Racing, just to remind you, Jack Nicolet and Sebastian Philippe runs that team
00:15:40and they run that team out of Manicol Circuit.
00:15:44Great job they have been doing.
00:15:46They bought out Pescarolo, then sort of sold it back to him, helped save it.
00:15:51So, this is all, in effect, Henri Pescarolo's dream still continuing.
00:15:56But it's a much stronger dream for Oak today than it has been for Henri Pescarolo.
00:16:00They're one-two in category. Henri is nowhere.
00:16:03Dream turning into a nightmare, I'm afraid, for him.
00:16:06A lot of speculation as to whether this is Pescarolo's final year.
00:16:09To be honest, if it ends damply, I think he might well just give it another go
00:16:15to sort of go out on a bit of a high.
00:16:17That's if that sees the way he is thinking.
00:16:19Such a great stalwart and champion, really, of endurance racing.
00:16:23It's a question of mindset. Henri is a very, very strong character.
00:16:27He's also got a very strong wife, Maddie, behind him.
00:16:29And she does all his PR work. She has her own PR company, by the way.
00:16:33And she, again, is a driving force of Pescarolo.
00:16:36You know, you might fall out with Henri, but you'd never, ever, ever fall out with Maddie,
00:16:40because that's it. And, you know, I worry for Jean-Christophe Boulogne,
00:16:43whether he'll have a drive for Pescarolo again.
00:16:45Um, no. Yeah. Well, who knows.
00:16:4919 hours and 54 minutes remaining. It's skipping by, isn't it?
00:16:54Rumble with each one. Do you think we'll finally get some collection of power,
00:16:57the sound of it, and then stay with the car for a bit of delivery? That would be nice.
00:17:01Just coming up to the first chicane. Let's listen.
00:17:06That's the sound of the energy being...
00:17:08Oh! Oh, it's straight on, the guy he's about to take.
00:17:11He looked in his mirrors, saw the lights, took fright, and went straight on at the first chicane.
00:17:16Oh, we cut away before we could see the power delivery, but that did not look clever, did it?
00:17:19That's a nice shot. That's the shot we're getting from the Ferris wheel.
00:17:22That is our cameraman. Say hello.
00:17:24In a moment, he's going to get a piece of the stanchion going straight across his lens,
00:17:28so that'll be the end of that. Obviously, I have to pay extra for the operator to make it stationary.
00:17:31It's moving now, and as it moves, so the picture moves. Here we go.
00:17:35This is the sight he's seeing, and he's going higher and higher and higher.
00:17:38And he'll come down the other side in a moment, and then just go straight past the pizza store
00:17:42at the bottom of the Ferris wheel. Which he won't pay for.
00:17:45I think this is the helicopter, actually, Mark. I've never seen a Ferris wheel with that big an arc.
00:17:48That's the Ferris wheel broken loose. It's just rolling down the hill.
00:17:52There you go. We thought we'd be clever there, but anything but.
00:17:54This is a great shot, isn't it? The circuit down through La Chapelle, and very, very fast here.
00:17:59Well, the commentary position that we've got, that we've drafted in since we got kicked off the gantry,
00:18:04is our unit from the Tour de France. Here's that moment. We were just watching them collect energy.
00:18:10A big lockup by one of the Lotuses, I think. Frightened an LMP2 off. It's an open car, so it's not a Lotus.
00:18:16No, you're right. It's the Level 5 Honda. Yeah. There we are.
00:18:20Scott Tucker's team. It's Scott Tucker on board that car as well.
00:18:25Too much gold with the black, Scott. You need to think about that.
00:18:28Again, as we've said before, it's a branding exercise, as is golf, as is the Morgan exercise.
00:18:37Or a cigarette packet.
00:18:40Soon, incidentally. Well, fastest lap, Trullier. 3.26.302. Way back on lap five, and he's out in front at the moment.
00:18:53And looking good for that. I wouldn't be surprised if he just re-approaches that kind of speed and time through here.
00:19:01Yeah, as you say, he's still got to make his second stop, but he's got 75 seconds in hand now.
00:19:07And Liz, welcome back.
00:19:09Joining us. 75 seconds. Enough time to get in and out and take fuel on, surely.
00:19:13Yeah, yeah, no, absolutely. Yeah, I would have said so. And especially with how fast everybody is nowadays.
00:19:19It's usually about 30 seconds for fuel, as the general rule.
00:19:22Which is why, in the old days, we used to spend a lot of our time making sure a driver's stop was 28 seconds.
00:19:28So you're all done.
00:19:29Well, there we go, two cars in. By the way, let's just watch this, shall we?
00:19:32Yeah.
00:19:33It's Tom Christensen on board. And Bottles.
00:19:38Yeah, stays on board.
00:19:40He's triple stinting, as was Alan McNish and Dindo Capello. Presumably it will do the same.
00:19:46Red and blue, one's water, one is the washer for the windscreen.
00:19:52Better make sure you don't get those mixed up, otherwise you'll have a very clean tea.
00:19:56Yeah, now this car is not out of sequence, is it? But it is a lap and two minutes behind after its problems wheeled into the garage earlier.
00:20:06Liz, while you've been out, we had a bit of fun with the number seven Toyota, Nick Lapierre.
00:20:11He lost part of that upright tab at the rear wing.
00:20:14It didn't seem to affect his speed, though. I was watching and, yeah, he didn't seem to slow down at all.
00:20:19Kevin made a pit stop, they didn't do anything about it, so they obviously weren't too worried.
00:20:23Yeah, I think that small amount isn't going to make a huge amount of difference to his aerodynamics.
00:20:27I think if he'd lost a piece of the back of the wing, that would be a different story.
00:20:30Yeah, that's the number eight car incident we were just looking at.
00:20:32Sebastian Buemi, another man who's made the transition from Formula One.
00:20:36There's quite a lot of them here this weekend, aren't there? We've got 15 previous overall race winners here, with 26 wins between them.
00:20:4442 rickies, ah, rickies, rickies.
00:20:4742 ricky bobbies.
00:20:48No less than 15 Formula One drivers who are still racing.
00:20:52There we are, we've got a moment here, clearly. Wait to see what it is.
00:20:57He's just run out of talent, hasn't he?
00:20:59Or a road, for that matter.
00:21:00Two of them, yeah.
00:21:01And then all guilty of following each other.
00:21:02Oh, very close there, nearly.
00:21:04Yeah, lead like sheep around the corner.
00:21:07I was just going to mention taking on some energy.
00:21:10Liz has done that with her Volavons.
00:21:12You've seen the sandwiches have just come, and Mark Cole's going to go and refuel as well.
00:21:16You've got to be careful that you do exactly that.
00:21:19Mark will be back in around about an hour's time with a smile on his face and burger stains on his chest.
00:21:25We wait to see that.
