2017 24 Hours of Le Mans
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The 85th 24 Hours of Le Mans (French: 85e 24 Heures du Mans) was an automobile endurance event held on 17–18 June 2017 at the Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans, France. It was the 85th running of the 24 hour race organised by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest as well as the third round of the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship.
The race was won by the No. 2 Porsche driven by Timo Bernhard, Brendon Hartley and Earl Bamber after taking the lead of the race in the final two hours. It was the second victory at Le Mans for Bamber and Bernhard, and Hartley's first. Toyota's Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima, and Anthony Davidson finished in eighth place after starting on pole position, and were the only other competitor in the LMP1 field to finish the event. The LMP2 category was won by Ho-Pin Tung, Thomas Laurent, and Oliver Jarvis in the No. 38 Jackie Chan DC Racing Oreca, who led the race outright for several hours before finishing in second place overall. The second DC Racing entry of David Cheng, Tristan Gommendy, and Alex Brundle were three laps behind for third overall, followed by the No. 35 Signatech Alpine of Nelson Panciatici, Pierre Ragues, and André Negrão.
Aston Martin won the LMGTE Pro category, after the No. 97 car of Darren Turner, Jonathan Adam, and Daniel Serra overtook the stricken No. 63 Corvette of Jordan Taylor, Antonio García, and Jan Magnussen in the final two laps of the race. The No. 67 Ford was also able to pass the Corvette on the final lap to take second place for Harry Tincknell, Andy Priaulx, and Pipo Derani. LMGTE Am was won by the JMW Motorsport Ferrari of Robert Smith, Will Stevens, and Dries Vanthoor. Ferraris also finished in second and third, with Spirit of Race's Duncan Cameron, Aaron Scott, and Marco Cioci in second, and Scuderia Corsa's Townsend Bell, Cooper MacNeil, and Bill Sweedler in third.
Regulation changes
Following the 2016 event in which the leading car failed on its final lap and was eventually not classified in the final results, the standards by which a car is classified have been changed. Instead of the mandatory six minutes for the final lap of the race, penalties will be awarded for any lap over six minutes on a gradual scale. Failure to complete the last lap of the race in under fifteen minutes will now lead to a car no longer being classified.[1]
The slow zone system used at Le Mans has also been revised, with nine dedicated slow zone sectors laid out around the circuit. Previously individual marshal posts were used to mark the beginning and end of slow zones. The dedicated zones have been located such that the beginning of the 80 km/h (50 mph) is in a slow section of the circuit; previous slow zones could begin in areas of the track where cars were required to slow down from high speeds and cause accidents.[2]
The LMP2 category was revamped with the introduction of a single specification motor from Gibson, with increased power output compared to 2016 LMP2s.[3] Cockpit and chassis designs also mimic the LMP1 regulations for safety.[4] The four approved chassis manufacturers were Dallara, Ligier, Oreca and Riley.[5]
Entries
Automatic invitations
Automatic entry invitations are earned by teams that won their class in the previous running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, or won championships in the European Le Mans Series, Asian Le Mans Series, and the Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup. The second-place finisher in the European Le Mans Series LMGTE championship also earns an automatic invitation. Two participants from the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship are chosen by the series to be automatic entries by the ACO regardless of their performance or category. As invitations are granted to teams, they were allowed to change their cars from the previous year to the next, but not allowed to change their category. The LMGTE class invitations from the European and Asian Le Mans Series are allowed to choose between the Pro and Am categories. European Le Mans Series' LMP3 champion is required to field an entry in LMP2 while the Asian Le Mans Series LMP3 champion may choose between LMP2 or LMGTE Am. The Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup champions are limited to the LMGTE Am category.[6]
| Reason invited | LMP1 | LMP2 | LMGTE Pro | LMGTE Am |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st in the 24 Hours of Le Mans |  Porsche Team
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 Signatech Alpine
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 Ford Chip Ganassi Team USA
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Scuderia Corsa
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| 1st in the European Le Mans Series (LMP2 and LMGTE) |  G-Drive Racing
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 Aston Martin Racing
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| 2nd in the European Le Mans Series (LMGTE) | JMW Motorsport
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| 1st in the European Le Mans Series (LMP3) | United Autosports
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| WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at-large entries | Keating Motorsport
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Scuderia Corsa
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| 1st in the Asian Le Mans Series (LMP2 and GT) |  Algarve Pro Racing
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 DH Racing
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| 1st in the Asian Le Mans Series (LMP3) | Tockwith Motorsports
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– or – | Tockwith Motorsports
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| 1st in the Michelin GT3 Le Mans Cup | TF Sport
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Entry list
In conjunction with the announcement of entries for the 2017 FIA World Endurance Championship and the 2017 European Le Mans Series, the ACO announced the full 60 car entry list for Le Mans, plus two reserves.[7] Two cars were initially named to the reserve entry list for the event; RLR Msport later withdrew their LMP2 Ligier, while a fourth entry from Proton Competition remained without being promoted to the race.
