Relive the 2010 24 Hours of Le Mans, a true endurance classic that tested every limit of man and machine. Audi and Peugeot went head-to-head in a relentless battle for supremacy, with strategy, reliability, and pure speed deciding the outcome. From breathtaking night stints to heart-pounding final hours, this race captured the raw essence of Le Mans and delivered moments that would define a new era of endurance racing.
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#24hLeMans
#EnduranceRacing
#AudiVsPeugeot
#MotorsportHistory
#RacingDrama
#LegendaryRace
#LeMans2010
#24hLeMans
#EnduranceRacing
#AudiVsPeugeot
#MotorsportHistory
#RacingDrama
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SportsTranscript
00:00And the Porsche in the hands of Scheider, the 97 Porsche, the Scudera Italia, bright red,
00:06you may have expected it to be a Ferrari, and well they've decided to swap this type of bike.
00:11It is quite confusing when you get down there, there's Italian lingo and badges all over the vehicle,
00:16but it is a Porsche.
00:18Back end of the MacBook, their second entry here,
00:25I always wonder whether a mixed crew, when you've got two different vehicles,
00:28just whether that hampers an effort.
00:31Yeah, it doesn't help in many ways, Carlton, certainly as we see, Oliver Jarvis looks like that car,
00:36the second of the curlerous cars now appears to be out of the races,
00:39and of course the older R10 TDIs, similar engine, well similar, it's got 12 cylinders, it's a diesel,
00:46it's about the only similar, I guess, between those two,
00:48but this, the Orica AIM car, they've been in and out of the pits,
00:52we're going to get it out now to the pit lane, have a chat with Mark Janais in car number one.
00:56Mark Janais, your car is running four to six seconds quicker than the Audi's,
01:02there are three hours left, what does the Peugeot's strategy say?
01:06Well, mathematics say that second place is possible, not first place,
01:12but mathematics at Le Mans, they don't count for much, you know,
01:15so we just have to do our best, like we are doing, and put pressure,
01:21and the race will decide, you know, the Le Mans will decide who wins the race.
01:27But what is the plan for the next three hours?
01:29You're getting back into the car, and for how long?
01:32To the end of the race.
01:33Yes, so Alex, Alex is finishing this thing,
01:38and then I'll do almost three stints, which should be due to the end of the race.
01:43Okay, thank you very much.
01:44That's interesting, he was very, very quick as well when he was on board,
01:46Mark Janais, Anthony Davidson as well, in bullying mood,
01:49some might say when he effectively ended the 64 Corvette's challenge, unfortunately,
01:56they forced him to retire a little bit later on,
01:58while leading the class, which was something of a shame.
02:03Nonetheless, the one car is going very, very quickly.
02:05Mark Janais there, he says he's going to take over and finish the run for the car.
02:10He was getting into the 3.19s at one point, I think, Janais.
02:14That was most impressive.
02:16He's got a real turn of speed when he gets in that vehicle.
02:20Just tracking one of the car gets the 72 car right now,
02:24and, oh dear, look at the pickup on those tyres.
02:28That tells you everything you need to know about how gravel can affect your handling.
02:33Well, they've been in the gravel trap a little bit earlier on,
02:36and it's clearly not pretty once they take the back cover off.
02:40Just down with the 009 car, which is leading the petrol class at the moment.
02:46Darren Turner is on board here,
02:49and, well, we had David Richardson a little bit earlier on saying
02:52they have been a little bit hobbled here.
02:53They put in an awful lot of effort and a great deal of time, patience as well,
02:58and money, of course, into bringing a challenge here.
03:02But they don't feel it's a level playing field.
03:04I know a lot of you have got your own views on that.
03:07It's the diesels out front at the moment,
03:08and it's going to stay that way unless they change the regulations,
03:10which he's hoping for.
03:11Yeah, but I'll tell you what, Darren Turner has turned some stunning laps,
03:14what, maybe 45 minutes or so ago.
03:16Darren Turner turned three minutes, 23, which certainly isn't,
03:20it's still four seconds off the ultimate pace of this race.
03:23And as Miss Halliday just pointed out to me,
03:25all of the three drivers in that car number one
03:28have turned three minutes, 19 second laps in this race.
03:31That is absolutely amazing.
03:33Again, it just shows the quality of this Peugeot team.
03:36They've got three cars, nine drivers.
03:38They're all extremely good.
03:39And whatever strategy they have to be on,
03:42they're going to be pushing to the very limit.
03:44Interesting that Marc Genet said,
03:46we asked him what a strategy was,
03:47and he said it comes down to a question of mathematics.
03:49If you trust mathematics alone,
03:51we can only get second place the way it is at the moment.
03:54But, hey, what do mathematics mean in a race like this?
03:57Very little, frankly,
03:59because if you'd started doing the mathematics for Peugeot
04:01earlier on in this race, Audi didn't stand a chance.
04:04And right now, they're in P's one and two.
04:06Yeah, you're exactly right.
04:07And it was a great comment, wasn't it, that he came up with there?
04:10And it certainly agrees with my mathematics.
04:13And I think, you know, they're not going to give up.
04:16They're just going to push as hard as they can.
04:17The gap now between the second and third place cars
04:21is down to 43 seconds.
04:23So down, it's another second that Wurz gained
04:26on Andre Lotter at last time around.
04:28And, you know, they're just going to keep on pushing
04:30as hard as they can.
04:31If there's a safety car, if the French safety car,
04:34oh, sorry, one of the safety cars falls in favour
04:38of the Peugeots again, then, you know,
04:40who knows what can happen?
04:41Sorry about that slip of the tongue.
04:42We're talking about doing the maths.
04:44So Jeremy and I have just worked out.
04:46382 laps is the record on this circuit
04:48that was actually set last year by the Peugeot
04:51of Genet, Wurz, and David Brabham.
04:55Jeremy's just worked out that if they carry on
04:58doing what they're doing at the moment,
04:5917 laps per hour, three hours to go,
05:0151 laps are still in the bag.
05:03That would take us then to a new record.
05:06That should be quite interesting.
05:07Fastest lap last year was a 3.24 by Peugeot.
05:11So we're already way below that,
05:12five seconds down below that, the fastest lap.
05:15But not only is it fastest lap,
05:16but it's been consistently running 3.19, 3.20s
05:20at times in the race.
05:21Yeah, very, very quick, Mark.
05:22Oh, goodness me.
05:24Just take a big breath there
05:26and keep your fingers crossed for Tom Christensen,
05:30who is, suddenly he's got,
05:32he's rewired for DTM Brain, I think, here.
05:34He kept it safe, though, thank goodness.
05:36By my reckoning, the race record around here,
05:39around this configuration,
05:41was 3.19.394 by Stefan Sarazin for Peugeot,
05:45two years ago.
05:47So it's gone a little bit quicker, I think,
05:50than that in this race.
05:53So that is quite remarkable
05:54with all the restrictions that have been put on the cars
05:56over the last two seasons.
05:58So we're going to take ourselves a short commercial break.
06:01It's eurosport.co.uk.
06:03Click on the message board,
06:04scroll down to Motorsports,
06:05click on Le Mans,
06:06and the thread is new, exclamation mark,
06:08Eurosport 2010 Le Mans Live.
06:11Welcome back to Eurosport,
06:13our live coverage of the 78th Le Mans,
06:1524 hours.
06:16We have got just two hours
06:17and 50 minutes of the race left.
06:20We have lost from this race now,
06:2223 cars,
06:2332 cars are running,
06:25and at this moment,
06:26there is not a single car
06:28that is still in the race
06:28in the pit lane.
06:30And that is quite a moment in this race,
06:32I think.
06:33Yes, it is.
06:33Here comes the 908,
06:35the Matmut machine.
06:38Nico Lapierre,
06:39it is,
06:40in the Orica Matmut.
06:41This is effectively a 908 factory machine.
06:44They didn't hide anything
06:45or keep anything back.
06:47And just look at that.
06:4851 seconds is the gap,
06:51and it's a race for position here yet again.
