Le Mans: Ferrari double at sunset, Rossi 1st in GT3 | FP

By Carlo Platella
The first quarter of the race at Le Mans ends with two Ferraris in the lead. The 499Ps showed an excellent pace, with the pit wall able to differentiate strategies when the rain arrived to preserve the lead of the race. Third is the Porsche #5, ahead of the Toyotas #8 and #7, the latter coming back from the back. The night promises to be long and open to everything, with the rain falling again at exactly 10pm.

The departure

Regular start of the 24 hours, with L. Vanthoor defending the first position of the Porsche #6. The dream, however, does not last long, because Nielsen on the Ferrari #50 first he surprised the #2 Cadillac at the start, and then also overtook the Porsche on the straight towards Indianapolis, crossing the finish line on the first lap ahead of everyone. The first two stints of the race saw the two official Red cars, the Porsche #6, the Cadillac #2 and the Toyota #8 within a handful of seconds, often returning to the pits in a queue and demonstrating a great balance of pace.

The two Ferraris and the #6 Porsche alternate in the lead, also following the two 10-second penalties served by the Reds, remedied in qualifying for the #51 and for an unsafe release for the #50. The Alpines also showed off initially, showing off an enviable top speed and managing to stay with the leading group. The arrival of the rain around 6pm it gives a first jolt to the standings, wetting the track but not enough to make the switch to wet tires a given. The Ferrari #51, the Porsche #6, the Cadillac #2 and the two Toyotas opt for wet tyres, a choice which turns out to be the wrong choice compared to those who continue with dry ones.

The yellow Ferrari #83 benefits the most, with a masterful drive by Robert Kubica with slick tires on a damp track, so much so that it even surpasses the official 499P #50. The two Toyotas and the Ferrari #51 lose ground to replace dry tyres, a move that relegates the Porsche #6 and the Cadillac #2 to the margins of the top-10. On the other hand, in the round of pit stops the Porsche #5 returns to the leading positions, like the private #12 managed by the Jota team.

The situation at sunset

Once the disturbance passes, the ranking stabilizes. After 6 hours of racing, Ferrari #83 leads of Robert Kubica, Yifei Ye and Robert Shwartzman, ahead of the 499P #50 of Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen, about half a minute behind. Third is the Porsche #5 Campbell, Christensen and Makowiecki, trailing by more than 40 seconds. Toyota #8 is fourth, showing a decidedly interesting pace and above all slightly staggered in strategy compared to the competition, making its pit stops a few laps later.

Ferrari #51 is fifth, ahead of the Toyota #7 which had moved up from the back of the grid. The #6 Porsche that started from the pole is back in the top ten and is now ninth, behind the #2 Cadillac (seventh) and the #12 Jota (eighth). There are still 18 Hypercars at full revs, while the withdrawal of the Alpine #35 due to the engine failure and the eight laps delay of the BMW #20 after the rear suspension broke after an impact with the wall should be noted.

Ahead of the night the situation remains open to anything. So far the Ferraris have expressed a constant and consistent pace, but so is that of the Toyotas, while Porsche could gain competitiveness as the temperatures drop. However, the German cars paid for the lack of speed on the straight, like Cadillac, encountering difficulties both in defending and attacking. Furthermore, at exactly 10pm it starts raining again, making it difficult to predict what the ranking will be when the sun rises.

BMW at the top among GTs

As in the premier class, the arrival of rain revolutionizes the rankings in LMGT3 too. In the initial stages the McLaren #70 defends pole position, ahead of the Ford #77 and the Ferrari JMW #66, but the whirlwind of pit stops following the rain shower shakes up the ranking. At 10pm The BMW #46 of Valentino Rossi, Ahmad Al Harty and Maxime Martin is in the leadwith the Italian who in his first ever stint at Le Mans did not disappoint in comparison with his more experienced colleagues.

Second and third are the Manthey Porsches, with the #91 preceding the #92, after the #85 Lamborghini of the Iron Dames loses third place following a spin. The first of the Ferraris is the #55 of AF Corse in fourth position, ahead of the #59 McLaren and the #66 Ferrari JMW. Finally, in LMP2 the Vector Sport #10 leads, with a handful of seconds of margin over the Cool Racing #37 and the United Autosport #22.