Relive the full broadcast of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2009 — a true battle of endurance, technology, and determination. Peugeot and Audi faced off in an intense 24-hour duel on the legendary Circuit de la Sarthe, pushing their prototypes and drivers to the absolute limit. Every lap brought drama, precision, and pure racing emotion as strategy and reliability shaped the outcome. Experience the triumph, the heartbreak, and the passion that defined one of the most iconic editions in Le Mans history.
#LeMans2009 #24HoursOfLeMans #FullRace #EnduranceRacing #Motorsport #AudiVsPeugeot #LegendaryRace #HistoricRace #EpicRacing #SpeedAndEndurance
#LeMans2009 #24HoursOfLeMans #FullRace #EnduranceRacing #Motorsport #AudiVsPeugeot #LegendaryRace #HistoricRace #EpicRacing #SpeedAndEndurance
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SportsTranscript
00:00He has to do the entire lap of the track before he can get back.
00:04We'll lose a huge amount of time, it's a real shame for him.
00:09Still two cars of course going, and looking very quick.
00:17What do you think that the Audi challenge will be?
00:21It's very difficult to say at the moment.
00:24It's possible that anything could happen, as we've already seen.
00:26But Peugeot will keep the pressure on.
00:31This is never going to be an easy race to win, but we will do everything we can.
00:37And the telling last comment there from Olivier Canelmark, we must not penalise ourselves.
00:44No, but they've got an even bigger problem, there's a turbo hanging off that Peugeot,
00:47we just saw it in that slow close-up shot there.
00:50This is a disaster, we've got one wounded Audi, one wounded Peugeot,
00:54and we're just 45 minutes now into this race.
00:58This will be a long haul for Peugeot, and I think they'll have a lot more repairs to do
01:02than even we can see or imagine at the moment.
01:05Never mind a long haul for Peugeot, how are we going to hold up?
01:07We haven't even got to hour one, there's another 23 of this to be exhausted.
01:11The GT2s are certainly going to keep us entertained.
01:14We've barely even scraped the surface of LMP2 as well.
01:19That's going to be, well, Crucial and Motorsport have started the catalogue of disasters.
01:23We've seen our GT1 leaders on pit road, the third and fourth place cars of GT1 come down pit road as well,
01:29as also does the Team Go Porsche RS Spyder, which is in second time in the GT class.
01:36And still that car, well, actually now it won't do any more damage because there is nothing left bar the rim.
01:44But he's got to try not to drop it off.
01:46Look at that, the turbo hanging down, all the intercoolers and everything.
01:49And the entire GT field comes down the pit road as one man.
01:53There's never any question, is there?
01:55No matter what else happens in the middle of the race, we're less than an hour in, safety cars out, of course, everyone pitting.
02:01And everyone will take tyres because of all that debris.
02:04There's no point in taking any chances.
02:07No, surely they will.
02:08If you had a road car that you knew would do over 200 miles an hour and you thought you'd just driven over a broken bottle,
02:14you would not be continuing at 200 miles an hour.
02:16You'd be stopping to have a damn good look.
02:18I don't think these guys are any less clever than we are, are they?
02:21Exactly.
02:21And he's actually, frankly on 10 years, going very quickly on this car, I have to say.
02:24Having just a rim hanging off the side, he's trying to get back into the pits while it's still under safety car.
02:29Do they have a drive, a get-your-home-drive system on the transmission like they do on the electronic end?
02:36Well, yeah, I mean, I would have thought they'd probably have, like, a throttle jacker if you need it.
02:39But in this case, he'll just be driving it.
02:42It'll be on three wheels in the floor.
02:44Remember last year Amanda Stratton, when she crashed the Chamberlain?
02:47Yes, that's different, I believe, because...
02:49She got the car back on three wheels, one which wasn't a driven wheel.
02:52Well, certainly in the Lolas, you used to have to lock the diff yourself physically, which is quite difficult,
02:56because you had to take the entire back of the car off, which for one person is an incredible feat.
03:00And you had to go in and actually lock the diff physically yourself in order to drive it home on three.
03:05Obviously, you know, that's not the case here.
03:08Oh, what a mess.
03:08Oh, what a disaster.
03:10That's going to be a long, long day.
03:11The only thing that we're going to see is if this car reappears, it will go up on its jacks,
03:16it will go into the garage, and they will, as coolly and calmly as they can,
03:23try and basically build the car ready to start the race.
03:26Cool and calm, Peugeot?
03:27They'll have to.
03:28It's a new Peugeot, isn't it?
03:29There's no point throwing yourself at it in a flurry of arms and spanners.
03:33That's not helping.
03:34Now, let's just look at the logistics of this.
03:37What did Peugeot do?
03:38They took a fourth car and gave it only Pescarolo to win.
03:41So they've still got three front-line cars in the running.
03:44Actually, in fairness, they've only got two in the top 18.
03:48Both this car and the Pescarolo car have plunged out of the top 20,
03:51so they're down to two.
03:53Audi are down to two and a bit.
03:56The Pescarolo car just got caught in the safety car.
03:59I think that was why that was.
04:01So, more drama to come, no question.
04:04We're approaching the end of the first hour here at Le Mans, not the last.
04:07Stay with us.
04:12Welcome back live to Le Mans with Eurosport.
04:15You can just see at the wheel of car number nine,
04:18we were told Alex Wurtz, it looks like Marc Genet, it said on the helmet.
04:22The car coming back in.
04:23It was the first Peugeot to stop after nine laps.
04:26And the reason it's come back in is because it then had tyres on
04:31that had gone through all the debris of the explosion of the number seven Peugeot's rear end.
04:36So, there you can see Pedro Lamy and Pedro looking very hot and bothered, Marc.
04:42We're going to try and get a quick word with him.
04:45Safety car will be released at the end of this lap.
04:49Pedro, just incredible.
04:51What happened exactly?
04:53Well, I started and there was another car coming and touch and make me a puncture.
04:58So, I had to give one lap and come back.
05:02You couldn't stay in the pit and come back from the pit?
05:06Yeah, but I realized quite late and I didn't know that I was a puncture.
05:12I didn't realize.
05:14Do you know if you saw him and he cut or you didn't even saw him?
05:20No, I was just concentrating on the lollipop and we go when the lollipop goes up.
05:26Okay, thank you, Pedro.
05:27Well, Marc, clearly in these cars, like in Formula One cars,
05:30you can't look over your back, shoulder, mirror, signal, manoeuvre
05:34as if you're pulling out of an acute junction.
05:36The only thing the driver can see is out in front of him.
05:39The only thing he can see is the man that's waving the arm going, go, go, go.
05:42There's no chance that a driver will have the faintest idea
05:45of what's coming up pit road behind him.
05:47It is all down to the man that's controlling him on the pit road.
05:50And obviously, you want to let them go as quickly as possible.
05:53Obviously, every second counts,
05:55but tempered with that, you have to bear in mind that these things,
06:00collisions, can so easily happen.
06:02Yeah, and Pedro may not have even known he'd been touched.
06:05You know, when you're under power, going back out as quickly as you can,
06:09just a slight tap like that.
06:11Remember, these have got sharp end plates, these cars.
06:14It's just enough to cut the car.
06:16Well, we're going to hear from Henri Pescarello in a minute.
06:19Hopefully, in a moment or two.
06:20The car is, you can see Pescarello's car there on track, leading the group.
06:24Safety cars are about to be brought back in at the end of this lap.
06:28So that will be deemed as when the start line safety car again returns to the start line.
06:34The other two safety cars will return to their own positions.
06:37Let's hear from Henri Pescarello in just a second.
06:44Henri, there was a little misunderstanding.
06:46What happened exactly?
06:47A little misunderstanding, Henri.
06:50Henri, what happened?
06:51A huge misunderstanding.
06:53Too many photographers.
06:55It's very hard for the team to see what's coming in Pit Road.
06:59Jean-Christophe.
07:01We're trying to avoid the photographers.
07:04He didn't even see the other car moving.
07:06We had no chance of stopping.
07:08I have the impression that they were moving from a turn compared to what was planned.
07:12Unfortunately, I think...
07:14Peugeot decided at the very last moment to come in on the same lap as us.
07:22And unfortunately, we now have had to work on both the cars.
07:25Both cars have lost a lot of time, ours and theirs.
07:27It's a real shame.
07:33Henri is saying we don't want to change the strategy.
07:35Now, of course, we've got to work on the car.
07:37A lot of racing yet to go.
