Photo: Erik Junius
Nicolas Prost starting reporting steering difficulties while on track in the #31, running second overall and first in LMP2 with 11 hr and 48 min left in the race. He pitted the next time past and the team pulled the car into the garage. The Vaillante Rebellion entry fell to third in class and fourth overall before retaking the track. Teammate Heinemeier-Hansson (#13) assumed first in LMP2 followed by Ho-Pin Tung in the #38 Jackie Chan DC Racing machine.
The #1 Porsche Team 919 Hybrid pitted from and retained the overall lead with 11:38 remaining, Andre Lotterer behind the wheel. Heinemeier-Hansson pitted several minutes later, Tung assuming the LMP2 lead.
Lotterer’s drive came to an end, however, with 3:37 left on the clock as the #1 Porsche lost oil pressure and stopped on track. The #38 took the overall lead, running 2 laps ahead of the #2 Porsche (Brendon Hartley). The #38 pitted at 2 hr 54 min and needed to change its tail. The change took longer than expected, allowing the #2 to make up ground. The #91 Porsche GT Team 911 RSR led GTE Pro.
The #84 JMW Motorsport Ferrari 488 led GTE Am with 2:22 to go. At 2:07 the #97 Aston Martin Racing Vantage (Daniel Serra) led GTE Pro by 2.58 sec over the #63 Corvette Racing C7.R (Jordan Taylor), the Porsche having suffered a punctured tire.
The #2 Porsche caught and passed the #38 for the overall lead with 1 hr 7 min remaining. The #63 Corvette led GTE Pro and the #84 Ferrari GTE Am. The GTE Pro contest was the tightest on the track at the 47-min mark, Jordan Taylor (#63) and Jonny Adam (#97) running nose to tail.
Adam attempted a pass with less than 10 min remaining and he and the Corvette made contact. The #63 suffered a puncture in the closing laps and Adam made it past during the final circuit. The #67 Ford Chip Ganassi Racing UK GT also passed the Corvette.
The #2 Porsche took the overall win after having spent nearly an hour in the garage earlier in the race, the only LMP1 car on the overall podium. The #38 won LMP2 and finished second overall, the #13 Vaillante Rebellion Oreca 07-Gibson finishing third. It was Porsche’s third-straight Le Mans victory. The #97 Aston Martin topped GTE Pro and the #84 Ferrari GTE Am. The #8 Toyota Racing TS050 Hybrid was the only other LMP1 still running at the end.
Podiums
Overall:
#2 Porsche Team 919 Hybrid – Brendon Hartley (New Zealand), Timo Bernhard (Germany), Earl Bamber (New Zealand)
#38 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 07-Gibson – Ho-Pin Tung (Netherlands), Oliver Jarvis (Great Britain), Thomas Laurent (France), +1 lap
#13 Vaillante Rebellion Oreca 07-Gibson – Nelson Piquet (Brazil), Mathias Beche (Switzerland), David Heinemeier-Hansson (Denmark), +3 laps
LMP1:
#2 Porsche Team 919 Hybrid – Brendon Hartley (New Zealand), Timo Bernhard (Germany), Earl Bamber (New Zealand)
#8 Toyota Racing TS050 Hybrid – Anthony Davidson (UK), Sebastien Buemi (Switzerland), Kazuki Nakajima (Japan), +9 laps
LMP2:
#38 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 07-Gibson – Ho-Pin Tung (Netherlands), Oliver Jarvis (UK), Thomas Laurent (France)
#13 Vaillante Rebellion Oreca 07-Gibson – Nelson Piquet (Brazil), Mathias Beche (Switzerland), David Heinemeier Hansson (Denmark), +2 laps
#37 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca 07-Gibson – David Cheng (US), Alex Brundle (UK), Tristan Gommendy (France), +3 laps
GTE Pro:
#97 Aston Martin Racing Vantage GTE – Darren Turner (UK), Jonny Adam (UK), Daniel Serra (Brazil)
#67 Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK GT – Andy Priaulx (UK), Harry Tincknell (UK), Pipo Dirani (Brazil), +1:32.705
#63 Corvette Racing C7.R – Jan Magnussen (Denmark), Antonio Garcia (Spain), Jordan Taylor (US), +1:36.349
GTE Am:
#84 JMW Motorsport Ferrari 488 GTE – Will Stevens (UK), Dries Vanthoor (Belgium), Robert Smith (UK)
#55 Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GTE – Aaron Scott (UK), Duncan Cameron (UK), Matt Griffin (Ireland), +2 laps
#62 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari 488 GTE – Cooper MacNiel (US), Bill Sweedler (US), Townsend Bell (US), +2 laps