There had been a lot of dramas even before the race actually started. Bits of sunshine present since the morning disappeared and it became darker and colder. The Strakka-entered HPD was still being repaired after its warm-up crash and did not catch the grid. But most importantly, Audi number 8 driven by Andre Lotterer ended up in the wall during the formation lap suffering a significant damage. Even if he managed to get to the pits and Audi mechanics started working on the car immediatelly, it was clear that one of the Audi is already out of the game. It would re-appear in the race and thanks to other dramas that were to come, Audi would not be delayed so much but still well enough not to be able ever to get into the top 10.
Before the cars moved to the formation lap, the weather went even darker and first drops of rain started falling on the track. It was not heavy enough to require intermediates, nevertheless the track became slippery just as the race started. The Audi that started from the second grid spot opted for more cautious start while three Peugeots moved ahead. However one of them driven by Gene span already in the first corner, the famous La Source. But he managed to return at the back of the LMP1 field before the rest of the fifty car field went by. A few moments later, when the pack of the LMP2 cars reached even more famous Eau Rouge, one of the Racing Box Lola Coupes went too wide and crashed very heavily in Radillon, the corner following Eau Rouge. The car was completely destroyed at its rear end. More then thirty cars were approaching very quickly from behind, fortunately all of them managed to avoid the wreck of the Lola and did not crash. The safety car period was almost necessary. This all played very well for the Audi no.8, which was just being repaired in the pit garage. Despite that yellow caution advantage it was still 8 laps down when joining the race. On the other side, the Strakka HPD was repaired almost in time and left the pits at the begining of the second lap. But for some strange rule related to safety car period, the car was kept at the pitlane exit for another lap. Thus losing two laps, instead of one, if there was no safety car. The loss of two laps at the beginning of such a long race still left some good prospects for the team. But we may already reveal than even if it was almost two seconds faster per lap than anything else in the class, it never really featured in the class and would retire later after another smaller accident, after which the car returned to the pits but never appeared on the track again.
After about three more laps the race went green again. Peugeots were at the front, however the private car, which was running second in the first lap and behind the safety car, ran rather slow after the restart, probably too carefully, and at the Eau Rouge it was catched even by one of the Rebellion Lolas. Its driver Boullion probably did not expect that Peugeot to be so slow and somehow did not manage to brake, touched its rear end and sent both Panis and Peugeot spinning sideways to the wall, in the same place as Racing Box Lola four laps ago but different side of the track. Even it is looked rather dramatically and the Peugeot was not able to continue, organisers managed to take care of the crashed car without another full-course caution.
In the following laps two of the factory Peugeots were far away of anything else. The third car was delayed by the first lap spin and did not run at the pace of its sister cars. However also the Audis were rather slow in wet, so Rebellion Lolas moved forward, one of the cars running third overall for several laps. Then the third Peugeot speeded up and it became Peugeot one-two-three, with the first two miles ahead. Then the rain stopped and the two Audis moved to fourth and fifth ahead of the Rebellion Lolas.
It is did not take too long and we had another safety car period. The reason was a crash of the Ginetta-Zytek, which started last due to an accident and no time in qualifying. Young and less experienced driver Ebbesvik in the Ginetta returned too early into the main line crossing front of just overtaken Aston Martin, whose driver Turner had no way to avoid a contact, actually sending the Zytek into the wall. Later Ebbesvik was found injured. During this caution, Audis decided to make a pitstop, which actually helped them to get into the lead later for some time. Especially the car number 7, driven by McNish at the time, led the race, number 9 appeared shortly second. The leading Audi number 7 of Capello/Kristensen/McNish, then featured first after the three hours of the race. By this time, we have had already another bad experience. The race had been stopped because of power supply failure. Timing stopped to work so the race had to be red-flagged. It really helped a lot to Peugeot number 2, which had crashed only moments before after a collision with LMP2 Lola no.39. Without rear wing and some other damage it returned to the pits for repairs. While other cars stayed stationary on the main straight line, the Peugeot was completely rebuilt, thus a common spectator around Eau Rouge could not notice the Peugeot had any crash. It lost no laps or positions. In fact, we learnt about this accident only later, from the monitors in the Media Center after the race.