07:39And who knows what might happen.
07:41But we will stay with our strategy and keep focused.
07:43And try and win the race for Peugeot.
07:48And of course, Pesca, three times himself a winning driver.
07:50Mark, 33 starts as a driver.
07:53And still after, what, a decade, I guess, looking for that elusive first win as a team owner.
07:58Yeah, I mean, this is one of his best chances this year.
08:00But how embarrassing.
08:01You know, you and Peugeot running together.
08:04And it's two of your cars, neighboring team cars that collide.
08:08Well, as far as Henri is concerned, it's a big problem.
08:12But it's not his problem because it was not his car that was released by his team onto the pit road.
08:17And they've also said that they did, at the last minute, decide to bring the car in on the same lap as the other.
08:21When originally, I suppose, they were going away.
08:23There's your friends down at Creation.
08:25This is Vanina Ix just about to take the car out of the garage.
08:29And has been back in the garage for a few minutes.
08:30Jamie Campbell-Walter was saying that they've worked really hard to try and sort out an awful porpoising and imbalance problem on the car.
08:37And now, it's comfortable.
08:40But, obviously, being in the garage inside the first hour for any time means that they are going to have a lot of work to do.
08:46Peugeot and Pescarello, Olivier Canel and Henri Pescarello with more than a few thoughts each, I'm sure, on what should be done next.
08:55It's impossible to blame photographers and the media.
08:57I mean, you know, if you don't want us here, we won't come.
08:59But then, nor will anybody else.
09:01Manufacturers, first of all, and everybody else.
09:03So, yes, you need to try and make sure that the pit lane is safe.
09:07But, again, the teams play at least as much a part in that as the photographers and the media do.
09:12I think it's the easier plan.
09:13It's just to blame the media, isn't it?
09:14It's disingenuous of Henri.
09:16The ACO is so strict about media control here.
09:19No one can go out without fire suits.
09:21Everyone is so controlled.
09:23They only let people who know what they're doing out.
09:24So, sorry, Henri, don't go down that route.
09:26We don't get roller skating Brazilian go-go dancers here, do we?
09:30Oh, no, we don't.
09:30That would be interesting.
09:31Oh, no, all right.
09:32Calm yourself down.
09:33Frank Montagnier and Marc Genet lead for Peugeot.
09:37And Alan McNish is third.
09:39Stefan Mooker in 007.
09:41Lola Aston Martin is fourth.
09:44And that is the battle between the other Audi and the 008.
09:49Number two, Mike Rockenfeller.
09:51And 008 is Darren Turner.
09:54And a very, very close restart here.
09:56It's everybody piling in together.
09:57Was that Rocky getting back in front of Stefan Mooker?
10:00I think that might have been Rocky having a bit of a canny restart.
10:03So, he's right behind McNish.
10:04McNish, Rockenfeller, then Mooker and Turner.
10:08And Marc Genet in sixth position, in fact.
10:10He's not second.
10:11He was shown a second in the safety car queue, but he's not.
10:14He's down in sixth.
10:14So, from what Danny's Peugeot leads by not very much, again, from Alan McNish.
10:20Nearly an hour in, we've reset the entire race back to lap one.
10:24Yep, exactly.
10:25Yes, it's gone back to default, as you said.
10:27But let's just have a look at the petrol runners, then.
10:29As we said, in fifth place, Darren Turner in the Lola Aston.
10:33Belichick, great drive.
10:34Oh, we've got a straight on.
10:35Team LNT, Geneta Zajtac has gone off.
10:38That is Richard, it was Richard Dean and McCarthy.
10:41It is still Richard Dean.
10:42They are 31st.
10:44Now, what this has all meant is that the LMP2s are starting to haul themselves up.
10:48Collard is leading LMP2, now 13th overall.
10:51Sejay Arra in the Navi Go Porsche is in 15th.
10:57And Johnny Cain and Tommy Erdoff still fighting their battle in 16th and 17th.
11:02Yeah, they're not too far apart, are they?
11:04They're about 15 seconds behind Sejay Arra in that second Team Go Porsche.
11:09So, the Team Go team, although we didn't see it, have had a driver change.
11:13So, they may well be rotating their drivers.
11:15Single stint, single stint, single stint.
11:17Well, a lot of drivers do do singles to begin with,
11:20just to make sure everybody gets in a car,
11:22just to make sure everybody's happy they've got their fuel strategy right, all those things.
11:26So, that may be the case with them, or they may be deciding to stay in singles.
11:29But I would have thought in a prototype car,
11:30he'll probably do doubles or triples, because the stints are not that long.
11:33Well, of course, the Team Go team have got a rookie in the team as well,
11:36so they don't want to get him in,
11:37because otherwise, you know, if they're waiting five or six hours,
11:40then the first time they send him out, it's starting.
11:42It's dusk, low light, and all of yada, yada, yada, the extra problems that we know.
11:46So, on board car number two, Mike Rockenfella,
11:49and something on the front of Alan McNish's car.
11:51He's picked up some debris from somewhere, a bit of tyre, it looks like.
11:55Lola Aston's 007, 008, line astern.
11:58You're looking at second, third, fourth, and fifth at Le Mans.
12:02Now, this is an interesting concept.
12:04With this new design in the front of the Audi,
12:06that's what's allowed for a piece of debris like that
12:08to get stuck into the front of it,
12:10whereas with the old designs,
12:11such as we see in some Lolas and the other things,
12:13it's, you know, things would just fly over the top
12:16or maybe get stuck off to the side,
12:17but certainly not wedged into the front like it has in that Audi.
12:20So that, you know, I think that could be an interesting concept
12:23for the rest of the race.
12:24I'll have to see if that happens again.
12:25You know, there's lots of debris at Le Mans.
12:28It's certainly not slowing Alan.
12:29He's just done his personal second sector of the race.
12:34Maybe there's a bit of an aero benefit there.
12:35That's where all the debris was, in that second sector.
12:37It's certainly, if you're wondering where the sectors we're talking about are,
12:40sector one is from the start to the Tertre Rouge,
12:42sector two is all the way down to Mulsang Corner,
12:45and then sector three is the long, long way home.
12:49All of eight kilometres, seven kilometres,
12:51back from Mulsang Corner to the finish.
12:53And that's very nearly half a lap
12:55as we see one of the Lola Roustons
12:56having some really serious work done.
12:59This is 009.
13:01So, real drama for this.
13:03Now, that's the car that had...
13:04And the seven car still in.
13:05Now, the 009 car had trouble with their gear shift this morning in warm-up.
13:09They were really struggling to downchange initially
13:11and then to upchange as well.
13:12So, that could possibly be what they're dealing with now.
13:15Now, we're looking here at the Speedy Sabah Lola Coupe.
13:18Johnny Kane, the...
13:20I beg your pardon.
13:22No, that's not the 33 Speedy Sabah Lola Coupe.
13:25That's the LMP2 car.
13:26The Speedy Sabah is 13 car.
13:28And Jair Baliki was putting a move in on Christophe Tanso for seventh.
13:32So, already, Barton Hugh Hayden's team is well up inside the top ten
13:37and knocking on the door of the top six.
13:39And, of course, we've had one Audi delayed.
13:42We've got one Peugeot still in the pit lane.
13:45So, only...
13:45In fact, two Peugeots delayed because the 17 car was delayed as well.
13:49But, only the top three cars now are diesel engine cars.
13:53So, already, somebody said earlier,
13:55I think we'll have a Lola Aston in the top five.
13:58Well, at the moment, we've got two in the top five.
14:01Yeah, in fact, the Pescarola Peugeot,
14:04Bouillon, that's pulling itself back up the order now.
14:06It's running some 21 seconds faster than the cars around it.
14:10It's in 19th and soon going to pull itself back up, I think.
14:14Christophe Tanso just making his move
14:17or trying to rather undo the move of Anja Baliki.
14:20Baliki turning into something of a secret weapon
14:23in the Speedy Sabah Lola Coupe.
14:26Just rocketed through qualifying,
14:28pulled out a lap that, frankly, the rest of the team
14:30were just knocked over by.
14:32They thought, where on earth did that come from?
14:34And he's producing it in race space as well.
14:363 minutes 33 is their best lap.
14:39The best petrol engine car, 330.1 for Darren Turner's 008.
14:44You're looking at the standings after one hour,
14:47near as of the Le Mans 24 hours.
14:51Peugeot, Audi, one and two.
14:54Then Aston Martin's third and fourth.