06:55It's absolutely fascinating.
06:56They're starting to bully some of the cars
06:57further down the order here.
06:59Amaral in the Janetta.
07:01Tom Christensen really harried him.
07:03It was virtually no gap whatsoever.
07:05The Janetta didn't see him
07:06until the very last moment.
07:07He was keeping his own racing line.
07:08Through came Tom Christensen.
07:10Very, very lucky to get away
07:11without any contact.
07:12I just hope that this,
07:13what is turning out to be
07:15a real two-mark race up front
07:17in LMP1,
07:18does not cost anybody else.
07:20I feel it's already cost a Corvette
07:22a chance of a class victory.
07:24Some of the other lower classes here
07:27don't get adversely affected
07:29by this fabulous battle up front.
07:30And there's a clip there
07:32of Marina Franchitti
07:33being strapped into,
07:35excuse me,
07:35the number 26 High Cross Racing HPD.
07:38So they've had an awfully long pit,
07:39some of them have been in pits
07:40for at least a couple of hours.
07:43But they are still, amazingly,
07:45one, two, three, four, five, six
07:46in LMP2.
07:48Out of the ten cars
07:49still running in that class.
07:50It's actually amazing
07:51that there's still ten cars
07:52running in LMP2.
07:53That's generally the class
07:54has the most attrition,
07:56I think, here at Le Mans.
07:57But, you know,
07:58there's still,
07:59there are only a couple of laps
08:01or so behind Karim OJ
08:03and the other guys
08:04in that Brookladic car,
08:06car number 41.
08:07As far as GT1 is concerned,
08:09Zaylene's got such a cushion.
08:11It had built up one
08:12earlier on today
08:13and it's got such a cushion
08:16that it can afford
08:17to have some problems out there.
08:19Nothing serious,
08:20you understand.
08:20They've really kind of
08:21stood down off the gas.
08:22They're running around
08:23about five seconds
08:24a lap slower
08:25than Thomas Enger
08:27in the Aston 52 car.
08:29Yeah, they're very, very tight.
08:33You would expect them
08:34perhaps to have been
08:34a bit tighter together.
08:36But the 52 car is,
08:38in fact, what,
08:39five laps behind the Zaylene.
08:42And so they can afford
08:43to just take the foot
08:45off the gas ever so slightly.
08:46And this is a limper
08:48and they've been in the gravel
08:51a number of times.
08:53Not that that's had an effect
08:54this time by,
08:55got a rear puncture here,
08:57limping back, Liz,
08:57and that tyre started
08:59to take out
08:59some of the bodywork here.
09:01So the quicker they go,
09:02the more costly
09:03this is going to be
09:04in terms of time.
09:05Yeah, it's just so difficult
09:06to remain patient
09:07when this sort of thing happens,
09:08especially on such a long track
09:10like Le Mans.
09:10I think this particular car
09:12has been lucky enough
09:12to get this puncture
09:13fairly late in the lap
09:14so they've not had to limp
09:15for ages and ages
09:17or days as it seems
09:18when you're in the car
09:19and you get a puncture here
09:20on such a long circuit.
09:21But it doesn't seem
09:22to have done too much damage.
09:23They'll probably get back out,
09:24not really in any contention
09:26here in GT2 at the moment.
09:27But obviously they want to finish.
09:29We're starting to push through
09:31to the final stages
09:32of this race.
09:33We are looking through
09:34the message boards
09:35so we'll have some
09:36of your thoughts
09:37in just a few moments.
09:39Did you catch who
09:40we're going to have
09:41as an interview here, Mark?
09:42We are going to have
09:43an interview with Paul Dresen
09:44in just a minute here
09:45in the number 11 car
09:46which is the Dresen Racing
09:48green car
09:49and we're just heading
09:50down to the pits
09:51now with Paul Dresen.
09:52Super.
09:52if they've had troubles.
09:55Paul, what's going on
09:57on the car?
09:59Emanuele just felt
10:00something change
10:01in the suspension
10:02going through the Porsche curves.
10:03He said he very nearly
10:04lost the car
10:05so he's brought it back.
10:06We're just checking it over.
10:07Something on the suspension
10:09we think.
10:10Oh, we've had a few issues
10:11through the night
10:11but we're still in the race
10:13and it's so great
10:14to be still going.
10:16Yeah, you won't give up anyway.
10:18Absolutely.
10:19We are not giving up.
10:21Did you drive a little bit?
10:24Yeah.
10:24Yes, I did.
10:25I've done four stints now.
10:28I did the double stint
10:30at the start
10:31with the really cool
10:33run across Le Mans start.
10:34That was fantastic.
10:35I really, really
10:36had a great start to the race.
10:38Handed the car over
10:39in the same position
10:40that I found it
10:41in the 14th place.
10:42Then we had a lot
10:43of technical issues
10:44during the night
10:45with the suspension,
10:47fuel system, electrics.
10:49Did a good stint
10:50through the night.
10:52Wonderful driving the car
10:53at night here.
10:54It's so, so fast.
10:57And I really want to do
10:59my next double stint
11:01and I want to see
11:02this checkered flag.
11:03I so want to see this flag.
11:05You deserve it anyway.
11:07Yeah, yeah, yeah.
11:08Well, there's so much support
11:09from people
11:10coming on Twitter
11:12and email and so forth.
11:13Just want to say hi
11:14to everybody.
11:14Thank you for all the support.
11:16We are not giving up.
11:18Thank you so much
11:19for your smile.
11:19Thanks.
11:20That is the spirit,
11:21isn't it?
11:22Absolutely fantastic.
11:23To add to the issues,
11:24they've had floor issues
11:25as well,
11:26bodywork issues,
11:27all kinds of problems.
11:28They're plum last on track
11:29at the moment
11:30running in 32nd place,
11:31but you just have
11:32to admire them, don't you?
11:33So much passion
11:34and so much love
11:35for this event.
11:36And Paul Drayson has said
11:37that this is his absolute dream
11:39in life is to start
11:40the Le Mans 24 hours
11:42in an LMP1 car
11:42and certainly he wants
11:44to take that checkered flag
11:45and what a dream come true
11:46it would be for them
11:47and I absolutely admire them
11:49for fighting their way
11:49through this
11:50and like I say,
11:51when I spoke to them earlier,
11:52they just said,
11:53when Tiff and Nadell was saying,
11:54they are not giving up
11:55unless someone pulls them
11:56off the circuit.
11:57They're taking the checkered flag.
11:59They don't care
11:59if they get classified or not.
12:01They want to finish this race
12:02and go home
12:03saying they finished it
12:03and I so hope they do.
12:06Mark?
12:06Yeah, we're hearing
12:07all the way from Australia.
12:08Zulu Waffle,
12:09as he calls himself,
12:10Matt from Kellyville
12:12down under,
12:12says finally we've been
12:13able to watch
12:14the Le Mans 24 hours
12:15for the first time ever
12:16thanks to Eurosport
12:17now being available here.
12:18We've loved
12:19the last 21 hours.
12:21Just can't believe it.
12:22Can't wait till next year.
12:24And a particular thank you
12:25to the two commentators
12:26who are on
12:26between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m.
12:28They were hilarious.
12:29We came off at 1 a.m.
12:31We came on at 7 a.m.
12:32So it wasn't it?
12:33Oh dear.
12:34I think you'll find
12:35that's Martin Haven
12:35and Neville Hay.
13:01It's running third in class
13:14by the way,
13:15the 97 Porsche here.
13:17Porsche at one point
13:19didn't look like
13:20the race was coming their way.
13:21Well, it's spun round.
13:22They're one and three
13:23at the moment
13:23with the 89 car
13:26in the hands of
13:27Le Keane
13:28at the moment
13:29also involved.
13:31That's the Hankook machine
13:32by the way
13:33which has had
13:34some success this year
13:35already as well.
13:36So well done to them.
13:38I still can't get over
13:39just what
13:40a fantastic atmosphere
13:41there is
13:41within that
13:42never say die
13:43Dresden Racing machine.
