After
yesterday's bright sunshine, t-shirts and shorts, Sunday
started chilly and overcast, but with every chance of another
bright day in prospect. Warm-up kicked off the morning,
with a relatively trouble-free session for most of the forty-four
starters. What appeared to be a gear-selection problem halted
the run for the #7 Peugeot, with Marc Gené in - and
out of - the cockpit, while a couple of GT2 Porsches went
for a spin.
RML's
day went true to form, with Tommy completing the first half
of the twenty-minute session, and then swapping with MIke
for the second half. A best from Tommy of 1:42.301 briefly
had the MG running second in LMP2, but time was not of the
essence this morning, and as the session progressed that
lap was bettered by an eclectic mix of LMP2 prototypes.
Ninth for the MG by the end was much as expected.
Mike's
run got off to an entertaining start when he headed down
towards the first chicane at the beginning of his flying
lap. "Maybe the tyres weren't quite up to temperature,"
he shrugged, "but I ran out of track, and then ran
out of talent." Cutting the corner took the MG across
the grass, but it's a regular detour here at Monza, and
smooth enough. Aside from collecting some greenery, there
was no damage done, and Mike pressed on to set a 1:44.366
on his next lap. "I was happy with that," he said.
"There was an awful lot of traffic out there."
That
became even more evident when the session ended and Mike
brought the MG down the pitlane expecting to carry out a
full driver change and pitstop simulation. Instead he found
the way barred by a pair of Embassy WF01 Zyteks and a Porsche
GT2. With a lot of shrugging of shoulders and exasperated
sighs the plan was abandoned. Tommy trudged back to the
truck, seat insert tucked under his arm. "There are
just too many cars here really," he suggested. "Some
circuits can't cope with this number." The garages
are noticeably narrow at Monza, and if adjacent cars pit
at the same time there's simply no room for the crew to
work around them. Usually the organisers segregate the classes,
so that direct competitors are not side-by-side, but here
at Monza RML has the two Embassy LMP2 prototypes directly
adjacent. It could make for difficulties during the race
if all three decide to pit at the same time.
With
Warm-up complete, it was back to the meeting room for Mike,
Tommy, Phil and Adam for a final strategy briefing before
the two drivers made their way to the official autograph
session.
For
a change the teams had been asked to set up tables in the
paddock, in front of their trucks, and the system seemed
to work well. Mike and Tommy were actually the first to
set up their stall. They soon had a throng of souvenir hunters
gathered around them as the duo signed and handed out samples
of the latest RML HeroCard.
Race
coverage is created "live" starting from approximately
two hours into the event, and then driver quotes and additional
observations are added later. This can lead to some inconsistency
with tenses, for which we apologise. Please refresh your
browser from time to time to view any later additions.
For
links to live timing and Radio Le Mans live radio coverage,
please see Monza
intro page. After the race there will be archived recording
of interviews and race reporting.
RACE
START 12:52pm
The race gets under way at just after the scheduled minute,
but with the likely speeds being maintained around the Monza
circuit, there's no doubt that this 1000 kilometres will
whistle by in well under the normal six hours. Some are
even predicting nearer five.
The
start itself is remarkably tidy, although such is the pace
of the leading pair of Peugeots that they have established
an advantage of several yards over Dindo Capello even before
they reach the first chicane. The #1 Audi is closely followed
through the twists and turns of Prima Variante
by the Lola Aston Martin #10, and then the two Oreca Courage
"Lego" cars - a nickname they've rapidly acquired
thanks to their bold colour scheme of sectioned primary
colours. The #2 Audi is starting from the pitlane, and it
will be entertaining to see what Mike Rockenfeller can do
with the 44 cars ahead of him.