With the withdrawal of Audi from LMP1, the class was reduced to just six entries for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Qualifying
Toyota took to the top of the field in qualifying, locking out the first row on the grid and breaking several lap records in the process. Kamui Kobayashi's 3:14.791 lap time during the second qualifying session was nearly two seconds faster than the qualifying lap record set in 2015 on the current 13.629 km (8.469 mi) version of the Circuit de la Sarthe, and averaged 251.882 km/h (156.512 mph) to beat Hans-Joachim Stuck's 1985 qualifying run.[8] The No. 8 Toyota secured second place during the final session after suffering an engine oil issue earlier in the day in the second session, necessitating an engine change. Porsche settled for third and fourth on the grid, but not before the No. 1 stopped on the circuit due to overheating and was unable to continue the final session. The third Toyota remained in fifth place for all three qualifying sessions, while the ByKolles ENSO CLM was sixth fastest.
The LMP2 category, with all-new, more powerful cars for 2017, were over 11 seconds faster than the class pole time the previous year. Alex Lynn led the category with a 3:25.352 lap, giving G-Drive their third consecutive pole position in the World Endurance Championship. The No. 25 Manor were two-tenths of a second behind, while DC Racing's No. 38 entry was a further half of a second behind. Oreca chassis, as well as the variant Alpine chassis, secured the first nine positions in the LMP2 class, while the Dallara of SMP Racing was the fastest of the other chassis in tenth place.[8] Eurasia Motorsport suffered the only major incident of the qualifying session after Erik Maris spun into a barrier on the exit of the first Mulsanne chicane at the start of the second qualifying session, stopping the session for half an hour.[9]
Aston Martin led the LMGTE Pro category with Darren Turner setting a 3:50.837 lap time, the fastest lap of Le Mans for an LMGTE car. All five manufacturers in LMGTE Pro were within a second of Turner's lap, with the fastest Ferrari in second, Ford fifth, Corvette sixth, and Porsche seventh. Larbre Compétition led LMGTE Am, with Fernando Rees setting a 3:52.843 lap time with the Corvette, four-tenths of a second clear of the No. 98 Aston Martin; the No. 62 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari was third in the class.[10]
Qualifying result
Provisional pole positions in each class are denoted in bold. The fastest time set by each entry is denoted with a gray background.