00:21:27Liz, you've got to keep the sustenance coming.
00:21:30Oh, we're going to take a break, so we'll come back with that factoid.
00:21:33We'll have a little chat, shall we, about how you've got to keep your energy up, whether you're in the car or indeed out.
00:21:39Back in a moment.
00:21:40Welcome back.
00:21:42You join us auspiciously as the leader comes in.
00:21:47Important moments for these guys.
00:21:49Not sure where they are within their schedule.
00:21:51It's a portal change, windows, fuel, and what else, Liz?
00:21:56Well, possibly a driver.
00:21:58I haven't seen if there's a change.
00:21:59I wasn't expecting you to say what else.
00:22:01I thought, well, that's quite a lot you've just said there, actually.
00:22:04Fuel tires.
00:22:05Yeah, that's most of it.
00:22:06Also coming in, and the 15 machine as well.
00:22:09It's getting busy.
00:22:10A lot of schedules suddenly arriving at exactly the same time.
00:22:15Hard to judge when you're trying to pick yourself out within a field.
00:22:20Judging other people's mileage as well as your own is a difficult thing to do, especially when unscheduled stops get factored in.
00:22:28It's hard sometimes to pick out all the places and make sure that you get out there with a little bit of clear road.
00:22:35The 81 Ferraris come in, by the way.
00:22:38Let's just remind you of the battles out front.
00:22:41The Ferrari, certainly with Fisichella, has made its fourth stop.
00:22:45Now, some drivers actually manage to preserve fuel.
00:22:49Others kind of burn it.
00:22:51Now, I don't know whether Mr. Leadfoot Fisichella has actually just burned a bit too much fuel, but that really doesn't fit in with the schedule that we were thinking about, the 14 laps.
00:23:00It's coming about two laps early, as far as I can gather.
00:23:04Hmm.
00:23:05That's very interesting.
00:23:06It would be interesting to see if maybe he felt the tires were running out a bit, or there's been a little bit of a problem they want to look at, or possibly he's just used up more fuel.
00:23:14He's booted it.
00:23:15Different drivers can burn fuel at a completely different rate, can't they?
00:23:19No, absolutely.
00:23:20A lot of it's down to just their style of driving, how aggressive they are with the throttle.
00:23:24You know, it wouldn't surprise me at all if maybe he's actually just going through the fuel a bit quicker.
00:23:28They've probably got a reserve tank on, and obviously a fuel warning, or just the fact that the team is watching it from the pit lane.
00:23:34We said before that these, you know, very, very high-tech computer systems, now the team knows more than the driver from the pit lane.
00:23:41Yeah, absolutely.
00:23:42Now, a man we should talk about is Richard Westbrook.
00:23:45Hang on.
00:23:46Check this out.
00:23:47That is very, very dangerous.
00:23:48That's not good.
00:23:49No, fuel rig problems.
00:23:50Now, earlier on today we saw cars driving off, and actually the fuel man gesticulating wildly, saying that the lollipop man basically had given him the get-go, or the bored man, whatever you care to call it, had given him the get-go too early,
00:24:03and it had damaged the rig.
00:24:04That was a perfect example of it, and now you know why they wear full-face helmets, Nomex fire suits, and the lot.
00:24:10You cannot be out there with any bare skin at all, and very good reason they got away with that.
00:24:17He could have had a full dowsing.
00:24:18Yeah, that would really have been horrible, and that's exactly why you said they'd wear all the fireproof gears.
00:24:24After a very, very big fire in Monza, I believe, not many years ago, they started to make that regulation.
00:24:30This year they've said that there's got to be helmets on most of the people in pit lane full stop, so they're getting safer and safer every year.
00:24:37It's probably a good thing.
00:24:39My flaring badge, actually, tells me a story, and that is that the sun is getting very low here.
00:24:46As soon as it starts to get into your eyes, you want a clean windscreen, and these boys have one of the most important jobs out there.
00:24:52It may be the sort of thing that happens at the lights rather annoyingly if you're in cities like London, and then they go,
00:24:5710p mate, actually they don't, they go quid.
00:25:00But yes, believe me, you do not want to have any smears when you've got that flaring sun coming right in your eyes.
00:25:08You're coming out of shadow, and then suddenly into bright, bright sunshine.
00:25:11It's nice to be able to say that, Liz, especially because of the weather we had.
00:25:15Even this morning with the Group C, our landlady said we were going to have fine weather, we've got that.
00:25:19But the flaring sun at this time of night, when it comes down low, you know all about it, it's blinding, isn't it?
00:25:25Yeah, all of the open cockpit car drivers will definitely have a heavily shaded visor on right now.
00:25:30But in these cars with the closed cockpit, they've got to keep those windscreens clean, like you said.
00:25:34It's amazing the amount of debris you pick up on the windscreen.
00:25:37A lot of bugs, really, is one of the biggest things at Le Mans.
00:25:40Sometimes it'll be tire debris, can get stuck and smear across, oil off the back of a car, anything.
00:25:46Oil is one of the worst things possible, actually, you truly can't see.
00:25:49And if you go to try and clear it, you'll smear the whole windscreen.
00:25:51So, some of the cars we've seen that have a closed cockpit actually have a tear-off.
00:25:55I think some of the Audis have that.
00:25:57You'll see sometimes a man leaning across and pulling a huge strip off of the windscreen,
00:26:02and most of the drivers have that on their visors as well.
00:26:05So, every time they come in for a pit stop to take on fuel, rip a visor strip off,
00:26:11and immediately you have a clear visor again. It's a brilliant idea.
00:26:14Jerome Bleakamola in the 13 Lotus badge Lola has just come into pit off P8, incidentally,
00:26:22in the LMP1 class, a mixture, of course, of diesel and fuel,
00:26:26and indeed hybrids these days.
00:26:28As far as hybrid technology is going, there's been lots of questions
00:26:31as to which is best out there.
00:26:33And Lapierre and Buamy in the seven and eight Toyotas at the moment.
00:26:39They're doing a great job with their system.
00:26:43It's non-flywheel. It's kind of a charged capacitor system.
00:26:47We've mentioned it earlier, but if you missed it, a bit like an old flash gun.
00:26:51You have to wait for it to warm up. That's where the energy retrieval comes from.
00:26:54And then you hit the button, it goes, wham, straight into the back wheels.
00:26:57As soon as you hit, what is it, 123 kilometers an hour, I think it is.
00:27:00The flywheel system, which is, I can't remember how fast it spins,
00:27:05but it is many thousands RPM, is how the Audis deliver.
00:27:09That goes to the front wheel, so it's four-wheel drive,
00:27:11and it's the game that they get.
00:27:13Loic, are you surprised about the rhythm and the pace of the Toyotas?
00:27:17No, not at all. I mean, we saw it in qualifying, they were competitive.