If
the LMP1 runners streamed cleanly through the first chicane,
the same could not be said of LMP2 (above). Jos
Verstappen in the #34 Van Merksteijn Porsche nosed ahead,
following the #15 LMP1 Creation through the complex, and
itself being nose-to-tailed by #17 Pescarolo. The Essex
and Horag Porsches were side by side, accompanied by trails
of tyre smoke as Jan Lammers in the Swiss car held on doggedly
to the inside line . . . but in doing so, he gave Casper
Elgaard in the Essex car the apex to the second element,
and promptly lost the advantage. The Seedy Sebah Lola slotted
in behind the battling Porsches, leaving Vanina Ickx and
the Rollcentre LMP1 Pescarolo sandwiched between it and
the #32 Barazi Zytek. Tommy was next in line, and he tried
to follow a conventional route through the complex, but
Olivier Pla in the #40 ASM Lola had other ideas. Forcing
his way through on the outside, he muscled across the kerbs
and took the place on the exit. "I just didn't have
enough speed down the straight to hold the position,"
explained Tommy. "It was probably my fault," he
added. "He came round the outside, and moved over very
forcibly. If I'd pushed, or made an issue of it, we'd certainly
have touched. I decided it was best just to let him through,
especially so early in the race."
Witnessing
all this was Matthieu Lahaye in the #35 Saulnier Courage,
who then slotted in behind Erdos. Yves Gosselin in the #41
Trading Performance Zytek had been the principal loser,
giving away two places down the straight and ending the
run to the first corner in class ninth, just ahead of Jonny
Kane and Warren Hughes in the two Embassy WF01 Zyteks. He'd
lose out to both these two on the opening lap.
Over
the next few laps the field gradually spread out into a
sequence of smaller battles. With a gap having established
between the leading trio and the pursuing pack, the contest
for this middle ground of LMP2 was especially fierce.
Pla tried to keep on terms with Vergers in the Barazi car,
but the Dutchman had the edge in that particular battle,
leaving Tommy to harry the tail on the ASM Lola - left.
That
was not made easy by Lahaye, whose green and white Saulnier
Courage was displaying a better turn of speed than it had
shown previously.
Starting
lap 5, and heading down into the first chicane once again,
Vanina Ickx outbraked herself into the first corner, and
spun the Rollcentre LMP1 Pescarolo directly in front of
Pla, allowing a string of LMP2 cars through.
Five
laps into the race and Tommy was holding 17th overall, 7th
in LMP2.
Rockenfeller,
starting the Audi #2 from the pitlane had already powered
through to 21st, from 45th, which was some achievement,
considering how dense the traffic must have been around
him. Tommy was also being hampered by tail-enders, and his
attempts to keep on terms with the #40 ASM Lola were being
constantly thwarted.
13:05
SAFETY CAR
The
Bruichladdich Radical, started by Marc Rostan, has pulled
off at Ascari and is awkwardly positioned beside the track,
and will need to be cleared before racing can resume. It's
not been a good weekend for the team, and qualifying 13th
in LMP2 was hardly representative of a car which challenged
for pole in 2007. It's six laps and out for the whisky-sponsored
Radical. There has also been an incident for the #77 Felbermayr
Porsche, with damaged suspension. It limps back to the pitlane,
and will subsequently be repaired and race on.
The
#32 Barazi Zytek loses a dozen places - either an error,
or a pitstop. Not sure which, but appears 28th overall,
and well down in LMP2.
Tommy
is confirmed as 6th in LMP2.
13:11
RESTART On the restart the #35 Saulnier
Courage gets ahead of Tommy, the Brazilian once again selecting
discretion over valour at this early stage in the race.
13:14
SAFETY CAR
There is just one lap of racing before a visually violent
accident for Dindo Capello in the #1 Audi on the exit of
the Ascari Chicane. He spins wildly, the car lifting high
into the air as the air gets underneath, but miraculously
stays the right way up, clips the armco, and ends up facing
the right direction again. There is speculation that Vanina
Ickx in the Rollcentre Pescarolo , having just been lapped,
may have clipped the rear of the Audi. There is a mass of
debris across the track, and this necessitates the safety
car. Amazingly, Capello is able to get the car back to the
garage. Others would see the damage and give up, but Audi
embark on an impressive rebuild.
13:20
ASM Lola makes an early pitstop for fuel and tyres. The
#10 Lola Aston Martin also pits.
13:23
RESTART
A straightforward resumption of racing for most, and leaves
Tommy still chasing Lahaye, but now with Jonny Kane behind
him in the #46 Embassy WF01, below.
13:25
Tommy is running 6th in LMP2.
13:31
Tommy complains of an intermittent misfire, coincident with
accelerating out of corners. "It was just a momentary
cut, but we decided to try switching off the traction control,
and that seemed to solve it," said Tommy. "I ran
the rest of that opening double-stint without the traction
control, and the problem disappeared."
