European Le Mans - And it was all yellow!

ELMS visits Mugello for the first time in a spectacular and crash-ridden 4 hour race.

Photo: Marcel Wulf

QUALIFYING

Qualifying started, as it always does in ELMS, with the LMGT3 class roaring out onto the beautiful Mugello circuit sat in the heart of the Tuscan hills. It was a relatively calm qualifying for the LMGT3 class which is an exceedingly rare occurrence. The session saw the #97 Grid Motorsport by TF Aston Martin qualify in third position with the #85 Iron Dames Porsche just ahead of them. In what was shaping up to be a good weekend for British manufacturers with another Aston Martin, this time the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman took pole in the LMGT3 class.

Following the LMGT3 qualifying was the first prototype qualifying action with the LMP3 class rolling out onto track. It was again a clean qualifying session which is almost never seen with the ‘gentlemen driver’ field present in the LMP3 class. In the end it was the #88 Inter-Europol Ligier team that took third place with the #4 DKR Engineering Duqueine just ahead of them. In a dominant performance the #17 Cool Racing Ligier took pole by just under half a second which is impressive for a completely spec series.

Next up was the Pro-Am LMP2 machines. These cars are completely identical to the main LMP2 cars but rather than having a fully pro-driver lineup must have one bronze rated driver. The LMP2 Pro-Am qualifying saw the first red flag of any qualifying session this weekend, as a car got stuck in the gravel. They were retrieved and taken back to pitlane as the session was restarted. In third was the #24 Nielsen Racing team with the #29 Richard Mille by TDS Racing car just ahead of them in second. Leading the Pro-Am field was the #77 Proton Competition car.

Finally was the highest class of car and driver combination in the ELMS ladder as the LMP2 teams came out onto the circuit. Thankfully this session saw a return to the clean, fast qualifying we saw earlier in the day. In third place was the #25 Algarve Pro Racing Oreca 07. The #65 Panis Racing team slotted into second place, while the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton machine took pole as they continued their competitive streak after a slow start to the season.

Photo: Marcel Wulf

RACE

In a continuation of rare events in the European Le Mans Series, everyone made their way through not just turn one, but the whole first lap without major issues. In the first few minutes Clement Novalak in the #34 Inter-Europol Competition LMP2 was making plenty of overtakes to try and keep the teams championship hopes alive. 

The early minutes of the race also saw battling for the lead in the LMGT3 class between the #85 Iron Dames Porsche and the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin. As this battle continued to rage the #34 Inter-Europol Competition made two further overtakes past the #65 Panis Racing and the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton for the overall lead. At the same moment the #85 Iron Dames Porsche in the hands of Sarah Bovy finally got past the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman with a brilliant move into turn two. Just a couple of laps later the #59 continued to fall as the sister Aston Martin from Grid Motorsport by TF overtook them for second in LMGT3. With less than fifteen minutes of the race elapsed, the #3 DKR Engineering LMP2 went off at the final corner and caused the first of many safety cars.

With three hours and thirty-three minutes left on the clock the racing resumed, with yet again, a clean getaway for the grid through turn one. Unfortunately the #43 Inter-Europol Competition LMP2 was under investigation for a pre-race pit lane procedure infringement, which could come with an in-race penalty. At the front of the LMP3 field there was a three-way battle for the podium positions, where the #88 Inter-Europol Competition Ligier got to the lead. The #11 EuroInternational entry managed to get up to second and the #17 Cool Racing car fell from the lead to third in the space of two corners. 

The first major on-track contact was between two LMP2’s of the #30 Duqueine Racing and the #47 Cool Racing. The #30, in the hands of Niels Koolen, got pitched into a spin by the #47 but somehow managed to recover the spin from an almost ninety degree angle to the track. In LMP2 the #25 Algarve Pro Racing car got past the #37 Cool Racing team for second. Just after this the #47 Cool Racing car was given a drive-through penalty for causing the aforementioned collision with the #30 Duqueine entry. Just as the #17 Cool Racing LMP3 got back to the front of the LMP3 field they were hit by the #43 Inter-Europol Competition LMP2 and the #43 were given a drive through for causing the collision.

Photo: European Le Mans Seires/ACO

With two hours and twenty-four minutes remaining the safety car was out once more, this time due to the #55 Spirit of Race Ferrari 296 hitting the #28 IDEC LMP2, which saw the #55 lose their front right tire and the #28 losing their front left. This left the LMP2 machine stranded at the final corner.