This red flag did not work well for Audis but the number 7 was still in the lead for some time, all depending on different pitstop strategy. Later it was permanently caught by the quicker Peugeot number 3 (Lamy, Bourdais and Pagenaud), which took the lead from the Audi no.7. But the Audi still kept in the second spot for the main part of the race. In the final hour of the race, we had another very heavy accident. The GT1 Aston Martin DBR9, started by Enge and taken over by Mücke had had its problems already, ran delayed at the end of the field but when driven by its third driver Nygaard, it was seriously crashed after he did not manage to keep the car running through the Blanchimont curves. Direct front impact into the wall removed the front part off the car. From the first review by the team, the chassis was not destroyed, so hopefully we will see it in the next races in Brno FIA GT1 and then in Le Mans. We were already in the final stages of the race and the rain started falling again. Some of the car even opted to change to intermediates. But it did not prove to be a good choice as the rain stopped with some 15 minutes to go. Audi number 7 was still running second behind the Peugeot number 3, which was in a secure lead despite the top three cars were still running in the same lap. Kristensen, who was at the wheel in the final stint, had to pit for intermediates after struggling in the wet. The remaining Rebellion Lola also opted for the same change (the other team car was stopped hours earlier with a gearbox failure). But while the Lola changed back to slicks later, the Audi stayed on intermediates until the finish. As the race and the weather developped, it cost the team the second place. As the rain stopped at the very end of the race and the track dried, the third running Peugeot number 2 was so much quicker than the Audi on intermediates so that Kristensen had actually no chance to keep quickly approaching Sarrazin in the number 2 car behind.
There was a drama for the Rebellion Lola, which was back on slicks. Two laps to go, it stopped on the main straight in front of the team pits. Then Boullion, who was at the wheel, started the car and moved it some hunded meters ahead to stop again. Then he finally turned it running. By this time the chequered flag was already awaiting the leading Peugeot. Lamy/Bourdais/Pagenaud won the dramatic race full of action, Montagny/Sarrazin/Minassian finished second, some 68 seconds behind, and the Audi number 7 finished in the same lap further 18 seconds back. Peugeot number 1 was one lap down, after having a trip into the gravel during the late race shower. Audi number 9 finished 5th another lap back. And that was all of the LMP1 class, further of the top ten positions went to LMP2 cars.
LMP2 race report
In fact, we had seen a nice battles in other classes as well. In LMP2, it was mainly a battle between the ASM Ginetta-Zytek and the RML Lola Coupe HPD, which were greatly supported by two OAK Racing Pescarolos. The Lola was delayed at the beginning when it lost its rear safety panel which had to be replaced. The team used one of the early cautions to reduce the loss. Then in the middle of the race, the Lola HPD had recovered and took the lead. Unfortunately after a driver change, the car was slower than many average LMP2 competitors so Ginetta-Zytek built a huge lead and it was never possible to catch it for the next Lola HPD driver. At least the Lola maintained second ahead of both well running Pescarolos, one of which was even classified in the lead of the class after the first hour.
GT1 race report
The GT1 class saw the private Ford GT in the lead early in the race, soon being caught by Tomas Enge in the Young Driver Aston Martin. In fact, Enge did not try to fight hard in order to save the car for this endurance race. As we already said, the car was later crashed rather heavily. But by that time it was dead-last in its class after long repairs in the pits. The Corvette of Luc Alphand was slightly delayed early in the race, so it was surprisingly the Larbre Competition Saleen that was running second in the middle of the race for several hours. However, it went later off the track and despite recovered, it was enough for Matech Fords from behind to pass by the Saleen, which was able to keep third place at times but in the end it was one-two-three for Fords in the class.
GT2 race report
Porsches, Ferraris and even BMWs had a very nice battle in the very close matched and best supported GT2 class. In fact, BMW was never in the lead, which belonged mainly to Felbermayr Porsche no.77 and AF Corse Ferrari no.96. They changed positions eight times. The only other leader was the CRS Racing Ferrari
no.91, which was running at the front in laps 30 to 46. However in the middle of the race the two BMWs were keeping second and third positions, which was a nice performance of the new team in the Le Mans Series. Later one of them suffered a puncture, the other one finished fourth. The Felbermayr Porsche no.77 had a great race and won not only GT2 class but was also the best GT car overall. CRS Ferraris took the remaining podium positions.
FLM race report
The was also half dozen cars in the Formula Le Mans class, which did not prove to be that successful to survive on its own, so it was included as a part of the main Le Mans Series races this year. The cars belong between LMP2 and GT1 by its performance, though they are actually slower on straights than a common GT1 car. Only three of them saw the finish line. The team Hope Pole Vision Racing, which was the only FLM competitor to enter two cars, dominated the race despite at time other team shared the lead. The car driven by Kaufmann/Zacchia/Moro won the race. The other team car retired but set the fastest lap in class.