13:32
The #1 Audi returns to the race, just a quarter of an hour
after Capello's accident.
13:35
The MG continues to hold 6th in LMP2. The #34 Van Merksteijn
Porsche leads from the #33 Speedy Sebah Lola, then the #27
Horag Porsche, the Essex Racing Porsche #31, the #35 Saulnier
Courage, and then Tommy.
13:42
PITSTOP
Tommy makes his first pitstop - for fuel only. One of the
Embassy cars also pits at the same time - it's the #45,
and it's wheeled back into the garage.
13:51
Tommy is still chasing the #35 Saulnier Courage, but it's
now for seventh position.
Hour
2
13:58
The Lola Aston Martin leads overall, thanks to pitstops.
Positions
in LMP2 are largely unchanged, with the #34 continuing to
lead. The #33 Speedy Sebah Lola holds second, now from the
ASM Lola #40, which pitted early under the safety car and
is now reaping the benefits. The #27 Porsche is fourth,
followed by the #35 Courage and then Tommy in the #25 MG.
14:01
Problems for the leading Lola Aston Martin, which slows
through the Lesmo corners and then crawls up the hill into
the Ascari complex. It completes a very slow lap, with Tommy
passing the stricken car on the run down towards Parabolica.
It pits, allowing the #7 Peugeot to take the lead, with
the sister Pug second and the #2 Audi third.
14:05
After more than an hour of cat-and-mouse, Tommy is starting
to make inroads on the #35's advantage. He has visibly closed
in on the green and white car. The #40 ASM Lola pits from
third in LMP2 and rejoins just behind Tommy.
14:10
Tommy has closed to within a second now of the #35.
14:14
The MG is now close enough to the tail of the Courage that
Tommy is able to show his nose alongside as they make the
run through the dip after Lesmo and up towards Ascari, before
ducking in behind once again and following the #35 through
the complex.
14:15
The Lola Aston Martin is back out on track, but still not
running correctly. It's another slow, painful lap.
14:17
Traffic has upset Tommy's rhythm, and he's had to fall back
a little. Then one of the Oreca Courage LMP1 cars comes
through to disrupt the charge even further. It must be very
frustrating, being quicker but unable to pass.
14:28
DRIVER CHANGE
Tommy makes his second pitstop, and hands over to Mike Newton.
The team complete a speedy refuel and fit fresh tyres.
14:30
Order in LMP2 sees the #34 leading from 6th overall, with
the #27 Horag Porsche second in 9th. The Essex Porsche is
a mere two seconds behind in third, while the #35 Courage
has moved back into fourth. The ASM Lola is fifth, fifteen
seconds further down the road, and the Barazi Zytek has
recovered to sixth. Having completed the pitstop and driver
change, the MG lies 7th, in 17th overall.
The
Team Modena Aston leads GT1, while Peugeot #8 is in first
overall.
14:34
Problems for Jos Verstappen in the leading #34 Porsche.
Having just overtaken one of the Spykers, the GT2 car catches
the rear of the Porsche,causing damage to the engine cover.
This starts to rub on the right rear tyre, and shortly afterwards
the Porsche is forced to pit for repairs. The delay costs
the equivalent of about to laps, and the purple Porsche
rejoins five places behind Mike.
14:41
Mike is now nine seconds behind the #35 Saulnier Courage,
and just six ahead of the #46 Embassy Zytek.
14:45
The Embassy WF01 has closed right up onto Mike's tail, and
is harrying the MG through the twisty bits. Under pressure,
Mike clips the kerbs heavily into Ascari, but motors on,
holding on to the place, at least for now. The #31 Porsche
leads the class from the ASM Lola, second, and the #27 Porsche
third.
14:46
Mike finally succumbs to the charge from Joey Foster in
the #46 Embassy WF01 Zytek.
14:47
Mike is unlapped, for the first time, by the #34 Porsche
- the Dutch-owned car overtaking the MG on the run down
towards Parabolica.
14:50
Mike holds 8th in LMP2, but has a full lap over the Kruse
Lola, ninth.
Hour
3
15:00
The #33 Speedy Sebah Lola completes a pitstop, and returns
to the track just a few places behind Mike. The order within
LMP2 is . . .
Pos
No.
