Further LMP1 drama as LM24 hits midnight

The No. 7 Toyota of Mike Conway leads the Le Mans 24 Hours by a minute over the No. 1 Porsche 919 Hybrid as full darkness hits La Sarthe, with nine hours complete. Continuing the theme of hourly dramas, though, the No. 9 Toyota hit trouble from third.

After Nicolas Lapierre unlapped himself in the pits, getting out ahead of the No. 1 Porsche to keep the car in the fight, the TS050 came in with an issue. The car entered pit lane for its 12th stop, and lost two minutes while the mechanics were forced to replace the left-hand position light panel on the car.

Back on track, it's now two laps off the lead, and with a long way to go. The No. 8, meanwhile, is still in the garage undergoing a complete hybrid system change at the front end, causing it to tumble down the order.

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The No. 13 Rebellion ORECA has also hit further trouble. Once leading the class by a healthy margin, Mathias Beche was forced to come in for a rear-end change due to a light failure. It cost the car a minute in the pits, allowing the No. 31 to create a healthy 1-minute 12-second margin out front.

Third spot is now still held by the No. 38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA, which is gradually falling away, but still on the lead lap.

In GTE Pro, it's a lottery as the witching hours begin, with the top eight in the class separated by less than a minute, meaning each pit stop cycle shuffles the pack. The running order still sees the No. 97 Aston Martin holding a 20-second lead over the No. 67 Ford of Harry Tincknell, with the No. 92 Porsche third.

After the No. 98's dramas JMW Motorsport continues to lead the GTE Am class, with the No. 90 TF Sport Aston Martin just 20 seconds adrift. The best of the rest is now the No. 77 Proton Porsche, which has had a quiet outing, rising up the order through the opening half of the race.