Experience the full broadcast of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2011 — one of the most dramatic and unforgettable races in endurance history. Audi and Peugeot engaged in a brutal 24-hour showdown filled with courage, heartbreak, and breathtaking moments. Massive crashes, mechanical struggles, and fierce on-track battles tested the limits of man and machine. Relive the triumph, the emotion, and the relentless spirit that defined this legendary edition on the Circuit de la Sarthe.
#LeMans2011 #24HoursOfLeMans #FullRace #EnduranceRacing #Motorsport #AudiVsPeugeot #LegendaryRace #HistoricRace #EpicRacing #SpeedAndEndurance
#LeMans2011 #24HoursOfLeMans #FullRace #EnduranceRacing #Motorsport #AudiVsPeugeot #LegendaryRace #HistoricRace #EpicRacing #SpeedAndEndurance
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SportsTranscript
00:00:00He was literally, I explained it the other day, it's like watching someone drive with a stuck throttle door, so he was just dodging around cars, was on kill mode and got into Collard through the Porsche Curves, one of the Corvettes, an incident everyone feels was totally unnecessary, Anthony got out of the car, didn't have nice things to say, everyone really took umbrage to that, but he did call up, I believe he sent an email to Doug Feehan apologising for his comments, but as Doug said last week, I don't think he's apologising for his actions, just how he related to the press after that.
00:00:30Ant told me the other day that he has never driven at that extreme for that long in any race in his life, and when he got out of the car, he was still, ah, he was eyes wide open, mouth wide open, adrenaline rushing through his veins, and he said, I opened my mouth and those words came out, I didn't mean to sound that arrogant, I didn't mean to sound that heartless and cold, it was just in the moment, and he's in the moment right now, putting a move on Fessler.
00:01:00For the lead of the race, and the diminutive brick puts the number seven out in front.
00:01:05As we went to the break, you saw Davidson put the move on Fessler, Peugeot on Audi for the lead of the race, and you ride with Marcel Fessler now.
00:01:22Trying to return the favor, but we know how quick that Peugeot is down the straight.
00:01:28It is, it's really impressive down in this area of the racetrack, down in the first chicane.
00:01:31Oh, whoa!
00:01:32Davidson, a little move.
00:01:34He's off.
00:01:36Did he save it?
00:01:37I mean, we don't see him right now, Fessler is through, but Davidson had a big moment there, Dorsey, he turned into that first chicane, now we're on board with Davidson, he's okay.
00:01:44He saved it, but that's known as strength of your car.
00:01:46I mean, that was perfect, that was just Fessler drove him in there as deep as he could and forced the error.
00:01:51Again, this is for the lead of the race, Audi versus Peugeot with just over nine hours remaining.
00:02:01Wow, that was a hairy moment, I tell you what, there's not a lot of room in these chicanes to get it wrong and not get into the gravel, so that was a great save by Davidson.
00:02:08We didn't really see it after he had that moment.
00:02:10You could see it, he turned it to the right and then was setting up in transition to the left.
00:02:14He had a little bobble there, he had to correct it, Fessler was through.
00:02:17Well, we're documented by the downforce on the two different cars that the Peugeot is, in fact, faster on top end, but the Audi has a better braking because of the downforce and handling package.
00:02:28One prototype we haven't seen a lot of today and we should give a shout out to is the number 22 Kronos Racing, Aston Martin.
00:02:36Justin standing by in that team's spitbox.
00:02:38Yep, here, right here with Vanina, you just got out of the car.
00:02:46You had the best time of the race, I think, out there as the sunshine comes up, right?
00:02:50It's supposed to be the best time.
00:02:51I had two special times in the car when the sun was going down and when the sun came up.
00:02:57Unfortunately, my windscreen was so dirty that I could not really enjoy this tint, I couldn't see anything.
00:03:04And is it more when you're looking to the apex of the corner at low speed or high speed, it's worse?
00:03:10Both.
00:03:12Especially when you come to places, to corners where the sun's rising, it's coming straight to your face and you can't see through.
00:03:22So it's hardest to reach the apex.
00:03:25It's incredible, isn't it?
00:03:27The car can be running so well, yet the visibility is, without it, you cannot push as hard.
00:03:33Exactly, and this is very frustrating because it's supposed to be the best time to make good lap times.
00:03:39And you know, when you come out of the dark, you are into a rhythm and you really enjoy it.
00:03:45So it's a little frustrating, but we are looking to the end of the race and we have to keep it quiet.
00:03:52Your experience, every year you get in a faster car, you've been here a lot of times now.
00:04:00What do you think your lesson each year is the biggest?
00:04:04What do you bring as your experience count?
00:04:07I will tell you at the end of the race.
00:04:10Aha, there you have it.
00:04:12Vanini Ricks, very big shoes.
00:04:14Justine's all choked up.
00:04:18Well, you see that very often.
00:04:21Those two grew up around the racetracks of Europe.
00:04:24Of course, Justin's dad, Derek, won this event with the six-time winner, Jackie Ix, Vanini's dad.
00:04:33So those two have known each other for a long, long time.
00:04:36And the troubles for the Felbermayer Proton organization continue.
00:04:40This is the 88 American.
00:04:42Bryce Miller is part of this campaign.
00:04:45And this man here behind the wheel, Abdulaziz Al-Fassal, is part of the Saudi royal family.
00:04:55This car is well down the order.
00:04:56We know it's been a tough day for the Felbermayer group.
00:05:00They're working hard at it, that's for sure.
00:05:02Same spot that Joao Barbosa got caught out, just as we saw before the sun came up.
00:05:08Tricky part of the racetrack.
00:05:10They're on board with Davison again.
00:05:12Shows the speed.
00:05:13Through the Porsche curves.
00:05:14This is a fabulous part of the racetrack.
00:05:16Really demanding.
00:05:17Right there is where Davison got into Collard last year, trying to go around the outside.
00:05:22And certainly a spot that Collard wasn't anticipating that.
00:05:26Just a couple of seconds is the advantage that Marcel Fessler has over Anthony Davidson at the moment.
00:05:36What a way to come back, force Davison into that era.
00:05:39Just that slight hiccup in the first chicane after completing the first portion of the Mulsanne Strait.
00:05:45And Fessler is going on about it.
00:05:47He has just set the fastest third sector of the race.
00:05:52Top of the hour, midnight East Coast time.
00:06:01It is 6 a.m. Le Mans local time.
00:06:04And if you're just turning on, welcome.
00:06:06We've really got a race on our hands.
00:06:08We've had a bit of everything today.
00:06:10High speed crashes.
00:06:12Really frightening crashes, to be honest.
00:06:14Some great racing right across all four classes, Carl.
00:06:18And right now, at the top of the race, just three seconds separating Audi and Peugeot, Fessler and Davidson.
00:06:27My folks, Lee Diffie, Calvin Fish with you.
00:06:28Justin Bell and Greg Creamer on pit road.
00:06:32And we've got eight hours, 59 minutes to run.
00:06:36And we still have four cars on the lead lap overall for honours at Le Mans.
00:06:41Fessler just laid a lap down, a 3.28.0, his fastest lap of the race, only three-tenths shy of the fastest lap so far during this event,
00:06:50which was set by the number seven Davison, who trails him right now.
00:06:54So the chips are down, and Fessler is responding big.
00:06:58Now, we should see some increased coverage as well, because typically at this hour, 6 a.m. local time,
00:07:08the French in charge of the world feed send their camera crew back out to the respective camera stations to increase the coverage.
00:07:17During those hours of darkness throughout the night, usually 11 p.m. local time through 6,
00:07:22they have restricted coverage to give the local camera crew some rest.
00:07:25Hopefully, we'll see full-course coverage coming up.
00:07:28That's a bit like when we were checking in in Paris to come back, mate.
00:07:31I mean, that's a flexible time, whenever they're ready, right?
00:07:34Yeah, exactly. Exactly.
00:07:37Garcia's put in a really solid stint here.
00:07:40He is on the podium, so to speak, at the moment.
00:07:44The sister Corvette, Ollie Gavin, leads the way in GTE Pro.
00:07:49It has been a very, very rock-solid day for Corvette racing.
00:07:53And for the program leader, Doug Feehan, this must be very satisfactory.
00:07:57But Doug's been here long enough.
00:07:58He's been around long enough that he won't even start thinking about things yet.
00:08:03He'll say, hey, look at the clock.