Overall
Team
Driver
Car
Laps
1
31
7
Team
Essex
Nielsen/Elgaard
Porsche
RS Spyder
72
2
27
9
Horag
Racing
Lienhard/Theys/Lammers
Porsche
RS Spyder
-
3
35
10
Saulnier
Racing
Ragues/Lahaye
Pescarolo
Judd
71
4
32
11
Barazi
Epsilon
Barazi/Vergers/Rees
Zytek
07S
-
5
46
12
Embassy
Racing
Kane/Foster
WF01
Zytek
-
6
40
13
Quifel
ASM
Amaral/Pla
Lola
B05/40 AER
70
7
25
14
RML
AD Group
Erdos/Newton
MG
Lola EX265
-10s
8
44
16
Kruse
Schiller
de
Pourtales/Noda
Lola
B05/40
69
9
41
18
Trading
Performance
Ojeh/Gosselin/Schroyen
Zytek
07S
-
10
34
19
Van
Merksteijn M/s
Van
Merksteijn/Verstappen
Porsche
RS Spyder
-
11
33
22
Speedy
Sebah
Belicchi/Pompidou/Zacchia
Lola
B08/80 Coupé
68
15:05
Mike is keeping pace with Amaral in the #40 ASM Lola, and
occasionally posting a quicker lap to narrow the gap just
slightly. Then the blue Lola has a big moment, loses a significant
amount of ground, and then pits. Mike eases through into
6th.
The
#46 Embassy WF01 pits. Mike now 5th in LMP2.
15:14
PITSTOP
A very brief 15 second pitstop for fuel only. It's so quick
that Mike loses no ground at all, and resumes still holding
that 5th position in class, but my only a matter of seconds
from the #46 Embassy and the #40 Lola.
15:25
Embassy's #46 WF01 Zytek passes Mike, and then on the following
lap the ASM Lola comes back through as well (left).
15:28
The
order in LMP2 is now: #31 Essex Porsche RS Spyder leading
from 5th position overall, a full lap clear of the #32 Barazi
Zytek in class second.
The
#27 Horag Porsche is third, with the #35 Saulnier Courage
still running strongly in fourth, some ten seconds behind.
The #46 Embassy WF01 holds fifth from 13th overall, but
only seven seconds ahead of Amaral in the #40 ASM Lola,
who has just three seconds over Mike in the MG.
15:30
Mike reports contact with the #40 Lola, and suspects there
may be damage to the MG. The team will check the car visually
next time he passes the pits, and if it looks bad, may call
him in for replacement panels. On first pass, however, all
looks well. Tommy now being prepared for his next stint.
15:36
DRIVER CHANGE
Mike into the pitlane for a scheduled pitstop. This has
come after just 12 laps since his last stop for fuel - an
endeavour by the team to resolve the imbalance in pitstop
scheduling that the new fuel regulations have imposed.
Tommy,
having watched Mike's progress on the timing screens (left),
gets back into the car. The MG is stationery for not much
more than a minute.
15:38
Essex RS Spyder into the pitlane from 18th overall for a
full minute stop and go penalty - likely to be a major infringement,
but not yet sure what it is. After the pitstop Tommy emerges
into 8th in LMP2, 16th overall
15:44
Contact between the #46 Embassy car and Tommy into Ascari,
and Tommy loses ground. There's no significant damage.
Moments
later the #27 Horag Porsche has a major off at the Lesmo,
and looks as if he may have damaged the suspension. Two
wheels onto the grass and it skipped away from him. However,
having been dragged free of the gravel, the car heads back
to the pits for a quick check-up before returning to the
race, seemingly none the worse for wear.
15:49
Tommy is 8 seconds behind Noda for 7th place, and took three
seconds out of him on the last lap. Tommy suggests that
the car is now handling so much better than it did at the
start of the race, when he felt it was somewhat wayward
at the back end.
Hour
4 15:50-16:50
Tommy
starts the fourth hour knowing he has two cars roughly five
seconds in front of him, both for position. One is Didier
Theys in the recovering #27 Horag Porsche, which regained
the track after its recent "off", apparently without
the suspected damage. The other, sandwiched in between,
is Noda's #44 Kruse Lola.
15:53
The #34 Porsche spins off across the kerbs at the second
chicane, but regains the track and presses on, only a few
seconds lost. Noda briefly moved ahead of Theys in the Horag
Porsche after the Belgian's off, but the Porsche driver
soon recovers the lost position. Tommy is now bearing down
on both.
