Toyota’s Le Mans hopes take major blow after Hirakawa off
The Japanese driver was installed at the wheel of the #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid with around two hours left on the clock, taking over from Brendon Hartley, and was around 16 seconds in arrears of the Ferrari of Antonio Giovinazzi. But just three laps into his stint, Hirakawa appeared to suffer a rear lock-up exiting […]
Ferrari locked in tense battle with Toyota
The race for the overall win took a fresh twist in the 19th hour when the leading #51 Ferrari 499P failed to get away immediately after its pitstop as Antonio Giovinazzi handed over to Alessandro Pier Guidi, requiring a power cycle to get going again. That eradicated an advantage of a minute that Ferrari had […]
Porsche admits dreams of strong Le Mans finish «dashed»
As the clock neared the 20-hour mark, the #5 963 LMDh was the Porsche’s best representative in sixth, six laps lap down on the leading #51 Ferrari, after losing time during the night with first a sensor problem and then a cooling leak that necessitated a 23-minute repair job in the garage. The sister #6 […]
Ferrari snatches lead from Toyota, drama for Porsche
The #8 Toyota had been at the head of the field as dawn broke at the Circuit de la Sarthe, but Ryo Hirakawa started to lose time with a damaged front splitter and a slow right-rear puncture to his GR010 HYBRID contender. This brought the #51 Ferrari 499P of Alessandro Pier Guidi into play, with […]
Toyota locked in lead battle with Ferrari
As daylight broke over the Circuit de la Sarthe, Ryo Hirakawa led Alessandro Pier Guidi by 12s with nine hours to go, the gap between them fluctuating in the heat of battle. In hour 13, Brendon Hartley unleashed a phenomenal stint in the #8 Toyota GR010 HYBRID, extending a 17s lead over the #51 Ferrari […]
Ferrari leads Toyota, disaster for Peugeot
Ferrari’s James Calado led Toyota’s Sebastien Buemi by 4s at the 12-hour mark, as the race enjoyed its most settled phase since the wild opening and jaw-dropping drama of the subsequent hours. Calado took the lead during a pitstop cycle after he’d closed on Buemi, who took new tyres when the Ferrari was double-stinting. The […]
Le Mans night stint in the rain was «frightening»
Johnson got back behind the wheel of the No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports (HMS) Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as the event entered the early night hours. The Garage 56 entry had an uneventful race with no major issues or offs to speak of. But the seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion was faced with an entirely new challenge right after […]
Peugeot leads, Ferrari spins, #7 Toyota out
Nico Muller led the race at the nine-hour mark in the #94 Peugeot 9X8, ahead of Ryo Hirakawa in the #8 Toyota GR010 HYBRID, Alex Lynn’s Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac V-Series.R and the Ferrari 499Ps of polewinner Antonio Fuoco and Alessandro Pier Guidi. At the end of the eighth hour, race leader Pier Guidi spun […]
Ferrari spins out of Le Mans lead as Toyota loses a car
The #51 Ferrari 499P was holding a comfortable lead of some 47 seconds at the head of the field over the Peugeot of Nico Muller when Pier Guidi lost control heading into the first chicane on the Mulsanne straight. Pier Guidi appeared to be trying to avoid another car that had gone off track ahead […]