14:56That's not actually correct, is it?
14:59We've got Peugeot, Audi, Audi.
15:01Then Aston Martin's fourth and fifth
15:03on our current timing screen.
15:04So that was coming up to speed.
15:07So we are going to take a very quick commercial break
15:11on the other side of this
15:12while I go off for tea and tipping.
15:14Jeremy Shaw will join the line-up
15:16with one hour of Le Mans gone.
15:19Already more stories to picker
15:21than we can possibly shake a stick at.
15:24And 23 hours more racing to continue.
15:27We'll be here live on Eurosport 2
15:28until 7pm tonight
15:30when after the tennis from Queen's
15:32we go back to international.
15:34Stay with us live on Eurosport
15:37as Audi continue
15:38to try and hold station
15:40second and third.
15:42Frank Montagne's Peugeot leads.
15:47Welcome back to Eurosport
15:49live from Le Mans.
15:51And we're now looking at
15:52Peugeot leading Audi, Audi
15:54and then Aston Martin Lola.
15:56Stefan Mook moving up into fourth place.
15:59So we're just going to go down
16:01and have a quick chat in the pits.
16:05David Richards, thank you.
16:07It's a very good start for Aston Martin.
16:09No, the 007, 008
16:11are really pushing quite hard now.
16:13You know, we just have to see what happens
16:14if the other people seem to be
16:16having a few incidents out there.
16:18So and of course our 009 car.
16:20We had a small problem there
16:21with the alternator pulley.
16:23There's an idler pulley
16:24which sees solid
16:25and we've lost a lot of time
16:27with that car unfortunately.
16:29Yeah, we saw a lot of pressure
16:30between Audi and Peugeot.
16:31So maybe you can start
16:33to think of a podium
16:34if they're doing incidents like that.
16:36I don't think you think of anything
16:37after one hour in a 24-hour race
16:39except 23 hours still to go.
16:42Yeah, for sure.
16:42Thank you very much.
16:44Well, that's brief and to the point
16:46from David Richards.
16:46We're hoping we're going to be
16:47talking to him later on
16:48about his failed Formula 1 bid
16:51along with Martin Brayne of Lola.
16:52We'll be going to get both of those up
16:54later this evening
16:55just here straight from the horse's mouths.
16:57And Jeremy Shaw joining us.
16:59Jeremy, what a start to the race then.
17:01I mean, normally
17:02we get a bit of drama
17:03at the beginning
17:03but to effectively lose
17:05a potentially winning Audi
17:07and a potentially winning Peugeot
17:08in the first hour
17:10almost unheard of here.
17:11Well, yeah, very disappointing,
17:12isn't it, for the fans here?
17:13And it's also kind of disappointing
17:15right now
17:16because with those two safety cars
17:18we've now got the two leaders
17:19spread by almost half a lap.
17:22So Frank Montagny
17:23has got to just set his own pace
17:24which, of course,
17:25he was doing from the start of the race
17:26but now
17:27instead of having a couple of second margin
17:30or so over the second place car
17:32now
17:32he's got almost two minutes.
17:35So he's going to be out on his own
17:36and threading his way
17:37through the traffic
17:38from the second of the safety cars.
17:40We've got a pretty useful battle
17:42going on there
17:43behind him.
17:44The two Audis are running
17:46basically three or four seconds a lap
17:49slower than the Peugeot
17:50but as we saw in that first stint
17:51the Audis were able to get one more lap
17:53before they came on to Pit Road
17:55to make their first fuel stops of the day.
17:57So really, at this stage
17:59it's not really about pace
18:01it's about strategy
18:02because clearly
18:02Peugeot has the pace over the Audis
18:04but if the Audis can
18:06eke out an extra lap
18:07at each pit stop
18:08then that could be crucial too.
18:09So it's a real
18:10cat and mouse game
18:11at the moment, isn't it, Mark?
18:12Yeah, now Audis at the moment
18:13is still refusing to speculate
18:15on what caused the problem
18:16for Alex Premat earlier on
18:19but we had it straight
18:20from the horse's mouth as well.
18:21Raymond Dumas
18:22perhaps caught off guard
18:23by our interviewer
18:24told us that Alex
18:25had been complaining
18:26of a power steering problem
18:28on that lap
18:28and then he went off
18:29and Liz, your guess would be
18:31probably had a sudden failure
18:33or just couldn't get the bike.
18:34Yeah, I mean
18:35it's hard for us to speculate
18:36isn't it
18:37but certainly where it happened
18:38and the way the car reacted
18:39it makes me wonder
18:40if perhaps he had a failure
18:41of his power steering
18:42mid-corner
18:43which would have that happen
18:44obviously he then gets out
18:45on a bit of rubber
18:46that's on the side
18:47the tyres pick that up
18:48that sort of carries the car
18:49a bit further out
18:49in the understeer
18:50that we saw
18:51so, you know
18:52but certainly
18:52it wouldn't explain it
18:53going off then
18:54to carry on
18:55so it's
18:56well, you know
18:56Audi's not going to tell us
18:57straight away
18:58everything that's going on
18:59are they?
19:00They're just going to do
19:00their best to fix it
19:01and try and keep it quiet
19:02so
19:03But all this is making
19:04Lola Aston Martin
19:05very good
19:06two of the Golf cars
19:07as we said there
19:07Stefan Luca
19:08Just really seeing
19:08the traffic issues
19:10through there
19:10look at this
19:11here they are
19:11here are the fourth
19:12and fifth place cars
19:12and what they're doing
19:13is they're working
19:14their way through
19:15the GT traffic
19:15and that is a fantastic
19:17GT battle
19:17isn't it?
19:18I don't know
19:18whether you were
19:18able to concentrate
19:19on that through
19:20that first
19:20it was wonderful
19:21wasn't it?
19:22I mean swapping
19:22positions
19:23for those top four cars
19:24nose to tail
19:25before they came
19:26onto pit lane
19:27yeah a truly big battle
19:28going on there
19:29and we were just saying
19:30how difficult that is
19:31when there is a battle
19:32going on between the GT
19:33cars it's very difficult
19:34to get around them
19:35as a prototype car
19:35because they're very much
19:36focused on their own game
19:38and their own race
19:39and it is your job
19:40to get around them
19:40so when you get a lot
19:41of traffic involved
19:42in there
19:42it's very tricky
19:43the two Audis
19:45the second and third place
19:46cars going past
19:47the earlier damage
19:50Pescarola
19:50Peugeot
19:51Bouillon there
19:53Bouillon still stuck
19:55in 19th place
19:56he's going a little bit
19:57slowly though
19:57I think that problem
19:58has come back
19:58something has come back
19:59to Horven
20:00because his last lap
20:01was not that much quicker
20:02than the LMP2s around him
20:04so just have to watch
20:05that space
20:06they're still showing
20:07Marc Genet
20:07as 9th
20:09sorry
20:09they're running in 5th place
20:11only one lap down
20:13and I think that's wrong
20:13Liz
20:14he lost a bundle
20:15who's that?
