The first chunk of this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans was so wet that it had to start behind a safety car, however, the race afterward has been a relatively clean fight. It’s as if the drivers realize that they have to make the cars last for 18 more hours or something, but it’s just good fun to watch.
There has been very little drama to speak of so far. The No. 67 Ford GT was kept from the start by a transmission issue and remains at the very bottom of the LM GTE Pro standings, however, it’s back out and turning laps.
Up front, LM GTE Pro has been a riot to watch, with Ford GTs and Ferrari 488s swapping places all day. Currently, the No. 68 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing USA GT leads the class, with the No. 82 Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE and No. 69 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing USA GT both right on its heels.
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Currently, the No. 6 Toyota TS050 leads overall with the No. 1 Porsche 919 in second. Toyota and Porsche have duked it out for the lead most of the day.
The No. 7 Audi has had the worst luck of the LMP1-H cars. The team had to change a turbo early on, and they remain 7 laps down at the six-hour mark.
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Predictably, the No. 13 Rebellion R-One is the leading privateer LMP1 in sixth place overall. Its sister No. 12 car had to replace a clutch, which has been a real full-team effort in their garage.
The Pro-Am classes have been a bit more lively, with the No. 28 Pegasus Racing LMP2 alone having had three separate offs, including one nose-in to the barrier right after the six-hour mark.
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Thiriet by TDS Racing Oreca-Nissan leads LMP2 at the moment.
The No. 88 Abu Dhabi-Proton Porsche 911 RSR leads LM GTE Am by nearly half a minute over the No. 78 KCMG Porsche 911 RSR.
So far, the No. 89 WeatherTech Porsche 911 RSR has been the only retirement of the day. Friend of Jalopnik Marc Miller spun into a barrier, ending the two-man team’s day. That’s unusually light on carnage for such a brutal race that’s already gone as long as a typical regular-season World Endurance Championship race.
Want to follow along more closely? RennSport is doing their traditional line-by-line live blog here.
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