00:27:21We were not joking at all in qualifying, you know, on Thursday and Wednesday.
00:27:26So we knew they were competitive.
00:27:28They have a lot of power going exceed of the corners,
00:27:31so it's probably easier for them in the traffic, you know,
00:27:34to get out from the traffic with the other guys, so we're not surprised at all.
00:27:38Let's see now how long they can go with this pace.
00:27:41And, you know, so far now we are coming back, so we are pretty happy.
00:27:45What is the most difficult part of managing during your stint?
00:27:51So far, the beginning of the race was the tires.
00:27:54The track was pretty green, you know, we had some rain this morning,
00:27:57so it was difficult to keep the tires in a good condition.
00:28:00And then, basically, it's all the same in endurance races as the traffic.
00:28:04I mean, we had a huge, I mean, especially me,
00:28:06at one point I had a huge, huge traffic in my stint,
00:28:09and that's really frustrating, you know.
00:28:11I mean, sometimes you get crazy in the car,
00:28:13but, I mean, you have to deal with that,
00:28:15and it's 24 hours race, so we have to be careful.
00:28:18Thank you very much.
00:28:19There we are.
00:28:20Don't underestimate Toyota.
00:28:22Now, if they've got more longevity than some of us gave them credit for,
00:28:25we said they would be maybe going for a sprint,
00:28:27or maybe one of the cars would go out there and try and go very quickly
00:28:30and leave the other one to play the long game.
00:28:32But it seems they're both playing the long game,
00:28:34but doing it at sprint pace.
00:28:35Yeah, at the moment they seem to be the reliable ones.
00:28:37Yeah.
00:28:38Touch wood.
00:28:39I don't want to curse them by the commentator here,
00:28:40but I'm absolutely dumbfounded at how consistently they've been running.
00:28:44I think Toyota itself is absolutely thrilled with what they're showing here right now.
00:28:47And really, at the moment, what we see is they can hold it with the Audis
00:28:51and take a chase to them.
00:28:52And I hope that Audi's feeling a little bit of pressure,
00:28:55because it'll keep them pushing through the race.
00:28:57And wouldn't it be amazing if one or both of these cars could finish?
00:29:00It would be absolutely fantastic, is the first thought.
00:29:03Secondly, if they can finish within the P1 sort of flotilla, if you like.
00:29:08Thirdly, if they can get on the podium.
00:29:10And hey, you never know.
00:29:12Teething problems, they happen with all new technology.
00:29:15We've got two new hybrid cars for Audi here as well.
00:29:18Why on earth should they be in a better position than Toyota?
00:29:21Well, a lot of people thought Toyota's lead-in program here,
00:29:24which has been very, very short-lived.
00:29:27They only wanted to put one car here,
00:29:29and were kind of persuaded, I think, to run two.
00:29:32And maybe it's going to come their way.
00:29:34They're together on track at the moment,
00:29:36running as a brace of hybrids and looking very good.
00:29:39Now, we just heard in the interview there
00:29:41that they've got a lot of power coming out of the corners.
00:29:44Their power is delivered to the back wheels in one huge punch.
00:29:49So if they're close to you or you're close to them,
00:29:52if you're trailing them, they're going to disappear no matter what you've got.
00:29:55Yeah, they're going to be very, very happy about this bright sunshine we have right now.
00:29:59I'm guessing that with that huge deliverance of power right at the back wheels,
00:30:03the last thing they want is really heavy, greasy, wet conditions.
00:30:07So this is going to really play into their hands, especially for their speed.
00:30:11They're going to be very, very fast off the line, possibly even quicker than Audi.
00:30:14And I think that's exactly what they want.
00:30:16We're just seeing a sign here that they're demanding the team manager
00:30:19of cars seven and eight to report immediately to the race control.
00:30:23Now that is about track behaviour.
00:30:25It can be nothing else.
00:30:27But the team manager has been told to go.
00:30:29Why both of them?
00:30:30Goodness only knows.
00:30:31It's the team manager, the Oberleutnant, has been called it.
00:30:35Actually, that's German, not Japanese.
00:30:38I don't know what it is.
00:30:39But anyway, something's upset race control.
00:30:42And I wonder if it's the approach that they're taking to the traffic here,
00:30:47how they're driving through it.
00:30:48Do not know.
00:30:49You can't sanction the driver for being competitive,
00:30:51but are they bullying anybody?
00:30:52Surely not.
00:30:53Well, I have to say, from what I've seen,
00:30:55I don't see them doing anything wrong at all.
00:30:57They're flashing the drivers.
00:30:58Everybody does that.
00:30:59It's the safe thing to do.
00:31:00They seem to be staying on the track.
00:31:02I've not seen them, you know, not respecting track limits
00:31:05or anything like that.
00:31:06But then again, we don't have video footage of the entire circuit.
00:31:09Perhaps it's something they know that we don't.
00:31:11But I can't imagine anything specific that they could be doing so wrong
00:31:16that both team managers would need to be reported,
00:31:18unless there is something actually wrong with the car
00:31:21or if it has to do with maybe the broken piece off one of those vehicles.
00:31:25Paul Moore says he's on the night shift too.
00:31:27Thanks, Paul.
00:31:28We look forward to your company up there.
00:31:31Don't forget to all of the Twitter sites, by the way.
00:31:34It's Carlton Kirby.
00:31:35C-A-R-L-T-O-N-K-I-R-B-Y.
00:31:37Or Liz Halliday.
00:31:39L-I-Z-H-A-L-L-I-D-A-Y.
00:31:43Yeah.
00:31:44So make sure you start popping the keyboard or indeed using the old crab-like thumb.
00:31:50And we'll have a chat with you a little bit later.
00:31:53The likes of Geoff McPherson, Matt Hayes, John Ward and the rest of you guys out there.
00:31:59So it's been like a sprint race so far, which is why we've not been trawling your thoughts just for the time being.
00:32:05We're kind of getting to that point now.
00:32:07Unless the team manager of Toyota, what's going on here?
00:32:11I don't know whether we'd...
00:32:13They all look a little bit confused.
00:32:14They do.
00:32:15A little bit confused and nay concerned.
00:32:17Well, it would be a terrible thing if it's just kind of style infringement that's the problem.
00:32:23It's going to be something more than that, surely.
00:32:25I'm not quite sure what the issue is.
00:32:27I'm wondering if they want to discuss the upright that fell off the vehicle.
00:32:31That's what I'm wondering.
00:32:32And if it's that, they're going to have a big old debate as to whether they've got to come in and change the entire back end.
00:32:39Because that's what it's going to require.
00:32:41They're racing on, they'll say, look, no problem at all.
00:32:43They're going to say, well, why do you have it then if it has no aero effect on the car?
00:32:46Does it destabilize it?