13:46Love that.
13:46Absolutely love it.
13:47We're working out
13:48what percentage
13:49they've got to hit
13:51by the end, Liz.
13:52If they're going to
13:53be given a finish here
13:55they have to have
13:55a certain percentage
13:56of the leaders
13:57finishing laps here
13:59and the leaders
13:59unfortunately
14:00are going hell
14:01for leather out there.
14:02We'll just get a check
14:03on that
14:04and remind ourselves.
14:05They have to
14:06have completed
14:07under their own power
14:08at least 70%
14:09of the race
14:10winner's distance.
14:11So I don't know
14:12the actual math
14:13of how long
14:13they've been running for.
14:14I don't know
14:14if they actually care
14:15if I'm being really honest.
14:16I think they just
14:17want to finish
14:18and I have to say
14:19I've never seen
14:20so much passion.
14:21I think it's wonderful
14:21and you know what?
14:23Good on them.
14:23I actually don't care
14:25if they get classified
14:25as long as they're happy
14:26and they finish this race
14:27and Paul Dresden
14:28takes that checkered flag
14:29and punches the air
14:30and says we've done it.
14:32Yeah and just to confirm
14:32that the regulations
14:33the last lap
14:34must be completed
14:35in a minimum
14:36of six minutes.
14:37Yes.
14:38If it takes longer
14:38than that you're out.
14:39Unless you happen
14:39to be Sebastian Borde
14:40a couple of years ago.
14:41The rules actually say
14:42a minimum of three drivers.
14:44That's at the entry
14:44of course
14:45because last year
14:45Noreen Carthakehan
14:47managed to get himself
14:49out of the race
14:49by jumping over
14:50the pit wall
14:50on his way
14:51to the grid
14:51but for drivers
14:53they must drive
14:54for no more
14:55than four hours
14:56in any six
14:57and cannot drive
14:58any more than
14:5914 hours in total.
15:01Yes just to remind you
15:02if you were thinking
15:03it was a throwaway comment
15:04about Sebastian Borde
15:05a couple of years ago
15:05Sebastian had a car
15:07that they didn't think
15:08may well
15:09we believe
15:10they didn't think
15:11would make it
15:11all the way around
15:12the track
15:12to complete the
15:13what was it
15:14six minute rule
15:15did you say Mark
15:15and as a result
15:17he waited for the
15:19Audis
15:19and said it was
15:20a gentleman
15:20anything to do
15:21because he just
15:21wanted to be
15:22across the line
15:23and congratulate them
15:24at the end
15:26but the rumour was
15:28that the car
15:28couldn't have
15:28gone round another lap
15:29but do you know
15:30how long you waited
15:30there for?
15:32That last lap
15:33took him nine minutes
15:34he was still classified
15:36do you know why?
15:37Because it was raining
15:39and it doesn't
15:41apply in the rain
15:42there we are
15:44well in that case
15:45I'm going to retell
15:46that story
15:47and hats off to him
15:48you can just imagine
15:50can't you
15:50the ACO guys
15:51up there
15:51quickly rewriting
15:52the rule book
15:52watching the Peugeot
15:54down below them
15:55I have to say
15:56we had a little panic
15:57in 2006
15:58when lo and behold
15:59our intersport racing car
16:01got a puncture
16:01on the last lap
16:03of the 24 hours
16:03of Le Mans
16:04we nearly all died
16:06actually
16:06and Clint Field
16:08drove it in
16:08flat out on the rim
16:09but we were worried
16:10about that very problem
16:12here we go
16:13it's time to make
16:15that stop
16:15for the 8th car
16:16running in 2nd place
16:17now
16:17this is going to
16:19hand 2nd place
16:20over to Alexander
16:21Wurtz
16:21in the number 1
16:22Peugeot
16:22and that's what
16:23we're hooking up
16:23with right now
16:24we've been waiting
16:25for this stop
16:26from Lotte
16:26the Peugeot
16:28will have to stop
16:29in a few laps
16:30time
16:30I think probably
16:31about 4 or 5
16:32but for right now
16:33he's in P2
16:34and the gap anyway
16:35was only 25 seconds
16:36Hi everybody
16:39here on Eurosport
16:40live from the 78th Le Mans
16:422010 edition
16:43of the world's
16:44biggest
16:44most famous race
16:45we're riding
16:46with Peugeot
16:47the number 1 car
16:48this is the car
16:49that won last year
16:49but at the moment
16:50it is not going to win
16:51this year
16:52unless the 2 Audis
16:53ahead of it
16:54run into troubles
16:55Mike Rockenfeller
16:56and
16:57Andre
16:58Lotte
17:00at the wheels
17:01of those 2 cars
17:02the gap though
17:03is absolutely nothing
17:041 lap between the 2 Audis
17:06and just 25 seconds
17:07between this car
17:08and the 2nd place car
17:10ahead of him
17:10there is the number 8 car
17:12that is Lotte on board
17:13yeah crucially
17:14just before the break
17:15we had a stop
17:16out there
17:17he's coming back out
17:18Lotte
17:18Alexander Wurtz
17:20and the Peugeot
17:20sailed by
17:21he's trailing in
17:22by 25 seconds
17:23before that stop
17:25by the time we get
17:26another timing
17:27coming across
17:28the Peugeot
17:29will be in 2nd place
17:30but has to make
17:32it stop
17:32they're out of sequence
17:33the Audis
17:33and the Peugeots
17:34here
17:34they naturally have
17:35different ranges
17:36anyway
17:37but the range
17:39a maximum
17:39of around about
17:4013 laps
17:41for the Peugeot
17:41have been trimmed
17:42right back down
17:43to 11
17:43they've even
17:44actually short
17:45stinted on occasion
17:45have gone only 7
17:46but right now
17:49they're kind of
17:50sitting
17:50if you like
17:51of the teeth
17:52of a cog
17:52they are
17:53all together
17:54on the track
17:55they will be
17:55in just a few
17:56moments time
17:57they're going
17:57very very quick
17:58this is a real
17:59push here
18:00by Wurtz
18:00and he wants
18:02to just
18:02extend his profile
18:04I suppose you could say
18:05in 2nd place
18:06and he's doing
18:07a terrific job
18:08it's fight back
18:09time though
18:09by Lotterer
18:10as he comes out
18:11heavily laden
18:12and interestingly
18:13I've just noticed
18:13something
18:14which is a real
18:14testament to Audi
18:15and how tight
18:16their pit stops
18:17are
18:17Andrew Lotterer
18:18has actually had
18:19in that number 8 car
18:21has had some of the
18:21most pit stops
18:22of this entire race
18:23and still
18:24they're in 2nd place
18:26it just shows
18:26how fast
18:27those pit stops
18:28have been
18:28I think we just
18:28watched when
18:29it was 25 seconds
18:30yeah but that
18:30was an enforced
18:31pit stop
18:31they had to
18:32change a nose
18:33on the car
18:342 ago
18:35yeah
18:36no but what I'm
18:37saying is
18:37they're still
18:38running in 2nd place
18:38it's not hampered
18:39their performance
18:40at all
18:40and that's a
18:41big point
18:42that even adds to it
18:42someone having a nap
18:44in the Highcroft car
18:46I think
18:46I'm hoping that
18:47doesn't mean
18:48they're out
18:49I think possibly
18:50the fact that
18:51he's sitting in the car
18:52with his gear on
18:52means they might
18:53get out again
18:53so 2nd place
18:55it is
18:55for the Peugeot
18:57number 1 car
18:58a car that we
18:58expected to
19:00win this race
19:01but yes
19:03Peugeot
19:03certainly
19:04we expected
19:05to be there
19:05but they've had
19:06all kinds of
19:07problems
19:07throughout the night
19:08they've ridden
19:09their good fortune
19:12when it's come
19:12their way
19:13and it's been
19:13a real fight
19:14back here
19:15Audi did
19:15exactly the same
19:16they at the
19:17moment are in
19:18the lead
19:18with the 9 car
19:19now if you do
19:21the maths
19:21on their running
19:22then Peugeot
19:23cannot
19:23we don't think
19:24overtake the
19:25number 9 vehicle
19:27that is leading
19:28here
19:28but just one
19:29mistake
19:30could be
19:31the difference
19:31and with
19:322 hours
19:33and 37 minutes
19:35remaining of this
19:36race
19:36you just can't
19:38call it
19:39for the time
19:39being
19:39it's a very
19:40very quick car
19:41just approaching
19:42didn't quite see
19:44who that was
19:45actually
19:45on course
19:46that was the
19:47RML Lola
19:48yeah just catching
19:49up to the
19:49RML Lola
19:50out there
19:51it is sleepy
19:52time
19:52grab those
19:53moments when
19:54you possibly
19:54can out there
19:55I think
19:56no wonder
19:57they actually
19:57pat them on
19:57the helmet
19:58occasionally
19:58just to say
19:59wake up
19:59and go
19:59and Jeremy
20:01Shaw just
20:02alerted me
20:02to the fact
20:03that we think
20:03Mike Rockenfeller
20:04who's in that
20:04leading number 9 car
20:05is going to be in
20:06for a pit stop
20:07within the next
20:07lap we think
20:08so any minute
20:10now
20:10Leder will be
20:11pitting
20:11with Alexander
20:12Wurtz not that
20:13far behind
20:14he's just on
20:14the next lap
20:15behind him
20:16so there's still
