Le Mans 24 Hours: Ferrari leads at halfway point as one Toyota retires
11th June 2023Ferrari AF Corse leads 24 Hour of Le Mans at the halfway point as Toyota lose a challenger due to a multi-car incident at nightfall.
How the second quarter unfolded…
As nightfall descended on the Circuit de La Sarthe, so did the rain which didn’t help the already-chaotic endurance race. When the clock struck midnight, the race ended prematurely for the number #7 Toyota hypercar.
The Japanese car found itself in a rear-end crash with it being on the receiving end, the crash also included multiple cars such as Graff Racing’s #39 Oreca 07-Gibson, JMW Motorsport’s #66 Ferrari 488 and Alpine Elf Team’s #35 Oreca 07-Gibson.
After the multi-car incident, it was only the #7 Toyota who retired. The car was pulled off to the side of the circuit as terminal issues prevented it from being able to return to the pit lane. In the dark, with its lights off, it was easy to see that the Toyota hypercar had issues with its hybrid system.
As the red hybrid lights flashed, it took longer to remove the car from the course due to the potential chance of electrocution if they touched it.
Following Toyota’s retirement, it proved the hypercar class was not exempt from issues. This was later proved by a number of the top-class cars that were forced to pit for repairs.
By the halfway point, the gruelling 24-hour race has been a challenging endeavour for a number of participants as the retirement count tallied up to 14 – another 12 hours of racing was still yet to be decided.
Across the board, Ferrari topped the timing sheets as the overall race leader ahead of the sole Toyota which remained and the Cadillac. In the LMP2 category, the Duqueine Team (driven by Neel Jani, Rene Binder and Nicolas Pino) was the leading car of the field, while Project 1-AO led the GTE Am class.
At the same time, Hendrick Motorsports still remained with their NASCAR Cup Series Chevrolet Camaro – the innovative contender ran 34th overall in the complete race order.
That’s all for the article: Le Mans 24 Hours: Ferrari leads at halfway point as one Toyota retires!
Read more World Endurance Championship content here:
- Le Mans 24 Hours: Porsche Penske leads as nightfall – and rain – descends
- Le Mans 24 Hours: Bamber leads as a number of cars crash out
- Le Mans 24 Hours: Buemi leads first hour as Aitken crashes
- WEC: Ferrari dominate Hyperpole to finish 1-2 ahead of Le Mans 24 Hours
- 2023 Le Mans 24 Hours: Ferrari lead hyperpole contenders with 1-2 finish
Give us a follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up with the latest news from the world of Motorsport! You can also support us on Patreon or on our website!
Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