00:08:05Look at how much longer we've got to go.
00:08:07Yeah, I mean, last year, it was about the 16-hour mark.
00:08:13They had the fastest cars here last year in class.
00:08:15And about 16 hours to go, they suddenly had these engine problems.
00:08:19Valve train recession, as Doug called it the other day.
00:08:22Essentially means valve train failure.
00:08:24And there's some concerns with the engines at Sebring.
00:08:26They had enormous problems, and that really came down to a number of things.
00:08:30But mainly with the new paddle shift system and the harmonics that that was creating through the drivetrain had enormous issues.
00:08:36Big concerns going into the 12-hour event.
00:08:39But they straightened things out.
00:08:41But you never know.
00:08:43A 24-hour event is another thing.
00:08:45And I think they've still got their fingers crossed that they can get through this one.
00:08:48A whole new day.
00:08:51Dawns and Le Mans.
00:08:53And what will the next nine hours provide us?
00:08:58When you think about it, whether it be an American Le Mans Series race, Grand Am race, the regular time is two hours, 45 minutes.
00:09:05And you've got multiple race distances there.
00:09:07We've just come off the Watkins Glen six hour.
00:09:10Add another three hours to that.
00:09:13The story is far from over.
00:09:15And I think the best part about it, when you look at the overall, you've had the might of Audi, the might of Peugeot come with the best they can bring.
00:09:25Not only in terms of drivers, but their technology, their diesel technology.
00:09:29And what they feel will win them this race.
00:09:32New cars with the 908 and the R18.
00:09:36And we've seen that it's a pretty fair match, driver and car.
00:09:40Drama's here for the Labra Porsche.
00:09:41And that it's a pretty fair match.
00:09:43Christophe Bourré behind the wheel right now.
00:09:46Looks like he's got wide and just nosed it in there.
00:09:49I would think they'd get traction off the rear tires, be able to pull it out.
00:09:52Unless he's got some kind of drama.
00:09:54There he is.
00:09:55He's found reverse.
00:09:55This is significant because this car was...
00:10:02I think he's wedged up against the tyre barrier there.
00:10:04So it's going to be tough in the manoeuvre out of there, I think.
00:10:07But it's got to be patient.
00:10:10Don't panic.
00:10:11Be safe.
00:10:12This is significant because that car's third in GTE AM.
00:10:16So right at the point where the Labra team did not want to see any errors, one has occurred.
00:10:25Speaking of GTE AM, the Flying Lizard Group is on top.
00:10:30Darren Law, in his third visit to Le Mans, is doing a stunning job.
00:10:34Justin?
00:10:38Yeah, stunning job indeed.
00:10:39I mean, the lap times are very quick.
00:10:41There are a couple of GTE cars that are going faster than them, but they don't really have to.
00:10:46The car right behind him is running about three seconds slower a lap.
00:10:49They are going to change tyres.
00:10:52They're putting in the fuel.
00:10:53They just cleaned the front windscreen.
00:10:54Darren looks pretty composed.
00:10:55I'm looking in at his eyes.
00:10:56He's just actually slackening off his belt so he can move the seat forward.
00:11:00That's interesting.
00:11:01He's quite a tall lad anyway, but probably want to be a bit more up on the wheel.
00:11:05Sometimes you do that when you get a little fatigued.
00:11:07I mean, and they've got sliders in the Porsche.
00:11:09How civilized.
00:11:10So you can move the seat forward.
00:11:13Front tyres are going on.
00:11:14The car, it looks in remarkably good shape.
00:11:16This beautiful paint job with the flags of all the Porsche winners on it.
00:11:21As of yet undamaged, there was a little bit of a side bet.
00:11:24My dad thought he might be the one that got damaged on that front left-hand side.
00:11:28So he was, along with Yannick Dalmas.
00:11:30What a beautiful car.
00:11:32Off they go.
00:11:33But I have to say that talking with the other guys, Darren and Spencer were telling me that certainly if they damage it, they'll try and damage the side with Ortele on.
00:11:43I don't know why that was, but, you know.
00:11:44Good fun, Justin.
00:11:48Here we see that one of the Ferraris.
00:11:49This is the luxury racing Ferrari, the French team, the 59, and this car has been as high as third in class.
00:11:57Stefan Ortele and Jamie Mello.
00:11:59Definitely dropped down the order a little bit here.
00:12:02This is the team that is essentially being run by the Risi crew coming over from the States.
00:12:06Two-time winners here.
00:12:08Safety car is out again as one of the BMWs hits pit lane.
00:12:12Had some problems early in the event.
00:12:14A misfire that cost invaluable time in their pit box.
00:12:17Otherwise, I think they'd be fighting for the lead with the Corvettes.
00:12:20But since that time, it's been a good, strong run.
00:12:23Stefan Ortele is driving that 59 Luxury Racing Ferrari.
00:12:29Greg, do you have an update on that?
00:12:34Well, actually, also, I'm at the BMW.
00:12:37Joey is going to be getting on board this car.
00:12:40And along with that first issue you were talking about, the misfire,
00:12:43and they had that little bit of moment in the gravel during the night,
00:12:46Joey said it was related to a downshift issue.
00:12:49Apparently, there's a hiccup on the downshift.
00:12:50It was just enough.
00:12:51He said, fortunately, it was a quick out from the gravel,
00:12:53and they were able to get going again.
00:12:55They are going along with the driver change.
00:12:58They are doing tires.
00:12:59But so far, it looks routine.
00:13:00On that 59 machine, we've been documenting the problems it's been having,
00:13:04all as a result of the fire bottle going off inside the car earlier in the event
00:13:10and the corrosiveness of that.
00:13:12And they said, now it's got into the ECU.
00:13:14And they actually changed the chip in the last stop.
00:13:17That was one of the long delays for that stop.
00:13:20And clearly, they are really struggling with this.
00:13:23I talked with Beaky Sims, Dave Sims, and he said,
00:13:26we just expect it to get worse and worse and worse.
00:13:28And by the way, right in front of me now, the number 74 Corvette is in.
00:13:33This one looks like it's just going to be fuel and a windshield clean and then back out.
00:13:38So routine here as well.
00:13:42Four days in.
00:13:44Having another strong run here this year.
00:13:46He so desperately wants to win the race in his hometown here of Le Mans.
00:13:51And he's having a strong run, but he's got other teammates to beat as well as one very fast Audi in front of him.
00:13:58We've not been given notification as to the caution.
00:14:06However, now we do get a message that it is car 58.
00:14:1058 stopped out on track.
00:14:13It was the 59, the sister luxury car we saw with Stefano Otelli driving trying to limp back to pit entry.
00:14:20However, the ACO official timing saying car 58 stopped out on track.
00:14:25Here we see the safety car procedure.
00:14:27Just to reiterate, there are three safety cars that are deployed during this caution period at different parts around the racetrack.
00:14:34And essentially, once the train has gone by, you're going to get a red light at the end of pit lane.
00:14:38You have to wait for the next one to come through, which is now coming through the Ford Chicanes.
00:14:43And once that train of cars is by, they will then release the cars that are sitting there or go back to red.
00:14:47So anyone who then makes a subsequent pit stop will need to wait for the next segment.
00:14:53If you've never seen one of these top flight LMP, the prototypes, particularly the Audi or Peugeot, the Audi safety car, pace car there, this will give you just a realistic understanding of just how low they sit.
00:15:10There's a comparison that Audi have provided with the R18 up against the most recent model of the RA6 road car.
00:15:17The top of the R18 comes to the bottom of the mirrors on the A6.
00:15:23Yeah, that's a pretty wild shot.
00:15:25It really demonstrates just how low they've got these prototypes now.
00:15:29And the Audi as well as the Peugeot have really worked hard on the aerodynamic efficiency with the reduced power this year.
00:15:38And it's quite amazing to see how low they sit to the ground.
00:15:41The greenhouse of the prototype is really, really low.
00:15:45And again, we talk about that between the BMW and the Corvette.
00:15:47They have now been released from pit lane, the 56 car, followed by one of the Corvettes and that number nine of Bordet.
00:15:56We are under caution.
00:15:58So we'll make the most of it.
00:15:59We'll squeeze away.
00:16:00There is Anthony Davidson.
00:16:02He's done a very good job talking with Olivier Canel, the program director at Peugeot Sport.
00:16:07No matter how tired you may have felt during the night, dawn brings a lift.
