Mike Conway, Nyck de Vries, and Kamui Kobayashi’s GR010 Hybrid Hypercar with the number 7 triumphed over the dominant Ferrari when rain arrived later in the race. They then battled against Laurens Vanthoor, Andre Lotterer, and Kevin Estre’s Penske Porsche 963 LMDh in an exciting finish, securing the first victory of the season for the German-based Japanese team. The second Campbell Christensen Makowiecki Penske 963 with the number 5 completed the podium, making it a Porsche 2-3.
The number 50 Fuoco Molina Nielsen 499P brought some pride back to Ferrari by overtaking the second Buemi Hartley Hirakawa Toyota with the number 8 on the final lap, securing fourth place. BMW’s Sheldon van Der Linde Frijns Rast with the number 20 delivered an impressive performance, finishing sixth overall. The second Ferrari with the number 51 driven by Pier Guidi Calado Giovinazzi and the yellow 83 Kubica Shwartzman Yifei sibling followed closely behind.
The new winged 93 Jensen Müller Vergne Peugeot 9X8 24 and the two-man Bamber-Lynn Cadillac V-Series.R LMDh rounded off the top ten. They were followed by the 38 Jenson Button Hanson Rasmussen Hertz Team Jota Porsche and the improving Bortolotti Mortara Kvyat 63 Iron Lynx Lamborghini Hypercar.
Ferrari started the race strongly, leading the pack with a dramatic 1-2-3. However, their advantage was short-lived as the track was cleared after a first-lap collision involving Matthieu Vaxiviere’s Alpine and di Resta’s Peugeot, along with other cars. Vaxiviere received a one-minute stop-go penalty for his role in the incident.
Once the race resumed, the Ferraris maintained their lead, but the running order became blurred due to different pit stop strategies. The Conway 6 Porsche made progress and eventually emerged as the leader among the chasing Ferraris. It gained two positions by overtaking Kubica’s yellow Ferrari and taking advantage of Nielsen’s red Ferrari, which had to slow down for a left-rear tire change.
However, Nielsen reclaimed second place behind his teammate Giovinazzi, creating a red Ferrari 1-2 as they approached the halfway point of the race. The de Vries 7 Toyota soon joined the battle and eventually took the lead with Kobayashi behind the wheel as the strategies unfolded.
Then, the rain arrived, prompting Kobayashi’s 7 Toyota and Estre’s 6 Porsche to make a crucial decision to pit for wet tires. The three Ferraris and the 6 Porsche chose to stay out on slicks. This decision proved to be decisive as those on slick tires struggled in the wet conditions. Campbell reacted quickly and pitted before the home cars finally made their pit stops for the appropriate tires.
It was too little too late, leaving the Ferraris out of reach and the devoted Tifosi Ferrari fans questioning how their beloved team failed to divide their strategy in those unpredictable conditions. And what could have been? However, Ferrari took a last-minute risk by keeping only Pier Guidi on wet tires while the rest switched to slicks.
Porsche employed a similar tactic, allowing Campbell to gain ground as the others cautiously navigated the drying track. In the end, Kobayashi’s Toyota was leading Estre’s Porsche on superior tires. Campbell’s Porsche moved up to third on even better rubber, but Hirakawa’s 8 Toyota was under pressure from Fuoco in the 50 Ferrari.
Kobayashi somehow managed to hold off Estre for the victory in their epic battle through the traffic to the finish line, with Campbell ultimately finishing a distant third. Further back, Fuoco finally found some relief from Ferrari’s late tire gamble as he used his fresher slicks to overtake a defenseless Hirakawa for fourth place on the final lap.
Their luck improved when the van der Linde BMW received a late drive-through penalty for a pit infringement after an impressive run. Nonetheless, it finished a commendable sixth ahead of Pier Guidi’s red Ferrari, which passed Ye’s similar yellow car for seventh place, while the lead Peugeot and Cadillac rounded off the top ten.
In the LMGT3 class, BMW had a memorable day. Darren Leung, Sean Gelael, and Augusto Farfus secured a 1-2 finish in the M4 GT3. They outperformed Valentino Rossi, yes, the famous Valentino Rossi, Maxime Martin, and Ahmad al Harty. The team executed flawless driver changes, allowing their professional drivers to spend the maximum amount of time behind the wheel and keeping the Malykhin Sturm Bachler Porsche 911 GT3 in third place.
As a result, the driver’s title race is led by the Porsche crew and Qatar winner Laurens Vanthoor, Andre Lotterer, and Kevin Estre Conway. They are followed by the Toyota trio Conway, de Vries, and Kobayashi, and the Porsche trio Campbell, Christensen, and Makowiecki. Porsche also holds a comfortable lead in the manufacturer’s standings, ahead of Toyota, Ferrari, BMW, Alpine, Peugeot, Cadillac, and Lamborghini.
The Road to Le Mans will now head to Spa Francorchamps for its traditional dress rehearsal 6 Hour on Sunday, May 12. Then, all eyes will be on the highly anticipated 24 Hour race on June 15-16. Make sure to mark your calendars! Your Road to Le Mans is brought to you by Toyota Gazoo Racing.