93rd Annual 24 Hours of Le Mans: First Hour Recap
The 93rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans kicked off with a capacity crowd in attendance, as tennis legend Roger Federer waved the tricolor flag to start the race featuring a record 62-car grid.
Race Lead: Porsche Dominates Early Stages
In a surge from the third position on the grid, Julien Andlauer in the #5 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963 swiftly overtook the #38 Cadillac of Earl Bamber at the Dunlop Chicane, quickly closing in on pole-sitter Will Stevens in the #12 Cadillac. After gaining momentum from a strong slipstream, Andlauer took the lead at the Mulsanne Chicane, maintaining a 4.7-second advantage over the Cadillacs and Nicklas Nielsen’s #50 Ferrari 499P at the one-hour mark.
Notable Performances
Kevin Estre in the #6 Porsche, starting from 21st, exhibited remarkable progression, climbing to fifth place and setting the fastest lap of the race at 3:28.135. The first major incident saw Paul di Resta in the #93 Peugeot Total Energies 9X8 crash at the Porsche Curves but managed to return to the pits for repairs.
LMP2 Update
In LMP2, Tom Dillmann took the lead in the #43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA 07-Gibson, overtaking the pole-sitting #29 TDS Racing car. Job van Uitert in the #28 IDEC Sport car and Patrick Pilet in the #16 RLR MSport followed closely behind.
Incidents and Collisions
A cross-class collision occurred when the #22 United ORECA, driven by David Heinemeier Hansson, collided with the #193 Ziggo Sport Tempesta Ferrari LMGT3, but both vehicles remained in the race.
LMGT3 Standings
Jack Hawksworth in the #78 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F LMGT3 led the LMGT3 category, with Kelvin van der Linde’s #46 Team WRT BMW M4 LMGT3 in second. The top five positions were rounded out by the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin, #77 Proton Competition Ford Mustang, and #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin.
The race continues to unfold with high stakes and intense competition, setting the stage for a gripping 24-hour battle.