00:32:47Is that dangerous?
00:32:48This is the debate, I presume, that they're going to have up there.
00:32:50I can't imagine they'd have them in there.
00:32:51I mean, I've done entire races with pieces of the wing missing before and nobody's ever called it up.
00:32:57I cannot imagine that would be it.
00:32:58That's the only thing we can think of it.
00:33:00Well, maybe they told them to pit and it fell off and they didn't and then they're in a quandary.
00:33:06There are lots of maybes here.
00:33:08If they start racing each other here, then that's going to really upset the manager.
00:33:12Maybe he's gone to the race control and while he's away, they're going to have a go at each other.
00:33:16Who knows?
00:33:18Because team orders are in the bin right now.
00:33:22Look at this, wide-eyed.
00:33:24They certainly are.
00:33:26Hmm.
00:33:27Yes.
00:33:28Well, if any of you out there find out before we do, please let us out.
00:33:31We'll keep tabs on it for you.
00:33:33Yeah, we're getting this lovely tracking shot here today.
00:33:36They have spaced out a little bit.
00:33:38Got any questions that have won their way in on Twitter?
00:33:41Oh, I do.
00:33:42I have such a stack.
00:33:43I had to charge my phone while I was away.
00:33:45I'm digging through.
00:33:46Thank you to everybody for sending me so much stuff.
00:33:48I'm doing my best.
00:33:49Nigel says if this Aston battle continues, they're going to write a book and make a movie about it.
00:33:55I think you're possibly right.
00:33:56They're doing a fantastic job out there.
00:33:58The Aston and Fernandes, in the hands of Fernandes, by the way, in the pro class of GT, is third at the moment behind Westbrook's Corvette.
00:34:07And Fisichella and the Ferrari are out and in the lead.
00:34:10So he obviously made a pretty slick stop.
00:34:13And now if they've got a full load, fuel-wise, he's going to love this.
00:34:18He's going to go 14 laps and just watch Aston and Chevy pit in quite short order, actually.
00:34:23I believe the Astons are due in soon.
00:34:26And a worthwhile thing to say is that Richard Westbrook took on this Corvette and has been absolutely hammering in the time since he had.
00:34:33Obviously the team said, right, go on a hunt for that Ferrari.
00:34:37And he's really climbed up through the order.
00:34:39He's jumped in front of the Aston of Adrian Fernandes.
00:34:42Now in second place and bashing in faster times than Fisichella.
00:34:46There you go.
00:34:47Matt Hayes says, how many years until Toyota become the new Peugeot?
00:34:52Not far as we stand.
00:34:54You're right, they've got the right colours as well, Matt.
00:34:56They changed the colours from red and white to blue and white.
00:35:01They had to just swap all the posters here.
00:35:03We thought it might be a marketing ploy to try and fool the local public into coming along,
00:35:06thinking there were Peugeot racing.
00:35:08No, they're Toyotas.
00:35:09And at the moment they're in positions two and three with Buemi and Lapierre.
00:35:13The eight and the seven car in that order.
00:35:15Out top is Trullier in the one car for Audi.
00:35:19But there's not that much between these cars at all.
00:35:23Not at all.
00:35:24And we've had somebody ask, what is the green plastic box they put above the Audi e-tron when they come into the pits?
00:35:31I can tell you it's a high voltage warning for the mechanics because that's where a lot of the electronic system is in there for that special hybrid e-tron.
00:35:39And basically we don't need to have any electrocuted mechanics.
00:35:43When you're using a flywheel system, you get an awful lot of static build-up as well.
00:35:48There's all kinds of dangers around there.
00:35:50And yes, don't touch is what that is all about.
00:35:54Do not touch the car until it has been disengaged.
00:35:58By the way, when the Toyotas come in, you'll see they reach in and pull a dirty great big handle.
00:36:03It's not a handbrake.
00:36:04It is a disengagement of the isolation, if you like, of the electrical system in there for the same old reasons.
00:36:11They start working on the car.
00:36:12They don't want anyone getting too many sparks.
00:36:14That could be very exciting and not for the right way.
00:36:17Yeah, well, you might well see it when Toyota come in.
00:36:19It looks like they're heading for a pit stop.
00:36:21And I think this might be back units.
00:36:24It's the wrong car though.
00:36:25That's the one with the complete upright wigglets as the one car shoots by.
00:36:31And he'll be booting this Trullier.
00:36:33Now, expect this time to be a quick one, this next couple of laps,
00:36:37because their sequence is also going to start coming to an end fairly shortly.
00:36:43It wasn't that long that they were in, but their range...
00:36:47How many laps have they got there? The Hybrids, can you remember?
00:36:50Oh, I'm not sure actually.
00:36:53We'll double check.
00:36:54We'll double check with Mr. Shaw.
00:36:56In the meantime, yes, absolutely.
00:36:58We'll be coming back on.
00:36:59I think they are fitting near enough the same as the Ultras, which is interesting.
00:37:02We all were sort of wondering, are they or aren't they?
00:37:05Is the fuel difference going to be anything off?
00:37:07But it's very similar, which is what they planned on.
00:37:09Yeah, exactly.
00:37:10The word was that they got a little bit better mileage when it was wet.
00:37:17Yes.
00:37:18Well, it's dry, and so it's more or less the same.
00:37:22We'll see.
00:37:23Duma Romain is in the three car running in fourth place at the moment.
00:37:26Tom Christensen is the man with a slightly droopy smile at the moment.
00:37:30It looks like it's upside down because it's running in fifth place.
00:37:33Not a happy bunny.
00:37:34You can be sure about that.
00:37:35And an ultra-competitive crew that they have got with Capello and McNish.
00:37:39But it's a long 24 hours.
00:37:41Fifth place is not that far.
00:37:43Yeah.
00:37:44Well, you try telling it to Tom.
00:37:46They like to lead from start to finish.
00:37:48Having a misery moment at the moment.
00:37:50We'll cheer him up.
00:37:51Yes, Audi have very graciously offered us hospitality while we're here,
00:37:55so we've got a respite centre.
00:37:58Sounds like somewhere you'd send troublesome teenagers,
00:38:01and it's where Mark Cole is sitting right now, so that analogy does stack up.
00:38:05There we are.
00:38:06The 80 car has just come in.
00:38:09The flying lizards have joined us,
00:38:11and the 30 car that we're talking about, the emergency,
00:38:14which looks great, that's also coming in right now.
00:38:18And we've got this bright sunshine.
00:38:19And as the sun starts to go down, if we keep this up,
00:38:21we're going to find some very tricky conditions
00:38:23that nobody's had to deal with yet this week
00:38:25because we haven't had that much sun.
00:38:27We've kind of had cloud throughout everything.
00:38:29It's especially for the drivers that are in an open cockpit car.