15:58
Tommy and the
others he's challenging have now completed 101 laps. Noda
has pitted, and Tommy is now racing Theys for fifth in class,
13th overall.
16:02
Tommy closes to a few tenths of Theys. Fourth-placed Jonny
Kane in the #46 Embassy WF01 is fifteen seconds ahead of
the pair. Tommy is really pushing quite hard, and has just
set the MG's fastest lap of the race so far: 1:41.172. Theys
responds, and matches it to a tenth! The #34 Porsche, now
with owner Peter Van Merksteijn at the wheel, is ten seconds
behind Tommy but not quite matching his pace.
16:06
Tommy is now right on the tail of the Horag Porsche, and
1:40.865 is another fastest lap for the MG. These two are
catching Jonny Kane at a rate of some three seconds a lap,
and the gap has shrunk significantly to the fourth-placed
Embassy car.
16:10
Having caught the Porsche, there seems no way that Tommy
can get passed him. Through the tighter sections, the MG
appears to have the edge, but when he gets to the many straights
that characterise this high-performance track, the Porsche
has the legs to pull away again.
16:12
It's something of an uneven battle, and Tommy decides that
a waiting game is more likely to prove fruitful. He eases
off slightly, lapping in the mid 1:41s, just as Theys heads
into the pitlane for a scheduled pitstop. The MG sweeps
through into fifth place. His next target is now Jonny Kane,
almost exactly ten seconds in front.
16:15
Tommy has four more laps until his next scheduled pitstop.
It won't be enough time to catch Kane, but the gap should
be smaller. Tommy has ten seconds over Van Merksteijn.
16:18
Tommy reports the first flicker from the low-fuel warning
light. That usually means two more laps until the pitstop.
Michael Vergers pits the #32 Zytek from 2nd in class.
16:22
PITSTOP
Tommy
into the pitlane. Very rapid pitstop - refuel only, and
cleaning his visor.
16:24
Vergers is off at Parabolica and into the gravel. Was in
second in class, and had re-emerged into third after the
pitstop. He's climbed out of the car and walked away. That
must mean the car is out. The #16 Pescarolo has also had
a major off, just before Vergers, at the first chicane,
and is also out of the race. The James Watt Automotive GT2
Porsche #95 is heading back to the pitlane with a right-rear
puncture. This may be related to one or the other of the
prototype incidents.
16:28
The #40 ASM Lola managed to move through ahead of Tommy
during that last pitstop. MG now fifth in LMP2 and 19 seconds
behind Amaral, currently in the cockpit of the Portuguese
Lola. The #31 Essex Racing Porsche leads the class from
the #35 Saulnier LMP2 Pescarolo. Jonny Kane is in third
- a potential podium for the Embassy WF01 on only its second
race.
16:30
Amaral pits the #40 Lola, and Olivier Pla - the quicker
of the two - steps aboard.
16:31
Tommy through into fourth place. He has just over a second's
advantage over Theys in the Horag Porsche, with erstwhile
leader #34, Verstappen driving, now sixth, six seconds further
down the road.
16:34
The leader starts his 130th lap - it's Sarrazin in the #8
Peugeot, with a full lap's lead over Mike Rockenfeller having
just lapped the #2 Audi. The race is scheduled to go to
173 laps, so the 1000 kilometre distance is going to come
long before the six-hour mark. Moments later, Rockenfeller
unlaps himself.
16:35
Verstappen passes the Horag Porsche, and is lapping some
three or four seconds quicker than Tommy, so is likely to
catch him in the next few laps.
16:38
Jonny Kane comes down the pitlane in the #46 Embassy WF01.
He immediately loses a position overall to the charging
Audi #1, Allan McNish making up ground after Rinaldo Capello's
"worst ever accident" earlier in the race. Joey
Foster takes over in the Embassy car. He's now well within
sight of Erdos.
16:40
Verstappen passes Tommy for fourth place, and then both
overtake the stationery Foster. It's now #31 leading (Elgaard
in the cockpit) from #35 Saulnier Pescarolo, with Verstappen
third and Erdos fourth.