20:16Marc Genet
20:17no he's on the same lap
20:20no it's Pedro Lamy
20:21sorry it's Pedro Lamy
20:22that's lost it
20:22number 7
20:23yeah
20:23they have lost
20:24a huge amount of time
20:25we're just trying to find out
20:27where they are
20:27but our timing screens
20:28at the moment
20:29only go down to
20:3036th place
20:31they will have lost
20:32quite a bit of time
20:33even before that safety car
20:34I mean they would have lost
20:35up to a lap
20:36just then
20:37even
20:37if not more
20:38but Marc Genet
20:39certainly
20:40as they're coming by him
20:41that battle
20:43between the
20:431st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
20:455th, 6th, 7th place cars
20:478 seconds
20:48has been covering it
20:48after the safety car
20:49yeah
20:50and look at that
20:50Montagny again
20:521.29 last time around
20:54he pulled out
20:54another 3.5 seconds
20:56over Alan McNish
20:57so
20:57yeah
20:58that's it
20:58you know
20:59the pace of that
21:00Peugeot out in front
21:01really is very
21:02very impressive
21:03he's about to dip
21:04into the 24s
21:04isn't he
21:0525.106
21:06on the
21:06well
21:07that was on that too
21:08but if he can
21:09get back down
21:10to that again
21:11McNish then
21:11doing his job
21:12just staying there
21:13he's just
21:15keeping his eye
21:15on the cars
21:16up front
21:16and Rockenfella
21:17staying with him
21:17as well
21:180.384 seconds
21:19separating the
21:20Audi's
21:20at the last lap
21:21they're running in
21:22convoy
21:22the two Aston Martin
21:23Lolas
21:23running in convoy
21:25they're running
21:25beautifully
21:26aren't they
21:26they sound so
21:27good don't they
21:28yeah I think
21:29the question
21:29with those cars
21:30is going to be
21:30you know
21:31reliability
21:31is there going
21:32to be
21:32you know
21:33in the engine
21:34especially
21:34because I know
21:35they've got a
21:35brand new engine
21:36for this race
21:36which is very rare
21:37that that happens
21:38that you start
21:38with a new engine
21:39entirely for a race
21:40week
21:40it's very very rare
21:41so it's not really
21:42been tested for 24 hours
21:43certainly not in a car
21:44they've not managed
21:45to have a run
21:46for 24 hours
21:47as far as I know
21:47in that engine
21:48we've got the RML
21:50P2 car coming on
21:51to Pitlane
21:52count of a 25
21:52they are
21:54looking like
21:54they're going to do
21:55a full service
21:56on the car
21:56can't imagine
21:57why did they not
21:58make the
21:58have they made
21:59the stop yet
21:59yeah
22:00they made a stop
22:01on lap 11
22:03they were in
22:04so they've only done
22:05what four or five laps
22:06since the safety car
22:08period
22:08so that
22:09there could be
22:09problems there
22:10well they're changing
22:11the tyres
22:11I spoke to Ray Malek
22:12just before the start
22:13you know
22:14that car
22:14we've talked about
22:15already
22:15had an incident
22:16in the warm-up
22:17same problem
22:18that afflicted the
22:19Peugeots
22:19in that
22:21one of the
22:21Aston Martins
22:22007 car
22:23was waived
22:24out of its pit stall
22:25just as
22:26Mike Newton
22:28was bringing
22:28the RML car
22:29on into his pit stall
22:31collision between the two
22:32and it damaged
22:34the under tray
22:35on the number 25
22:36RML P2 car
22:37they changed the under tray
22:39there's also a little bit
22:40of damage
22:41to a brand new
22:42intercooler
22:43that had been put
22:43on that car
22:44they had a good look
22:45over it
22:45there goes
22:46the P2 car
22:47so that is rejoined
22:48in a race
22:48but they elected
22:49not to change
22:50the intercooler
22:51because it had been
22:52a brand new piece
22:53and Ray said
22:54Ray Malek
22:54told me
22:55that there's a little bit
22:56of damage
22:56but it's not
22:57in a pressurised section
22:58so they're keeping
22:59their fingers crossed
23:00and that will be okay
23:01we're just hearing
23:02that Michael Vergas
23:02in the Vogue Motorsport
23:03Ferrari
23:04has got a stop-go penalty
23:05we know he's a flying Dutchman
23:06but he overdid it
23:07in the pit lane
23:08and he is going to get
23:09that stop-go penalty
23:10for speeding
23:10now that's
23:11that's a lot of time
23:12to lose at Le Mans
23:13I mean it's such a long circuit
23:14you really lose
23:15quite a bit of space
23:16there having to come
23:17all the way in
23:17stop and go
23:18I mean it's not something
23:19they want to be getting
23:20for something as silly
23:20as pit lane speeding
23:21and all these cars
23:22will have a pit limiter
23:24on them
23:24a pit limiter button
23:25that you push
23:25and it keeps your speed
23:27down to the
23:28acceptable level
23:29so I'm not sure
23:30maybe he just
23:30forgot to put that
23:32limiter on in time
23:33or perhaps let it go
23:34a little bit early
23:34so 71km's
23:36is what he's doing
23:37in the pit lane
23:37and it's a 60km limiter
23:39so it's quite a bit over
23:40so it makes me wonder
23:41if maybe he's forgotten
23:42to push his pit limiter button
23:43three points
23:44on a 60lb fine
23:45yeah exactly
23:46there we go
23:47it's not looking good
23:48on the license
23:48that's exactly
23:50what they don't need
23:51but that GT2 battle
23:53has been tremendous
23:54through the first hour
23:54of the race
23:55it's now though
23:55Patrick Long
23:56in the number 76 car
23:58the MacBook Porsche
24:01the Ipsa car
24:03Ipsa performance team
24:05has leading now
24:06he's got about
24:07a 3 second lead
24:08over Jamie Mello
24:10and the pit stops
24:11the Risi car
24:12Jamie Mello
24:13is a fabulous pit stop
24:14they came out
24:15with a handy advantage
24:16but Patrick Long
24:17has rested
24:18that advantage away now
24:19from in the Porsche
24:21and pulled out
24:22just a little bit
24:23of a gap
24:23but I'm sure
24:24it won't be long
24:24before Jamie Mello
24:25is right back with him
24:26we've just watched the number 9 car
24:28going around the 007 car
24:31I believe
24:31absolutely incredible speed
24:34around that petrol car
24:35and although the ACO
24:36has worked very hard
24:37to make them even
24:38it's still not quite enough
24:40I think
24:41there goes the number 7 car
24:42back onto the racetrack
24:44and the KSM Lola
24:46is back out again as well
24:47so we'll see if that's managed
24:49to solve the problems
24:50they've had
24:51which have plagued them
24:51since the start of this race
24:53let's just go back to GT2
24:54for a moment Liz
24:55we're talking about Pat Long
24:55in that IMSA Performance car
24:57I mean all these cars
24:59in the front running
24:59have got huge winning history
25:01here at Le Mans
25:01you know the Bergmeister's car
25:03the Risi Competizione car
25:06which won last year
25:06and of course
25:07that IMSA Performance car
25:08won two years ago
25:09with Raymond Rack
25:10he's been the constant there
25:12Matt Mutt
25:13in case you're wondering
25:13is the biggest insurance agency
25:16in France
25:16the team is based
25:17at Rouen
25:17and they really are
25:19full on Porsche backing
25:21despite the fact
25:22one of the drivers
25:23is a very talented
25:24gentleman driver
25:25yeah well I think
25:26with that history
25:27they've got with that car
25:28I mean it's done very well
25:29with Raymond Rack as well
25:31and you know
25:32I think Porsche picks
25:33who they support
25:34very carefully
25:35and I think they believe
25:35in this car
25:36and in the team
25:37and they think
25:37it's got the potential
25:38to win
25:38and certainly by
25:39making the decision
25:40to put Patrick Long
25:41in there
25:41I think that shows
25:42that they think
25:43it can win
25:43Jeremy
25:44there is the number 7
25:45Peugeot
25:46back out into the fray
25:47a 24 minute stop
25:48to repair that extensive damage
25:51on the left rear corner
25:52of the car
25:53they've had a massive
25:54amount of work to do
25:55and in 24 minutes
25:56that is pretty impressive
25:57that's almost Audi standards
25:58of repair work
25:59isn't it
26:00because we saw that car
26:01it looked like it had
26:01a huge amount of damage
26:02and who knew
26:03what else could have been
26:04going on underneath
26:04just from the damage
26:05of that tyre
26:06so that really is
26:07an extremely fast repair
26:08yeah we don't know
26:09of course whether
26:10it's fully healthy
26:10but we'll hopefully
26:11find out fairly short
26:12the bad news is
26:13our timing
26:13as you said Mark Cole
26:14the timing is
26:15that only goes to
26:16the top 36
26:17and he's well
26:17outside that now
26:18so that's rather
26:20irritating
26:20we can't get proper
26:21scoring
26:22see if we can
26:23find a way around
26:24we'll just have to
26:25guess for the next
26:2523 hours
26:26yeah no problem
26:27that'll be fine
26:28we can make it up
26:29yeah we normally do
26:31don't we
26:31let's just have a look
26:32at LMP2 very briefly
26:33Manu Collard
26:34is still well in
26:35control of that
26:36these cars are
26:37bulletproof
26:38these Porsche Spiders
26:39Collard running
26:4014th overall
26:41and behind him
26:42Seiji Ara
26:42in the Japanese
26:44entered Porsche
26:46Spyder
26:46that's the car
26:46of course
26:47that won here
26:47last year
26:48the Van
26:48Merckstein car
26:49so both these
26:50cars
26:50first and second
26:51running in the
26:52reverse auto at
26:53moment from last
26:54year
26:54really really
26:55bulletproof
26:55and I think
26:57if we've seen
26:57we had no failures
26:59in these Porsche
27:00Spiders in Europe
27:00at all last year
27:01and they're just
27:02so far ahead
27:03of everything else
27:04I mean you look
27:04at the difference
27:05the rest of the
27:06LMP2 cars
27:06are quite close
27:07together
27:08but certainly
27:08a huge gap
27:09between the times
27:10in qualifying
27:11and even now
27:11in the race
27:12that the Porsches
27:13are able to do
27:13yeah I mean
27:14Johnny Cade
27:14in that 33
27:15speedy Seba
27:16car
27:17I mean that
27:17is a front
27:18running LMP2
27:18but he at the
27:19moment is some
27:2012 seconds
27:21down on them
27:22I mean he's
27:23Johnny is going
27:23to be as quick
27:24as anyone around
27:24here
27:25it just goes
27:25to show
27:26the might of Porsche
27:27I mean when
27:28they build a car
27:28they don't take
27:29any halfway points
27:30on it
27:30and they basically
27:31built that LMP2 car
27:32even the first one
27:33out of the box
27:33was an incredible
27:34vehicle
27:34and every year
27:35the updates
27:36they've made
27:36the changes
27:37they've made
27:37it just gets
27:38better and better
27:38and I think
27:39they proved
27:39that last year
27:40in the 24 hour
27:41we're going down
27:42to the pits
27:42let's go and
27:43join Justine
27:44there
27:44see who she's found
27:45Dr. Orlish
27:47good start
27:48confident start
27:49we're going to do it
27:51we're going to do it
27:52which was released with the prevision of 4 tours for that.