00:38:33You reach that position where you can't have a shaded visor on,
00:38:36and the sun is pretty much completely in your eyes in some places.
00:38:39But if you're going in tonight, the last thing you want to do is have a shaded visor on.
00:38:43Absolutely.
00:38:45Yeah, maybe a yellow one.
00:38:47Or pink.
00:38:49Truly, if you want to make life look a little bit better than it actually is,
00:38:53maybe they should start handing those out at Pescarello, rose-tinted visors.
00:38:57Oh, lovely.
00:38:58Because right now it's not going very well for them at all.
00:39:01The seven car just on a big approach here, right at the backside of the 22 machine.
00:39:06Who's on board there?
00:39:07Has Peter Dumbrake got a ride yet?
00:39:08Wanting to see Peter put it through its paces, the 22 car.
00:39:13And that one car in the hands of Trullier.
00:39:16You saw him going very, very wide.
00:39:18If they have had pickup issues which have been affecting suspension travel at the back of the car,
00:39:24it suggests holes that shouldn't be where they actually are.
00:39:27And they're picking up debris that something rather large can get through
00:39:31and interfere with suspension travel.
00:39:33That being the case, why go that far offline just to pass a GT car?
00:39:38Because he's pushing very, very hard is the answer.
00:39:41Well, I think that's the trouble here is you don't really have any option in this sort of race.
00:39:45You have to go offline sometimes to get around.
00:39:47And what you can see from the television is actually how much pickup is directly off the main racing line.
00:39:53And there is a lot of it.
00:39:55There's absolutely nothing you can do about it.
00:39:56And tire pickup on a set of hot, thick, slick tires is a disaster.
00:40:02It is something that is unavoidable.
00:40:04And it absolutely makes you feel like you have no grip whatsoever.
00:40:07So having that extra bit lumped in there,
00:40:10and then I'm not surprised at all that they've got the huge amount stuck in the suspension.
00:40:14I've had that happen before, actually.
00:40:15It's just one of those things you stop thinking about.
00:40:17Seven car in and on its marks here, pitting off P2.
00:40:20Don't forget it's Lapierre.
00:40:23And I'll tell you there's a little sad moment going on here.
00:40:26A little bit of gulping going down.
00:40:28And I'm sad to say we've been joined by Stuart Hall.
00:40:32It's not that I don't like you, Stuart.
00:40:34I just know you'd rather be out there, mate.
00:40:36I know, it's a bit of a bummer.
00:40:39I don't really know what to say.
00:40:41It's been a week from hell for us.
00:40:44It's been a long, old road, and most of it bumpy, I think.
00:40:48So Stuart Hall, you're with us.
00:40:50You're going to be popping in throughout the evening?
00:40:52Yes, I'm yours now.
00:40:53We may pay you, you know.
00:40:54No, no, no, no, no, no, no, you guys.
00:40:56Yeah, I'm yours to the end of the race if you need me.
00:40:58Oh, that's a nice thought.
00:41:00Come on then, fill us in.
00:41:01What's up with the 16 car?
00:41:02Why big tears away, Stuart?
00:41:03Tell us what's happened.
00:41:04The list is short enough to be, you know, told.
00:41:07Oh, you know, we're just, we're on the back foot to start with.
00:41:10And you do, you know, you do, you do have that feeling
00:41:13that you might be able to make something of it.
00:41:15You never know.
00:41:16If things go our way, we can pull out a result.
00:41:18But the fact of the matter is, we started off on the back foot.
00:41:21We've been trying to iron out a few problems of the car.
00:41:24And, you know, the monster's come too soon for us this time.
00:41:27It's very disappointing because we've had all sorts of issues with it.
00:41:31Just niggly issues that can be sorted easily.
00:41:34But in a race like this, you can't afford to have them.
00:41:36And eventually we had a problem with the steering.
00:41:39And when Manu was driving the car, you know,
00:41:41the steering started to lock in quick corners.
00:41:43And that's not what you run around here at 200 miles an hour.
00:41:46Oh, absolutely.
00:41:47I understand that Bouillon as well was not, essentially,
00:41:51didn't have confidence in the car.
00:41:53No, I mean, you know, he's been around a long time
00:41:55and had some fantastic results here.
00:41:57And he said, you know, I'm not happy driving it.
00:42:00Probably stupidity paid off.
00:42:02And me and Manu accepted the task of trying to do the whole race by ourselves.
00:42:06And, you know, I think we're up to the challenge.
00:42:08But unfortunately, the mechanicals work.
00:42:11Yeah.
00:42:12We've got Sebastian Buemi coming up in just a few moments' time.
00:42:16In fact, he's here right now.
00:42:18We'll have Stuart Hall again in just a few moments' time.
00:42:21Sebastian, for the first stint in 24 hours of Le Mans,
00:42:24it was a really good one.
00:42:26Yeah, it was good.
00:42:27I'm quite happy, to be honest.
00:42:28I didn't expect we could do four stints,
00:42:30but now I still think we can even do more.
00:42:33So let's see what we can achieve during the rest of the race.
00:42:36But at the moment, it went good.
00:42:38So let's continue to push.
00:42:40Your pace looks really, really fast,
00:42:42really close behind the Audi.
00:42:44Do you think you can keep it like this?
00:42:46Obviously, if the car can survive,
00:42:48I'm sure we can continue like that and continue to catch them.
00:42:51But I think we've got to concentrate a lot on the rear ability
00:42:55and maybe at a certain point try to be a little bit smoother with the car.
00:42:59But let's see what we can do.
00:43:02Last question.
00:43:03Do you have a problem with your legs?
00:43:05Yeah, I have a bit of pain in the seat.
00:43:07I never did four stints with this car,
00:43:08so I need to do a few adjustments on it.
00:43:11Thank you very much.
00:43:12Hey, our seat issues.
00:43:13He wasn't talking about his own seat, by the way.
00:43:15Seat issues just giving him a bit of discomfort.
00:43:19Not what you want at all.
00:43:21No, and quite often a lot of the drivers will go through that sort of pain
00:43:24and you'll feel it in about stint one and a half
00:43:27and realise that you're just going to have to power on through.
00:43:29I'm sure Stuart knows how that goes.
00:43:31Or you're cramping up and you're thinking,
00:43:33well, I'm just going to have to man up and deal with it
00:43:35because there's no other option.
00:43:37No, I was expecting that today, to be honest.
00:43:40Manning up.
00:43:41We've all been there.
00:43:42We've done plenty of that, mate.
00:43:44Well, it's good to have you on board, Stuart.
00:43:46But you know that we'd all prefer you to be out there and competing.
00:43:50Look, next time, mate.
00:43:51You've done it.
00:43:52You've been fourth once.
00:43:53In fact, you've been almost podium.
00:43:55You've been out of the race and now in it but out.