00:16:22But also, historically, a rash of retirements.
00:16:25Are the rejuvenated drivers suddenly harder on their cars?
00:16:28No one knows.
00:16:29In any case, the burst of energy is brief.
00:16:33And now, exhaustion sets in for the duration.
00:16:36This is when 24 hours seems impossibly long.
00:16:39The end impossibly far away.
00:16:42About 9 o'clock, sponsors and their friends arrive after a night's sleep in a fancy hotel.
00:16:47They shower and they're dressed in fresh clothes.
00:16:49How are we doing, they ask.
00:16:51They'll be lucky to get a civil answer.
00:16:53The night has created a hard-earned bond among those who have seen it through.
00:16:57They are the insiders, aloof to the rest of the world.
00:17:07Beautifully described by Speed's Sam Posey, as only Sam does.
00:17:13As the sun is growing taller in the sky above Le Mans, we welcome you back to Circuit de la Sarte.
00:17:19We had a caution not that long ago.
00:17:22The Robertson Ford GT is still circulating, not for the moment, being pushed back into the garage.
00:17:29But for Andrea and David Robertson and for Dave Murray, this, cross your fingers that this is not major.
00:17:34It would be a delight to see them get to the checkered flag.
00:17:37It really would.
00:17:38They are so excited to be here.
00:17:39It's really been a dream of theirs for many years since they got involved in sports car racing at this level.
00:17:45And David Murray has been along for the ride.
00:17:47And many of the crew, I mean, Andrea said this week, it's not only for us, for myself and David,
00:17:51but this whole team has worked tirelessly to really get the effort to the level
00:17:55where they felt they were confident of coming to Le Mans
00:17:57and putting on the type of performance that we've seen from them over the last 15 hours or so.
00:18:04When you think of that car, also you think about Dick Barber.
00:18:06I want to give a shout out to Dick and say, hey, I know that you brought four cars here back in the early 70s
00:18:12when I made that comment yesterday about Oak Racing bringing four cars.
00:18:16I was talking about in the prototype category and for the first time in a long time.
00:18:20So just to give credit where credit's due to Dick Barber
00:18:23and all of the wonderful things that he achieved here at Circuit de la Salle.
00:18:26We had a caution a little while ago for Jean-Christophe Bouillon.
00:18:30I can update you that in that pretty severe crash, JCB is okay.
00:18:35He just bruised his foot.
00:18:37That's quite an escape.
00:18:39And we've got more drama going on here under caution.
00:18:41This is with the Team Orica Matmut car.
00:18:44A little kick of that front wheel is not exactly going to do a whole lot there, Chief.
00:18:48Stuck the poo in.
00:18:50I think that's going to continue to happen until he gets it back to the pit lane, don't you?
00:18:54Yeah, David Halliday trying to limp this car back.
00:18:56This is a real shame for Yugda Shonak's P2 car
00:19:00because for the majority of this race, it has been the lead car.
00:19:07Okay, you're going to have to walk him all the way back to his pit box, if that be the case.
00:19:14Wow, craziness under caution.
00:19:16The caution is for the 59 car.
00:19:18Dr. Wolfgang Ulrich, the eyes looking a little tired, understandably so.
00:19:21The stress that that man has been under today.
00:19:23And Huygda Shonak is wondering what is going on with his P2 car.
00:19:33There we go.
00:19:33Now Halliday's got some momentum.
00:19:35Henry Pescarolo, his car is placed fifth overall with Collard behind the wheel.
00:19:46So great to see that man back.
00:19:50He belongs here and has such a passion for this race.
00:19:55And great to see that his team has been resurrected this year.
00:19:58He was here last year doing TV work and he said it just didn't seem right.
00:20:03And he got the Pescarolo chassis back out.
00:20:08Five leader and the team's done a great job here looking for that first in the petrol class.
00:20:12Huygda Shonak was the man in the middle there with his arms up, saying, does anyone know what happened to my number 48?
00:20:26We should be still vying for the lead and the win of this class.
00:20:30That is not going to be the case.
00:20:32Tom Kimber-Smith in his Greaves Motorsport, Greaves Racing, Zytec, leads the category.
00:20:38Now David Halliday was second.
00:20:41That is no longer the case.
00:20:43This car has retired.
00:20:45So that makes life easier for the 26 Signatec machine with Sahaila Yari.
00:20:51And it also gives Scott Tucker's team another chance of being on the podium here at Le Mans after Joao Barbosa spun about an hour ago.
00:20:58Yeah, and just running at that low speed.
00:21:02I mean, Huygda Shonak is a fierce team leader.
00:21:05He leads his troops very well.
00:21:07And one thing he will not tolerate is driver error.
00:21:11We've seen many good results go by the wayside because of some of his drivers making mistakes over the years.
00:21:17And he really drums at home.
00:21:19Justin Bell has driven for Huygd and he has a directive.
00:21:22Don't screw up.
00:21:24We don't know what happened here.
00:21:25We haven't seen a replay.
00:21:26But certainly David Halliday is sticking with the car.
00:21:28He knows the rules.
00:21:29He's on the radio now trying to report to the team what's going on.
00:21:32But once you abandon the car and you move more than 10 meters away, your day is effectively over.
00:21:37And you can understand the disbelief there in the Orica camp.
00:21:5810 cars had troubles.
00:22:00A little bit off the pace in terms of track position and many laps down on the leaders.
00:22:04In fact, he's running behind the lead petrol-powered cars.
00:22:09We expected them to be nipping at the heels of the factory diesels.
00:22:12And the day just hasn't been a smooth one.
00:22:15We haven't spoken about it in a while.
00:22:17But Pescarolo's best car with Collard behind the wheel has a two-lap buffer over the next best petrol-powered car of Neil Yarny in the sole remaining Rebellion Toyota.
00:22:28And one lap further back is the 10 car.
00:22:31Currently in seventh overall.
00:22:34Hey, guys.
00:22:36Well, just crawling out of his sleeping bag.
00:22:38Yeah, I wish.
00:22:40Le Mans winner, three-time Grand Am champ, Scott Pruitt.
00:22:44Welcome back, mate.
00:22:45And you come back under yet another caution.
00:22:48That seems to be...
00:22:48I hope it's not any of those big messes that we've seen earlier in the race.
00:22:52It's just getting elongated.
00:22:53I mean, it was fairly straightforward caution.
00:22:55And the safety car was deployed.
00:22:56Safety cars were deployed because of the number 59 luxury racing Ferrari of Stefano Telly.
00:23:03And now add to that this David Halliday situation in the Orica prototype.
00:23:08Look at that windshield there.
00:23:09You can see some fluid it's got on the front.
00:23:11It just takes the airflow up and over.
00:23:13You can see that there.
00:23:14And we talked about there is a windshield washer system.
00:23:20And they say it basically employs the same washer fluid that are put into the Audi's as original equipment.
00:23:26Works pretty effectively.
00:23:27But I haven't seen any of those drivers utilize it here.
00:23:30Look at the smoke there from that diesel under caution.
00:23:32I think you're just going to see that naturally.
00:23:34It's not a concern.
00:23:35Dr. Ulrich, what a day it's been for him.
00:23:38Seeing his cars effectively be the fastest cars on the racetrack.
00:23:41Taken off at the beginning of this race.
00:23:43Two massive crashes.
00:23:45He's lost both cars.
00:23:46But most importantly, both of his drivers, Alan McNish and Mike Rockenfella walked away.
00:23:50And it really says a lot about the technology and the safety cell that these drivers are now within in this Audi R18.
00:23:59You hate to hear it, but the reality of it is, is we all learn from accidents.
00:24:05When I had my massive shunt and broke a lot of things back in my IndyCar days, that's when your feet were still out in front of the axle.
00:24:12And after that, they learned how, well, let's get the feet and ankles and everything behind the front axle.
00:24:18And let's learn new technologies about making these cars better and tougher and stronger and safer for the drivers.
00:24:24Now, go back and look at all the data from these crash cars, these crash Audis.
00:24:28And the good news that will come from all of it is the cars will continue to develop and become safer for the drivers.
00:24:35That was the Cigna Tech Nissan that will inherit second place in the LMP2 class.
00:24:41And it looked like Lucas Ordonez climbing aboard after Sahaila Yari jumped out.
00:24:48We'll update you on that when we get back and things cycle through.
00:24:51And timing and scoring allow us and afford us that information.