27:58We had the pressure on the adapters,
28:01that means that for the first tours, we were not as strong as we thought.
28:05By safety car, of course, we changed the strategy,
28:08but we will see. I think the intermediary is not too bad.
28:13A little problem with the number 3, she went on the road.
28:16What happened?
28:18We did not find anything on the car that was not correct.
28:21At the moment, we are in a good position to...
28:24For the moment, no problem.
28:25You saw that Peugeot had a little problem at the stand.
28:28We checked the car all over, no problems at all.
28:30It's quite surprising,
28:31the little problem Peugeot had at the stand.
28:33What do you think about it?
28:34Peugeot had their problems in the pit lane.
28:36Normally, we don't want cars from the same brand to touch.
28:41We can see, it can happen to any of us.
28:44We are surprised they had this problem in the pit lane.
28:46We saw that there were a lot of broken things.
28:48So, two front cars running, touch each other.
28:51That's racing, and that's what being at Le Mans is all about.
28:55But we need to be in a position to go on speed or we can win the course.
29:03Thank you very much.
29:05We've really still got to find the right pace.
29:11And what we need is that we need a window where we can find the right pace.
29:14We're going to run the race at.
29:15We haven't quite found it yet.
29:16Well, as we were hearing from Wolfgang Ulrich there,
29:19we just saw one of the GT2s coming.
29:20I didn't catch one.
29:21It's problems with the number 75 Endurance Asia team.
29:24All right.
29:25And they seem to have a right front puncture.
29:27Luckily, he's been a bit better off than the Peugeot was,
29:30and it looks like it's maybe happened later in the tracks
29:32that he's been able to get around without too much damage on the car.
29:35Hopefully, they'll just be able to change that over and be back on their way.
29:38Yeah, that car was outside the top ten in GT2.
29:40Incidentally, on the grid this morning, they had all the Hong Kong people here with a dragon.
29:46Chinese dragon.
29:47Yeah, fantastic.
29:48Good luck, Symbal, of course.
29:50Well, I think this is a good start for the new Asian Le Mans series that's starting.
29:55And definitely, they're pushing for that.
29:58Stay with us now.
29:59We'll be back with you soon on Eurosport 2.
30:10You're live on Eurosport at the world's greatest race, the Le Mans 24 hours.
30:13We are now some one hour and 20 minutes into the race.
30:17Peugeot leading from Audi, Audi, Peugeot.
30:20And then in fifth and sixth places, the two beautiful Gulf Lola Aston Martins.
30:25How good is that?
30:26Three manufacturers all on top of their game, filling the top six places.
30:30Jeremy?
30:31Yeah, it's been a fascinating first, what, hour and 20 minutes, hasn't it?
30:35We've seen, unfortunately, those two cars out.
30:37But there's all sorts of interesting battles going on.
30:39And if you look at the order now in L&P 2, you still have the two Porsches out in front.
30:46And it's still Emmanuel Collard.
30:47He's got an advantage of about 10 or 12, well, 14 seconds last time around over Seiji Ara in the Team Go Porsche.
30:55In terms of fastest laps, those two within about a half a second or so.
30:59So I think very little to choose between them at this stage.
31:02The lead muir, last time around, Frank Montagnier did at 3 minutes 36, which is a good bit off his usual pace.
31:10We're presuming that's because he had just an inordinate amount of traffic on that lap.
31:16But as a result, the gap to Alan McNish has come down to 1 minute 41 seconds.
31:22So he brought it down by about six or seven seconds worth over the last couple of laps.
31:27And last time around, Nishi did a 3 minutes 29.196, which is only fractionally slower than his best lap of the race thus far.
31:36Right, here's the first of the non-factory cars at the moment.
31:39It's the speedy Samar Lola coupe of Andrea Bellici, the man who lit qualifying a light on Thursday night.
31:46The guy was so fast, but he was so ragged as well, over the curve.
31:50Twice he leapt over the Ford chicane.
31:52And we're actually worried.
31:53So will Lola.
31:54Who's going to punch a front suspension struck through the monocot the way he was flying that car around.
31:58But Liz, let's just go back to what Dr. Ulrich was saying.
32:01He said they've been all over Premat's car, they found nothing wrong.
32:04But does that point to driver error?
32:07It could do.
32:08I mean, that's just, it just seems very odd to me.
32:10I mean, it's just the way the car reacted, that seems very strange.
32:13And he would have thought, you know, a driver of his quality, he would have been able to tell them if it was his own fault or not.
32:19So, I don't know.
32:20I don't know if maybe that's Audi not telling us something or if it's the driver himself not wanting to admit it.
32:25I don't know.
32:26It's hard to say, really.
32:27I'm sure Roman Dumas didn't make up the fact.
32:28No, exactly.
32:29He said Alex had been reporting power problems and steering problems before that happened.
32:33It looked a lot to me like something grabbed in the car, but I mean...
32:36Perhaps we're going into territory, we shouldn't be going down.
32:38I think we might, yeah, be edging in somewhere where we're not invited.
32:42I just found some scoring on the web here.
32:45It's several minutes behind, but the number seven car, with Nicola Manassina at the wheel, did a three minutes 27.2.
32:55It would probably be a couple of laps ago now, but I think, well, that in fact was his first flying lap after those repairs.
33:03So, a 3.27, one lap after repairs is pretty impressive.
33:09I think they've done a very good repair job on that car.
33:11Yeah.
33:12And apparently, therefore, it is in rude health.
33:15The bad news is, he's seven laps behind the race leader.
33:18Yeah.
33:19Full marks to Peugeot for turning up round.
33:20Here's Bellicci.
33:21He's staying on board the little speedy Sabarkamis.
33:23Of course, his last year's Cherouz factory Aston Martin car.
33:27Great job they did with that car.
33:28And Bellicci, as we said earlier, one of the heroes are qualifying.
33:31He's just getting fettled.
33:33This is his second stop, and already it's bedtime for the racing guys.
33:38You know, they're obviously quite happy with the car.
33:39They're all taking an early snooze, because they know it's going to be a long, long night.
33:42I think they're trying to catch up on what they're hoping will be a very long night, I think, as in staying up with the car running.
33:47Exactly.
33:48On the grid this morning, Paul Drayson out on the grid, on the other side of the road facing the crowds, and the crowds are actually cheering.
33:55They weren't cheering, they were cheering, and he was loving every moment of it.
33:58I mean, of course, this is one of the biggest things of his life, to actually be here racing at Le Mans.
34:03He's tried for so many years to do it, but because he's blind in one eye, as we told the other night, the FI kept refusing him to race it.
34:10Finally, they relented, and here he is doing a wonderful job.
34:12And he's got his entire family here, every one of them wearing an Aston Martin racing suit as well, which I think is just fantastic.
34:18The whole family here to support him, and we wish him lots of luck.
34:21I hope that he has every bit of the Le Mans experience that he's hoping for.
34:25Teamed up with Lord Mandelson next year, perhaps?