00:43:57Yeah, no.
00:43:58You're running out of options.
00:44:00We'll take a break.
00:44:01We'll be back in a few moments of time.
00:44:03I reckon it must have been.
00:44:05I don't know.
00:44:07Has he hit him?
00:44:08Welcome back.
00:44:09Watch this.
00:44:10That's the three outing.
00:44:12Now, I've no idea what failed there, whether it was brain or mechanics.
00:44:18Let's have a look.
00:44:19Let's have a look.
00:44:20Just straight on.
00:44:21Just lost it at a crucial moment in the curve.
00:44:24Approaching a slower vehicle.
00:44:26Hit the brakes.
00:44:27Destabilized the car.
00:44:28And whatever went, went at that point.
00:44:31Bang.
00:44:32The three car is in.
00:44:33Frantic activity.
00:44:34Back at Audi.
00:44:35They're all getting ready.
00:44:36But that car does not look like it is moving for the time being.
00:44:40They've tried to push it out to get into a position where he can actually do something.
00:44:44Doesn't want to leave the vehicle.
00:44:45And it's the, what, 30 feet rule, is it?
00:44:48Can't go that far away.
00:44:50He's going to try and see what he can do himself.
00:44:53But he's a long, long way from where he needs to be here.
00:44:56Ripping up the body work in disgust here and frustration, as you can see.
00:45:00He's going to try and take it off.
00:45:02The last thing for him to do is get it off so that he can drive the thing back.
00:45:05Because you can't drive it back when it's underneath the car.
00:45:07So rightly so, fast as you can, get it back in the garage.
00:45:10Get that thing moving.
00:45:11Stuart, how much anger is he carrying here?
00:45:13Oh, I think I don't need to tell you how much anger he's carrying.
00:45:17I think he's...
00:45:18Put it in another way.
00:45:19Yeah, put it in another way.
00:45:20Is it his fault or not?
00:45:22Yeah, I think it was, actually.
00:45:23One thing that's happened this year is there's an awful lot of dirt and dust offline.
00:45:28And it looked to me like he was offline going into the corner.
00:45:33Just got on the marbles and the dirt.
00:45:35And the car just understood when you're on those marbles and dirt.
00:45:37It doesn't matter if you try and break.
00:45:39Oh, that's the big chunk with the Porsche as well on the exit of Indianapolis.
00:45:44Wow, it's all kicking off.
00:45:46And it's exactly where we said, Liz, as soon as that light starts to get into the eyes,
00:45:50maybe just a little bit of destruction.
00:45:51Momentum.
00:45:52Oh, his wheels coming off.
00:45:53Three wheels on his wagon.
00:45:54No wheel.
00:45:55Are we going to tell this?
00:45:56We'll wait and see.
00:45:57He's going very, very slowly.
00:45:58He's going to make it back, though, by the looks of this.
00:45:59How far?
00:46:00It's probably not going slowly enough, but he's got a long way to go.
00:46:01I mean, that's a slow run.
00:46:02He almost looks to me like he's going a little bit quick for where he should be, but it's
00:46:03very difficult to stay slow when you're that frustrated.
00:46:04Oh, ill-fortune.
00:46:05It's the lizards yet again.
00:46:06They just keep collecting this stuff.
00:46:07He's got a blaze going in the back of his tire here on the bodywork.
00:46:09I don't know whether it's just the friction that has actually caught that, but he's going
00:46:11to be in trouble if that flame spreads here.
00:46:12We'll see if there's any kind of leakage.
00:46:13Now, this is the moment.
00:46:14Here we go.
00:46:15He loses it here.
00:46:16Nowhere to go.
00:46:17It looks like he actually stood on the brakes at the wrong point.
00:46:20Maybe like he said, Stuart, he actually caught the marbles because he had to put it, give
00:46:24it a little bit more.
00:46:25He's going to be able to stay slow when you're that frustrated.
00:46:26Oh, ill-fortune.
00:46:27It's the lizards yet again.
00:46:28They just keep collecting this stuff.
00:46:29He's got a blaze going in the back of his tire here on the bodywork.
00:46:30I don't know whether it's just the friction that has actually caught that, but he's going
00:46:32to be in trouble if that flame spreads here.
00:46:33We'll see if there's any kind of leakage.
00:46:34Now, this is the moment.
00:46:35Here we go.
00:46:36Loses it here.
00:46:37Nowhere to go.
00:46:38It looks like he actually stood on the brakes at the wrong point.
00:46:41Maybe like he said, Stuart, he actually caught the marbles because he had to give it a little
00:46:45extra stab on the brakes to avoid that car.
00:46:47Hard to know without speaking to him.
00:46:49I've got to give him credit, though.
00:46:50It's quick thinking to get all that bodywork off.
00:46:52Absolutely.
00:46:53Very fast.
00:46:54And here he is.
00:46:55He's slowly but surely making his way back with the three car.
00:46:58Now, this will be a comeback.
00:46:59Those stories have been told before, and he's trying his level best to get back.
00:47:04The white flags are flying here, and the lizards are in trouble again.
00:47:08Back off the road.
00:47:09This doesn't look, this does not look good at all.
00:47:12And this is the one that, this is Seth Neiman currently leading the amateur category.
00:47:18Oh, they've just had such bad luck.
00:47:21They cannot do it here at Le Mans.
00:47:23They just keep getting bitten.
00:47:25My goodness, they have tremendous success and a great effectiveness rate in the United States,
00:47:31and then all of a sudden they make the trip to Le Mans.
00:47:34And again and again and again, they have terrible fortune here.
00:47:38Now, the three car limping its way back here and doing a pretty good job of just keeping himself away from bother here.
00:47:43That was the right thing to do there, absolutely.
00:47:45He's trying to avoid turning that car at any opportunity.
00:47:48It looks like the suspension is pretty well done on the right front.
00:47:54Wow.
00:47:55So certainly playing to the hands of Toyota.
00:47:57Yeah, absolutely.
00:47:58Fire at the rear of the car, the 79 been confirmed.
00:48:03Maybe that's why they told it to get clear.
00:48:06It's at the rear.
00:48:08That's just where the engine is, of course.
00:48:13And we'll see whether the 79 manages to make it back here.
00:48:17It may have to abandon, we'll see.
00:48:19Right now we're just hooking up with the Toyotas here.
00:48:22It won't be long before they pass by the stricken three car here, which was both Mark Carlson and my tip for victory here.
00:48:31It shows you what that could do.
00:48:33We won't mention another car in that regard at all.
00:48:36He's doing a decent job, Steve.
00:48:38He's managing to get that car back, but as we've seen, the minute there's a little bit of a problem for one of these diesels, you know, it's very, very difficult to get back on turn for the leaders because normally they're bulletproof and we've been seeing they are.
00:48:53And it's actually driver error that's actually putting them out of the race.
