senor honda

[h=2]Foyt at Le Mans: On his own terms[/h] Friday, 16 June 2017


By David Phillips / Images by Ford Performance & LAT archiveThere is no record of A.J. Foyt doing a Douglas MacArthur and saying "I shall return" to Le Mans. Nevertheless today, for the first time since teaming with Dan Gurney to score a legendary win in the 1967 24 Hours of Le Mans in the Ford GT Mk IV (below), "Super Tex" once again strode through the paddock at the Circuit de la Sarthe. OK, there's more than a little hitch in his get-along – 82 years on this earth and a crash in 1991 that broke nearly every bone worth mentioning in his feet, ankles and legs will do that. But make no mistake, A.J. Foyt returned to Le Mans on his own terms and very much under his own power.

He wouldn't have it any other way.



"I told my family, 'I never want to go to a racetrack in a wheelchair or a walker,'" he says. "That's why I've always worked so hard to come back from any time I've been hurt. Like in '91 . . . people said, 'The next time we see him he'll be back on crutches.' and the next year I walked to my racecar. I wasn't walking good, but I was walking. It was the same thing with racing. If I got beat today, I couldn't wait to get back in the car and win the next race."'
Of course, after winning in 1967, there never was a next 24 Hours of Le Mans for Foyt.
"I went there one time and won as a rookie, so I didn't need to come back," he grins. "I had nothing to prove. I didn't think I'd be here 50 years later, but I know I won't be back in another 50 years!
"It was nothing like this in 1967," Foyt continues, glancing around Ford's sumptuous hospitality suite. "We had a little trailer where we could change clothes and get a little sleep but it was nothing like it is today."
The accommodations aren't the only thing that's changed. Today, a driver planning to make his or her first start at Le Mans isn't given the green flag to compete until they've familiarized themselves with the racetrack and the various safety procedures on the Automobile Club de l'Ouest's simulator. Foyt, of course, did not have a simulator at his disposal. What's more, after suffering burns in a race at Milwaukee the weekend after winning the Indianapolis 500 for a third time, he was unable to participate in the pre-race test for the 24 Hours. So he relied on a track map and his street... make that road sense to get acclimated to the 8-plus mile circuit.
"I'd run plenty of road courses before, but nothing like Le Mans," he says. "But a road course is a road course. You kind of get used to what you gotta do, familiarize yourself with the track – that was the big thing.
"So I got behind Denny Hulme on my first run. He'd been here before and I figured he knew the track pretty good, so when he came out of the pits I figured I'd follow him. Then after about three or four laps we got going pretty quick and I went on and passed him. He was a super guy and I knew he knew where he was going, and I didn't know much about it."
When Foyt, Gurney, Hulme and company turned through Tertre Rouge onto the Mulsanne Straight in 1967, more than three miles of ruler-straight road awaited them before the legendary Kink and the Mulsanne Corner. Since 1990 the Mulsanne Straight has been interrupted by a pair of chicanes and, of course, it is now lined with tall, stout guardrails. In 1967? Not so much.
"It was just three-and-a-half miles of straightaway with Mulsanne Corner at the end," Foyt says. "There weren't any walls or guardrails either. Just a line of trees on both sides of the road where they'd white-washed the trunks about five or six feet high. I didn't like that too much. You were running at 200 mph and you knew if you went off you were in a lot of trouble. The guys now don't know how nice it is."
Not only in terms of track safety. With few exceptions, all 60 cars starting in this year's 24 Hours will be driven by teams of three drivers, one more than the usual compliment in 1967. And the predicted 90-degree temperatures for Saturday and Sunday should not have a major impact on driver stamina, given that the rules mandate cars run air conditioning to keep cockpit temperatures in check when ambient temperatures soar.
"We had air conditioning in the Mk IV – we opened a window!" says Foyt. "It's a different world now. I think I raced at a good time. Don't get me wrong. You still have great racing, hard racing, but it's a completely different type of racing. Back then you had to be in pretty good shape and you had to have a head on your shoulders. Looking back from when I started at Indy, there's only two or three of us left – and most of 'em didn't die from old age."