34:28Never know.
34:30There goes Andrea Balicki back into the race, in eighth place, having made that pitch long.
34:37And that Lola Aston Aston Seba car really running nicely.
34:41It's been very impressive, hasn't it, all week long?
34:43It's been pretty much on the same pace as the works Lola Aston Martin.
34:47Yeah, I mean, last year, when they started the LMS season at Barcelona and led the Peugeots,
34:51I mean, everyone just, wow, you know, what's this?
34:53And the Audi's, of course, and they suddenly realise what an engine Aston Martin has.
34:58Of course, they are running direct injection engines this weekend.
35:01We don't know how many of the cars. We knew it was one, then it turned out it's two.
35:05We don't know if all three of them have got it.
35:07Yeah, I believe all three have got it.
35:08I think all three were intended to have it, certainly.
35:10And there was a little bit of niggling going on there from Mareika, saying, well, you know, this is supposed to be the GT1 engine.
35:16And Aston said, well, that's what we're going to be doing in GT1, so there we are.
35:20Right, and they actually didn't even put the engine in until after the first practice, I believe.
35:25So they did their first practice with the other engine, and then they put that in,
35:28which really is a bit of a gamble at them all, in my opinion.
35:30I mean, I'm sure that Aston Martin feels they know what they're doing, and they've thought it through, obviously.
35:35They're winners here, but, you know, I just think it's a bit of a risk, isn't it, for 24 hours.
35:39Well, I'm sure it's proven and tested.
35:41Yeah, they've done a lot of track testing and dyno testing and everything else.
35:45You can never simulate racing initially, of course.
35:47Exactly, and there's only so much a dyno can do.
35:49But for the engine, you know, you can learn a lot, obviously, from the dyno,
35:53and I'm sure they wouldn't be running it if they weren't comfortable with it.
35:56But, you know, within the first hour or so, we've had a 009 car, as David Richards said,
36:01a seized alternator pulley on that car, so clearly it's not bulletproof.
36:05And this is, of course, the LMP2 non-Porsche leader.
36:08This is Johnny Kane, the man from Northern Ireland, doing a great job here in the 33 car.
36:13That's the other speedy Seba car that Hugh Hayden runs with his Arabic No. 7.
36:19And Johnny can be handing that car over to Benjamin Leuenberger, Xavier Pompidou.
36:24And, really, this coupe working so well is in LMP2, isn't it?
36:29As we've seen with the RML car, now they've got the engine working, right?
36:32Well, I was speaking to Lola about this, and really, they've just kept on improving the car.
36:36And I think when it was brand new, they said that some of the drivers were saying
36:39there was a bit of an oversteer issue, and it was a bit snatchy.
36:42And this year, they said all the drivers are just saying that it's absolutely dialed in,
36:45that it feels really planted, really secure.
36:47So, it looks like, you know, Lola's really figured it out, and it is a supercar now.
36:52Looking at the 16 car, the surviving, or the undamaged Pescarolo car, this is so difficult.
36:59You're running one open prototype, albeit Peugeot engine, but it's your own car.
37:03The other car you're running is a quasi-factory car, and you've got a balance, haven't you,
37:07between how you're going to approach your strategy.
37:10We heard Henri Pescarolo saying, that went out of the window after this collision.
37:13Well, exactly, exactly. I think there was definitely a plan there.
37:28So, welcome back to British Eurosport, Christophe Tanso then in the Pescarolo,
37:32coming out of the pits, having just made his second stop of the afternoon.
37:36That car was running in seventh place, we'll see where it threads back in.
37:39There's the F6 car, that is our LMP2 leader.
37:42It was blue last year when it finished second year.
37:44Green this year to celebrate its part in the Michelin green challenge.
37:49And Manu Collard, still one of the finest Porsche drivers of all time at the wheel of that car.
37:55Yeah, I don't think he'll be sorry that he's gotten the drive in that car.
37:58Obviously, Emmanuel Collard being on pole at Le Mans before, he's driven the Pescarolo,
38:03he's driven a lot of different cars, but I know he really loves this Porsche,
38:06so he's not going to be sorry to be back in it at Le Mans.
38:08Jeremy, you've seen in America every time he was invited over to drive the Penske Porsche,
38:13he'd be in the winning car.
38:14Yeah.
38:15Yeah, he's got either a very good manager or a bit of both.
38:20I mean, he's managed obviously as a factory driver for Porsche,
38:23so they put him in a place where he's likely to do a good job,
38:26and he very rarely disappoints.
38:29So down the long, long Mulsanne Strait.
38:38Well, we're going to be changing channels again, just make sure as we go to the break,
38:43you've only got two to choose between on the Sky package,
38:46so make sure you get the right one.
38:48We'll be back after this break.
38:50So your Murosport 2 hopefully now joining us here at Le Mans.
39:02We've got Liz Halliday, Jeremy Shaw, myself, Mark Cole.
39:05We are now one and a half hours into the race.
39:08Peugeot leading, Frank Montani at the wheel from Audi's Alamaknish,
39:12Audi's Mike Rockenfeller, Marc Genet for Peugeot in fourth,
39:15and then the two, Lola Aston Martin,
39:17the Stefan Mukher and Darren Turner running in fifth and sixth.
39:20Manu Collard leads LMP2,
39:22and GT1 in the safe hands of Jan Magnus and the factory Corvette,
39:27their last ever run here.
39:29Patrick Long, another American,
39:31he is running in 31st place leading LMGT2 in the Ipsa Performance Matmut Porsche.
39:40And Liz, your good friend of Pat Long,
39:42what will his feelings be at the moment?
39:45Well, I think certainly, you know, like I said,
39:47when I spoke to him earlier, he said they were very relaxed.
39:49They didn't think they could hold the pace of the other car,
39:51but, you know, certainly he's proving that wrong at the moment
39:54because he's hammering away at the front.
39:56So I think they'll be very happy at the moment.
39:58Their plan was just to keep very consistent times, you know,
40:00obviously quick, but just keep them going,
40:02stay out of the pits and just see if the race came to them.
40:05But, you know, I think maybe Pat was a bit wrong in saying
40:07they couldn't hold the pace because he's certainly doing it now.
40:10Well, Porsche were faster last year here, but Ferrari still won.
40:13And again, they've been generally faster here this year,
40:15but Ferrari's still mixing it with them,
40:18and it all comes down to luck, doesn't it?
40:20I mean, I honestly think that we're going to see them dicing
40:23through the entire 24 hours.
40:24I think we'll see a swap over Ferrari, Porsche, Ferrari, Porsche,
40:27back and forth, and it's all going to come down to pit stops, in my opinion.
40:29Pit stops and keeping it clean.
40:31We'll have to see where it comes.
40:32Yeah, maybe your tire management might come into that as well.
40:35It's all part of that whole strategic situation,
40:37but the Porsche definitely, in GT2,
40:39has a slight straight-line speed advantage over the Ferraris.
40:43It's probably about five or six kilometers per hour advantage
40:47that the Porsches have, certainly here,
40:50and it's all about straight-away speed here, isn't it, at Le Mans.
40:53So that is a very crucial advantage that the Porsches have.
40:56The Ferraris could break a little bit deeper into the corners,
40:59and it's now down to, we don't yet know, really,
41:02who has the advantage of fuel mileage,
41:06because they both were able just to make their first stop
41:10when that safety car came out.
41:11It's really going to come down to who's going to have the best pit stops.
41:14I think it might well do.
41:15Best pit stops, best driver changes,
41:16it's going to be interesting to see who's the most switched on
41:19in the teams with this new tire strategy.
41:22There you go, and who makes the least mistakes.
41:24Exactly.
41:25In and out of the pit.
41:26Watch this space, I think, is the key for that one.
41:29But back up at the front,
41:30we've only got the six cars on the lead lap.
41:32We've got the two Peugeots, the two Audis,
41:35and the two Leila Aston Martins.
41:36They're the only cars on the lead lap.
41:38In seventh place now, it's Charles Waltzman at the wheel
41:41of the team Colas, Audi R10 TDI car number 14,
41:46as we see both of the Jaguars on the Aston Martins on pit lane.
41:50Now, certainly in the 009 car,
41:52I know they were planning on doing triple stints
41:55straight from the beginning and triple stinting the tires,
41:57which is quite a big move, I think, really.
41:59So they're very confident they can triple stint those tires,
42:01quad stinting through the night in the Aston Martins.
42:04Yeah, Aston Martin, of course, very proud.