20:17a lot to play
20:18for here
20:18and we're very
20:19much late
20:19into this 24
20:20hours with a
20:21real race
20:21going on at
20:22the front
20:22eyeballs out
20:23how many laps
20:24Mark can they
20:24squeeze into
20:25two and a half
20:26hours
20:26well Jeremy
20:27just worked
20:28up a few
20:29minutes ago
20:29we're looking
20:30at where are
20:32we
20:32well Mark
20:33has a look
20:34at his
20:34phenomenal stats
20:36bank that we've
20:37got here
20:37if it falls over
20:38we're all
20:39begoners
20:39yeah it is
20:41Rockenfella
20:42that we think
20:43on an in-lamp
20:44here
20:44you say Mark
20:4540
20:4540 laps
20:46there we are
20:47the difference
20:48between the
20:48roundabout
20:494 seconds
20:49a lap
20:50so
20:51it's going to
20:53be close
20:53it's as simple
20:54as that
20:54it's going to
20:55be close
20:55it depends
20:56how smooth
20:56some of the
20:57stops are
20:57going as well
20:58here
20:58so we're
20:59waiting on
20:59the 9 car
20:59as the 40
21:00car gets
21:00back out
21:01here
21:0124 just
21:02taking on
21:02fuel
21:03as you can
21:03see as well
21:03the Pescarola
21:04which has been
21:05running very well
21:06it's currently
21:064th in class
21:07the 25
21:08called
21:08the lowlet
21:10just ahead of
21:11them
21:11with the
21:12Pescarola
21:1335 machine
21:14in second
21:14place
21:14behind the
21:15HPD
21:16of Johnny
21:17Kane
21:18he's got it
21:18at the moment
21:19the 42 car
21:20has been
21:21so impressive
21:22and so has
21:22the HPD
21:23power plant
21:24yes it's
21:25really made
21:27it's baptism
21:27great baptism
21:28here at
21:29Le Mans
21:29hasn't it
21:30everyone
21:30been longing
21:31for these
21:31cars to
21:32come over
21:32they have
21:32run for
21:33two years
21:33in America
21:34but this
21:34year
21:34finally
21:35Highcroft
21:36set the
21:36ball going
21:37and so
21:38impressed
21:38by their
21:39performance
21:39last year
21:40with Stracca
21:40that they
21:40changed
21:41their
21:41Janetta
21:41Zytek
21:42for one
21:43of the
21:43HPD
21:44cars
21:45they took
21:45Adrian
21:45Fernandez
21:46winning
21:46car
21:47last year
21:47they fettled
21:48it up a bit
21:49but basically
21:50unchanged
21:50and both
21:51those cars
21:51are running
21:52in very similar
21:52spec now
21:53aren't they
21:53and so nice
21:54to see LMP2
21:55so strong
21:55here at Le Mans
21:56this year
21:56it's not always
21:57been the case
21:57not that many
21:58years ago
21:59it was exciting
22:00if an LMP2
22:00car finished
22:01at all
22:01let alone
22:02on the first
22:02page
22:03so it's
22:03battle stations
22:04right now
22:05as the lead
22:06car comes
22:07in
22:07we're tracking
22:08it right now
22:09this is going
22:09to be so
22:10crucial
22:11we're all
22:12going to have
22:12one eye on
22:13this and then
22:14one eye
22:14deeper into
22:15the course
22:16where we try
22:17and catch up
22:18with Alexander
22:18Wurtz
22:19they're taking
22:19it all
22:20nice and
22:21steady
22:21as we speak
22:22well they're
22:23both in
22:23there we are
22:25the finger of doom
22:27has pointed at me
22:28and there it is
22:29they both had to
22:30come in
22:30well that's
22:31unexpected for
22:32Wurtz
22:32just away
22:34in fact
22:34no it is
22:35expected in fact
22:36I think they are
22:37both
22:3712 laps
22:38yeah they are
22:40both expected
22:40in
22:41my number notes
22:41have just died
22:42Rock is away
22:44first
22:44there's the Peugeot
22:45following him
22:45half way down
22:46the pit lane
22:47but the course
22:48still separated
22:48by one lap
22:50so that is the
22:51actual race gap
22:52you're looking at
22:52between first
22:53and second
22:54cars
22:55so just coming
22:57to that marker
22:58and then away
22:59he goes
22:59off the leash
23:00once more
23:00very warm welcome
23:07to you on
23:08Eurosport International
23:08this is what you're
23:09missing on Eurosport 2
23:11a phenomenal battle
23:12right now
23:13the nine car
23:14is on course
23:15and has been chased
23:16down by the number
23:17one Peugeot
23:18it's Audi leading
23:19Peugeot second
23:20then Audi
23:21Audi
23:21Peugeot
23:22might sound pretty
23:23familiar to you
23:24but believe me
23:26the lead has
23:26chopped and changed
23:27all over the place
23:28we've had battles
23:29raging throughout
23:30all classes
23:31and right now
23:32it's enthralling
23:33they're separated
23:34by an entire lap
23:35however
23:36one suspects
23:37that Virch
23:38will unlap himself
23:39given half a chance
23:40Rock and Fella
23:41got out
23:42with a few seconds
23:43lead
23:44but they're within
23:44sight of each other
23:45and that it seems
23:46is all the Peugeots
23:47need
23:48it's then a question
23:49of actually making
23:50that whole lap
23:51back up
23:52if he wants to
23:52challenge for the lead
23:53just looking at all
23:54our leaders
23:55Mike Rock and Fella
23:55we just saw on the Audi
23:56this is Johnny Kane
23:58well there's Nick
23:58Laventus in fact
23:59before handing over
24:00to Johnny Kane
24:01in the straker
24:02leading LMP2
24:04we should next see
24:05the Celine
24:06there it is
24:07Julian Canal
24:08on board
24:08the largest
24:09there is the Audi
24:10and right at the top
24:11of your screen
24:11just dipping out
24:12is in fact
24:14Virch as well
24:15this is the job
24:15he's got to do
24:16and playing a huge foil
24:17is Lapierre
24:18in the four car
24:19now he's running
24:20down in fifth place
24:21and he can do
24:21a fantastic team job
24:23right now
24:23by just holding up
24:25the race leader
24:26and look at this
24:27tense moments
24:27as we go down
24:28phenomenal stuff
24:30Eurosport International
24:31viewers if you'd like
24:32to join us
24:32for the remainder
24:33of this race
24:34it's on Eurosport 2
24:35amazing
24:37and there is
24:38the man who is
24:39on a mission
24:40right now
24:40he is on a flyer
24:42and he's having
24:42all kinds of help
24:43from Lapierre up there
24:44there's the number one car
24:46running in second place
24:47Alexander Wurtz
24:48it is
24:49what a chase
24:50we've got live
24:51at Le Mans
24:52we've been live
24:53throughout the event
24:54and we're staying
24:54with it until the bitter end
24:56it could be a sweet end
24:57though
24:57depending on your
24:58point of view
25:00so you go to
25:02Eurosport 2
25:02if you want to keep
25:03in touch with this battle
25:04with two and a half
25:05hours and more
25:06remaining
25:07it is
25:08it's just been
25:09enthralling
25:09and it's going to
25:10continue to be
25:11so if you want to
25:12see more of it
25:12live
25:13and the conclusion
25:14of this fascinating battle
25:15then switch to
25:16Eurosport 2
25:17for the remainder here
25:17he just can't get by
25:26for the time being
25:27the Matmut machine
25:28is doing a great job
25:30don't forget
25:30he's been turning
25:313.23s here
25:32why would you expect
25:34him to be able
25:35to get by
25:36that's the Matmut machine
25:37and the lead car
25:38is Rockenfeller
25:39it's in his hands
25:40at the moment
25:40the night car
25:41and there is the man
25:42who needs to
25:43unlap himself
25:44effectively
25:46he's got to go by
25:47and then
25:48he has to
25:49do it all again
25:50come all the way around
25:51if he is going
25:52if he is going
25:52to win it
25:53Mark
25:53yep
25:54at the moment
25:54two seconds
25:55two and a half seconds
25:56is the distance
25:57the pace difference
25:59between them
25:59Rocky's been doing
26:003.30s
26:013.28s
26:03but it's one thing
26:04catching isn't it
26:05another thing
26:06passing
26:06even if you're
26:07unlapping yourself
26:07and I have to say
26:08this man
26:09Rockefeller
26:10is very
26:11very determined
26:12he's going to
26:12try and keep that lead
26:13yeah but
26:14can he get by
26:15the Matmut
26:15and to be honest
26:17the Matmut
26:17at the moment
26:18is kind of
26:19pulling away from me
26:19he's not doing
26:20a spoiling role
26:21just yet
26:21yeah but it's
26:22what they fear
26:22probably
26:22Nick Lapierre
26:23has been the
26:23quickest man
26:24in that car
26:24and he's back
26:25in it now
26:26he's been
26:26just on a 3.23
26:28so he's at this time
26:29along with Christensen
26:31fastest man
26:32on the track
26:32Tom Christensen
26:33haven't seen much
26:34of him in the
26:35number 7 car
26:35lately
26:36he's in 4th place
26:37and he and Lapierre
26:38have just turned
26:38in an identical time
26:40and Alexander Wirtz
26:41is definitely
26:41closing in
26:42on the Audi
26:43number 8 car
26:44that is one
26:44of Andre Lodera
26:45he's just some
26:4619 seconds away
26:47from him now
26:48which is not
26:48a lot of time
26:49at all
26:50especially with
26:50the straight line
26:51speed we're seeing
26:52from these Peugeots
