Le Mans 24, Hour 1: Penske Porsche makes early move

With an hour of racing in the books at Le Mans, it’s Porsche that’s out front.

Julien Andlauer in the No. 5 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963 stormed past the two Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.Rs from third on the grid to take the lead on the opening lap.

His first move was on Earl Bamber at the Dunlop Bridge, then he breezed past Will Stevens in the pole-sitting No. 12 car on the run down to the first Mulsanne chicane.

Into the second hour, the Frenchman’s lead is 5.3s, after stretching to over 7s before the first round of pit stops.

Stevens remains second, with Bamber behind. Outside the top three, the No. 50 Ferrari of Nicklas Nielsen is fourth, ahead of the No. 6 Porsche, which has also enjoyed a strong start thanks to Kevin Estre and is fifth.

Also in the top 10 at this early stage are the No. 311 Whelen Cadillac, No. 20 BMW, No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari, No. 15 BMW after losing ground from P4 on the grid and the No. 8 Toyota.

It was a relatively calm, clean opening hour, though there were two significant incidents as Hour 2 approached.

The No. 22 United Autosports ORECA of David Heinemeier Hansson collided with the Ziggo Sport Tempesta Ferrari at the Dunlop Bridge. Both cars continued.

Then, with 57 minutes on the clock, Paul Di Resta in the No. 93 Peugeot 9X8 had an off at the Porsche Curves. The Scotsman ended up running through the gravel at speed after getting it all wrong, trying to lap the Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari.

Di Resta was unable to keep the car out of the barriers, ripping much of the rear bodywork off after contact. He dived straight in for repairs, and the team, remarkably, were able to replace the front and rear bodywork and send him on his way in just 93s, meaning the No. 93 is still on the lead lap.

The No. 43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA with Tom Dillmann at the wheel leads LMP2. The order has shuffled significantly since the first stops, with many teams opting to install their Bronze drivers, including the pole-sitting TDS ORECA, which has dropped to eighth after Mathias Beche made way for Rodrigo Sales.

IDEC Sport’s No. 28 ORECA is second, with the No. 16 RLR M Sport 07 of Patrick Pilet third overall in LMP2 and P1 in Pro/Am.

It’s a similar story in LMGT3. Mattia Drudi retained the lead early for Heart of Racing, but that car has since dropped to seventh after Ian James was put in the car during the No. 27’s first visit to the pit lane.

Jack Hawksworth, from eighth on the grid, finds himself leading in the No. 78 AKKODIS ASP Lexus. The No. 46 WRT BMW is second with Kelvin van der Linde on a charge. The No. 10 Racing Spirit of Leman Aston Martin is third.

HOUR 1 STANDINGS