00:25:00I mean, this would just add to the story, boys.
00:25:02If the sole remaining Audi were able to hold off the three Peugeots.
00:25:08Peugeot knew that they had to do something to rectify last year's mistakes with the engine failure, the structural failure, the embarrassment.
00:25:18That was not going to happen again, particularly coming off a year when they won.
00:25:23So they did not go back to back.
00:25:25And we will see in eight and a half hours' time what a whole year and more's work yields for both Audi and Peugeot.
00:25:36To Greg Kramer.
00:25:37Yeah, I just thought I'd give you a little update on some of the activity.
00:25:44And as I'm doing that, the number 55 BMW comes in for a stop as well.
00:25:49But you're actually going to see a driver change in that car.
00:25:52It looks like they will also do tires.
00:25:54The number 49 Oak machine in the P2 category went into the garage.
00:25:59The reason was there was something wrong.
00:26:01They had a problem in the right rear suspension.
00:26:04They are swapping out the entire right rear corner, uprights, the entire deal.
00:26:08That's why that went behind the wall.
00:26:10Also, the number 33, the level 5 machine, came in for a quick stop.
00:26:15Fairly routine.
00:26:15They said they were near the window.
00:26:17They decided to do it under caution and get that done.
00:26:21That car is an interesting development with that machine because they said when they homologated,
00:26:25that car was with the high downforce sprint trim, and they said the problem that they're
00:26:30really running into for Le Mans, it's the problem why they don't have as much speed here
00:26:34as they'd like, is because of that homologation, you can't make changes.
00:26:37So they said if we trim the rear wing out to get the speed, we can't make changes at the
00:26:43front of the car because of the homologation rules to the bodywork to balance the car out.
00:26:48So we have to run it with more downforce than we would like.
00:26:51And also, guys, you were speculating as to what the issue was with the Robertson Ford
00:26:56GT minor.
00:26:58They took this caution period, put the car in the garage to get all hands on deck, changed
00:27:03brakes on all four corners, and gave that radiated grille screen a huge blowing out to
00:27:08make sure that it was good.
00:27:10Andrea stayed on board, and they are back out as well.
00:27:14And we just got a quick shot there of the Robertson Racing Ford GT back out on track.
00:27:21And we would love to see it still on track in eight hours, 35 minutes time to see the
00:27:27chequered flag.
00:27:43Lights are off on the safety car.
00:27:44We're ready to go racing again.
00:27:45In the end of the fourth, full course caution, somebody just dove for pit lane.
00:27:50I think that was the eight car.
00:27:51One of the Peugeots has dived in.
00:27:53Fessler, the leader, stays on track.
00:27:55Going to be going back to green flag racing here.
00:27:57Remember, three pace cars will release all of the cars at three different points around
00:28:01the racetrack.
00:28:02It was Frank Montagne.
00:28:03He dove to pit lane.
00:28:05There you see Frank coming to his pit box right now.
00:28:08Fessler, the race leader, gets by the Kronos Aston Martin prototype.
00:28:12In the background is Jörg Bergmeister and the Flying Lizard Porsche in GT Pro.
00:28:17And the Lizards are up to fourth.
00:28:20I like that strategy that Peugeot's playing.
00:28:22They have the opportunity with three different cars to kind of mix things up a little bit.
00:28:27Go after the Audi in three different directions.
00:28:29Yeah, confuse them.
00:28:30I mean, it's one thing when you're going one-on-one with someone, but when they're playing three
00:28:34different strategies, it's really hard to cover all of your bases with a single bullet
00:28:38you have left in your gun with a number two machine.
00:28:40Now, remember what Simon Paginot told us a little earlier on.
00:28:43Behind the safety car with these cool early morning conditions, it was almost undriveable.
00:28:49Gently, gently getting back up to speed.
00:28:51Marcel Fessler cannot afford to make an error here, nor those chasing him.
00:28:55Sebastian Bourdain, Marc Genet.
00:28:57They can adjust the ASR, effectively traction control in these conditions, just give it a
00:29:02bit more to deal with until they start to get some bite in those tires.
00:29:07Again, we talk about that Peugeot making that last stop.
00:29:10Remember, they'll be putting on tires that are quite warm coming out of their controlled room.
00:29:15Oh, no.
00:29:16We talk about it.
00:29:17These tires aren't up to temperature in these really cool early morning conditions here.
00:29:22It's going to catch drivers out.
00:29:23This is yet more dramas for AF Corsa.
00:29:27Oh.
00:29:28It has been a tough day for this Ferrari team.
00:29:31The 51, the 61, and the 71 have all endured problems.
00:29:36That team's effectively running four cars, three in GTE, and they also kind of have the
00:29:43P-Com car, the P-2 entry, is under their wing as well.
00:29:45Three Peugeots run down the straightaway, effectively together.
00:30:02Bourdain, Genet, Montagny.
00:30:05And the eight car, the most recent to visit Fitlane.
00:30:08We know that.
00:30:09We saw that.
00:30:10They're in a bit of catch-up mood with the eight car.
00:30:15They're effectively a lap down.
00:30:17I ain't sure where he is in this cycle here, but he's a lap down to Fessler, who leads this race.
00:30:24Something Simon Paginot told me the other day, Scott, was very interesting.
00:30:27We are unified as a team.
00:30:29We run as a team.
00:30:30There's no more, oh, okay, that kind of open-wheel mentality.
00:30:34Let's prove to each other who can do the fastest lap.
00:30:36However, they're competitors.
00:30:38You want to win this race.
00:30:39There's no doubt about that.
00:30:40And so at one point in the week, this unified front amongst the nine drivers, they start to separate
00:30:47and go off into their respective groups of three.
00:30:50And then when you get into the race, you want to do the best possible job that you can, of course.
00:30:54And then late in the race at this stage and even later, and the closer you get to the end of the race,
00:30:59you go even harder.
00:31:00You try even harder to put yourself in the highest possible place because the hammer will come down.
00:31:06The team orders will be employed, and you want to be that lead car of the three.
00:31:11You want to be that lead car of the three.
00:31:13However, you also want to be in a position where you're smart enough with one Audi left
00:31:16where you take advantage of your other cars because you have that opportunity to run different strategies.
00:31:22Greg?
00:31:24Yes, we've got the number 33 is now making it stop.
00:31:31They are doing tires.
00:31:32Also, the driver change.
00:31:33Rao Barbosa out.
00:31:35Christophe Bouchoux behind the wheel.
00:31:37Oh, and he stalled it coming out.
00:31:39However, gets it restarted and is back and underway and continuing.
00:31:43Obviously, as this is unfolded in the P2 category, this car is closing in on things just a little bit.
00:31:51I'm going to do a little exploring, see if I can't find Joao and get a word from him, particularly about that quick spin and moment in the gravel he had.
00:31:59If I do, I'll get back to you.
00:32:01Look at Montanese looking really racy.
00:32:03He wants to get back on that lead lap.
00:32:05Looks to the inside.
00:32:06Thinks better of it.
00:32:07The way to distinguish the Peugeots is really the color of the side view mirrors.
00:32:12The Peugeot No. 7 has blue, Peugeot No. 8 white, and Peugeot No. 9 red.
00:32:18And currently, they run the No. 9, No. 7, No. 8 in line of stern.
00:32:21Borde, Jeannet, Montanese, Olivier Canel, the boss of Peugeot Sport, looks on and says,
00:32:27OK, my men, don't do anything silly here, please.
00:32:31No, that's not how one teammate run into another.
00:32:34Nothing ever happens in racing.
00:32:36What Montanese wants to do, he wants to get in front of these two Peugeots,
00:32:40and then when Fessler makes his pit stop, then he's then back on that lead lap.
00:32:45We've got two super-fast Portuguese drivers in this race.
00:32:49Pedro Lamy is one, João Barbosa is the other.
00:32:52He's standing by with Greg.
00:32:58João, obviously, this race always presents its challenges,
00:33:01and you guys have had a fairly eventful time from the time you got here.
00:33:05It looked like things were going OK in the race,
00:33:06then you had that off right after the pit stop,
00:33:09spent a little time in the gravel.
00:33:10First, what happened there?
00:33:12Yeah, I mean, here at Le Mans, the worst part is when you go slow.
00:33:17The tires go down so much, and I thought I was going slow enough,
00:33:21but apparently I was still getting a little bit more speed,
00:33:24and the tires were stone cold, and they had no grip,
00:33:27so there's nothing I can do at that point.