With two hours and ten minutes on the clock the green flag flew and the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton LMP2 made its way to the top of the field, getting past the #25 Algarve Pro Racing in the turn two and three chicane. As this battle raged the #63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, and the #83 AF Corse LMP2 made contact in turn eight which left both cars beached in the gravel, resulting in another safety car being called just moments after the previous yellow.

The next restart would occur with just one hour and forty-six minutes left on the clock. This time the field would not make it to turn one before the #85 Iron Dames Porsche hit another Porsche, this time the class leading #60 Proton Competition entry with Claudio Schiavoni at the wheel. The #60 was sent into the concrete wall on the run to turn one and was heavily damaged. Claudio Schiavoni walked away from the accident under his own steam, and was checked over by the medical teams. The safety car was called again, but the race was later red-flagged so that the circuit staff could clean up the incident, as well as keep the remaining cars and drivers safe.

After twenty-four minutes of repairs and clean-up, the safety car pulled away. The #15 RLR MSport LMP3 was stranded on the grid, requiring multiple power cycles before the car could get going again. The green flag flew with one hour and twenty-five minutes left on the clock and there was finally a completely clean restart even with the LMP2 field being four wide into turn one.

The #17 Cool Racing LMP3 yet again found itself off track the lap after the green flag as they found the grass in turn five after being hit by the #5 RLR MSport LMP3. Just before a virtual safety car came out for the #17 being stranded in the grass a drive through penalty was handed to the #83 AF Corse for causing the collision with the #63 Iron Lynx. As the virtual safety car was called the #85 Iron Dames Porsche found itself in more contact, this time with the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin in a concertina effect of cars pre-emptively slowing down for the virtual safety car speed. The virtual safety car turned into a safety car, and with one hour and three minutes to go we went green once again.

Shortly after the restart the #50 Formula Racing Ferrari got ahead of the #51 AF Corse Ferrari for the lead in LMGT3. Shortly after this the #5 RLR MSport LMP3 was given a five-second stop and go penalty for causing a collision with the #17 Cool Racing LMP3 that led to the last VSC/SC period. Into the final twenty minutes, the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin was catching the #85 Iron Dames for fifth position in LMGT3. Meanwhile the #34 Inter-Europol Competition LMP2 was making plentiful overtakes, getting past both the #14 AO by TF and #65 Panis Racing cars in just one lap. With less than ten minutes to go the #15 RLR MSport LMP3 made its way to the pitlane for a last splash of fuel. However the starter motor on the LMP3 machine failed, seeing the car go from leading in class, to third in the pitstop cycle.

Photo: Marcel Wulf

Meanwhile the #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari was all over the back of the #97 Grid Motorsport Aston Martin, and at turn one the Kessel Racing Ferrari went around the outside of the #97 for the lead in LMGT3. In the final minutes the #8 Team Virage LMP3 was having to do some intense fuel saving to get to the end of the race whilst also maintaining their lead in class.

As the chequered flag flew it was the #9 Iron Lynx-Proton LMP2 who took overall honours with the #25 Algarve Pro Racing and #34 Inter-Europol Competition rounding out the LMP2 podium. In LMP2 Pro-Am it was the #29 Richard Mille by TDS Racing machine that took the win with the #20 Algarve Pro Racing and #77 Proton Competition cars taking second and third respectively. In LMP3 the #8 Team Virage Ligier managed to make it to the end just holding off the two Ligiers from #15 RLR MSport and #88 Inter-Europol Competition. In LMGT3 it was the #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari who took the class win with the #97 Grid Motorsport by TF Aston Martin and #50 Formula Racing Ferrari rounding out the final podium of the race.

OFF TO PORTUGAL

Looking forward to the final race at Portimão in October, there are championship fights across all four classes. In LMP2 the #14 AO by TF lead by just six points from #43 Inter-Europol Competition, who are trailed by the #65 Panis Racing machine. The fourth place car of #28 IDEC Sport is still in contention for the championship heading to Portimão.

In LMP2 Pro-Am the #83 AF Corse narrowly hold onto their championship lead ahead of the #29 Richard Mille by TDS machine. The #20 Algarve Pro Racing and #77 Proton Competition machines both have podiums to thank for keeping them in the championship hunt.

In LMP3 the #11 EuroInternational team leads by just one point from the race winning #8 Team Virage Ligier. In third is the #15 RLRM Sport machine which is the last car mathematically capable of taking the class title.

In LMGT3 it is again a four way fight for the championship with the #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari taking the lead after the win in Mugello. In second is the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin with the #86 GR Racing Ferrari in third. The final car in championship contention is the #63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini who will be looking for a better race in Portugal.