The bad luck for Audi continues. The No. 7 R18 e-tron quattro currently piloted by Benoit Treluyer first had to visit the garage for an oil change and then had to come right back so the team could address loose bodywork on the right and rear of the car. The same piece of the car that broke away on track earlier in the race. This makes it even less probably for the No. 7 to catch the lead No. 19 and No. 17 Porsche Team 919 Hybrids driven by a pair of Kiwis: Earl Bamber and Brendon Hartley.
KCMG's LM P2 dominance nearly came to an end when Nicolas Lapierre spun the No. 47 Oreca 05 - Nissan from the lead in Indianapolis. Lucky for him, the team had built up such a strong lead, it continues to top the class. The No. 26 G Drive Racing Ligier JS P2 - Nissan with Sam Bird behind the wheel is hoping for another mistake to move up from its second-place spot. Defending race winner Jota Sport is third. Oliver Turvey is aboard their No. 38 Gibson 0155 - Nissan.
The No. 51 AF Corse Ferari 458 Italia (Vilander) continues to lead the LM GTE Pro category, but isn't in the clear yet from the No. 64 Corvette Racing C7.R driven by Oliver Gavin. The third-place No. 71 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia with James Calado aboard is not on the same lap of the leaders.
Perhaps the best battle on track has been in LM GTE Am, where the No. 62 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 458 Italia driven by Townsend Bell has been all over the No. 77 Dempsey-Proton Racing Porsche 911 RSR of Patrick Long, battling for third position. Bell's attempts to get by Long resulted in a spin that the Ferrari recovered from and proceeded to catch Long again, but Bell was dispatched to pit lane to serve a penatly for speeding in the pits. This gave Long some breathing room.
Pedro Lamy leads the class in the No. 98 Aston Martin Racing Vantage V8. The No. 72 SMP Racing Ferrari 458 Italia with Andrea Bertolini is second. Long is third.
Erin Cechal / ACO
PHOTO: LE MANS (SARTHE, FRANCE), CIRCUIT DES 24 HEURES, 24 HOURS OF LE MANS, SUNDAY 15 JUNE 2015, RACE. The No. 7 Audi had to make an extra stop for repairs.
- 24 Heures du Mans