00:33:30But I'm in level five.
00:33:33I've figured out all the problems.
00:33:34The car is running like clockwork.
00:33:36It's probably not the fastest one out there,
00:33:38but it's really consistent.
00:33:39It's really good, so it's still a long way to go.
00:33:41Was that, I don't recall you doing tires on that stop, changing tires,
00:33:45so was it just the cold temperatures and then sitting in the pits that long?
00:33:48Yeah, it's cold temperatures.
00:33:51I mean, we try to hit the tires as much as we can behind the safety car,
00:33:54but it's impossible to get them to temperature,
00:33:59and I just got caught.
00:34:01It was my mistake.
00:34:02I was told that the car was homologated in sprint form,
00:34:07and so you can't really trim it out because you can't make changes to the front,
00:34:10so you're running more downforce than you want.
00:34:12So if you're having problems like you're talking about with a high downforce setup,
00:34:17obviously this cold track is really something.
00:34:19I mean, it's really, really slippery.
00:34:22The temperature and I think also the humidity,
00:34:25it's bringing the track temperature,
00:34:27and it's making the tires not work in the first few laps.
00:34:31But, I mean, it's the same for everybody,
00:34:34and I just have to learn to do it again.
00:34:38And I was behind safety car quite a long time today,
00:34:41so hopefully that's enough.
00:34:44Absolutely.
00:34:44And by the way, Jura brings up a good point.
00:34:46It may be cool here,
00:34:47but that legendary June French humidity is still at play here.
00:34:50You can see it in the lights at night in particular.
00:34:53So, Jura, hope for the best for the rest of the run.
00:34:56Thanks, guys.
00:34:56One of the nicest guys you'll meet up and down pit lane
00:35:01and certainly deserving of all of the success he's had recently, Scott.
00:35:06You've raced against him hard.
00:35:07He got that win against you just a few weeks ago at VIR.
00:35:11Yeah, he's always a great up.
00:35:13Here we got the lead car in, Fossler.
00:35:16It looks like they were setting up for tires and fuel,
00:35:18be interesting, and driver.
00:35:19Yeah, Andre Lotterer was there, just stretching, warming up,
00:35:22getting himself pumped up, getting him into the mood.
00:35:25What's going on here?
00:35:27A little bit of a late move there.
00:35:29The Pescarolo and the 83 machine as well.
00:35:34So that's the JMB racing Ferrari.
00:35:36All right, Fossler out.
00:35:37Well done, Marcel.
00:35:38Great job.
00:35:39And Andre Lotterer climbing aboard.
00:35:41Greg?
00:35:41Great job.
00:35:41And Andre Lotterer climbing aboard.
00:35:43Greg?
00:35:43What's the Audi Sport gang go to work?
00:36:07Full service here.
00:36:09Four new Michelin tires.
00:36:11Full load of fuel, new driver.
00:36:14Fresh driver, I should say, not new.
00:36:17Starting to see all that debris and oil and such off the racetrack.
00:36:23The line in the side of that.
00:36:26You might remember, last year we told you about this torque management system.
00:36:31When they come in, they change wheels, they change all four corners of the car.
00:36:36The guy on the gun, all he needs to do is pull the trigger.
00:36:39He doesn't decide when to stop.
00:36:41It's not his decision.
00:36:42It's not that subjective.
00:36:43That gun will stop when it's at an adequate torque level.
00:36:47And that was a system that Audi employed after Dindo Capello's crash back in 2007.
00:36:52They first brought it in in 2008.
00:36:54What's going on here at Peugeot?
00:36:56Olivier Connell in quite a heated discussion with one of the Peugeot guys.
00:36:59The 88 Felbermayer car off again.
00:37:03Big hit, too.
00:37:04Look at that tire.
00:37:06The left rear tire looks like it's clear off the rim.
00:37:09This is Al Fassal who's behind the wheel of that 88.
00:37:16I think Connell has got to be concerned about what's going on here.
00:37:19I think they need some team directive here because Montany wants by.
00:37:23He wants to get by these two teammates and that will effectively put him on the lead lap.
00:37:27And this is where you need a strong hand at the top.
00:37:31All of these cars are being led by different engineers and they've all got their own agenda.
00:37:35And I'm sure at this point in time he's trying to get the team to work as a unit.
00:37:39You really need to be in a position to get the third Peugeot there back on the same lap.
00:37:45Go ahead and let him go.
00:37:48Yep.
00:37:48Because he wants to run a faster pace.
00:37:49He wants to be the rabbit right now.
00:37:51Exactly.
00:37:52And I mean, Connell doesn't want to have one of those cars a lap down.
00:37:56If he can get all three on that lead lap, then he's got three chances at winning this thing.
00:38:01Rather than two and maybe a safety net, the third one a lap down.
00:38:07Let's see how strong the team owners are here.
00:38:10He's done a tremendous job, though.
00:38:11When he came on board, Michelle Barge got fired after the disaster.
00:38:15A couple of years ago.
00:38:16And since that time, he's really reorganized things and given great structure to this team.
00:38:22We've really looked at every detail in terms of the pit stops and how effective the team was on race day.
00:38:28And also have come up with a very effective race car, as we've seen, by its speed over the last few years.
00:38:33And as an example of their physical strength and their unification as a team.
00:38:38And with great leadership, Olivier Connell joined his drivers.
00:38:41They finally got the instruction.
00:38:43Let Montagny by.
00:38:44Yeah, there you go.
00:38:46And we'll wait and see if he goes all the way to get by the nine of Bordet and begin that surge to get his lap back.
00:38:55And Jene got the word.
00:38:56Jene moved to the side there.
00:38:58Let's Montagny go.
00:38:59That's smart orders by Pujol.
00:39:03Get all your...
00:39:04Oh, look at that.
00:39:05Montagny all the way off.
00:39:06He is pushing hard.
00:39:09He wants to win this thing big.
00:39:12That was massive.
00:39:13That was so close.
00:39:15Wow.
00:39:15That was so close.
00:39:17This is what it's all about.
00:39:18This is what it's all about.
00:39:18Putting on the line.
00:39:21Frank Montagny knows that this is a very important stint for him.
00:39:25These next few laps could be critical come the end of this race.
00:39:28This is a view from the seven.
00:39:29Mark Cheney heading up through turn one.
00:39:31You're looking at Montagny Chase Pordet.
00:39:35There's Lena Gard, the engineer on the two, talking to Marcel Fessler.
00:39:38Look how close this is.
00:39:41He's gone for it, isn't he?
00:39:43Oh, that could have been massive.
00:39:48Here is the number two new driver on board, Andre Lodera.
00:39:52And an update on the standings in GTE Pro.
00:39:56Still the 74 Corvette dominant.
00:39:59Welcome back to the 79th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans,
00:40:15where we've got a situation where we have the lone warrior
00:40:18against the battalion of Peugeot's
00:40:19and Marcel Fessler just getting out of the number two car
00:40:22after a mega stint.
00:40:24And your battle with Anthony Davidson out there in particular
00:40:27when you force him into an air,
00:40:28just some superb stuff.
00:40:31Yeah, it was actually a night a bit difficult for me,
00:40:34but then as soon as the sun rise up,
00:40:37I got a much better rhythm,
00:40:39and then I was at the same level again.
00:40:41And when I come out of the pit,
00:40:43and I knew he was just right behind me,
00:40:46he could overtook me because of a slow car in the afternoon sun.
00:40:51And then I was saying, okay, now I fight,
00:40:54and I keep on in and make pressure on him,
00:40:56and then he did the mistakes,
00:40:57and I could go again in front,
00:40:59and then it happened this with the safety car,
00:41:02and then, yeah, it was my state was over.
00:41:06It was a great stint.
00:41:07The question one has to ask,
00:41:08after what's happened with the other two cars,
00:41:11has that created, even in the back of your mind,
00:41:13any undue caution,
00:41:15any worry about overtaking some of these cars,
00:41:17or are you just going full chat?
00:41:20Quite early after the first shunt,
00:41:23I told to my colleague,
00:41:26or we together, we agree that we push,
00:41:29but we don't take any risk,
00:41:31and I think that's at the moment the key, okay?
00:41:33I think that both situation was not a kind of pushing or something like that.
00:41:39It was just a misunderstanding from some GT cars, I would say.
00:41:45I don't know.
00:41:45I didn't see anything so much.
