2008 Le Mans Thread

20th hour is coming to a close, only four to go...
A dramatic hour, this one. As the conditions are drying Audi gambled and went for intermediates for both #1 and #3 cars. And they lost big time. While #3 struggled badly for several laps and just now is starting to make reasonable times the big loser was #1 car as Marco Werner spun the car in the Ford chicanes, collected a bollard and was forced to limp all the way around the track slowly. The car was taken straight to garage with clutch problem, whether that was from the spin, the bollard or a normal technical problem is not known. As Audi didn't gamble for the #2 car that still holds the lead of the race with #7 with Villeneuve at the wheel. Jacques just managed to unlap himself so the gap is now just under a lap. #9 still holds third and #2 is on fourth, and while the #1 is in the pits it remains to be seen whether #8 manages to take fifth from it. Pescarolo still leads the petrol club from Oreca Matmut.

No changes in other categories; Van Merkstejn still leads P2 from Team Essex and Saulnier, The #009 Aston leads the Corvettes on GT1 and the Ferraris hold top five in GT2.

The tyre gamble also took out the Dome once again, that spun on intermediates and smacked the barriers quite hard. I don't know whether they're back on the track since then. Now Premat is going very fast on intermediates, and #8 Peugeot is also gambling on that. Interesting times...
 
oh ffs, I shouldn't have gone to bed!

Just saw the Number 8 car spin on inters, clearly wets still needed
 
corvette racing :dunno::sad:

Well, there not out of it yet, I mean if they got any closer they would be on top of each other.

But still, the BRITISH Aston Martin is obviously much much much better


Due to its lack of LEAFSPRINGZ! ;)
 
Good morning everybody :)

lmp_pug.jpg
lmp_audi.jpg
lmp_van.jpg
gt1_amr1.jpg
 
21 hours done, three to go.
It's getting really close in the lead. The #2 is still in the lead but the track is drying and the Peugeots gaining speed. At the moment the gap from #2 Audi to #7 Peugeot is about three minutes and there's three hours to go, which adds up to roughly four seconds a lap. Peugeots have done that sort of speeds so theoretically this could go down to the wire between the #2 and #7. #9 still holds third and is closely followed by the #3 Peugeot. Meanwhile #8 Peugeot got the fifth place from the #1 Audi as the Audi was in the garage.

Elsewhere no changes to report.
 
http://www.planetlemans.com/

This is a good place to get some live commentary on what is going on if you can't stream video or radio from Europe (anyone from a small island nation in the Pacific called New Zealand specifically).
 
Well, there not out of it yet, I mean if they got any closer they would be on top of each other.

But still, the BRITISH Aston Martin is obviously much much much better


Due to its lack of LEAFSPRINGZ! ;)
The Corvette C6R does not have leaf springs (or lulspringz), the same goes for the C5R...
 
22 done, only two to go!
It's a serious nailbiter at the top. #2 still leads with Tom Kristensen taking the final turn at the wheel, but #7 is closing the gap down although at the moment not fast enough. However, it's starting to rain again and all cars are on slicks which makes things interesting. Also, as if that wasn't exciting enough, the lead car just collided with a backmarker and spun but fortunately survived apparently without damage and less than 15 seconds time loss. If nothing special happens it seems like Audi will take it by about a minute, but still more than an F1 race to go!

In GT1 there have been no dramas, and the #009 still holds lead from the two Corvettes. Meanwhile, in P2 the Porsches still hold the lead but the third placed Saulnier Pescarolo spun and collected the Farnbacher Ferrari just after I posted the last update. Saulnier lost several laps while doing repairs in the pits but thanks to their big gap backwards they manged to hold third place. In GT2 Risi still leads but the Virgo Racing car that had held the lead for a long time has retired with engine failure. That promotes the BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari to second but seven laps adrift of the class leader. The Farnbacher car holds third despite the collision with the Saulnier Pescarolo, with JMB Racing securing what is still a Ferrari 1-4 and the Team Felbermayr Porsche now on fifth place in class.
 
Well, there not out of it yet, I mean if they got any closer they would be on top of each other.

But still, the BRITISH Aston Martin is obviously much much much better


Due to its lack of LEAFSPRINGZ! ;)

i'd be angry.

but the aston is just so damn sexy, i cant get mad at it...:lol:

also i hope the spartak lambo finishes. it'd be awesome for that team
 
Last edited:
i'd be angry.

but the aston is just so damn sexy, i cant get mad at it...:lol:

also i hope the spartak lambo finishes. it'd be awesome for that team

Me too, even tho its dead last they still should finish with all there troubles

Sad to see the #33 Speedy Lola Coupe out, that car looks great
 
Final hour coming up!

On the closing stages it looks like the race belongs to the Audi #2 unless there will be technical problems or accident. #7 is catching up rapidly but there is just not enough time, and both cars are set to get through the race with only one more stop. Gap is now a bit over two minutes and the going down at five seconds a lap but it's still not fast enough.

Same story for other classes, and all top places look to be settled, although umbrellas are up in the stands. Everything is still possible...
 
Whoa, that's absolutely exciting!
The situation has changed dramatically: it began to rain, almost everybody including Audi #2 changed to intermediates but the Peugeot #7 not, so they lost 12 seconds in the first complete round after the stopp (but there they span out after the finishing straigt, luckily not into the gravel pit), then 5 seconds, then just 3 seconds and now the #7 is already 2 seconds faster again. Maybe the track is mostly dry enough to make up the loss of the wet parts...
The Peugeot #7 is just 2:40 minutes behind the Audi #2
 
Audi won this race in the pits. Damn. 10 fewer minutes for the no.2 car than the no.7 Pug.


Anyway, congrats in that case to Kristensen, Capello and McNish.

At least the difference was a lot smaller: less than one lap, compared to ten laps last year.
 
Last edited:
Top