With Audi now running first and second, Mark Webber had climbed aboard the then third-placed #20 Porsche and was turning decent laps to sit 19 seconds behind the #1 car. Romain Dumas took over the #14 Porsche 919, the car having pitted early after pulling up briefly on the circuit.
Pushing hard for Porsche’s GTE-Pro interest, Fred Makowiecki set the car’s best lap of the race with a 3:54.557, three consecutive personal best sector times nailed the time, the car looking fairly strong in third. Stefan Mücke responded with a fastest first sector that contributed to a 3:54.945, also the Aston’s quickest lap.
Paulo Ruberti had to slow the 8Star Motorsport due to a left rear puncture, but got the car back to pit lane.
The LMP2 battle was still showing no signs of easing off – Nelson Panciatici posting consecutive quickest sector times for 3:38.084, quicker times now showing sporadically in the top 20 as cars found more pace, temperatures improving in the early morning sun. Jan Mardenborough had just put in yet another improvement as the G-Drive Ligier continued to pound the circuit. The ex-F1 drivers were also liking the conditions; Mika Salo posting a personal best for the SMP Oreca, trailing the main P2 cluster down in 24th position overall. Christian Klien’s Morgan also showed better pace before pitting.
Alex Brundle set yet another best race lap for the #35 Oak Ligier Nissan just as Stefan Mücke banged in yet another ‘blue’ time on the screens for the charging #97 Aston, the gap to class-leader Vilander now down to 26 seconds.
With Marcel Fässler now running laps in the 3:28’s in the overall lead, Mark Webber’s Porsche appeared to be slipping back slowly to the leading pair of R18 e-tron quattros, the gap from second to third drawing out at around 1 or 2 seconds per lap and sitting just shy of 50 seconds.
At the opposite end of the running order, the #52 Ram Racing 458 was wheeled back into its garage for another round of surgery. This time though it was terminal, the gearbox having failed not for the first time in this race; Matt Griffin relating a litany of dramas in a “hellish 18 hours” for the car.
P2 was hotting up yet again as Ludovic Badey brought the #46 Thiriet Ligier within 7 seconds of the second-placed Alpine, currently in Panciatici’s hands. The gap fluctuated as the JS P2 dealt with traffic on the Mulsanne but the car was visibly aggressive through Indianapolis and Arnage.
Fuel stops for both the second-placed #1 Audi and the third placed #20 Porsche gained Mark Webber time, as the Porsche fuel stop was executed quicker, Webber then posting consistently quicker first sector times to reduce its gap to 33 seconds.
Drama as the leading #2 Audi pitted: no tyres ready in the pit-lane, but the car was immediately rolled back into the garage as a replacement turbo unit was readied. New front end aero was applied though as the front bodywork was replaced, but the car failed to start when it was dollied onto the pit apron. It was wheeled back into its garage with more frantic activity now occurring at the back of the car. The turbo would have to be replaced after all.
At the Porsche Curves there was a further retirement. The #72 SMP Ferrari had been running at the back of the GTE-Am class but was spotted clattering backwards down the retaining wall at the Porsche Curves. This drew a Slow Zone procedure for this section of the track while the marshals effected repairs to the damaged Armco.
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