00:41:47But in our head, now the target is to win,
00:41:52and it's a quite hard and tough pedal now.
00:41:56It seems as though the Peugeot might have a little bit of an edge in straight-line speed,
00:42:00but when it gets into the twisty stuff, the Audi really comes alive.
00:42:04Is that how it's playing out?
00:42:05Yeah, this was actually where the Peugeot could overtook me.
00:42:08It was a bit on the top speed area,
00:42:10so always on the Hinandier or going down to Indianapolis,
00:42:14he was quite faster, but then as soon as we come to the Porsche corner,
00:42:17we have a much bigger advantage on our car,
00:42:21and all this twisty stuff seems to be better for us.
00:42:24So as long as we can keep them behind us until the Porsche corner, everything is fine.
00:42:30All right.
00:42:30Well, obviously, a lot of race yet to go,
00:42:32but if I manage to pull this one off,
00:42:34it will be a huge achievement in light of what's happened.
00:42:36Congratulations on a great stint.
00:42:39Sorry, I didn't...
00:42:40Congratulations on a great stint.
00:42:41Thanks a lot.
00:42:42Thanks a lot.
00:42:44A 35-year-old Swiss driver had a terrible record here at Le Mans with four retirements.
00:42:52Didn't see the chequered flag until last year when he stood on the podium
00:42:55in that amazing Audi 1, 2, and 3,
00:42:58and we were talking there and listening about that outright top-end speed of the Peugeot.
00:43:03Well, what about the sole remaining Audi?
00:43:05Andre Lotterer has just set the fastest lap of the race with a 3.27.7.
00:43:10Yeah, that's amazing stuff, and we see Montanis still pushing hard.
00:43:14Bourne certainly didn't get the directive from Olivier Connell to slow down
00:43:19and let him back onto that lead lap.
00:43:21So, have to wait and see how this plays out, but as Lotterer is now behind the wheel,
00:43:28and Fessler said we have a supreme battle on our hands.
00:43:31The Audi seems up to it, but again, three bullets against one.
00:43:34Will that be a factor by the end of this 24 hours?
00:43:37That's a pretty amazing lap they just posted up there, 3.27.
00:43:40That's a good solid second, second and a half faster than the Peugeots that have gone up to this point.
00:43:47So, Seth Nyman getting ready for a stint there.
00:43:50Car leads, the 81 car leads in the GTE-M division.
00:43:55Darren Lord just did a mega stint there, and now the sun is up.
00:43:59Seth's going to get behind the wheel.
00:44:00He's done a really nice, solid job here this year,
00:44:02really learned from the experience in years past,
00:44:05and looking for that class victory here at Le Mans.
00:44:07Oh, the sun is up and the heat is on.
00:44:10Sebastian Bordet, his teammate, wants to get by, wants to get on that lead lap.
00:44:16Montaigne.
00:44:17Which is a smart thing to do.
00:44:18I mean, you're not, you shouldn't be racing your teammate at this point,
00:44:22and sometimes what happens is Montaigne might start getting a little anxious,
00:44:28and then, you know, want to dive inside his teammate,
00:44:31and unfortunately take two cars out at once, so.
00:44:34As we enjoy this prototype battle at the moment,
00:44:37let's check in with one of our GT Pro teams with Greg.
00:44:43Yeah, I'm standing by with Olivier Barretta.
00:44:45Olivier, obviously you had to stop earlier.
00:44:47I guess we're having some problems with fumes in the car.
00:44:49We heard you would be back, you wouldn't be back.
00:44:51You got the kit on, so it looks pretty good.
00:44:53What's up?
00:44:54Yeah, I'm okay.
00:44:56It was not just following the Ferrari,
00:44:58and a lot of smoke going inside the cockpit,
00:45:01and I think I felt exhaust, but now I'm ready.
00:45:06The corvette is running fast.
00:45:08Everyone at the team did a very good job,
00:45:10so it's still very long.
00:45:11It's still six hours and 45 minutes to go,
00:45:14so wait and see.
00:45:16But you're definitely going to be getting in on this next stop.
00:45:18Yes, yes, yes.
00:45:19That's great news indeed, obviously.
00:45:21A five-time winner here.
00:45:22It's awesome.
00:45:23Looking forward to seeing that.
00:45:25And let's get down to Andrew Marriott.
00:45:30Well, thanks very much, Greg.
00:45:32I can't say I had a sleep at all,
00:45:35but it was nice to have a rest.
00:45:38Now, we're hearing from our commentators
00:45:41about all the sun's up and the heat's on.
00:45:44Well, I tell you, it's only eight degrees centigrade here.
00:45:47It's actually quite chilly.
00:45:50But I think that we're going to have a great day here
00:45:53for the rest of the day.
00:45:54I think the temperature is going to come up pretty quickly.
00:45:57But right now, you need an overcoat on, really.
00:46:08Montigny still got the hammer down.
00:46:10Bourdais is not making way for him.
00:46:12Bourdais leads this race.
00:46:15Jenea is second.
00:46:16Laudera third.
00:46:18After that last round of pit stops.
00:46:21And this car with the white mirrors there,
00:46:23Montigny is desperately wanting back
00:46:26on the lead lap of this race.
00:46:28Here's the Ray Malek P2 car.
00:46:30The HPD machine had turbo issues a little earlier in the race.
00:46:35Has not gone exactly to plan.
00:46:37This team knows how to win the P2 category.
00:46:40It's done it a couple of times here at Lesarth.
00:46:42Had a massive crash at Spa when they got hit
00:46:45by Pedro Alami in one of the Peugeots.
00:46:47Destroyed the car.
00:46:49And they had a new tub coming,
00:46:51but it was somewhat delayed.
00:46:53So, in fact, they bought,
00:46:54or have on loan,
00:46:56a monocoque from AGI,
00:46:58Andretti Green Racing,
00:47:00from their LMP2 days that they had in their shop.
00:47:02So, shipped it over.
00:47:03They are running it here.
00:47:04They may run an Imola at the next race
00:47:06before they switched to the new tub,
00:47:08which is now available.
00:47:09You didn't hear me earlier on.
00:47:10I gave a shout-out to your old home, Trax Netterdon.
00:47:13Did you?
00:47:13That's where they shook the car down
00:47:15when they took delivery on it.
00:47:16I think they only got it last month,
00:47:19like, towards the end of May.
00:47:20So, it was a very, very tight turnaround for them.
00:47:23Yeah, just last week,
00:47:25spoke to Mike Newton here this week in Le Mans,
00:47:27and he said,
00:47:27yeah, we did a quick shakedown with it.
00:47:29Everyone was really impressed
00:47:31with the car that was delivered by AGR,
00:47:34and they're very appreciative of their effort.
00:47:36And the car felt good.
00:47:38And this is a team that has really
00:47:40done great things in this class over the years.
00:47:43They switched to the Acura chassis last year.
00:47:48And this year, of course,
00:47:50they're running the new power plant.
00:47:54When we saw that RML prototype come in,
00:47:58I should have given a shout there to say
00:48:00they're currently running sixth in class.
00:48:02So, they are desperately trying to come back.
00:48:04They're hanging in there.
00:48:05They know how much time's left,
00:48:07and unfortunately, Olivier Beretta
00:48:08thinks there's less time
00:48:09than what there actually is.
00:48:11He said six hours, 45 minutes.
00:48:13It's eight hours, seven minutes to go.
00:48:15Sorry about that, Olivier.
00:48:16Yeah, I want to check he's still not dizzy.
00:48:19Maybe those fumes have gotten
00:48:21a little deeper than he thought.
00:48:25I really enjoy these high shots.
00:48:29It just shows you the character
00:48:31of this 8.4-mile circuit.
00:48:34The battle is still on up front.
00:48:36Three Peugeots versus one sole Audi.
00:48:47Team Felbermayer Proton driver
00:48:49Abdulaziz Al-Fasal.
00:48:52Unfortunately, his Le Mans is over.
00:48:54I guess he's calling someone
00:48:55to let him know that.
00:48:56From one prince to another.
00:48:58Here's our Calvin Fish.
00:48:59On June 24th, Orange County, California
00:49:03becomes the home
00:49:04to the greatest collector car event
00:49:06in the world.
00:49:07Of course, it's Barrett Jackson,
00:49:08and you can see it only on speed.
00:49:10The finest, rarest,
00:49:12and most desirable cars on the planet
00:49:13that are all in one place
00:49:15and all up for grabs.