senor honda

Trouble for Jackie Chan DC Racing in LM24 Hour 3

Saturday, 17 June 2017

By Stephen Kilbey / Image by Rainier Ehrhardt/LAT

With the race finally starting to settle down, after two chaotic hours of racing at La Sarthe, it's still a Toyota 1-2 up front. Kamui Kobayashi, now aboard the No. 7 leads the No. 8 of Anthony Davidson and is pulling away.
The lead is 28 seconds between the two TS050 HYBRIDS, with the No. 1 Porsche of Nick Tandy a further eight seconds adrift in third.

The big story of hour three, though, was in the LMP2 class.
The two Rebellion ORECAs ran in formation for most of the hour up front, with Mathias Beche in the No. 13 taking the lead toward the end of the hour authoritatively down the Mulsanne Straight off the his teammate in the No. 31, Nicolas Prost.
The Swiss-entered machines hold a 30-lead over the No. 37 Jackie Chan DC Racing 07 Gibson of Alex Brundle in third.
Brundle was fourth, but the sister No. 37 DC Racing ORECA (pictured, top) hit trouble from third, the car, driven by Frenchman Thomas Laurent, was spotted stopped at Indianapolis with front-end damage. Laurent managed to get the car started again, but had to pit for a nose change, after the right-front corner blew off at pit entry. It is now down to sixth.
The pace of the front-runners in LMP2 is astounding, with the leaders already putting a lap on the 13th-placed DragonSpeed ORECA of Henrik Hedman.
In GTE Pro, the No. 95 "Dane Train" Aston Martin Racing Vantage of Marco Sorensen continues to hold a comfortable lead. The sister No. 97, meanwhile, fought its way back up to second overall after falling to third in the second hour. Daniel Serra, in his first ever stint, made a great move on Michael Christensen in the No. 92 Porsche to give the British marque a 1-2.
Third and fourth as the hour ticked over were the No. 66 and No. 67 Ford GTs that leapfrogged the Christensen's 911 RSR in the last set of stops.
Aston Martin Racing also leads Am, after Paul Dalla Lana climbed aboard the No. 98 for his first stint and muscled past Bill Sweedler in the No. 62 Scuderia Corsa Ferrari. Sweedler couldn't match the speed of those around him and eventually slipped to third behind the JMW Motorsport Ferrari 488 of Dries Vanthoor.
Salih Yoluc in the TF Sport Aston Martin briefly took second after getting in the car off Sweedler, but slipped back as his stint wore on and is down to fourth.

senor honda

Le Mans Hour 5: Toyota holds lead, Risi crashes

Saturday, 17 June 2017



By Stephen Kilbey / Image by JEP/LAT
With 19 hours remaining in the 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours, the No. 7 Toyota's lead remains comfortable, despite Nick Tandy – and later Andre Lotterer's – best efforts in the second-place No. 1 Porsche 919 Hybrid to close the gap. It's only a 43-second lead though, with the sole remaining Porsche in contention very much still in the race, and able to match the lead pace at times.

Third is still the No. 8 Toyota TS050 HYBRID, with Kazuki Nakajima unable to close the gap enough to put pressure on the No. 1; it's now 18 seconds. Behind the No. 9 is beginning to enter the running, after its early issues. Jose Maria Lopez was able to set multiple 3m19s laps in his first stint, to claw his way back into the race. It's two minutes and 15 seconds back, but still crucially on the lead lap, and capable of setting times similar to the leaders. It did however have a loose door, with Yuji Kunimoto at the wheel as the hour ended.