26:52so I think we might
26:54start to see him
26:54rain in the Audi
26:56and that's going to
26:57make the Audi
26:58camp very very
26:58nervous indeed
26:59so there we go
27:01there is the overall
27:02order at the moment
27:03that is what you're
27:04looking at
27:043.55 laps completed
27:06one lap between
27:07second and
27:09third place cars
27:10first and second
27:11and the third
27:12place cars there
27:13there in
27:14ninth place
27:15track racing
27:16the LMP2
27:17and down
27:18further
27:19in 14th place
27:20the Felbermeyer
27:21Proton car
27:22that is
27:23currently running
27:24in second
27:26place in GT2
27:27no first place
27:28sorry
27:28that's the Porsche
27:29of Wolfhensler
27:31well Jeremy Shaw
27:33is back with us
27:34now Jeremy's been
27:35doing all the maths
27:35for us in the
27:36background and
27:37Jeremy you love
27:38this don't you
27:38you love doing
27:39these calculations
27:40working out where
27:41all the cards are
27:42going to fall
27:42there's not many
27:43aspects of
27:44moderating I don't
27:45like Mark
27:45you're absolutely
27:46right
27:46no this is
27:47fascinating
27:47I mean
27:47but you know
27:48we're getting
27:49caught up here
27:50quite rightly
27:50in the pace of
27:51Alex Wurtz
27:52and to a lesser
27:53extent Nicola
27:53Lapierre in the
27:55fifth place car
27:55trying to track
27:56down Tom
27:56Christensen in
27:57fourth place
27:58but let's not
27:59take it out of the
28:00ball here completely
28:01because Andre
28:02Lotter in the
28:03second place car
28:03the car number
28:04eight
28:04and Tom
28:05Christensen in
28:06that number
28:06seven car
28:07they're both
28:07turning very good
28:08lap times as well
28:09and that the
28:10Peugeots are
28:10really only
28:11closing up
28:12at around about
28:13two maybe
28:13three seconds
28:14a lap
28:15which is about
28:16what we expected
28:16coming into the
28:18race
28:18on Wednesday
28:19after the first
28:20qualifying session
28:21the gap between
28:22the Peugeots
28:22and the Audis
28:23was about four
28:24seconds which
28:24was which blew
28:26everybody away
28:26I think including
28:27once again both
28:28of those teams
28:28including most
28:29observers
28:30observers
28:31but on Thursday
28:33Audi had made
28:34a lot of changes
28:34to their car
28:35and they got to
28:36within about two
28:36seconds they
28:37probably halved
28:37the gap
28:38and that is I
28:39think what
28:39we're now seeing
28:40at this late
28:40stages of the
28:41race so I
28:42don't think
28:42there's any way
28:43as we've said
28:44for a couple
28:44of hours or so
28:45now that
28:46Alex Wurtz
28:47can catch the
28:48race leader
28:48all things
28:49remaining equal
28:50however he's
28:51still about 20
28:52seconds behind
28:53Andre Lotter
28:54in the battle
28:55for second place
28:55and that's
28:56probably going
28:56to take him
28:57another
28:5740 minutes
28:59yeah exactly
29:00but that's
29:00absolutely doable
29:01that's got to
29:02make Audi
29:03very worried
29:03because they'll
29:04want to lock
29:04out that podium
29:05as best they
29:05can
29:06and as we
29:07go right now
29:08there's no
29:08way I don't
29:09think that the
29:09second place
29:10out it can
29:10hold on to
29:11second place
29:12so we've got
29:13plenty of things
29:13to go here
29:14just going down
29:16to the pits
29:17for an interview
29:17with Justine
29:19Monnier
29:19Olivier making a big
29:30attack at the end
29:30of the race
29:31love the problems
29:35we've had in the
29:35night really trying
29:37to push hard again
29:38in the race
29:38I think it's possible
29:50I think it's possible
29:51we've seen Peugeot
29:52had problems with
30:03reliability
30:04haven't they
30:04we've all seen that
30:05I think it's just been
30:10bad luck
30:10basically
30:11it's hard to cope but
30:22the main thing is that
30:23we're still on track and
30:24I think we can finish
30:25the race
30:26Oliver Pannis and the
30:36of course Monaco Grand Prix winner for Prost Racing back in 2005
30:41many people forget that it's a fantastic win they had there and here he is he's been a
30:46mainstay of sports car racing ever since then
30:48well I think he's summed it up there by saying you know it's disappointing to see the other Peugeots fall by the wayside but really he's got to think about his own team now and each I think they all work together don't they but really when it comes down to it each team runs their own and they want to work together and they still want to win for each other so I think they try to support each other but really it's down to each car to run its own race and that's what he's really going to be worrying about at this stage
31:11he's 104 seconds behind Tom Christensen in that fourth place number seven Audi
31:17no that was before the number seven car came into the pit lane I think they're very very they're pretty close on the road just waiting for them to come past as again Wolfgang Ulrich looks on from the Audi camp he's had his first share of trials and tribulations in this race event he's looking good at the moment in first and second places but he's looking anxiously at the Peugeot trying to get away
31:41that rest away that third position I think it's going to be a pretty big ask right now for them to make a podium unless something goes horribly wrong for Audi or the other Peugeot number one car but you never know they might make it we're just going to have to wait and see we're going to be right back with you in a minute just going away for a commercial break stay with us on Eurosport
32:01just two hours 23 minutes remaining of the 24 hours of Le Mans the 78th edition of the great race Audi 1 2 at the moment if you're just joining us after your Sunday morning slumbers be surprised very surprised four Peugeots led from the start of this race but it's all changed round overnight and this morning as the Peugeot is one by one of hit problems
32:25problems all of them have had their share of drama except for the Alexander Wurz car the number one car which has finally been passed by the Audis but Rockenfeller needs some Lotterer from Wurz Christensen and Peugeot in fifth also but not one of the factory cars one of the privateer cars Liz Halliday great action on the track here
32:45it has been it's been an incredible Le Mans and it's straight away it was exciting I think we had over 10 cars out before we even hit the night time just about and I don't remember it being like that for quite some time
32:55so there's been a huge chop and change in all the classes really except for LMP2 I mean that's the only class we've seen where Straka Racing has virtually led from start to nearly the finish now but we're still two hours and 22 minutes away from the end but all the other classes have had a huge turnaround haven't they Jeremy Shaw
33:11they certainly have Liz you're right yeah and it has been a fascinating contest all the way through the field yeah we've got uh several of the classes uh yeah there's only a lap or so between them or less uh at the front of the field the two Audis they're separated by less than a lap 3 minutes 13
33:27the gap between them to almost a full lap but not quite between the first and second place cars who can LMP2 well yeah Johnny Kane and the Straka Racing guys have a goodly margin five laps now over the second place car of the Oak Racing Pescarolo Judd
33:43in GT2 in GT2 the gap between the Wolfhensler Porsche Proton Team Felbermeyer Proton competition car car number 77 the Porsche Wolfhensler driving currently his gap over the second place car of Alan Siemens and that's the Team Farmbiker Hankook tyre
34:01it's just about a lap or so so yeah there's battles all the way up and down it's great stuff in GT1 the other category we've got uh the Céline S7R as we see as we see the uh
34:13Manor de Perro they've been in and out of the pits they've had all sorts of dramas but in GT1 the gap now is down to four laps between the car number 50 the Céline S7R as we see it bounding over the curb
34:25the Céline S7R here at Le Mans and the second place car of Thomas Enger the Aston Martin who is charging Harden truck they've pulled out a gap a lap back about each hour over the last two or three hours
34:37let's get down to the pit lane and we're with Simon Paginot unfortunately out of the race
34:45Simon j'imagine quelle grande déception
34:48we didn't really have time to get into the race
34:5824 hours of Le Mans is a great race
35:04we'll just have to bounce back after this disappointment next year
35:12there's still a great atmosphere on the team but uh
35:18and we're all supporting the last of the Peugeot cars of our Peugeot cars
35:24we can't deny how they're doing a great job this year though