| Pos. | Class | No. | Team | Qualifying 1[11] | Qualifying 2[12] | Qualifying 3[13] | Gap | Grid[14] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LMP1 | 7 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 3:18.793 | 3:14.791 | 3:19.928 | 1 | |
| 2 | LMP1 | 8 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 3:19.483 | No time | 3:17.128 | +2.337 | 2 |
| 3 | LMP1 | 1 | Porsche LMP Team | 3:21.165 | 3:17.259 | 3:18.210 | +2.468 | 3 |
| 4 | LMP1 | 2 | Porsche LMP Team | 3:19.710 | 3:18.067 | 3:20.154 | +3.276 | 4 |
| 5 | LMP1 | 9 | Toyota Gazoo Racing | 3:19.958 | 3:19.889 | 3:18.625 | +3.834 | 5 |
| 6 | LMP1 | 4 | ByKolles Racing Team | 3:28.887 | 3:26.026 | 3:24.170 | +9.379 | 6 |
| 7 | LMP2 | 26 | G-Drive Racing | 3:31.945 | 3:28.580 | 3:25.352 | +10.561 | 7 |
| 8 | LMP2 | 25 | CEFC Manor TRS Racing | 3:30.502 | 3:25.549 | 3:26.521 | +10.758 | 8 |
| 9 | LMP2 | 38 | Jackie Chan DC Racing | 3:31.024 | 3:26.776 | 3:25.911 | +11.120 | 9 |
| 10 | LMP2 | 31 | Vaillante Rebellion | 3:29.851 | 3:27.564 | 3:26.736 | +11.945 | 10 |
| 11 | LMP2 | 13 | Vaillante Rebellion | 3:31.636 | 3:27.071 | 3:26.811 | +12.020 | 11 |
| 12 | LMP2 | 24 | CEFC Manor TRS Racing | 3:30.847 | 3:26.871 | 3:27.359 | +12.080 | 12 |
| 13 | LMP2 | 28 | TDS Racing | 3:29.333 | 3:31.085 | 3:27.108 | +12.317 | 13 |
| 14 | LMP2 | 35 | Signatech Alpine Matmut | 3:31.439 | 3:29.328 | 3:27.517 | +12.726 | 14 |
| 15 | LMP2 | 37 | Jackie Chan DC Racing | 3:41.393 | 3:28.432 | 3:27.535 | +12.744 | 15 |
| 16 | LMP2 | 27 | SMP Racing | 3:34.407 | 3:30.262 | 3:27.782 | +12.991 | 16 |
| 17 | LMP2 | 36 | Signatech Alpine Matmut | 3:31.065 | 3:28.856 | 3:28.051 | +13.260 | 17 |
| 18 | LMP2 | 39 | Graff | 3:32.987 | 3:36.128 | 3:28.368 | +13.577 | 18 |
| 19 | LMP2 | 40 | Graff | 3:32.477 | 3:29.396 | 3:28.891 | +14.100 | 19 |
| 20 | LMP2 | 22 | G-Drive Racing | 3:31.963 | 3:28.937 | 3:30.313 | +14.146 | 20 |
| 21 | LMP2 | 32 | United Autosports | 3:34.166 | 3:30.693 | 3:29.151 | +14.360 | 21 |
| 22 | LMP2 | 21 | DragonSpeed – 10 Star | 3:34.046 | 3:30.396 | 3:29.777 | +14.986 | 22 |
| 23 | LMP2 | 29 | Racing Team Nederland | 3:33.796 | 3:31.766 | 3:29.976 | +15.185 | 23 |
| 24 | LMP2 | 47 | Cetilar Villorba Corse | 3:34.846 | 3:30.014 | 3:33.412 | +15.223 | 24 |
| 25 | LMP2 | 45 | Algarve Pro Racing | 3:37.814 | 3:30.164 | 3:32.425 | +15.373 | 25 |
| 26 | LMP2 | 23 | Panis Barthez Competition | 3:35.559 | 3:31.346 | 3:32.888 | +16.555 | 26 |
| 27 | LMP2 | 34 | Tockwith Motorsports | 3:41.628 | 3:33.739 | 3:32.536 | +17.745 | 27 |
| 28 | LMP2 | 49 | ARC Bratislava | 3:37.226 | 3:33.921 | No time | +19.130 | 28 |
| 29 | LMP2 | 17 | IDEC Sport Racing | 3:40.162 | 3:36.362 | 3:36.230 | +21.439 | 29 |
| 30 | LMP2 | 43 | Keating Motorsport | 3:40.813 | 3:37.350 | 3:37.007 | +22.216 | 30 |
| 31 | LMP2 | 33 | Eurasia Motorsport | 3:42.660 | 3:42.916 | No time | +27.869 | 31 |
| 32 | LMGTE Pro | 97 | Aston Martin Racing | 3:53.296 | 3:51.860 | 3:50.837 | +36.046 | 32 |
| 33 | LMGTE Pro | 51 | AF Corse | 3:53.123 | 3:52.087 | 3:51.028 | +36.237 | 33 |
| 34 | LMGTE Pro | 95 | Aston Martin Racing | 3:52.117 | 3:52.525 | 3:51.038 | +36.247 | 34 |
| 35 | LMGTE Pro | 71 | AF Corse | 3:52.235 | 3:52.903 | 3:51.086 | +36.295 | 35 |
| 36 | LMGTE Pro | 69 | Ford Chip Ganassi Team USA | 3:55.553 | 3:52.496 | 3:51.232 | +36.441 | 36 |
| 37 | LMGTE Pro | 63 | Corvette Racing – GM | 3:54.847 | 3:52.886 | 3:51.484 | +36.693 | 37 |
| 38 | LMGTE Pro | 92 | Porsche GT Team | 3:54.243 | 3:52.177 | 3:51.847 | +37.056 | 38 |
| 39 | LMGTE Pro | 66 | Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK | 3:55.803 | 3:52.558 | 3:51.991 | +37.200 | 39 |
| 40 | LMGTE Pro | 67 | Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK | 3:54.118 | 3:53.059 | 3:52.008 | +37.217 | 40 |