The second Porsche has rejoined the race, but after a 65-minute stop after it lost drive with a front axle problem, it's down to 55th position.
The LMP2 class now has just nine cars left on the lead lap, with the two Rebellion ORECAs up front – the No. 31 leading the No. 12.
Ho Pin Tung in the No. 38 made the only significant move, climbing to third in the lead Jackie Chan DC ORECA up the inside of Jonatahn Hirschi at the Dunlop Bridge.
Incident-wise, there was further trouble for the No. 36 Signatech Alpine which had an off in the first hour. Romain Dumas brought the car in for repairs.
GTE Pro is still a door-to-door slog. Jonny Adam heads the field in the No. 97 Aston Martin by 50 seconds over the No. 67 Ford GT of Pipo Derani, which has emerged as a contender as the race has settled down. The No. 66 is third, but out of sync, meaning the No. 64 Corvette of Marcel Fassler holds the true position.
Further down the order, the Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 of Pierre Kaffer had a sizeable shunt at the end of the hour. He came into contact with Matthieu Vaxiviere in the recovering TDS Racing ORECA, who clipped his front end while making an erratic move on him down the Mulsanne Straight, sending him veering into the barriers. The front end of the Ferrari was destroyed; the TDS ORECA continued.
Kaffer thankfully walked away, but it's a bitter end to IMSA team Risi's 2017 Le Mans adventure.
Mathias Lauda has now extended the GTE Am lead for the No. 98 Aston Martin crew, with Rob Smith in the JMW Motorsport Ferrari second, and the No. 90 TF Sport Aston back into the top three after a cracking stint by Euan Hankey.

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Drama for the leader with 14 hours left at Le Mans

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--TtvpdzMBc
Saturday, 17 June 2017


By Stephen Kilbey / Image by Rainier Ehrhardt/LATPorsche leads the 2017 running of the Le Mans 24 Hours, after the No. 7 Toyota TS050 HYBRID hit trouble after a lengthy safety car period for a debris clearance. It's a real race of attrition, before the halfway mark.

The issue hit Kamui Kobayashi at the start of the lap, forcing him to try and crawl back to the pits from the start line. The Japanese driver was unable to accelerate, eventually stopping completely on the run to Indianapolis.
After minutes of waiting, Kobayashi managed to get it fired, and race entered its 11th hour with it crawling at a snail's pace back to the pits.
As a result, Nick Tandy in the No. 1 Porsche took the lead, with a lap advantage over the delayed No. 9 Toyota in second.
LMP2 is still a Rebellion 1-2 with the No. 31 leading the No. 13. The No. 38 Jackie Chan DC Racing and No. 25 Manor ORECAs and the No. 35 Alpine are still lurking in the remaining top five spots.
In GTE Pro in the middle of a pit cycle, the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari leads the class over the No. 92 Porsche. The two Aston Martin Racing Vantages though, appear to hold the true lead, dropping down the order during each stop cycle. It's very close though, with the safety car bunching up the field further.
No changes in GTE Am, JMW's 488 leading the TF Sport Aston and No. 77 Proton Porsche.

senor honda

Toyota devastated as Nos. 7 & 9 retire at Le Mans

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkYkcHtmzek

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wbq76_j82eU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYe_CpYc2jI

14 hours to go
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBkMFCFdaGU

Saturday, 17 June 2017


By Stephen Kilbey

UPDATED: Toyota Gazoo Racing has determined that the incident that caused the retirement of the No. 9 car was caused by a fuel cut as Nicolas Lapierre ran alongside the Manor ORECA, sending him into a spin.

With 13 and a half hours remaining in the Le Mans 24 Hours, Toyota Gazoo Racing's chances of winning are all but over.
The No. 7 TS050 HYBRID of Kamui Kobayashi, after suffering from a power failure after a safety car period, ground to a halt multiple times on its way back to the pits, before the Japanese driver was forced to climb out. The car had led much of the first half of the race.
To make matters worse the No. 9 Toyota, which represented its only challenger following the No. 8's woes, then retired moments later. Nicolas Lapierre collided with the No. 25 Manor ORECA of Simon Trummer at pit-out, sending both into the gravel. The Manor 07 Gibson retired on the spot due to damage, and the No. 9 continue to crawl back to the pits with a rear-left puncture. He couldn't get it back, though, eventually stopping at Maison Blanche, and getting out after multiple attempts to restart the car, which suffered major damage from the puncture.
As it stands, the No. 1 Porsche 919 Hybrid of Nick Tandy leads the race overall, with the No. 31 and No. 13 Vaillante Rebellion ORECAs taking the two remaining podium spots.
The No. 2 Porsche is down in 20th, recovering from its early issues, as is the No. 8, the only Toyota left. The situation after its Hybrid system change is far worse though, Anthony Davidson down in 54th overall, 29 laps down.