35:30of course we feel a bit hard done by all the hard work we've put in all the development the testing
35:40yeah we're just going to keep going and push as hard as possible till the end of the race Simon Paginot of course teamed with Sebastian Baudet and Pedro Lamy in that car one of the first retirements this year after a front puncture which led eventually to suspension damage pulling out of the tub
36:02uh we just saw a big smear on the front of the number one car on the windscreen
36:10we understand it's a bird's strike uh i know in uh the world rally championship things like that people aren't averse to um chucking things at the vehicles which is uh not what we encourage at all
36:20remember somebody wants through some butter uh and then they put the uh the windscreen wiper on
36:26and it could it was totally dangerous uh that was in the Monte Carlo where they're totally out of control uh thankfully here uh endurance fans much better behaved but look at this fantastic battle going on here uh Lapierre in the the four car here and uh that behind him is Andrew Lotterer uh second place on track uh if he possibly can get by he he will uh to be fair
36:48uh to be fair uh Lapierre hasn't been sandbagging holding him up but uh it looks a bit like that right
36:53now Liz oh it is possible isn't it come on now he's not had any trouble at all getting past him before and
36:59suddenly he just seems to be in his way but certainly i don't think Lapierre will be doing um that Audi any favors
37:06whatsoever he's certainly going to do his best to keep hold of his own line and maybe just drift ever so slightly
37:12into the one that the Audi would like to have yep well we'll wait and see uh certainly nervous times for Audi i think
37:17they've got uh complaints already written in their heads about this one um he can pull away when when
37:22he wants to he's in a quicker car uh Lapierre but he's fifth on course don't forget so he can kind of
37:28stretch it a little bit a bit of concertina work going on here uh just to kind of break the rhythm
37:33of uh the eight car and we just saw them passing the 009 car of Darren Turner that is the petrol leading
37:39car it's not its own class we sort of some of us wish it was i wish it was but uh Darren Turner doing a
37:44very solid job along with Sam Hancock and um i've just had a complete brain fade as to oh yes
37:50of course um help me out here i've had a major brain fade on who they're with i'm too blonde and
37:56too tired i was doing something else in time there we go the numbers are all in front of you i'm very
38:02sorry juan you're lovely and i do know you and you're doing a great job and we're very impressed
38:06by all three of you anyway it's been a long long night two hours 17 minutes remaining here now uh you're
38:12probably asking your question why is lapierre or maybe you're not maybe not why is lapierre in
38:16the four car uh being such a nuisance to the eight car it's because the eight cars running in second
38:21place and he's trying to help out his uh peugeot teammate effectively uh alexander vertz who's running
38:27in third place he's 13 seconds behind the area of lotter on lap 357 he's got to get by him to take
38:34second place and the map machine is probably going to help matters here uh to be fair he's actually pulled
38:39away a little bit i suspect uh that may well have been uh uh uh the view of um some of the
38:45commissionaires looking at the screen here possibly listening to things there's that big smear we
38:49understand it's a bird strike i'm guessing the pressure made out a bit better than the birds so
38:54not not very nice and uh he's lucky actually he didn't hit anything lower down to have done any damage
38:58he's lucky to he's actually exceptionally lucky they have a windscreen can you imagine if that hit one of
39:03the open cockpit cars and hit someone in the head that would be rather unfortunate so we've just heard that
39:09richard westbrook who's third in gt2 had a puncture he's been in in the pits and now it has not lost
39:14position in the bms scuderia italia car that that's the uh the ferrari of course not the porsche so
39:21wolf hensler continues to lead that from alan simonson's ferrari that 89 ferrari the one the
39:28hankuk team farm back a car that finished second in the nurburgring 24 hours and i understand that is
39:34actually the third puncture that um richard westbrook has had well not him personally but that that car
39:39has had so that's not very good and just showing what the gravel on this circuit and the debris can
39:44do so lawrence tomlinson's back with us from uh from janetta janetta zytek powered cars uh we had a
39:52long chat with you last night lawrence and uh you said you'd come back here you are thank you very much
39:57what's your uh prognosis at the moment well i've had a very long sleep lucky guy yeah sorry about that
40:04guys you can go now i i can tell you a little bit about the gt uh sorry the lmp2 class you've changed
40:11classes since uh yeah i've moved on i'm a little bit more awake now so uh yeah i think the the hpd car it
40:18looks like the engine's um pressurizing so i'm not i'm not sure that's that's going to be back out
40:25um johnny kane uh driving now i think i've had a chat with uh danny watts who's uh i believe going
40:32to do the last two stints in that car slow and steady was uh what danny said he was going to do
40:38and um you heard about danny's big problem did you that he was uh this morning he was absolutely
40:43busting for a leak and he said he just wanted the stints to finish and uh he disappeared halfway
40:49through a conversation with radio le mans just to go and uh take a load of his mind as he said
40:55talk about how some drivers sort that out then oh yeah no let's look at your your best car at the
41:01moment then lawrence um carrie mojay yeah carrie mojay carrie's driven very well they just had a
41:07couple of issues in the night um where i think tim tim greaves went off um probably about two to
41:16two-thirty uh and then the young lad who's driving that car went out and had a big vibration so they
41:22had to come in and change the nose so but it's run fairly steadily that car no real major issues with
41:27it um i think about four o'clock they had an alternator change um that's nothing unusual at le mans is it
41:34no no no i mean no we've we had the same problem with the lmp1 car last year but uh there's a fix
41:41for that and uh it's it's you know the drivers in that car tim greaves and karim and and the the
41:47young lad they've um they've been very steady with it and consistent and it's it's actually running
41:52fifth in lmp2 at the moment and yeah liz has made the point this year that in previous years
41:57been lucky to finish p2 well we've got five p2 cars in the top 14 places this is really really
42:04impressive well i wouldn't want to wish any bad luck on my my good mate johnny kane and uh and danny
42:10watts in the hpd car but uh or indeed the rml boys with uh with tommy but uh they are all running the hpd
42:18engine and um and the number 26 car has had issues with it so again the race isn't over yet we've still
42:26got a couple of hours just over a couple of hours to go yeah two hours and 13 minutes unlucky for some
42:31unlike what about the other cars uh the other janetters um obviously we had a big disappointment
42:38with nigel um it looks very much like that was a left rear blowout um from a probably picked up a
42:45puncture early on in the race there were a lot of a lot of punctures um the gravel traps around here are
42:52full of kind of very sharp almost flinty gravel and when it gets spread about sometimes you might pick
42:59up a piece and it might work its way into the tire and it looks like nigel had a blowout at probably
43:04around about 180 190 and then that just pitched him in nose first so it's a very unforgiving piece
43:10of the track which is normally absolutely flat liz and and uh so we we hear he's all right i think he
43:18was concussed and that's why i was taken out of the car yeah so he's uh is he still at the track or
43:23is he uh gone now i believe nigel's back at home now and uh if he's listening i hope you're all right
43:28mate yeah i'm sure all our many millions of listeners have saved the same lawrence le mans we'll
43:33be walking away from the mall in a couple of hours what are your plans for the rest of the year
43:38my plans personally i'm or for janetta's high tech um
43:42um i think we're probably we're we're obviously just keep keep the le mans series going and um
43:52see we should have four or five people in there good thank you very much laurence tomlinson see you