00:49:16Watch the auction live on speed
00:49:18beginning June 24th.
00:49:20A lot of those highly desirable cars
00:49:22are right here, right now,
00:49:24and the good ones are still going,
00:49:26like the flying lizard Porsche.
00:49:28Right, Greg Kramer?
00:49:33It is indeed, and as a matter of fact,
00:49:35it is slowly working its way
00:49:37back up the order.
00:49:38Jörg Borgmeister just got out of the car,
00:49:40and Jörg, first of all,
00:49:41when you got out of the car,
00:49:42you went right to the tires
00:49:43that they took off
00:49:44and gave them a good look.
00:49:45What's up there?
00:49:46Nothing really special.
00:49:48Just after the safety car,
00:49:50it took a long, long time
00:49:51to bring temperatures back in them.
00:49:53We're running mediums.
00:49:54It was a second stint on them.
00:49:56Wear-wise, they look great.
00:49:57It was just a little cold
00:49:58for them right now.
00:50:00You guys, once again,
00:50:01have had a very eventful Le Mans
00:50:03at this point.
00:50:04Just, you know,
00:50:05how is the car now?
00:50:06Obviously, you had some issues early
00:50:07that put you back a ways.
00:50:09We made some changes
00:50:10during my very first stint,
00:50:12and since then,
00:50:13the car's pretty good.
00:50:15Fairly happy with it,
00:50:16considering how limited time we had.
00:50:19It's pretty good.
00:50:20So just a matter now
00:50:21for the last nine hours
00:50:22of just keeping the head down
00:50:24and just pushing?
00:50:24Yeah, definitely.
00:50:25That's what we've been doing all night,
00:50:27and we keep doing it.
00:50:28And that's what this team
00:50:29does awfully well, Jörg.
00:50:31Good luck,
00:50:31and I hope you continue
00:50:32to move toward the front.
00:50:33And at this point,
00:50:34speaking of moving,
00:50:35how about let's move it
00:50:35down to Andrew Marriott.
00:50:39Yeah, I've got the boss
00:50:41of Peugeot Sport here.
00:50:42You're trying to get
00:50:43all three cars
00:50:44onto the same lap.
00:50:46Yeah, we have the three cars
00:50:48in the same lap.
00:50:50But two Peugeot are leading.
00:50:52But it will change again
00:50:55because of the fuel.
00:50:57We have to stop.
00:50:58And Audi too.
00:51:00But we are really close,
00:51:01and it's a really good fight.
00:51:04Everybody is pushing really hard,
00:51:07but I don't know
00:51:08how it will finish.
00:51:09Now, you must be very pleased
00:51:11with the performance
00:51:11of the cars
00:51:12and the difference you've made
00:51:13since the problems
00:51:14you had last year.
00:51:15Yeah, of course,
00:51:16but it's still
00:51:17eight hours to go.
00:51:21You're looking remarkably fresh.
00:51:23Yeah, it's so interesting
00:51:25that I'm very pleased
00:51:26to see what happens.
00:51:28Let's see what happens.
00:51:29Thank you very much.
00:51:31On Tuesday, Olivier Canel
00:51:35and his driving team
00:51:36cycled 125 kilometers
00:51:39from just south of Paris
00:51:40here to Le Mans.
00:51:43And he was leading by example,
00:51:46saying,
00:51:47I want to do
00:51:47what my drivers can do
00:51:48if they're going to go
00:51:48through a little bit of pain,
00:51:50a little bit of physical exertion,
00:51:51just to show
00:51:52I'm going to be a part of it as well.
00:51:54It was a good team bonding exercise.
00:51:55They worked very hard on that
00:51:57throughout the lead-up
00:51:59to this race.
00:52:01They do.
00:52:02They do a team building
00:52:03week in Chamonix
00:52:05where they do a lot
00:52:06of physical activity,
00:52:07mountain biking
00:52:08and hiking,
00:52:09but just getting
00:52:10the whole group together,
00:52:11trying to get them
00:52:12as a cohesive unit
00:52:13coming into this big event.
00:52:15Not only your three teammates
00:52:16in each individual car,
00:52:17but Scott,
00:52:18throughout the course of the week,
00:52:19you need to work as a team.
00:52:20Ultimately,
00:52:20you get in the race,
00:52:22everyone's kind of
00:52:22on their own agenda
00:52:23wanting to win,
00:52:24but you need to work together
00:52:25throughout the course of the week
00:52:26to make the best progress.
00:52:27Everybody's somewhat
00:52:28on their own agenda,
00:52:29but you're also part of a team,
00:52:31a bigger piece of a team,
00:52:32not only the three drivers,
00:52:34but also the three team cars.
00:52:36And we're talking
00:52:36about these temperatures.
00:52:37It's kind of reminiscent
00:52:38of Daytona a couple years ago
00:52:39where we had those
00:52:40freezing cold temperatures.
00:52:42You had to be also careful
00:52:43all the time.
00:52:44When you went out of the pits
00:52:45on cold tires,
00:52:46you know,
00:52:46in the Grand Amp Series,
00:52:47we do not have
00:52:48controlled room areas
00:52:50for temperatures.
00:52:51So the tires putting on
00:52:53are stone cold.
00:52:54And then when you're
00:52:55running around,
00:52:55you know,
00:52:56let's say hot tires
00:52:56and run around for,
00:52:59let's say,
00:52:5915, 20 minutes
00:53:00behind a safety car,
00:53:02the temperatures come
00:53:02right back down in tires
00:53:03and you've got to be
00:53:04also careful getting going
00:53:05as we saw a number
00:53:06of very talented drivers
00:53:08getting that quick spin
00:53:09and cars getting away
00:53:10from them.
00:53:11I'll tell you
00:53:11what is impressive.
00:53:13Andre Laudera
00:53:13just laid down a lap,
00:53:15a 3-26-2.
00:53:19That is stunning.
00:53:20And how does
00:53:20Pooja respond?
00:53:22Bourdais just did
00:53:23one himself.
00:53:25He just found a second.
00:53:26The wick has been
00:53:27turned up.
00:53:28A hundredth faster.
00:53:39So with just under
00:53:42eight hours to run
00:53:43to the checkered flag,
00:53:45it's Peugeot,
00:53:46Peugeot,
00:53:47Audi,
00:53:47Peugeot,
00:53:48Bourdais,
00:53:49Genet,
00:53:49L'Ottawa,
00:53:50Montagny.
00:53:51So much to play out.
00:53:52You just heard from
00:53:53Peugeot Sport Boss
00:53:54with Andrew Marriott,
00:53:55Olivier Cannell.
00:53:56This is too exciting,
00:53:57it's too intriguing.
00:53:58It has got my
00:53:59100% attention.
00:54:02And why wouldn't it?
00:54:05We know some of you
00:54:06on the West Coast
00:54:07might just be turning
00:54:09on wondering
00:54:09what's been the story
00:54:10of the day.
00:54:11Let's tell you the story
00:54:13of the day thus far.
00:54:14It looked good
00:54:18early on for Audi
00:54:19with Benoit Trillier
00:54:21starting the number
00:54:22two car
00:54:23and that is the car
00:54:23that is still very much
00:54:25in the mix.
00:54:25It was a day to forget
00:54:26for Aston Martin.
00:54:28Darren Turner
00:54:29had a quick spin
00:54:29at the first chicane.
00:54:30Ultimately,
00:54:31the car was retired.
00:54:32Then we saw a spate
00:54:33of tyre problems,
00:54:34Scott.
00:54:34A lot of gravel
00:54:35out on the racetrack
00:54:36and the gravel here
00:54:36is very sharp.
00:54:37Then the big one.
00:54:39Alan McNish
00:54:40colliding
00:54:41with a GT Ferrari
00:54:42and really nasty
00:54:44scenes here.
00:54:47That was a horrific crash.
00:54:52Our cameraman
00:54:52scattering right there.
00:54:54Watch the wheel
00:54:54about to come down
00:54:55right there.
00:54:56That's a complete corner.
00:54:58Brake caliber,
00:54:59rotor, upright.
00:55:00That is a heavy,
00:55:01heavy piece
00:55:02and Alan walked away
00:55:03amazingly from this
00:55:04mega crash.
00:55:05He had a massive one
00:55:05in his Formula One
00:55:06career at Suzuka
00:55:07and that is certainly
00:55:09the biggest one
00:55:09in his sports car career.