16:41
Tommy's lead over the #27 Porsche is pretty static at about
six seconds. Verstappen sets a new fastest lap for the purple
Porsche of 1:37.912 - somewhat indicative of the Spyder's
dominance this season in the LMP2 category.
16:47
Another fastest lap from Verstappen - 1:37.890. Tommy and
Theys are matching pace lap for lap, and the gap between
the two is almost static at four or five seconds.
Hour
5
16:54
Theys has closed marginally on Tommy as we enter the final
hour. The MG retains a tenuous hold on fourth place in LMP2,
but any fluctuation in the gap between them can be put down
to traffic, as times are evenly matched.
16:57
Joey Foster is back into sixth position now; the Embassy
#46 almost a lap behind.
17:00
Didier Theys pits the #27 Porsche, and so does Pla in the
#40.
17:01
There's a massive accident to one of the Team Oreca cars.
The car has been utterly destroyed, and the central cockpit
with engine attached is all that remains. The driver is
still in the car, and moving, but hard to tell which car
it is, or who the driver is.
17:04
SAFETY
CAR
Tommy into the pits.
The
replay suggests this is visually one of the worst accidents
seen in sportscar racing in many years. The #5 multicoloured
Courage simply kicked away at the rear as Stephane Ortelli
was at top speed going down the main straight, on the final
approach to the first chicane. With the rear snapping away,
the car went out of control, and perhaps clipped the kerb,
got airborne, and then sailed just across the ear pf the
#1 Audi as it flew directly over the apex of the first chicane.
Two, three, maybe four times, the car cartwheeled through
the air, panels and bits of bodywork ripping loose as it
bounced, end over end, across the chicane, across the track
beyond, and then hammered into the Armco - even then some
four or five feet above the ground. It truly is a most horrific
accident.
17:10
On-going safety car is likely to take some while. Ortelli
is still being attended to in the car. (We are later able
to add that Stephane was, miraculously, not seriously injured
by this crash, sustaining a fractured bone in his ankle
and general bruising. He even attempted to get out of the
car within seconds of coming to a halt, until attending
marshals persuaded him to stay where he was until the medical
personnel arrived.)
This
is an opportunity to catch up on the race order . . .
The
#2 Audi currently leads from the #8 Peugeot, with the #15
Creation third. Fourth overall is the #17 Pescarolo, followed
in fifth by the Rollcentre customer Pescarolo, with Vanina
Ickx at the wheel. The second Audi - actually #1 - is sixth,
heading the lead LMP2 car, the #31 Essex Racing RS Spyder.
(Please note that the image below is actually of Mike
Newton in the MG, taken a little earlier in the race.)
17:13
Confirmation that Ortelli has been extracted from the car,
and is now in an ambulance being ferried to the circuit
medical facilities. More news as we get it. The remains
of his car has now been hoisted onto a flatbed and taken
away.
17:14
After the pitstop, Tommy has come back out on track behind
Joey Foster in the #46 Embassy WF01. Situation in LMP2 has
the #31 leading from the #35 Pescarolo in second, Verstappen's
Porsche third, then Foster and Erdos. Tommy is now in the
car to the chequered fag - but some of those ahead of him
may have further pitstops to do. Tommy is third in the queue
behind the leader, and the car directly in front is Foster
in the #46 Embassy car, so it will be a straight fight between
the two when the lights turn green. Luckily, there are several
cars behind Erdos, between him and Jan Lammers, now at the
wheel of the #27 Horag Porsche. The only fly in the ointment
is the lead Peugeot, directly behind Tommy. "I don't
think I can out-drag a Peugeot," jokes Erdos over the
radio.
The
leader will have twenty laps to run to the flag.
17:21
RESTART
17:22
The Peugeot behind Tommy powered across the line and took
both Tommy and Foster down the main straight. Passing the
end of the pitlane, Tommy then nipped out into the Peugeot's
slipstream, and used that as a boost to draw alongside Foster,
then outbrake him into the first chicane. It's a neat move,
and the MG is back up into fourth.
17:25
Having just lost the place to Erdos, Joey Foster pulls up
and stops beside the track at the start to the Lesmo corners,
reason unknown. Subsequently thought to be electronics,
but not confirmed.
17:26
Stop-go for the #35 Saulnier Pescarolo - was second in LMP2.
It's a very extended penalty - perhaps a full three minutes.
Mst have been a major indiscretion. Almost simultaneously,
Lammers gets ahead of Tommy.
