Peugeot Leads Crash-Filled Le Mans at Hour Eight

After eight hours of running, the hotly-anticipated 100th anniversary 24 Hours of Le Mans has taken a few strange turns. Sporadic rains covering only parts of the track, mechanical issues, and mistakes entering the Slow Zones resulting from other problems have left a significant portion of the field worse for wear already. And, through it all, a surprising leader has emerged at the front of the field.

From the opening corners, this looked like it might be a shock runaway win for Toyota as both of their cars were able to make quick work of the Ferraris that locked out the front row. That first run lasted all of half a lap, stopping as the No. 311 Cadillac V-Series.R of Action Express Racing spun into the wall on the exit of a damp first Mulsanne chicane. That car went more than a dozen laps down while it underwent repairs. When the race resumed, it quickly became clear that no one Hypercar manufacturer had a clear advantage on pace.

At least one car from all five of Ferrari, Toyota, Porsche, Cadillac, and Peugeot has already led this race. With each car showing enough pace to fight for the win, the story of the race has quickly become surviving long enough to factor into the end. Unfortunately, many of the leading Hypercar contenders have already suffered some losses.

Two major contenders have retired after failing to get back to the pit lane. The No. 75 Penske Porsche suffered a sudden mechanical malady, attempting to limp around the track before stopping and eventually calling it a race. The No. 7 Toyota suffered a catastrophic electrical issue after being involved in a four-car crash, forcing driver Kamui Kobayashi to abandon the car on a straight and leap to safety to avoid any risk of electrocution.

A few laps behind the leaders, the No. 38 customer Porsche 963 run by Jota Sport has also suffered a major disappointment. Driver Yifei Ye took the lead on a restart and built a ten second lead before going off on the Porsche curves, eventually hitting an outside wall hard. That car is now four laps behind the leaders.