00:48:56Yeah.
00:48:57Well, Tom Christensen at the moment, they did have some minor issues, but what they were saying is it was debris getting into the suspension travel.
00:49:04So I don't know whether there's a box section which is open that shouldn't be, and they had to clear it out.
00:49:09But basically, as you said, the most minor problem just bumps them back because everyone else is being so efficient at the moment.
00:49:16Here's the 79 car.
00:49:18Now, did that fire at the rear cause any damage?
00:49:21They've got to sort it out.
00:49:22It's been front and end.
00:49:23It's a lot of damage at the front as well.
00:49:25We didn't get to see that accident, so I don't really know what happened there.
00:49:29But he's obviously made a collision with the front and the rear.
00:49:33So that's a spin and a hit in two directions.
00:49:36Yeah, double bottle.
00:49:37Probably back end first and then damage the front on the spin around.
00:49:42There it is.
00:49:43That's what we call sight of momentarily earlier on.
00:49:46This will be a big repair and really big hit for the ones leading the class.
00:49:50It's a trouble, isn't it, Stuart?
00:49:51You've got radiator out front for those 911s.
00:49:54And they take what appears to be minor bodywork damage and it's serious.
00:49:59Well, it's always been in the kiddies' hill for any of these Porsches, whether you do this sort of racing or even in the Super Cup.
00:50:05They're very fragile at the front end and just a small touch will puncture a radiator and cause you big, big problems.
00:50:11Just seeing the eight car fly by here.
00:50:13They're in third place.
00:50:14Toyota at the moment filling two provisional podium spots.
00:50:17Can you believe it?
00:50:18And Audi having their issues.
00:50:21They've had them throughout the race, save for the number one car.
00:50:24No need one to win it, don't forget.
00:50:26But it only takes a moment to bin it and that's exactly what has happened here with the three car.
00:50:32Dumas ripping off the front bodywork, save for the nose section.
00:50:35Did a very good job of unclipping that.
00:50:37Very quick, I have to say, to turn that thing around and get it back on the track.
00:50:41Very, very fast.
00:50:42The marshals helped out by clearing the debris in front of him, which they're obliged and indeed able to do.
00:50:48And away he went.
00:50:50And he's tried to take it into some of the access roads as much as possible so as not to interfere with anybody else who's out there racing and competing.
00:50:59But it's looking very second hand at the moment, this three car.
00:51:02I think he's done it as well to avoid having to turn the vehicle too many times one way or the other.
00:51:06He clearly knows that it's broken and there's issues with it.
00:51:09And any chance you have to stay straight is going to be better.
00:51:11How far is he away, Stuart?
00:51:13He's just coming up to our Nars, so he's sort of probably about two or three minutes away now at that pace, maybe four.
00:51:20And knowing Audi, they'll turn that around and get it out in five minutes.
00:51:24So he's not going to lose a huge amount, but it's going to make it very, very difficult for him to get back on the track.
00:51:28Yeah, we'll see just how effective they are at fixing the problem.
00:51:33They have so many amazing bolt-on parts here.
00:51:37Full assemblies, Liz, that they can buzz off and stick a new one on.
00:51:41And writers reign within much shorter order than most lesser-funded teams.
00:51:46Oh, I mean, of any of the teams around, we've seen the craziest turnarounds by Audi.
00:51:50We've seen them come in with damage that you think, well, that'll be a few hours.
00:51:54And 15 minutes later, they're back out on track, so it is phenomenal.
00:51:58I mean, gone are the days when they can take the entire back of the car off and stick a new gearbox in.
00:52:03But even back then, they always knew a way to make the repairs quicker.
00:52:06Oh, this is a different incident.
00:52:08Yeah, just nosing in here for the 61 car.
00:52:12You know, that's had a terrible, it's the Waltrip machine, that's had a terrible run here.
00:52:17Maybe Michael should make the trip next time and not just fund the project.
00:52:21Here's the e-tron Quattro on board with the one car.
00:52:24Just to remind us that Audi, in fact, lead this race.
00:52:28But it's not one, two, three, four.
00:52:30It's one, four, five and a big question mark.
00:52:33Yes, indeed, and there it is.
00:52:34It's over this car, the three car right now.
00:52:36It's getting back.
00:52:37Moving quite fast, actually.
00:52:38I think it's doing a pretty reasonable job here.
00:52:41About Ford car pace.
00:52:42Now, do we...
00:52:43I can't remember the last time that so many Audis had just niggly issues early on in the race.
00:52:49I mean, last year we had the huge accidents, but I have no recollection of them having so many problems with so many cars.
00:52:55And it could be that they've got these brand new cars, they've done so much work on them, and maybe there's just not been enough time to find the reliability.
00:53:02But this, that was the question we were asking about the Toyota's.
00:53:05And, um, it's, uh, the questions now are being asked of the Audis.
00:53:09It's amazing.
00:53:10So far, Toyota have answered everything.
00:53:12Uh, on track, done it properly.
00:53:14Davidson and Lapierre are three and two respectively.
00:53:17Trillias leading, and the blue flags waiting to warn everybody.
00:53:21And finally, finally, finally, we're going to get sight ourselves as he comes by, uh, in front of the Ferris wheel.
00:53:28And there it is.
00:53:29This is a bendy part of the track.
00:53:31And that wheel looks like it might well just stay the course here, uh, to get it back in.
00:53:36Uh, no, no, no limit needed to be hit there.
00:53:40Already well within the, uh, the limitations of, uh, the speed limits on pit road.
00:53:45And here he comes.
00:53:46Let's just hope he stops in good order.
00:53:48And that the board man, um, has some trust in this.
00:53:51You've got to be a brave man to be a board man in a situation like this.
00:53:54I suspect it may be standing alone.
00:53:56Let's have a look.
00:53:57Shall we?
00:53:58No, he's doing the job.
00:53:59He'll probably be ready to say, can he stop?
00:54:01Yeah.
00:54:02Don't hit Fritzy.
00:54:03There we go.
00:54:04Um, so, uh, it's going to be a big turnaround for these guys.
00:54:08Um, we'll see whether they even have a jacking issue.
00:54:11You never know what's been affected.
00:54:13Sure.
00:54:14No, you don't.
00:54:15And, uh, well, they don't.
00:54:17That's on the trolleyes and that's straight in the garage.
00:54:19So you expect to see that in about five, 10 minutes knowing Audi.
00:54:23You can guarantee he's been on the radio explaining everything he possibly could about the handling
00:54:27of the car.
00:54:28What he feels is broken.
00:54:29Anything that may have been in place beforehand.
00:54:31So that the team is, is prepped as ready as they can be to just get that thing turned
00:54:35around and five minutes flat.
00:54:36Hopefully.
00:54:37Okay.