| 41 | LMGTE Pro | 64 | Corvette Racing – GM | 3:54.876 | 3:52.391 | 3:52.017 | +37.226 | 41 |
| 42 | LMGTE Pro | 82 | Risi Competizione | No time[N 1] | 3:52.138 | 3:54.129 | +37.347 | 42 |
| 43 | LMGTE Pro | 68 | Ford Chip Ganassi Team USA | 3:55.059 | 3:52.626 | 3:52.178 | +37.387 | 43 |
| 44 | LMGTE Pro | 91 | Porsche GT Team | 3:54.564 | 3:52.593 | 3:53.807 | +37.802 | 44 |
| 45 | LMGTE Am | 50 | Larbre Compétition | 3:56.259 | 3:54.559 | 3:52.843 | +38.052 | 45 |
| 46 | LMGTE Am | 98 | Aston Martin Racing | 3:55.134 | 3:54.456 | 3:53.233 | +38.442 | 46 |
| 47 | LMGTE Am | 62 | Scuderia Corsa | 3:57.267 | 3:54.576 | 3:53.312 | +38.521 | 47 |
| 48 | LMGTE Am | 77 | Dempsey-Proton Racing | 3:55.692 | 3:54.890 | 3:53.381 | +38.590 | 48 |
| 49 | LMGTE Am | 55 | Spirit of Race | 4:01.098 | 3:54.941 | 3:53.641 | +38.850 | 49 |
| 50 | LMGTE Am | 84 | JMW Motorsport | 3:56.890 | 3:53.981 | 3:53.977 | +39.186 | 50 |
| 51 | LMGTE Am | 83 | DH Racing | 3:55.966 | 3:54.813 | 3:54.088 | +39.297 | 51 |
| 52 | LMGTE Am | 90 | TF Sport | 3:55.953 | 3:54.319 | 3:54.551 | +39.528 | 52 |
| 53 | LMGTE Am | 99 | Beechdean AMR | 3:57.463 | 3:55.046 | 3:54.328 | +39.537 | 53 |
| 54 | LMGTE Am | 93 | Proton Competition | 3:58.196 | 3:54.621 | 3:59.046 | +39.830 | 54 |
| 55 | LMGTE Am | 61 | Clearwater Racing | 3:56.333 | 3:55.995 | 3:54.955 | +40.164 | 55 |
| 56 | LMGTE Am | 60 | Clearwater Racing | 3:57.321 | 4:02.436 | 3:54.994 | +40.203 | 56 |
| 57 | LMGTE Am | 88 | Proton Competition | 3:56.507 | 3:55.468 | 4:00.323 | +40.677 | 57 |
| 58 | LMGTE Am | 54 | Spirit of Race | 3:58.904 | 3:57.005 | 3:56.301 | +41.510 | 58 |
| 59 | LMGTE Am | 86 | Gulf Racing UK | 3:58.427 | No time | 3:56.469 | +41.678 | 59 |
| 60 | LMGTE Am | 65 | Scuderia Corsa | 3:58.249 | 3:59.842 | No time | +43.458 | 60 |
Race
Race summary
After pre race problems the LMP1 No. 4 ByKolles Racing Team entry retired after completing 7 laps due to a loss of compression in the engine.[16] Toyota established a healthy lead in the early hours of the race and the No. 2 Porsche took a lengthy stop after three and a half hours to fix its front axle, losing touch with the leaders. Four and a half hours in the No. 8 Toyota also had to make repairs in the pits, dropping them from contention for the win.[17]
Ten hours in, the overall race leader No. 7 Toyota, suffered a clutch failure and could not make it back to the pits under hybrid power, forcing its retirement. This was quickly followed by the No. 9 Toyota colliding with an LMP2 car which caused a puncture. The debris left on the wheel rim caused further damage to the No. 9's gearbox and forced it to retire.[18] This left the No. 1 Porsche with a large lead in the overall standings. However, with four hours to go, it too failed and retired from the race.[19] This left the No. 38 LMP2 car as the overall leader, meaning that for the first time in history the race was led by an LMP2 runner.[20] The eventual winner was the No. 2 Porsche (coming back from its early repair stop), passing the No. 38 with less than two hours to go and taking victory with 367 laps; the No. 8 Toyota, in 8th, was the only other LMP1 car to finish the race (also after an early repair stop).[21]
Following the race, the third-place finishing No. 13 Rebellion Oreca was disqualified by race officials after it was found that the team had modified the rear bodywork by cutting a hole to allow them to hit a faulty starter motor. This modification was deemed as an unnecessary modification of a homologated part of the bodywork. The disqualification promoted the second Jackie Chan DC Racing car to third place overall and second in class.[22]
Race result
The minimum number of laps for classification (70% of the overall winning car's race distance) was 257 laps. Class winners in bold.[23]
Footnotes
