Hour 7: MSR still leads, Porsche top in GTLM
AJ Allmendinger still has the car to beat in the prototypes, but Porsche are looking dominant in GTLM.
#911 Porsche Team North America Porsche 911 RSR: Nick Tandy, Patrick Pilet, Kevin Estre
Art Fleischmann
Allmendinger lost the lead during pit stops, allowing the Brendon Hartley-driven #01 Ganassi Riley-Ford into the lead ahead of Pipo Derani in the ESM Ligier-Honda, Tony Kanaan in the second Ganassi car, and Marc Goossens fourth, piloting the Visit Florida Corvette DP.
However, Hartley handed off to Andy Priaulx, Derani gave up the ESM car to Johannes van Overbeek, Kanaan pitted too, and Goossens got a drive through for spinning the wheels while up on the jacks.
And so Allmendinger retook the lead ahead of Albuquerque’s No. 5 AX Racing Corvette DP, and the two Ganassi Rileys.
Also worth noting is that the Mazda Prototype rejoined but 2 laps down, with Indy Lights champion Spencer Pigot at the wheel.
In the first half of Hour 6, Nick Tandy and Frederic Makowiecki had the Porsches running 1-2 in GTLM, ahead of Graham Rahal in the BMW M6, and the first of the Corvettes in the hands of Mike Rockenfeller. The second ’Vette, meanwhile, spent a lot of the hour trying to wrest fifth in class from Olivier Beretta’s Risi Ferrari 488 GTE.
The Porsches pitted, Earl Bamber (#912) and Kevin Estre (#911) picked up where their teammates left off, but Corvette Racing got Rockenfeller into P3, ahead of the SMP Racing Ferrari (James Calado) and the BMW of Kuno Wittmer who took over from Rahal.
The #48 Paul Miller Lamborghini continues to lead GTD class, with Mirko Bortolotti holding off the Audi R8 of Rene Rast, followed by the Alex Job Porsche of Mario Farnbacher.
PR1/Mathiasen’s Tom Kimber-Smith is 3 laps ahead of his nearest PC rival, the #20 BAR1 machine currently piloted by Brendan Gaughan.
At the end of the hour, the sixth caution flew, for Mark Kvamme spinning the #88 Starworks PC machine.
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