17:28
The leader, Mike Rockenfeller, sets the cars fastest lap
of the race at 1:34.839. He's on his 158th lap.
Lammers is 3.9 seconds ahead of Tommy for third place, and
the MG is 40 seconds ahead of the #35 car after it's penalty
pitstop.
17:30
Joey Foster's Embassy WF01 is being recovered by a flatbed
on the approach to Lesmo.
17:32
There's a fabulous battle developing for the lead, with
Lamy in the chasing Peugeot now able to see Rockenfeller's
Audi. They're scything through the traffic at terrific speed.
There's less than a second between them. However, there
are two questions overhanging this - did Lamy overtake Tommy
before they crossed the start line when racing resumed,
and did he also overtake a tail-ender under yellows where
Foster's Embassy was being recovered? The answer to both
is possibly yes, in which case, is he due a stop-go penalty?
Lamy
gets ahead of Rockenfeller at the First Chicane - by cutting
the corner! He should ease back and allow the Audi back
through . . . .and he does!
17:36
Confirmation on the timing screen that the Peugeot does
have a stop-go penalty!
17:37
Lamy tries to outbreak Rockenfeller into the First Chicane
again, and hits the Audi! The Audi appears to have a puncture.
This is bizarre. The fault was Lamy's, but why did Rockenfeller
defend so hard? He could have let the Peugeot through, knowing
that it had a stop-go penalty to serve, and then drive comfortably
to the end.
17:38
The Peugeot completes a simple stop-go, there's no time
penalty. A minute later Rockenfeller arrives in the pitlane,
smoking badly as the bodywork fouls the punctured rubber.
17:40
The #7 Peugeot, Pedro Lamy driving, technically leads the
race, but is he scheduled another penalty for those other
possible infringements? The race is not yet over! Meanwhile,
in LMP2, Tommy holds fourth, comfortably, from the #35 Saulnier
Courage, and is 17 seconds behind the charging Lammers.
Once again, as it was in almost every practice session,
it's Porsche Porsche Porsche in LMP2.
17:43
A
fastest lap from Lammers of 1:38.805. Tommy simply cannot
match that. The Dutchman starts his next lap with another
green sector. He's really on a charge, and with six laps
left, maybe he can catch Verstappen? No, the gap is too
great.
17:47
Lamy's lead over Rockenfeller is now 45 seconds. Any sense
of anti-climax as we enter the final laps is tempered by
the thought that there may be an enquiry after this, and
any result could be provisional. (In the subsequent press
conference, the Audi spokesman confirmed that the team was
very unhappy with the way Lamy had driven, and also that
there had been an approach to the Race Director, but in
the end, no official complaint would be lodged.)
17:48
The leader is on his 170th lap - just three to go.
The
only real battle now exists in GT1, where Tomas Enge leads
in the Team Modena Aston Martin DB9R by just 10 seconds
from Olivier Beretta in the #72 Luc Alphand Corvette - Enge
just has the edge on speed. In GT2 the #76 Porsche leads
by over two laps from the #91 Porsche.
17:52
The #17 Pescarolo takes third from the Creation as the two
cross the line, but it's side-by-side all the way down to
the First Chicane, where they battle it out again., They
touch, and the Creation can't hold the track, and through
moves the Pescarolo, denying Creation a richly deserved
podium.
17:53
CHEQUERED FLAG
"Well
done Tommy - Good result!" says Phil over the radio
as Tommy takes the flag, fourth in LMP2, 24 seconds behind
the trio of Porsches. That's got to be considered an excellent
result for the MG.
LMP2
Result
Pos
No.
