American Le Mans Series

Sebring: The First Three Hours

Both Audis lead away but into the first corner it was apparent that there was a problem with The Guy Smith #20 Lola, a flat front right tyre slow lap and back to pits for four new tyres, Exit one lap down with Pirro leading Lehto and Weaver just hanging on. Field next LMP2 leader but wait he has pulled off on the side of the track, the master switch got knocked off setting off the fire bottle but they are back out, (Miracle now leading the class from the Kruse Courage of Primat and Clint Field) just as Guy smith comes in with a second puncture this time left rear.

© Planetlemans.com — Dennis Murray

GT1 is lead by Gavin from Turner and the PCM Corvette Dalziel holding off Fellows and the second Aston and the Job #23 Porsche leads Auberlin Panoz and Peterson Porsche in GT?

First caution when the Binnie Lola stops on track apparently electrical but just before that Pirro punts Gavin off the road and Turner almost leads for Aston. The Dallara comes in with problem and it’s less than an hour. During the yellow the leaders stop and Lehto leaves in front of Pirro and Weaver just behind Pirro gets a stop go for his incident with Gavin. Some stop in the yellow and on green new class leaders, Lehto in P1, Primat in P2 and Bouchet (Ferrari 550) GT!

Yellows keep the field bunched but the #16 Lola, Wallace now seems to have little difficulty keeping up with the Audis of Lehto and Pirro. The #20 car is back up to 4th in class. The P2 battle is all Courage but the Intersport Lolas are coming back into the picture. The Ferrari leads GT1 as a result of clever pit stop work but it; all three Corvettes the Astons and Acemo Saleen are all running together. Both TVRs are still running but one of the Spykers was seen being pushed trackside by its pit crew. Long #31 leads Dumas in #23 and Liddell in the #50 Panoz

Pirro has his second stop go this time for punting off the Peterson/White Lightning Porsche Long losing the class lead to Dumas. The Champion and both Dyson cars are on the lead lap. Primat in The courage is P2 leader just a lap behind the overall leader and Duncan Dayton has reclaimed second in Class when To Miracle Courage makes a long stop. Dayton is down in26th. The top six in GT1 lead by Berretta, O?Connell, Brabham, Lamy, Bouchet, Bertolini and Mowlem are all within 32 seconds of each other

After 2 hours 15 minutes Duncan Dayton suddenly slows as he was closing on the Mowlem Bertolini battle. Mowlem gets past but somewhere out the back he loses the place as next time he is some way back from the Maserati. The Maserati is steady rather than spectacular in its progress.
After a very long stop the Miracle Courage goes back into the race, now down in 33rd place, P2 is showing its usual frailty. At 2 hours 23 the lead Audi stops and Werner takes over and the Lola of Wallace leads for the first time with Guy Smith now second briefly before Smith stops to Hand over to Chris Dyson, The 20 car rear comes off at the start of a long stop. The leaders all seem to be taking tyres this stop. Wallace stops takes fuel only but has difficulty starting. To add insult to injury Andy gets a stop go.

Phil Bennett in the P2 Leader spins and then gets beached trying to get back on the track, the marshals give him a push, the Clint field P2 Lola spins and so does one of the Lizard Porsches, oil somewhere? Chris Dyson rejoins in 26th having lost 12 laps.
Just before three hours the Graham Nash Saleen has a front right tyre disintegrate.

At three hours Werner leads Wallace by 29 seconds, Biela is a further 5 seconds back Three laps behind the P1 battle is the GT1 battle; Magnussen leads Papis, Sarrazin, Ortelli and Golin all on the same lap. Babini Borcheller and Empringham are on the next lap followed by P2 leader Bennett. The GT2 battle is the usual suspects; Maassen #23 leads Luhr #31 and Jensen #43. Both TVRs were in the top 8 but Warren Hughes is having a long stop. The other car is 8th and the 48 Spyker is still running 13th in class. The two Panoz are 6th and 7th slipped back after slight delays.

© 2005 Planetlemans.com.