24 Hours of Le Mans: Safety Car Interruption and Mid-Race Developments
The 24 Hours of Le Mans reached a critical juncture as Cem Bolukbasi’s incident in the Nielsen Racing #24 ORECA LMP2 triggered the race’s first safety car period. Bolukbasi lost control after riding a curb at the Tertre Rouge Esses and crashed into the barriers. Fortunately, he exited the car unaided and was subsequently released from the medical center. This marked the first LMP2 retirement of the race.
As the safety car deployed, teams seized the opportunity to perform extended maintenance. Notable repairs included a new nose for the #83 AF Corse Ferrari 499P and a brake change for the #87 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F GT3.
With the race resuming just before the halfway mark, Laurens Vanthoor led in the #6 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963, followed closely by Ryo Hirakawa in the #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010. Ye Yifei in the AF Corse Ferrari 499P was now pushing Hirakawa, while Pascal Wehrlein took the wheel of the #4 Porsche in fourth. Raffaele Marciello rounded out the top five in the #15 BMW M Team WRT M Hybrid V8.
Halfway through the race, Filipe Albuquerque reported an engine failure for the #101 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R, marking another retirement. The LMP2 category remained competitive, led by Oliver Gray’s #48 VDS Panis Racing ORECA, followed by the #9 Iron Lynx Proton and #43 Inter Europol entries.
In the GT3 class, Riccardo Pera piloted the #92 Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche 911 GT3R to the lead. Ryan Hardwick, who initiated the race, expressed optimism about the team’s performance, emphasizing the unpredictability of the race. TF Sport’s #81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R held second, with the #78 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F GT3 in third.
Challenges continued for Team WRT, as the #31 The Bend BMW suffered damage after colliding with a rabbit on track. As of the halfway mark, 56 cars remained active, with all Hypercars still in contention except the WTR Cadillac, which is now retired along with the #46 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 due to power loss.
The strategic implications of the safety car and the ongoing mechanical issues faced by several teams will be crucial as the race unfolds further.
