The outcome of the smallest class was quite a usual sight at Le Mans. Three Porsches topped the class, the quickest one being the IMSA Performance No. 76 entry of Richard Lietz, Raymond Narac and Patrick Long. The quick American Porsche works driver posted a 4:01.598 lap time, beating the second-placed Autorlando Porsche by over half a second.
While the first session saw the Scudeira Ecosse Ferrari F430 in front, the closing hours of the test day proved to be a Porsche show. Jörg Bergmeister qualified the Flying Lizard Porsche third, ahead of the Risi Ferrari No. 97. Scuderia Ecosse ended up finishing fifth, ahead of the first LNT Panoz Esperante.
Most of the GT2 class team’s were busy qualifying the plenty of Le Mans rookies in class. Matthew Marsh finished second to last in class, Hong-Kong based Marsh enjoyed his first laps at Le Mans, being the first ever Hong-Kong driver at Le Mans. Another prominent name finished at the bottom of the leader board. The AF Corse Ferrari F430 with Adrian Newey at the wheel was slowest in class, still beating the T2M Dome. Red Bull F1’s Newey is no rookie to Le Mans; the Briton contested several Le Mans Classic meetings with his own Ford GT40.
Here we are, the Le Mans test day is over. While most people couldn’t wait for the first phase of the Audi vs. Peugeot duel, it’s kind of unsure what we can learn from these times. Direct comparison with last year’s times is not possible, the new Tertre Rouge corner makes this year’s lap times at least 2-3 seconds quicker. Also, its unknown which teams used qualifying tires. While the Peugeot and Audi squads were most probably on regular tires, the very quick lap time of the Pescarolo No. 16 suggests the French team opted for the soft Michelin compound.
Either way, it looks as we’re in for an amazing battle this year. Which of the teams have been holding back? Will it be Audi or Peugeot? Diesel or Petrol? We’re getting closer to the definitive answers as the on-track action at Le Mans resumes in less than two weeks, with the 24h race just 13 days away.
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Originally Posted by songhoh
