This morning’s Warm-Up session at Le Mans got underway under overcast skies, very cool conditions, and the threat of rain, with race direction declaring the session wet ahead of running.
All 62 cars entered for the 92nd running made it to the track for the session, including the #12 Hertz Team JOTA Porsche 963, running a brand-new car built around a new chassis after Callum Illot’s off in FP2 on Wednesday.
The team ran a shakedown for the car on the Le Mans airfield last night, and the car ran well this morning, completing four laps in the 15-minute session.
Topping the session was the #83 AF Corse Ferrari with Robert Kubica, with a 3:29.2, ahead of the #51 AF Corse Ferrari and the #35 Alpine Endurance Team A424.
LMP2 was lead by Ben Barnicoat in the #183 AF Corse LMP2, from Panis Racing’s #65, and LMGT3 was lead by GR Racing’s Daniel Serra in the #86 Ferrari 296, from the Proton Competition Mustang – the #88 with Dennis Olsen – then the pole-sitting #70 Inception Racing McLaren.
There was an awkward incident for the #7 Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010, which made contact with the rear of the #78 Akkodis ASP Lexus.
As Nyck De Vries in the Toyota came to the exit of the Porsche Curves, the sequence of cars ahead of him checked up unexpectedly. De Vries had nowhere to go, and tagged the back of Kelvin van der Linde’s Lexus, resulting in a half-spin to a stop for the Toyota. De Vries was able to get the car back underway and to the pits, with a new front end required for the GR010.
Very late in the session, there was contact between the #47 Cool Racing LMP2 car of Naveen Rao and the #3 Cadillac V Series.R at the first chicane. Replays showed the Cool Racing car jumping over the kerb at the first Mulsanne Chicane, and tagging the right-hand side of the Cadillac. Luckily both cars continued without issue.
Just at the end of the session, the rain began to pour down, with the remaining cars on track having to tip-toe around to the pits.
Conditions aren’t expected to improve, however the forecast at this stage indicates that the intensity of rain will be variable throughout the rest of the day.
