24h Le Mans
After a rocky start and first hour, the Brutal Fish by Campos drivers didn’t flinch. In GT3, the race was won in the last lap.
Social media sports commentator Depielo waved the start. The 56 cars – 39 LMP3s split into two classes, and 17 GT3s – set off to battle for supremacy in the highlight of the Michelin Le Mans Cup, the 3-hour race on the Circuit des 24 heures. The relatively chilly start (17°C this morning) meant the warm-up lap was all-important. There was such a scramble at the start that race control called a Full Course Yellow a the end of lap 1.
Unperturbed by the scrabble behind him, polesitter Arthur Rogeon (Brutal Fish by Campos #12 Ligier JS P325 - Toyota) took advantage of the situation by carving a gap. When the race reprised, Colin Queen (23Events Racing #50 Ligier JS P325 – Toyota) oversteered coming out of Arnage Corner. The impact with the tyre wall sent the car into a spin, sparking a series of incidents and littering the track with debris of all sorts. While the leaders refuelled, Jean-Baptiste Simmenauer (SMC Motorsport #77 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo) took the top spot (lap 10). The safety car was deployed 53 minutes after the Cédric Oltramare overshot the Porsche Curves (#97 LMP3).
When the course was declared clear, there remained 1 hour and 44 minutes remaining on the clock. Pit stop strategy altered the rankings and closed gaps. In LMP3, Philip Lindberg (#20) headed the field, followed by August Raber (#12) and Lucas Fluxà Cross (#19), all three cars with a Ligier chassis. Meawhile, Spanish driver Gonzalo De Andres Martin had taken the wheel in the #77 McLaren and was in 16th place overall, and second in GT3. In LMP3 Pro/Am, Australian Fraser Ross (#58 GG Classics) was ahead of Frenchman Arlan Boulain (#35 Ultimate) and the Dane Michael Hove (#49 High Class Racing). The latter took advantage of pit stops to take the lead in the 17th lap.
The two Brutal Fish by Campos prototypes later grabbed P1 and 2, August Raber with a two-minute lead over his teammate. Race tactics got sharper. Twenty laps in, the first four cars had only boxed once, and their opponents at least twice. Lenny Ried (High Class Racing #20 Ligier JS P325 - Toyota) took the top spot while the leaders were in the pit lane.
Early in the second hour, the #77 McLaren still hadn’t made its second stop, a decision that earned the team third place on the podium, Gonzalo De Andres Martin having waited until the end of lap 25. In Pro/Am, Quentin Antonel (DKR Engineering #3 Ligier JS P3 - Toyota) stepped up the pace, holding his opponents at a distance. Among the candidates for victory, the two Brutal Fish by Campos cars were the first to box for the third and last time. Arthur Rageon took over in the #12 cockpit. The leader stopped in turn, and we he rejoined, his lead had been reduced to a mere dozen seconds. With cold tyres, his gap was reduced to next to nothing. Rogeon crept up before the Porsche Curves, ready to pounce. There was nothing more Lenny Ried could do but be content with second place and a 50-second lead over the third. There was no further change to the leader board.
In GT3, Simmenauer set about making up for a penalty. His comeback from sixth place was unstoppable. The last hurdle was a head-to-head with the #95 McLaren driven by Garnet Patterson. Still in the Australian’s slip stream on the Mulsanne Straight, the Frenchman attempted a pass on the inside, then the outside, the cars brushed each other, there was slight contact, and then they were side by side at Indianapolis on the 36th lap, but Patterson didn’t let up. Last lap. Contact again coming into Mulsanne Corner. On the reacceleration, Patterson tried to get by on the inside, and... accident. Simmenauer managed to avoid the three-car commotion around him and headed for the chequered flag.
Road to Le Mans top 5 overall:
Class Winners:
Fastest lap in race: Gaarde Pedersen (Ligier JS P325 - Toyota #66 Rinaldi Racing), 3’49’’190 au 36e tour.