00:55:11Nick Johnson
00:55:11with a big slide.
00:55:13He did well
00:55:14to keep it going.
00:55:15Unfortunately,
00:55:16this crone racing Ferrari
00:55:17is no longer
00:55:18in the 24 hours
00:55:20of Le Mans.
00:55:21Boy,
00:55:21it's been a tough day
00:55:22for these guys.
00:55:23Yeah,
00:55:23last year's chairman
00:55:24in the GT class,
00:55:26the Felbermeyer Porsche.
00:55:27Numerous problems.
00:55:28Here we see
00:55:29another puncture,
00:55:30left rear down
00:55:31and then the Quiffle
00:55:32P1 machine.
00:55:34The 20 car
00:55:35goes out
00:55:35with an engine drama.
00:55:38Tire dramas
00:55:39for the BMW squad.
00:55:41This was the 55.
00:55:43A lot of tire issues.
00:55:44Those rocks
00:55:45come up onto the track.
00:55:46They're sharp.
00:55:46We've seen a lot
00:55:47of tire issues
00:55:49the whole race long.
00:55:51On board
00:55:52with the number one
00:55:52Audi
00:55:53and Romain Dumas
00:55:54getting by
00:55:54some traffic
00:55:55and spinning
00:55:56at Tête Rouge.
00:55:58He was spitting
00:55:59afterwards.
00:56:00He is very unhappy
00:56:01with some of the
00:56:02driving standards
00:56:02here this weekend.
00:56:04This is the 62 machine,
00:56:06the CRS Racing Ferrari
00:56:08and surely thereafter
00:56:09that car retired.
00:56:12There was a misfire
00:56:13with the 56 BMW.
00:56:14This is the car
00:56:15that American Joey Hand
00:56:16is competing in.
00:56:18Going for the triple crown.
00:56:20That cost him
00:56:20a couple of laps
00:56:21and they remain there.
00:56:22Then Mike Rockenfella
00:56:23gets it wrong
00:56:24on the entry
00:56:25to pit lane.
00:56:26No harm,
00:56:26no foul.
00:56:27Brings it in nicely
00:56:28but then
00:56:28just a few moments later
00:56:30this is another
00:56:31amazing crash, Scott.
00:56:33Yeah, you take a look
00:56:34that up the inside
00:56:35doesn't actually
00:56:37clip that Ferrari
00:56:39but gets in the dirt.
00:56:40Car gets away from him
00:56:41and massive shunt.
00:56:43You see all those
00:56:44pieces and parts.
00:56:45Again, the only
00:56:48fortunate thing
00:56:48that came away
00:56:49from there
00:56:49is he's able
00:56:50to get away
00:56:51from that horrible
00:56:53accident unheard.
00:56:56No major injuries
00:56:57anyway.
00:56:59That was the 39
00:57:01LMP2 prototype
00:57:04there,
00:57:04the PCOM racing machine,
00:57:06the BMW
00:57:06job-powered
00:57:07entry
00:57:09and drama
00:57:09for the front end
00:57:11of the
00:57:12Orica 908.
00:57:14This really
00:57:15put paid to
00:57:16their chances
00:57:16of running
00:57:17in the top five.
00:57:18We scoot forward
00:57:19to the 15th hour
00:57:20and drama's here
00:57:21for Jean-Christophe
00:57:22Bouillon
00:57:22in the 13 machine
00:57:24and we mentioned
00:57:24earlier in the broadcast
00:57:25he was able to escape
00:57:27with just a bruised foot.
00:57:29Going back
00:57:30from a caution,
00:57:31tire temperatures
00:57:31are low.
00:57:32We saw numerous spins
00:57:33throughout the course
00:57:33of this event
00:57:34and then
00:57:35Joao Barbosa
00:57:36gets it wrong
00:57:37down in the
00:57:37curbs.
00:57:38He just said
00:57:38I had no tire temperature.
00:57:40I thought it slowed
00:57:40down enough.
00:57:41Obviously not the case.
00:57:42David Halliday retires.
00:57:44Drama
00:57:44for the 908
00:57:46for Team Orica
00:57:48Matmuth.
00:57:48This is their
00:57:49LMP2 car
00:57:50with a Nissan
00:57:51powered machine
00:57:52over and out.
00:57:53As simple as that.
00:57:55We bring you up
00:57:56to
00:57:56just a few moments
00:57:58ago
00:57:58two of the three
00:57:59Peugeots
00:58:00pitting at the same
00:58:01time.
00:58:02Can Montanee
00:58:03oh here comes
00:58:04the third one.
00:58:05He's going to be
00:58:05sandwiched
00:58:06even if the crew
00:58:06does their work
00:58:07a little bit quicker.
00:58:08I don't think
00:58:09he's going to get
00:58:09his way out
00:58:10of there
00:58:10so you'd have
00:58:11to assume
00:58:11that the nine
00:58:12car will lead
00:58:12these guys
00:58:13out of pit lane.
00:58:15Andre Lodera
00:58:16cycles to the
00:58:17top of the order.
00:58:19Comes fastly
00:58:20he's going to put
00:58:20a lap on
00:58:22these guys
00:58:22I think.
00:58:24He's going to go
00:58:24back to the lead.
00:58:25Back to the lead.
00:58:28They sit on pit lane
00:58:29so no
00:58:29he now assumes
00:58:30the lead
00:58:31of this race.
00:58:32These guys are leading
00:58:33as we suspect
00:58:34no change
00:58:35there in the order
00:58:35they return
00:58:36to the racetrack
00:58:37in the order
00:58:38they hit pit lane.
00:58:40Which was
00:58:41Bordet
00:58:41Montanee
00:58:42Jeunet.
00:58:43They said Jeunet
00:58:44may have just
00:58:44a little issue
00:58:45under this.
00:58:46Oh no.
00:58:47Beretta on
00:58:47returning to the
00:58:48race car.
00:58:49I believe this
00:58:50is Arnage.
00:58:51Yeah.
00:58:52Very slippery
00:58:52corner.
00:58:57Olivia had not
00:58:58long been
00:58:58in the car
00:58:59taking over
00:59:00from Antonio
00:59:01Garcia.
00:59:05Didn't look like
00:59:06he nosed it
00:59:06in there bad
00:59:07there's a very
00:59:07slow corner
00:59:08Scott
00:59:08so sometimes
00:59:09you can get
00:59:09away with that.
00:59:12So Pagina
00:59:13will have a
00:59:13moment.
00:59:14Last night
00:59:15he decided
00:59:16to take the
00:59:16escape route
00:59:17which is
00:59:17obviously
00:59:17the best
00:59:18plan.
00:59:19Keep in mind
00:59:20this is the
00:59:20third place
00:59:21car in
00:59:21GT Pro.
00:59:23You can see
00:59:24the tire marks
00:59:24all the way
00:59:26straight across
00:59:26and it looks
00:59:26like he's
00:59:26having a hard
00:59:27time getting
00:59:28it out of
00:59:28reverse.
00:59:29Found reverse
00:59:30which is normally
00:59:30the hard part
00:59:31let's take a look
00:59:32on board with
00:59:32him out of
00:59:33Indianapolis.
00:59:37Oh yeah
00:59:39he's carrying
00:59:40way too much
00:59:40speed there
00:59:41I'm not sure
00:59:41if he maybe
00:59:42there's a
00:59:42gearbox issue
00:59:43maybe he couldn't
00:59:43get it downshifted
00:59:44maybe it looks
00:59:46like he's fighting
00:59:46something getting
00:59:47going there
00:59:47Gary Pratt
00:59:48the man behind
00:59:50Pratt and Miller
00:59:50and the Corvette
00:59:52Racing Squad
00:59:53look on
00:59:54with some
00:59:55frustration
00:59:55I'm not sure
01:00:10he's carrying
01:00:11him.
01:00:11He's carrying
01:00:12him.
01:00:13Right.
01:00:13He's carrying
01:00:14him.
01:00:14And that's
01:00:15what he told
01:00:15that.
01:00:16He's carrying
01:00:17him.
01:00:17He's carrying
01:00:19him.
01:00:19He's carrying
01:00:21him.
01:00:21And that's
01:00:22the term
01:00:23in the
01:00:23end,
01:00:23he's carrying
01:00:24him.
01:00:24So
01:00:24he's carrying
01:00:25him.
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