24 Hours of Le Mans – Toyota dominates, Alpine finds its rhythm
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24 Hours of Le Mans – Toyota dominates, Alpine finds its rhythm

The fourth and final free practice at the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans was the last chance for competitors to fine-tune car settings before the race, that is if they were fortunate enough to avoid any major problems.

The Porsche camp in LMGTE Pro was not happy on Thursday evening, and for good reason! As prep work for the big race should have been in full force, the #92 was stuck in the garage after Kévin Estre's accident during the Hyperpole. The French driver lost control in the Indianapolis corner during his first fast lap, causing damage to his car. The team's mechanics worked on repairs throughout the session.

Due to interruptions during the Hyperpole, the night free practice started 10 minutes late on Thursday. The hour and 50 minutes unfolded rather quietly after the excitement earlier in the evening.

In the first minutes, Racing Team Nederland's #29 ORECA 07-Gibson overshot its driving line in the Forest Esses. Also, Nigel Bailly's #84 ORECA 07-Gibson broke down in the Mulsanne Straight at the top of the last hour. The #54 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo driven by Thomas Flohr then caused the session's only Slow Zone.

Fifteen minutes from the end of Free Practice 4, Kamui Kobayashi in the #7 Toyota had an incident exiting the Forest Esses, but somehow managed to avoid any contact with the tire wall (below). Soon thereafter, Ollie Millroy smashed the #71 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo into the wall entering the Ford chicane, cutting the session short.

Free Practice 4 | Top 5 

  1. #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid | TOYOTA GAZOO Racing | 3:27.994
  2. #3 Alpine A480-Gibson | Alpine Elf Matmut | 3:28.280
  3. #7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid | TOYOTA GAZOO Racing | 3:29.567
  4. #709 Glickenhaus 007 LMH | Glickenhaus Racing | 3:30.309
  5. #26 ORECA 07-Gibson | G-Drive Racing | 3:31.414

1st in LMP2: G-Drive Racing's #26 ORECA 07-Gibson | 3:31.414

1st in LMGTE Pro: WeatherTech Racing's #79 Porsche 911 RSR-19 | 3:48.246

1st in LMGTE Am: AF Corse's #83 Ferrari 488 GTE Evo | 3:51.561

Innovative Car: Association SRT41's #84 ORECA 07-Gibson | 31st overall | 3:48.747

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