42:06They're covered in three of the four classes here.
42:08We just saw the Jet Alliance car rolling to a halt out.
42:10in the circuit.
42:11We're going to take a break in just a moment.
42:13So we'll be back here live on Eurosport after these messages.
42:17Stay with us.
42:2425 laps completed here.
42:26The 70th running of the Le Mans.
42:2824 hours as we look at the LMP2 leading Essex Porsche.
42:32Emmanuel Carlisle of France at the wheel of the Danish car.
42:35And in the pits, the number three Audi.
42:37This is the car of Alex Premat.
42:39It's the one that's had all the bad luck today.
42:41Might have been a power steering problem.
42:42It might not.
42:43We just don't know.
42:44But he went off Indianapolis.
42:45He did.
42:46And he lost two laps making that pit stop.
42:48There goes Frank Montani, our race leader,
42:50just having made his second service of the day.
42:53And the number 19, the number three car of Alexandra Premat
42:57was back up at the 19th place overall.
43:00Yeah.
43:02So Montani then, as you say, continuing on board that car.
43:05Alan McNish second.
43:06Well, he'll go first now, of course.
43:07Rocky into second place as Montani takes that stop.
43:11But Montani's pace, at first we thought, was just dropping off a bit.
43:15But he's clattered to deceive, hasn't he?
43:17Because he did a 3.25 on the second lap.
43:19And then running 3.30s after that.
43:21Well, no.
43:22Still a huge pace, isn't it?
43:23Yeah.
43:24Through that first stint, he was running regular 26s and 27s.
43:27All the way through to that first safety car.
43:29And he was super consistent.
43:31Yeah.
43:32OK, there wasn't a lot of traffic in at early stages,
43:34because he just came up on, you know,
43:36took him three or four laps to catch the tail end cars.
43:39He had to work his way through there.
43:40Once he'd done that, he was off to a clear road again.
43:42So now the traffic is more, kind of knotted,
43:46and a little bit more difficult to pick your way through.
43:48Yeah.
43:49But he was super consistent on opening stint.
43:51It was very, very impressive.
43:52And do you remember pulling away from the Audi at three seconds a lap?
43:55Yeah.
43:56And do you remember last year, all through the night,
43:57while it was dry, Montani was banging in the same lap time all through the night.
44:00In fact, we commented on it several times,
44:02and I think we probably called him the most consistent driver of the race last year.
44:05Yes, we did.
44:06Yeah, we definitely did.
44:07I mean, but it is hard to say, because at the beginning of the race,
44:10obviously, he had a completely clear road in front of him.
44:12He had nothing to deal with.
44:13Then, obviously, you start dealing with the traffic.
44:15But even so, you know, like we were saying earlier,
44:18it just seems a bit further off the pace than he should be in traffic,
44:21being the experienced driver he is.
44:22So it makes you wonder if maybe there is a little bit of a problem.
44:25Oh, we got two Audis in at once.
44:26Bit of a traffic jam there.
44:27Bad planning, isn't it?
44:28New nose.
44:29Also for the man that was leading the race when he came in, Alan McNish.
44:34He'll be staying on board.
44:35Audi telling us they're triple stinting early in the evening.
44:39And then quadruple stinting if they can with the tyres.
44:42Whether or not they can with the drivers, we'll find out during the night.
44:45But Dr Ulrich saying they still have to find their pace.
44:48It's just been such a messy race to start with the safety car.
44:51We've had problems here, there, a lot of traffic.
44:53And we just need a long, consistent run, don't they,
44:56to find out how the car best works at what temperature.
44:58And that time, interestingly, the Peugeot and the Audi came in on the same lap, didn't they?
45:04So that is pretty interesting to me.
45:06Last time around, the Audi was able to go one lap farther than the Audi.
45:11This time, not the case.
45:12Yeah.
45:13And last year, of course, Audi could always stop later than the Peugeot.
45:15So Peugeot obviously got their fuel management worked out a lot better than this year, Liz.
45:19Yeah, no, they have, I think.
45:20And, you know, certainly they've had a bit more time with diesel fuel
45:24and time to work out how that's going to work for them.
45:27And now they've got the new car, and I'm sure they've got that a lot more dialed in.
45:30I'm sure that was part of the planning when they built the new car.
45:32They've really looked at exactly how they could manage it at Le Mans.
45:35You know, I mean, Audi would have planned everything.
45:38I mean, we know that.
45:39They would have planned everything and then planned it again and then planned it again just to make sure.
45:42Yeah.
45:43Peugeot is saying that Peugeot seems to have got all the boxes ticked now.
45:47But, of course, this has to be their last shout-out with this car.
45:50It's three years old now.
45:51It does.
45:52You can't go in for another year.
45:53I think if they don't win Le Mans this year, I don't know what they're going to do.
45:55No, and I think, in all fairness to Peugeot, now they've got a car that they actually really, really know.
45:59It is a car they've had for a while. They've revised it.
46:01So they've got it really dialed in, whereas there is a bit of a risk with a brand-new car with Audi.
46:06So we'll just have to see. Let's go to the pits for an interview.
46:08Yeah, let's see who Justine's got now.
46:11Tiago, you're 13th for the moment. It's been a lot, but you're a lot less fast than Aston.
46:17Yes, that's clear and clear. We're just barely moving.
46:20Everything's going well since the start.
46:23Wow. It's in English.
46:27And we're going to take too much risk. So the course is very long.
46:31Chega Montero telling us we're not taking any risks.
46:35We're just too into the 24 hours.
46:41We're just too into the 24 hours.
46:43We're just too into the 24 hours.
46:45We're just too into the 24 hours.
46:47Big problems for the top teams at the start. We're not taking any risks.
46:49We're seeing what they've done. We'll work out our strategy during the night.
46:52He said, well, I'm competing in the World Touring Car Championship, of course, now doing Le Mans.
47:05And I've got to really find out all the conditions, find out what the limits are of these cars.
47:13It's really important for a driver like me. You've got to try different categories.
47:19I'll be in Bruneau next week for WTCC. See how I get on there.
47:25It's my first time in prototype.
47:29Completely different.
47:32I wanted to make sure I had a chance to compete here.
47:36Everything about it, the approach to it, the driving, the setup, it's all quite different.
47:42Yeah, I'd love this and I just love being here and I'd like to continue to be involved in this type of racing.
47:52So, out goes that number nine Peugeot.
47:56That's Marc Genet currently in second place because the Audi's have both made their pit stops.
48:02But Marc, of course, will be rejoining after. He was our race leader, Liz, just for that brief window during the pit stop changes.
48:08Yeah, I think, you know, that's what we see a lot here at this race is, you know, the constant changeover just during the pit stops.
48:13But, you know, I think you have to wait till, you know, all the teams have done their pit stops again.
48:17It settles in again. Then we have the race back on our hands.
48:19But, you know, the swapping round will happen forever, but it's who can keep it most consistent.
48:24So, there we are. That's the Pescarolo Peugeot.
48:27And, well, no, sorry to interrupt. What I was going to say was that the number nine there coming onto pit lane,
48:32he made a pit stop right before we went back to green.
48:35So, he was at that. On this stint, he was able to do 12 laps.
48:40And that's a full tank of fuel to get in 12 laps.
48:43Ah, well done. You're on top of the game there. This is our own famed Paul Truswell, isn't it?
48:48Gerard Germ is doing the maths, as it were, this time.
48:52So, it will settle back into the order of Montani.
48:55Rockenfella has gone ahead of McNish, by the way.
48:57He's 11 seconds ahead. Now, I didn't know what happened there in the pit lane.
49:00Well, they changed the nose. Yes, on the number one car.
49:03That's right. That's cost McNish second place for the moment.
49:08Because Jene will slot in behind McNish in fourth place ahead of Stefan Mukher and Darren Turner.
49:13That's the first round of stops.
49:18Ah, everyone .
49:23That's good.
49:28Ah, oh, I'm going to go.
49:34Oh, I'm going to get a few times.
49:39Wow, I'm going to go.
49:42No, it's not going to be a big difference.
49:46This is not going to be a big difference.
49:50I don't mind, in terms of how you can see the main line.
49:54It's not going to be a big difference.
49:58I don't know.
50:02It's a big difference, I don't know,
50:06but it's not going to be a big difference.