senor honda

1 Hour and 44 minutes into the race
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejN4Zk6PJnU

Hour 10 update: back to hour 8......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=405RpBOw7S4

Hour 16 update:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7ksEfqr4_Q

Hour 22 update
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s32Nvyz1UPM

Ferrari vs Corvette Pit stops
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7365-6K8_Q


Hour 21


LM24 Hour 21: Jackie Chan DC takes outright lead

Sunday, 18 June 2017


Stephen Kilbey / Image by JEP/LAT

With three hours remaining in the 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours, an LMP2 car leads the race overall. The No. 1 Porsche's official retirement has elevated the No. 38 Jackie Chan DC Racing ORECA 07 Gibson into the overall lead.
The chase has therefore begun: the No. 2 Porsche 919 is two laps back in second with Brendon Hartley pushing hard to retake the overall lead for Porsche. With its superior pace, barring any issues, the No. 2 should catch and pass the leading ORECA before the end and salvage a victory.
Related Stories

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LM24 Hour 22: Porsche fighting back



LM24: Race thrown open as lead Porsche retires








The No. 8 Toyota is now in the top 10 for the first time since its hybrid problem too, the Japanese team looking able to score a second-place finish, and crucial points for the sole remaining crew's WEC's title challenge.
For Vaillante Rebellion, a pit stop infringement has further hindered the progress of the second place No. 13, after the stewards handed out a stop-go penalty. It's put the No. 35 Signatech Alpine in with a shout of taking second place in LMP2, as it's just 15 seconds back.
GTE Pro is also tight up top. A battle broke out for the lead towards the end of the hour, with Daniel Serra powering past Jan Mangussen to give Aston Martin the class lead. The Brazilian will have to continue to push though, as the No. 97 Vantage will likely be forced to take a splash and dash in the final hour, which would mean that it's advantage Corvette at this point. Every second is vital.
The only class with no real dramas over the past two hours is GTE Am. JMW's advantage up front is still a lap over the No. 55 Spirit of Race Ferrari.

senor honda

Posted as they come in.....waiting for some...
See post #74 (after the race) maybe they got them in order... lol

The full race part 1 and 2 are near the end of this thread around post #75.

Noon-1PM GMT starting grid + start
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjK5GtRRZqk

start 1PM-3PM

3PM-5PM GMT (3PM-5PM)......ok
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzhnhoWRN_Y

3PM-5PM....maybe 3PM-5PM depends on where you are...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDGz4Zy5Vd8

5PM-7PM

7PM-9PM GMT (5PM-7PM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dm8gJCcDa4

9PM-11PM GMT (7PM-9PM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vSTOB4HoR0

11PM-6AM GMT (9PM-4AM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PecmgkehDug

6AM-8AM GMT (4AM-6AM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPLi9Ohc3BA

8AM-10AM GMT (6AM-8AM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V95-FPURVeA

10AM-12 (8AM-10AM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVp7JlnGQ9U

noon-2PM GMT (10AM-12AM)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhzQ8v1zKFo

2PM-3PM (12AM-115PM) checkered flag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2eQRqNOawo

4.5 hours to go (in french-was live streamed)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVQXXh0_mpo

Last 20 minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auIJ6y4gaDQ

senor honda

various live streaming

Slev Productions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0CJAcuSZnM

elfora
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avRrTAKu6TU

AB FM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJoDJq659VY

senor honda

start and first 20 minutes with different camera angles and in spanish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuCDUMrlWlo

Last 15 minutes in Spanish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klDoclw0TPM

senor honda

Followups, highlights and extra replays
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oo0Ly8DzyZs

When it says program is finished, it resumes at 6:30
around 8-9 minutes it really does end.