O/all
Team
Driver
Car
Laps
Best
Lap
1
31
8
Team
Essex
Nielsen/Elgaard
Porsche
RS Spyder
165
1:39.817
2
34
9
Van
Merksteijn M/s
Van
Merksteijn/Verstappen
Porsche
RS Spyder
164
1:37.625
3
27
10
Horag
Racing
Lienhard/Theys/Lammers
Porsche
RS Spyder
164
1:38.805
4
25
11
RML
AD Group
Erdos/Newton
MG
Lola EX265
164
1:40.865
5
35
12
Saulnier
Racing
Ragues/Lahaye
Pescarolo
Judd
163
1:41.155
6
44
13
Kruse
Schiller
de
Pourtales/Noda
Lola
B05/40
162
1:41.645
7
40
14
Quifel
ASM
Amaral/Pla
Lola
B05/40 AER
161
1:40.648
8
45
18
Embassy
Racing
Hughes/Haberfield
WF01
Zytek
155
1:41.291
9
33
23
Speedy
Sebah
Belicchi/Pompidou/Zacchia
Lola
Bo8/80 Coupé
151
1:37.093
Not
classified
10
46
DNF
Embassy
Racing
Kane/Foster
WF01
Zytek
146
1:41.219
11
32
DNF
Barazi
Epsilon
Barazi/Vergers
Zytek
07S
116
1:39.832
12
30
DNF
Racing
Box
Didaio/Francioni/Savoldi
Lucchini
Judd
115
1:44.242
13
41
DNF
Trading
Performance
Ojeh/Gosselin/Schroyen
Zytek
07S
94
1:41.240
14
37
DNF
WR
Salini
Salini/Salini/Roussel
WR
Zytek
71
1:49.459
15
26
DNF
Bruichladdich
Rostan/Petersen/Lueders
Radical
SR9 AER
6
1:42.931
POST
RACE COMMENT
"That
was hard work all round," said Adam Wiseberg, "but
in all honesty, that's a great result for us. We were only
two laps down on the class winners today, and that's a change
from seven laps in Barcelona, and it could have been so
much better. Without that last safety car I think we could
have had a podium today - I doubt Lammers could have caught
Tommy if everyone hadn't been bunched up like that."
As
much as it had provided entertainment for everyone watching,
the battle for the overall lead in the closing stages of
the race had been a cause for some concern in the RML garage.
"There was always a possibility they might have taken
each other out," suggested Adam. "When the Peugeot
was given the first stop-go penalty, and then the Audi had
the puncture, we could see that the next car down was five
laps back. If we'd had to go those extra laps, we might
have had to put Mike back in the car again." When the
chequered flag fell, Tommy had completed 3 hours, 52 minutes
and 48 seconds of racing . . . and the limit for any single
driver is four hours. Almost certainly, five more laps would
have taken him beyond the limit. When Mike was told there
was a possibility he might have to drive again, "we'd
never seen him move so fast!" Luckily, the extra pitstop
wasn't needed, although with more than a lap in hand over
the fifth placed Saulnier Courage, it's unlikely the MG
would have lost position.
After
two very trying days, Phil Barker was pleasantly satisfied.
"That's another sterling five points and a very good
result!" he declared. We had another clear run, with
no mechanical dramas, and I'm well chuffed. This one was
all about performance, and preparation, and staying out
of trouble. The guys did an excellent job."
Mike
reckoned it was like "leading the non-Porsche Cup Class,
while Tommy felt it was more a case of "being first
in the second division," but there was no doubt that
both drivers were pleased to have secured some more valuable
points. "It's only five points, but it's a much better
five points than the ones we got two weeks ago. Last time
we got the points because we were still running at the end.
This time we won those points on performance, and that's
enormously gratifying."
"That
was a super result," said Adam Wiseberg. "We always
knew that these Porsches were going to be difficult to beat
. . . and they are. But we were much closer to them at the
end of this race than we were in Barcelona. We've just got
to keep chipping away, and see if we can't get back on the
podium before much longer. All in all, it's been a very
positive, clean run for us. We maintained a decent pace,
Mike did a tremendous job in the middle, and we ended up
beating all of last year's cars., and quite a few of the
new ones too. It's great."
During
the races it is possible to follow live timing on the Internet,
visit the Le
Mans Series website and click on the highlighted panel
in the centre of the page. Full results details can also
be downloaded in PDF format from the Le Mans Series website.
Click here
for access.
With
Warm-up complete, it was back to the meeting room for Mike,
Tommy, Phil and Adam for a final strategy briefing before
the two drivers made their way to the official autograph
session. 
Over
the next few laps the field gradually spread out into a
sequence of smaller battles. With a gap having established
between the leading trio and the pursuing pack, the contest
for this middle ground of LMP2 was especially fierce.
Five
laps into the race and Tommy was holding 17th overall, 7th
in LMP2. 
14:01
14:14
15:14
PITSTOP
15:36
DRIVER CHANGE
16:06