43:57very soon
44:02disaster if you happen to be italian and you have to be a perjot fan don't know why you would be uh going
44:07very very slowly alexander vertz i'm afraid at the moment yes uh the one car is uh absolutely
44:15crawling around we've seen a little blue smoke we're not sure what the issue is but could that be the
44:19end finally and uh if you look at the way it's shaping up here as well it may well at least in
44:26the first instance be out he's running one two and three because tom christensen isn't uh sparing the
44:30horses at all out there uh the four car which is the oika map machine is still running in fifth place
44:37but look at this he's coming in and this is not scheduled at all alexander burps brings in the one
44:42car oh and suddenly we see an awful lot more smoke any ideas liz well this is when we really wish we
44:48had a lead into the team radio because he will be chatting away telling them exactly what he's
44:52feeling the team will have live streaming live streaming technology coming back to them as well
44:56so i don't know what it could be i'm worried it could be an engine problem it's coming from that
45:01it's coming from that exhaust the same size that the turbo went on montani's car i just wonder
45:05is it a repeat of that this is a huge disaster for the works pressure team they have not at all
45:10had the smooth running that they'd hoped for and it could be the possibility that it's left in the
45:14hands of the privateer mapment team to bring the honors home for pressure no messing around it's
45:19going straight into the garage i don't know what their telemetry is telling them but clearly they
45:23know they've got a massive issue here no power whatsoever it seems alexander just bringing the car home
45:28and uh well all of a sudden pressure completely off the eight car and of course the nine car of
45:34rockenfeller at the moment uh out in front what amazing scenes well just as we were assuming that
45:41second place was a gimme for this peugeot number one and maybe we'd see a battle right the way down
45:46to the line they've had an issue you can't say that audi won't have their own problems with still
45:50over two hours and eight minutes remaining of this race unbelievable and they don't like it they
45:55don't like it at all they don't want to see a skirmish ending in such a way uh you like to beat your
46:00opponents fair and square in this i think yeah and certainly audi wants to say that they've they've
46:05won from racing hard against their direct opponents they don't want to win because everybody's broken
46:09but at the same time that is part of 24-hour racing that is what this is all about is the teams that
46:13can make it for the whole 24 hours and last their way through all of the troubles and certainly i think
46:19we were saying this at the beginning of the race that audi is a is a team built to win 24-hour races
46:24that's what they always planned on when they came here they immediately said their job was the 24-hour
46:29race not the qualifying and now they're starting to prove that they have what it takes we could
46:33see a one two three how do you win this you could do and we're just focusing on the second car tom
46:37christensen right now uh he's got another lap to go uh if he is to move into second place into third
46:43place i beg your pardon to make it one two three hours on the timing sheets at the moment but uh it's
46:49the verts car the number one car this is the moment when we knew there was an issue uh we just saw this
46:55on the brake huge plume of smoke coming out of the back of it and then going very very slow indeed
47:00it's inside the garage an engine issue power delivery clearly we don't know any more than that
47:05uh but what we do know is that uh tom christensen has just sailed by the pits and he's on a mission
47:11and uh here we go let's just go downstairs and have a listen uh we don't understand what's happening
47:19here he says well uh we're just going to have to try and repair the issue at the back did you tell us
47:28any more than that well for the time being i can't tell you anymore because i don't know anymore i'm not
47:34in there with them well we've been taking a lot of risks out there we've been pushing the card very
47:42very hard he says effectively you had absolutely no choice she says to uh push as hard as you possibly
47:49can here and uh it's it's not something that you could have actually designed into this and suddenly
47:57the emotions overtake him and he feels all that's so so sad this is the man who's got to face the
48:07peugeot board of course on fun day morning and say why we didn't win i have to say something
48:12interesting though before i came here to limo i saw an interview that was done with with the heads of
48:17peugeot and they made an interesting comment where they said last year we had to win we needed to win
48:22this year we want to win so it was very it was very interesting to see that and i think if this
48:27car doesn't finish i think they'll still walk away and say we were the fastest and i think that's all
48:32they can do i mean they're they're obviously very unhappy there's nothing nothing they can do when they
48:37fall apart and all they're going to be able to walk away with is to say we were by far the quickest but
48:42maybe they've pushed these cars too hard make no mistake he knows exactly what's wrong with the car
48:46he's got his he's got his headset on absolutely he's standing in front of the screens now as our
48:52friend chris parsons has mentioned to us uh peugeot is bidding at the moment to become the world's
48:57biggest motor manufacturer they want to overtake uh one number three want to try and catch up with
49:02toyota and the others and uh this of course is all part of the master plan going out and winning
49:06le mans being masters of the world and uh great great disappointment they'll have to go back to uh
49:13very easy tomorrow and just have a good think about everything in the future well i think
49:17olivier can take a lot of pride out of uh the fight that they've taken here and uh still
49:24inconsolable look at this i hate to say a very cheesy statement but to finish first first you must
49:30finish and unfortunately that highlights sports car racing for you and i think um i think it's what we
49:36said we thought might happen i have to say audi's kept it in one piece they've carried on the emotions
49:42just clearly overtaking it it's what this is all about it's a very emotional event we get choked
49:46ourselves absolutely awful and to have lost the what they had in the lead they've lost their pole
49:53winning car this is absolutely not the way anybody wanted to see i don't think it's the way out he
49:57wants to see it oh look at this mark oh yep here to show now bruno bruno famine both of them all close
50:03friends these three and uh consoling each other hughes of course still got a car in the race that car will
50:08now move up into fourth place and that in turn will take the lola aston martin of darren turner
50:13up into fifth the petrol car getting closer and closer to their fourth place finish of last year
50:18it's inevitable uh the seven car is going to come around here and take third spot and it looks like
50:24that number one car is not going to move uh i haven't seen any shutters come down at the moment but
50:28um well the cloud has descended and unfortunately i'm sad to say that uh as i prepare to take my leave
50:35from le mans um the battle appears at least for now uh to have gone up the way of audi audi didn't
50:42like it themselves and i think that's a credit to them they wanted a proper proper fight out there
50:47uh and it's just been denied us potentially have we got any kind of fluid on the track there is that
50:52what the indication was the fluid if there is some might well have come from that peugeot my feeling
50:58is it was uh another turbo and that then says art begs the question there's a weakness what about
51:05the number four car of nick lapierre i think they've been pushing so hard in this race haven't they they
51:12have absolutely had to rag the last inch out of these cars right from start to finish and it's always
51:18been a question were they were they going to last could they hold up to that sort of pressure
51:23we've had a dry race all the way through so the cars have never had sort of a quieter bit of time
51:28running in the wet or anything they've had to be run hard in the drive right the way through and
51:32perhaps it was just too much mark uh they're saying it's a slippery track extending from 89 to 100 on
