As we entered the closing stages of the race, the #4 Phoenix Racing Audi held a solid lead of around 30 seconds over the #20 Schubert BMW – which was yet to serve its penalty after the incident at turn one earlier in the day. The lead Audi maintained about the same gap back to second until the penalty was served at 1:30pm.
Down in third place, Jeroen Bleekemolen was slowly losing touch with the top two runners, lapping around seven seconds slower. The Dutchman inherited second place after the Schubert penalty, eventually running a minute ahead of the Z4.
Further troubles were reported for the #9 Prosperia Audi, as it had to be towed to safety after another driveshaft issue brought the car to a halt at Höhe Acht, forcing the team to retire the car. A tough race all-round for the German Audi customer squad.
Marc Basseng posted on his Facebook page that he is okay after being taken to hospital for a check-up after his hefty shunt in the #3 Phoenix Audi during the opening stages of the race yesterday.
It was believed with two hours to run that the distance record for the race would be broken, barring any major incidents or changes to the weather.
There was drama for the third-place Schubert BMW with just over two hours to go, the car being pushed back into the garage for repair work. It turned out to be splitter and front suspension damage after a spin from Claudia Hürtgen. The fourth-place #22 Rowe Mercedes sat just a lap behind and was quickly able to leapfrog the Z4.
The #007 Aston Martin Racing Vantage was also there to take advantage of Schubert’s misfortune, breaking into the top five for the first time all race. A great effort by the British crew after earlier mishaps with the pit garage fuel pump.
Team Schubert’s mechanics did managed to get the car back out after a 17-minute delay. It cost them dearly – the #20 slipping from third to sixth after an almost flawless run for the first 22 hours of the race.
However, the race was on for fifth when the Aston came in for its 19th stop. Upon rejoining the race, the BMW managed to claim fifth place back from the Vantage by about 20 car lengths. Hürtgen was able to keep the Aston behind until the final hour began.
SK
