After 10 Hours of the first Hankook 24H CIRCUIT PAUL RICARD we can report on some patterns in the race. The #30 Ram Racing Mercedes has consistently held about a one lap hold on the overall lead. This was solidified between hours 4 and 5 when two of their Mercedes rivals, the #2 HP Racing entry and that of #10, Hofor Racing, both hit troubles, including wheel damage and running out of fuel. The #7 Herberth Motorsport Porsche, while not as fast as the lead Mercedes, has remained persistently in second place, waiting patiently for its opportunity.
It is a pleasant lineup of three brands in the top three overall spots with Mercedes, Porsche, and Audi. The third place car, the #16 Simpson Motorsport R8, started modestly and has remained in the hunt through most of the evening. Their spot has been under some threat from the recovering #2 Hofor Racing Mercedes. It and the #4 Scuderia Praha Ferrari were involved in a contretemps at the start and perhaps most remarkably the Ferrari is now among the fastest cars on the track and is very gradually working back up the order.
The 997 contest has been fiercly fought between two cars, the #17 Ruffier Racing Porsche and the Cup car of #55 Crubile Sport. Ruffier has led for much of the evening by about one lap. Two early contestants have faded. The #20 MRS GT Racing Porsche has dropped about five laps down while the #52 MSGMotorsport Porsche has been slowed by some damage and spins. The locally based Porsche L’Orient team has made its presence felt, particularly their #62 car which has risen to third in class.
During the early part of the race the SP2 contest was waged between the two GC silhouette cars. One of those, #164, lost considerable time by twice being stranded on course, once with serious suspension problems. The #150 GC has remained more on point but it has come under attack from two of the MARC Cars Australia entries. The Ford badged #92 MARC has swapped the top spot with the Mazda version #93, although the #150 GC has frequently separated the two MARCs. Gradually the #92 MARC-Ford has opened up a multi-lap lead in the SP2 class. Further back the new Lamborghini Hurracan has shown flashes of speed but also bouts of unreliability. It seems to still be an unsorted car.
All four of the new Seat Leon Cup Racers have been at or near the front of the A3T class all day. However, it has been the more established #208 Peugeot 208 GTi of the semi-works Team Altran that has put its stamp on the class, leaving the Seats about four laps behind.
SP3 had been the domain of the #160 Cor Euser Racing Lotus Evora during the early hours. This made for a stirring scene as it had started on pit lane and screamed through the field. But then the Lotus encountered some gearbox problems and the #161 Sorg Rennsport BMW E92 M3 took over the lead in SP3. No sooner had that happened when the Sorg BMWt had major brake issues and became one of only four official retirements in the race. This left the very smoothly run #206 Nova Race Ginetta with a surprisingly strong lead in the class. This is in quite a contrast to the other Nova Race Ginetta which required an engine change.
The all BMW M235i Racing CUP1 class may include only three cars but it has seen some of the most spirited racing. All three have had turns at the front and there has rarely been more than two laps separating the trio. In the last few hours the battle for the lead in CUP1 has focused on the #79 Bonk Motorsport / Duwo Racing entry and the #70 Mission Possible example, which includes team leader and disabled driver Gustav Engljähringer.
The #112 Presenza Racing Team Switzerland Clio has yodeled its way to a consistent lead in the A2 class. Its early rival, the #115 K-Reijser Peugeot had some major delays and this allowed the two Autosport GP Renault Clios (#110 and #122) into potential class podium spots although neither seem to be in a position to attack the A2 leader.
The only class that seems to be out of reach at the moment is A5 where the #83 Cor Euser Racing BMW is having a near perfect run. The similar car of Hofor Racing (#75) led during the early hours before having gearbox issues, handing the Euser team a nearly 13 lap lead. Then again, we are less then halfway through.
There have been four short Code 60 periods, each for recoery of debris or stranded cars. The temperature has “dropped” to a comfortable 25 degrees in the hills of Provence.