51:39course that's uh an awful long way around all the way around uh uh just checking that's from from
51:46that's right through indianapolis yeah i think that could be from the persia and i think it could bring
51:50out a safety car possibly very often when if you've got that much of a slippery surface for that long
51:56through the very fast portions of this circuit there's a good chance we might have a safety car
52:00soon and uh finally uh gets the better of uh uh that number four car uh tom christensen uh goes
52:07through on track but um yeah it's uh looks like job done as far as the persia team are concerned here
52:14a real shame and we'll certainly be aware as the uh the uh surface fluid flag warning comes out here
52:20um of course we've become very aware i'm sure of the impact of the uh anything that is on the track
52:26for the time being everyone's staying safe and uh they're being well warned there's a smiling
52:31face can't help the cheesy greens can you and um when tom comes across uh the sun finish straight uh
52:38but next time by uh the timing screens are going to show us audi one two and three uh the verts machine
52:45the number one car is still listed in third place but uh it is going absolutely nowhere if you've only
52:50just joined us after a brief break perhaps a pop of smoke has uh indicated uh the end unfortunately of
52:58the number one challenge which has been enthralling we've been watching that car go so hard i think
53:03it's that they basically paid the price of the performance that they were expecting to lay down
53:07absolutely and what a fantastic opportunity for the um currently sixth place car soon to be fifth
53:13place car which is the 009 lola aston martin currently with sam hancock at the wheel what a fantastic
53:18opportunity for them to prove yet again that they can finish in the top five maybe even the top four we
53:23don't know we'll have to see if that last remaining persia can survive the distance over the dunlop
53:28through the dunlop bridge down into the curves and tom christensen is solidly in a third place here
53:35it's audi's one two and three nine eight and seven i don't think they uh perhaps expected that order but
53:41it's a talent filled outfit isn't it it is and um it's oh i think we keep saying the same thing over
53:48and over again i mean i i am pleased for audi i did i i i'm very fond of of all the persia uh drivers and
53:54team as well and i am absolutely gutted for them because you know we've all been in these situations
53:58as racers and it is the most horrible experience especially at the end of such a hard fought race
54:03the emotions are uncontrollable because the whole team's been through it together but at the same
54:07time i do feel like audi came here with the right mentality i think they came with the right mindset
54:12they came to say we're going to make this happen for 24 hours and they've been spot on the pit stops have
54:18been impeccable and um i can't fault them well they've had their own emotions worn on their sleeves as well
54:23we saw dr walk down ullrich stalking all the way down to bmw to give him a piece of his mind earlier
54:28on and then of course the complaints about uh the uh the safety car that came out right at the beginning
54:33of this race after a very short about quarter of an hour we saw unfortunately nigel mansell there
54:38uh the uh the end of uh that push as well the eight car just getting a little bit of tidy up here
54:44um there's not going to be any uh any overt pressure i shouldn't imagine from tom christensen out
54:50there it's funny actually you look through the roster of these three cars and um perhaps uh the
54:55uninitiated perhaps think uh there's only one car in it the number seven car i mean is christian and
55:00capella but when you start looking through at the talent that they've got it really is startling
55:04isn't it every single car can win this uh from audi and they're they're proving it right now absolutely
55:09we've got factory top top drivers in every car some of them come from ex-factory porsche drivers of
55:15course porsche and audi now together on this so technically they're they're a bit of both really
55:19now i suppose but um absolutely phenomenal drivers i've driven with all of them on track and have the
55:23utmost respect for every one of them and each of them would deserve to win this race so i think we're
55:29going to have to wait and see what happens the one who's going to work the hardest is actually going to
55:33be the audi of christiansen i think two hours sorry two hours to go loik duval has rejoined in that
55:39matmut uh porsche uh matmut peugeot and he at present is in fourth place welcome back live to
55:49eurosports extended coverage of the month 24 hours we're still got another two hours to go just under
55:54one hour 57 minutes and uh based on what's happened so far this morning absolutely all bets are off audi
56:01currently and if you have not watched much of eurosport uh le mans coverage this weekend then this may
56:08come as a little bit of a shock to you so do sit down and be careful with your coffee audi currently
56:13first second and third the only remaining peugeot of four lies in fourth position it is the oracle
56:20card given by loik duval after alexander who had just managed to get himself up into second place
56:26had his engine let go the same way that one of the peugeot's went during the middle of the night
56:32peugeot's entry has been seriously blunted despite their obvious pace let's go to the pit lane
56:38and hear from hug de schoenac of oreca it's very tough automobile racing
56:48just a minute ago of course we saw with his arm around olivier canal so this is such a hard sport
56:54and we know that 24 hours lemon is a very tough race i think peugeot's preparation has been impeccable
57:02but you have to be reliable as well and incredibly the four cars were so fast but it's just a question
57:10of reliability in the end you don't need even the slightest problem when you're racing here at
57:18le mans it is such a cruel way for the race to end our car so far hasn't had any major problems but
57:25it's so tough for the team that the other three cars have well that's what's the hard lessons of
57:35the 24 hours at le mans are all about those are the hard facts of it incidentally race leader is on pit road
57:40mike rockenfeller driver change going on justine saying uh well uh of course the whole purgeot team
57:47is behind you now he said yes all the support must help and hux saying uh yes we're 44 seconds behind
57:58and i've just told the drivers to give everything go as hard as possible take every chance take every
58:04opportunity and try and get a car up onto the podium well that's absolutely the way to go and uh
58:13ux saying i think it's going to be a great end to the race well uh clearly liz halliday we split we've
58:19said this all the time this is not a race where you hope to get to the end and then see where you are
58:25you have to take every opportunity that's given and that's in the end what what persia have done they've
58:30raced as hard as fast as they can and they haven't had luck and audi have raced as hard and fast as
58:35they could with a car that wasn't as quick but seems to have been a little bit more fortunate
58:42perhaps even more than just reliable well i think sometimes that's just the risk you have to take and
58:47and i think perhaps persia had the speed but maybe lacked the rely the reliability or even this the extra
58:54speed took away the reliability it's definitely possible but at this stage there's one persia left is
58:58running in fourth place all they can do is push as hard as they can for the podium and if they don't
59:03make it at least they've tried and i think at this stage they're taking the glory for perjo they'd
59:08rather push too hard and not finish than not push as hard as they can and try to be on the podium yeah
59:13go out with a bang rather than a whimper and mark you know 11 24-hour tests they have got a brand new
59:18engine but my goodness they put it through the mill and yet when they come to their 12 24-hour test the
59:26really hard one suddenly all bets are off and this is so often the case isn't it with leman
59:31you can do as many simulations as you like and you rehearse all the changes all the practices and
59:36everything else but when you get to the race suddenly there's unknown factors and two of their
59:42four engines have let go or two of the engines in their four cars have let go so the new engine was
59:48quick but not necessarily quite as reliable as
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