00:54:38Just run yourself to stopwatch on this.
00:54:39Why don't you?
00:54:40Uh, because believe me, this is going to be as quick as it can be.
00:54:43Hello.
00:54:44Somebody has been tagged here.
00:54:45The 71 car.
00:54:46I know you're having terrible fortune, aren't you?
00:54:48Uh, the 51 car had to be rebuilt after Fisichella.
00:54:51Bindlet in, uh, early practice or was it qualifying?
00:54:54Uh, first session anyway.
00:54:56And, um, since then they've been running like a dream and all the rest of their teammates
00:55:00have had a nightmare.
00:55:01And Audi Abreta has already spent time in the garage in that car.
00:55:05It's busy, Stuart.
00:55:06It is very, very busy.
00:55:07Um, and they'll just be climbing all over.
00:55:09That's why they put it straight in the garage because you're only limited to four people
00:55:12outside the garage.
00:55:13You can have as many bodies as you want in the garage.
00:55:15So get it in the garage, get it sorted, get it back out and get it in the race.
00:55:19It's going to be a rebuild job effectively of the front end here.
00:55:22Uh, it depends on how badly damaged the floor has been as well with that tracking manoeuvre
00:55:27all the way around with one wheel effectively off his wagon list.
00:55:30Yeah.
00:55:31And I think he's done a phenomenal job to get that car back to the carriage as fast as
00:55:34he can.
00:55:35Uh, he didn't even take time to think.
00:55:37He was just out of the car, get the bodywork up straight in there.
00:55:40I mean, it's been a surprising turnaround for the accident.
00:55:43Absolutely.
00:55:44Uh, don't forget if you want to, uh, join us, uh, this evening in particular, but, uh,
00:55:48if you want to join us on Twitter right now, it's Carlton Kirby.
00:55:51Carlton Kirby, C-A-R-L-T-O-N-K-I-R-B-Y.
00:55:55Wow.
00:55:56That was fast.
00:55:57Well, they should know it by now.
00:55:58L-I-Z-H-A-L-L-I-D-A-Y.
00:56:00And Stuart Hall.
00:56:02Oh, don't worry about me.
00:56:04Stewie's not filling up for Twitter.
00:56:05He's just not, he's not, you know, he doesn't want a whole raft of commiseration.
00:56:09That's what it is.
00:56:10And it's like when you tell a small child off and they start to, they're very stoic until
00:56:14you say, all right, you're okay now.
00:56:16And then they burst into tears.
00:56:17I'm hoping that Stewie is coming back to us later on.
00:56:20We'll buy him an ice cream, cheer him up.
00:56:22It'll take more than that, I think.
00:56:2419 hours and 10 minutes remaining.
00:56:27Come on, Stewie, you've got Eurosport.
00:56:28It's a whole other career that you can fall back on on a dodgy race day.
00:56:32That's not bad.
00:56:33Oh, I enjoy it.
00:56:34I tell you what, although the view was very, very good last year, it's not so bad here.
00:56:38We've been saying we prefer it.
00:56:40I'll be on that Ferris wheel later.
00:56:42Make sure you wave, Stewie.
00:56:44Make sure you text us and wave.
00:56:45Maybe even take a little picture.
00:56:47Yeah, it's going to have to be.
00:56:48What you do, what you do do here is you get a great view of how much curb cars can take going
00:56:53through the two chicanes.
00:56:54And it's very, very obvious that the Porsches of life are able to take so much more curb than
00:57:00most other cars.
00:57:01They are getting airborne.
00:57:02The Felbermeyer 77 car was actually getting skied every single time they came through here.
00:57:08That's how committed they are.
00:57:09I mean, just check out some of these guys.
00:57:11We've got the Murphy car coming through right now.
00:57:13Status.
00:57:14Thank you very much.
00:57:15I think I probably said that wrong earlier.
00:57:17You're getting used to being correct to that.
00:57:18Yes, absolutely.
00:57:19Well, what's interesting was when the race started, you could see that everybody was
00:57:22a little bit like, ooh, startle them all.
00:57:24A little bit careful.
00:57:25It's a little bit, and now they're all just like flat out over the curves.
00:57:29It's back to qualifying now.
00:57:30Yeah, well, we've got the track rubbered up right now.
00:57:32It was almost green, I think you might say, after all the rain that we had this morning
00:57:37in the Group C.
00:57:38Some very, very expensive Group C cars got themselves into all kinds of trouble.
00:57:43The old spice machine.
00:57:44It disintegrated like a bottle being dropped onto...
00:57:47A bottle of the good old stuff being dropped onto a tile surface.
00:57:50Unfortunately, the bill slightly more than a bottle of the old smelly would have been.
00:57:55Yeah, it's a very expensive vehicle meeting its demise in Group C.
00:57:58It gave nobody any pleasure whatsoever today.
00:58:01Thankfully, this has been dry.
00:58:03We've got the track rubbered up, and it looks like we might have a dry night as well,
00:58:07which is absolutely remarkable, especially with some of the big old clouds that we had hanging around.
00:58:11But I've got to say that the 3 Audi at the moment is deep in Repair City, which is their garage at the moment.
00:58:22You almost can't see the car for human beings, and nobody's getting in each other's way.
00:58:28That is commendable.
00:58:29It is.
00:58:30There will be.
00:58:31These guys are very well drilled about what they're doing.
00:58:34They, you know, they know what to do.
00:58:36They've practiced it hundreds of times.
00:58:38And as they're doing that, the number 2 Audi of Tom Christensen is just coming into the pits.
00:58:42We just saw him attacking the white line as he came past us like a man possessed.
00:58:46Those guys are really wanting to make up for what happened to them last year.
00:58:50They really want to win.
00:58:51Allen and the guys, you know, they want to make it right.
00:58:55And they've had the odd little niggle.
00:58:58It's the other each one out front at the moment.
00:59:00But there's still 19 hours and 7 minutes to go, so anything can happen.
00:59:04Quick note for our international viewers.
00:59:06Wherever you happen to be, it looks like there's going to be a channel change coming up in just around about 30 seconds time.
00:59:16When that happens, will you please hit your remote control and find out where else we are.
00:59:20Because we are here for 24 hours for you in GB back in Britain.
00:59:26Then, likewise, if you lose us, do switch to British too.
00:59:31You may well not be leaving us.
00:59:33It's a bit of a confusing situation because there is such a big family of Eurosport.
00:59:38Asia-Pacific, world, you name it.
00:59:40If there's probably a Eurosport channel to cater for you.
00:59:4433 million viewers, we're expecting over this 24 hours of Le Mans.
00:59:49Obviously, some of you not staying for the entire time.
00:59:52Others, well, we know you certainly will.
00:59:54There is Audi.
00:59:56Look at this, Audi.
00:59:58Look at this, Audi.