- ^ The No. 82 Risi Ferrari had its lap times from the Qualifying 1 session deleted for the team breaking parc fermé regulations by handling the tires after the session.[15]
- ^ The No. 13 Rebellion Oreca was disqualified from the race after the team was found to have intentionally modified the bodywork on the car.[22]
References
- ^ "ACO Adjusts Final Lap Classification Rule for 24H Le Mans – Sportscar365". Retrieved 2017-05-30.
- ^ Watkins, Gary (8 June 2017). "Le Mans slow zone system revised for 2017 24 Hours event". Autosport. Haymarket Press. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ Dagys, John (14 September 2015). "Gibson Selected as 2017 LMP2 Spec Engine Provider". Sportscar365. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
- ^ Dagys, John (11 June 2015). "2017 LMP2 Regulations Confirmed; Constructors Announced in July". Sportscar365. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
- ^ Dagys, John (9 July 2015). "Four LMP2 Constructors Confirmed for 2017". Sportscar365. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
- ^ "2017 Le Mans 24 Hours – 14 teams invited". Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ^ "List of the Competitors and Cars Invited to the Administrative Checkings & Scrutineering – Sunday 11th & Monda 12th June" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 18 April 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
- ^ a b Smith, Luke (15 June 2017). "Kobayashi Takes Record-Breaking Pole at Le Mans". Sportscar365. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ Smith, Luke (15 June 2017). "Qualifying 2 Halted After Maris Crash". Sportscar365. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ Newbold, James (16 June 2017). "Aston Martin Denies Ferrari Pole in GTE-Pro". Sportscar365. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ "FIA WEC 85e Edition des 24 Heures du Mans Qualifying Practice 1 Final Classification" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- ^ "FIA WEC 85e Edition des 24 Heures du Mans Qualifying Practice 2 Final Classification" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- ^ "FIA WEC 85e Edition des 24 Heures du Mans Qualifying Practice 3 Final Classification" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 16 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- ^ "FIA WEC 85e Edition des 24 Heures du Mans Race Final Starting Grid" (PDF). Automobile Club de l'Ouest. 17 June 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
- ^ Dagys, John (15 June 2017). "Le Mans Thursday Notebook". Sportscar365. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
- ^ Schrader, Stef. "Le Mans Claims Its First Car Of 2017". Black Flag. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ Mans, Giles Richards at Le (2017-06-18). "Timo Bernhard leads Porsche to third straight Le Mans 24 Hours triumph". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ "Porsche victorious at 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours as unreliability rocks LMP1". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ "24 Hours of Le Mans: Porsche take third successive victory". BBC Sport. 2017-06-18. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ "24 Hours of Le Mans: As it happened". Eurosport. 2017-06-18. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ Codling, Stephen Lickorish and Edd Straw and Stuart. "Porsche defeats LMP2 cars to win 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours". Autosport.com. Retrieved 2017-06-18.
- ^ a b Klein, Jamie (June 19, 2017). "Rebellion LMP2 squad stripped of overall Le Mans podium". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
- ^ "FIA WEC 85º Edition des 24 Heures du Mans Race Final Classification - Amended" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
External links