50:10one hour or so before the start he was looking oh so confident and and really feeling good about
50:28things so to have that incident in that first part of the race just crushing for him i'm sure
50:33yeah but not only for persia for pescarola as well because whatever whoever thought it was he
50:38will feel surely that he was it he was caught up in that it was partly to blame as i was talking to
50:43henry down on the grid and i said uh went up and said henry bon courage he said no no it's a bon
50:48pescarola then i said uh you want to be the you want to beat perjot he said i am perjot yes they
50:56are company man already and remember he was the man who was involved in the perjot program right
51:01from the start running perjot engines in his own prototypes and then he was fairly confident he
51:06was going to be given the perjot program to run but it wasn't to be and uh this is his chance this
51:10week this year anyway yeah well i think it was i mean i don't believe nick manassian's actually been
51:14in the car yet has he i think he's in it no he's in it's still marching yeah still marching i just
51:19saw his helmet no they're no triple number seven car number nine is uh yeah but seven cars so so far
51:29back we have we can't no i was telling you i was i was number seven car i was talking about
51:33nick manassian yes so they have put him back in yeah yeah they have put him in yeah what i was
51:38saying we couldn't we couldn't check because uh that's right the the number 17 car that the pescarola
51:44peugeot it's only one lap down to the the race leader now even after that's pit stop that he just made
51:51yeah that's uh bunion's doing a good job though he's really hauled that car back up he has run
51:5728 so uh that is certainly in the top five times of this race so far 25 106 still the fastest lap
52:05that was montagne on lap two and we've got some 26s behind him for janet and uh and indeed to bunion so
52:12uh shows perjot showing their hands is perhaps a little bit at the beginning of the race but then
52:17immediately back off hoping hoping no one's hoping no one noticed yeah hopefully they were so fast
52:21that everybody missed it but um certainly they're gonna have to push a lot harder now though certainly
52:26that's not what they would have wanted this early in the race i think they would have wanted to hold
52:30back a bit sort of keep it quiet without having to go as fast as they are to well we talked earlier
52:36about uh paul drace and lord drace and being popular the crowds here and uh justine i think has
52:41managed to buttonhole him down in the pits we're going to be hearing from him in a minute and uh
52:45that car of theirs which is the uh drace and racing aston martin not figuring at the moment in the top
52:51eight in gt2 that's all porsche against ferrari in fact pat long still holding off the flanks of
52:57ferraris it's jaime mello dominic farmbacker and christoph boucher and then darren law down in fifth
53:02place in the the next porsche so ferrari starting to put their stamp on here hardly surprising they've
53:08got nine porsches against uh four sorry nine ferraris against four porsches it's uh gonna be hard work
53:14yeah but it's still pretty close isn't it we've only got some 20 seconds covering those one one two
53:18three four five six seven eight seven car so it's it's a good old battle going on in there and we
53:25expect that don't we to continue pretty much throughout this race that's going to be a really
53:29fun thing to watch i think as this this whole race unfolds but look at the caliber of the drivers
53:34they got those all those we've just mentioned darren law in fifth he's just comes comes here from
53:38winning the rolex 24 outright this here at daytona jimmy bruni and andrew kakaldi these
53:43all top uh gt2 drivers all at the top end of this class at the moment i mean like i've been saying
53:49you know throughout i think it's going to be a seriously difficult race to the end for all of
53:53these guys they're all going to be pushing as if it was qualifying i think for the entire race
53:57yeah rob bell of course will be delighted uh that their car's still well in the running now that's in
54:03seventh place andrew kakaldi at the wheel of the jmw khan tim sylton of course another uh
54:08stalwart british gt driver tim's in there tim sucked in with a huge amount of fya gt experience
54:14you know british gt for basically anything gt i think involving gorsha especially um so yeah he'll
54:20be very pleased to be in there again and involved for the for the race and the member in uh 2007 went
54:25out to asia and won the carrera cup out there so he's another man still on top of his game well
54:30we're hoping still waiting to hear from lord drayson don't know where he's at the moment but
54:33when we get news from the pits we'll come back to you let's just have a quick update on what's
54:36happening in gt1 after seeing the corvettes johnny o'connell still leaving leading uh ollie
54:42barretta and patrick goes large in the lookout van car third and those two gm corvettes uh were both
54:48again split by that safety car so there's a big margin between them having been nose to tail beforehand
54:53they just made their pit stops at slightly different times and that is what got them separated otherwise
54:58they've been running nose to tail as per usual yeah through that opening that's a shame they've
55:03lost photo opportunity for the moment then yeah a lot of american photographers here this year also
55:08incidentally a lot of formula one journalists because there's no canadian grand prix this year
55:12it's a gap between it's amazing how the formula one guys all come here you see all the fi formula one
55:17pit lane tabards going up and down down here and uh we're very pleased to see them they can come see
55:23some real racing absolutely yeah we hope they'll finally realize you know what they're missing yeah
55:27yeah i know we talked about this last year this this two two twin pace car scenario and it really
55:34bugs me because we've seen you know the battle for the lead and the battle for gt1 separated by those
55:40two pace cars and and you know yes it's luck in the draw and things can equalize uh draw as a race
55:45unfolds but still this here is lord drace's car on pit lane might be wild yeah let's have a look
55:52what's going on there talking about the number 16 the number 66 car the um jet alliance aston martin
56:00is is is not out of the race like we told you on it is back it's many laps down but it is back and
56:06running well we can tell you now why justine couldn't find uh paul drayson he was actually in
56:11the car at the time as soon as he gets out he's gonna get to get hold of him details so here is
56:15the go card that i go of course winners here outright in the go audi but le mans and uh cegiara
56:22the man who took that team to victory he's staying on board the lmp2 second place car
56:27is the 009 car yep 009 car here of uh this is the second this is the one that's had the problems
56:36hasn't it yes yeah with the alternator problem earlier yeah i'm afraid we can't at this moment
56:40tell you exactly where it's placed but it is not in the top 36 which which car 009 car uh it's running
56:47in 43rd place there we are five laps down to the overall leader what were the problems that had
56:54yeah it was an alternator problem yes the alternator that was it yep and that's currently peter cox in
57:02the car who i believe didn't start any notified retirements yet i think there was because martin
57:06haven left him grep grabbed the marker of doom and left over to the wall is it the uh lamborghini
57:11martin it's the j-lock lamborghini what a shame and we don't know what's happened with the aston
57:16martin that it stopped out on circuit earlier the jet alliance car played it back in yeah it is back
57:20in it is okay good and it showed us only 14 laps down on the race leader so it's a fairly like the
57:25opening uh you know stop pit stop they had to make but it is back in afraid apparently running
57:29reasonably well right we have a fight for second place here now this is rocky being uh chased by
57:34janet so this is some track action here up front look at the pace janet's got at the moment his last
57:39lap three was uh two seconds slower but he's suddenly suddenly woken up isn't he yeah i think i think
57:46certainly now he's he's on the tail of rockenfeller and he's going to be pushing his orders again
57:49hey we're going down to talk to lord drayson he's in the pits with justine
57:54paul uh incredible start how was it fantastic it was absolutely a fence i had a big grin
58:04all the way around the car's perfect we're in good position the uh weather's nice everything feels
58:11great i really enjoyed it i'm on sort of target pace and just uh just got to do this for 24 hours
58:18which is long which is long but uh we can do it we can do it uh how do you feel i just saw that
58:25they took care of heart uh so how do you feel quite tired already they're not this is a scientific
58:30experiment they're measuring the carbon monoxide in my bloodstream to see whether or not uh le mans
58:38drivers have a higher concentration of carbon monoxide as they go through the 24 hours so you know we're
58:44doing a scientific experiment i'm a science minister and that's what he's measuring it's an amazing
58:48thing it's a laser which can tell from the wavelength of the blood what's the level of carbon monoxide
58:56compared to oxygen that's binding to the hemoglobin cool huh yeah very cool you're so you are a big
59:01athlete yeah right thank you paul good job thank you thanks thanks a lot
59:10that's a great insight isn't it carbon monoxide level in the blood it can be keep in modern
59:14as you're going around yeah i haven't heard about i haven't heard that one yeah it can be very
59:18interesting yeah anyway we're going to take a break we're staying on uh eurosport here unbroken coverage
59:24for about 24 hours if you're in britain so quick commercial look forward to seeing you all again after
59:31these messages you're back with eurosport live at le mans we are now one hour 52 minutes into the
59:46great race peugeot's frank montan is leading from audi's mike rockenfeller and peugeot's mark jane
59:54alan mcnish held slightly in the pits to have a nose change she got out ahead of jane but jane
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