The 007 Aston Martin DBR9 leads the GT1 classification after six hours of racing at Le Mans, closely followed by the sister 009 car.
Johnny Herbert is currently at the wheel of 007, having taken over from Tomas Enge, while Rickard Rydell is driving 009 after Darren Turner completed a triple stint.
Both Aston Martin Racing cars have enjoyed a trouble-free run despite greasy track conditions caused by earlier rain. Following a lengthy safety car period, the Aston Martins have been able to pull out an appreciable advantage over the third-placed Corvette.
Enge, who set an excellent series of lap times to take the lead just when it counted, reported: “The set-up of the car took some getting used to as it was a big compromise designed to work well in both wet and dry conditions. Once you had worked it out though, it was very good indeed. When I handed over to Johnny, I warned him to be a little bit careful as these were unusual conditions. But for the time being, everything is going really well.”
For both Herbert and Rydell, it was the first competitive stint at Le Mans in an Aston Martin. Nonetheless, their careful pre-event preparation is paying off as both are driving flawlessly.
Behind the Corvette, Team Modena’s DBR9 is fourth – despite a broken damper that was rapidly fixed during a pit stop. In fifth and sixth places in class are the DBR9s of AMR BMS and AMR Larbre Competition, while the final 006 car of Larbre is currently 10th.
With the light slowly fading, the risk of rain at La Sarthe seems to have temporarily receded – but the challenges of a long night, one of the most specialised elements of driving at Le Mans, still lie ahead.
Classification at 2100 (72 laps)
1. 009 Johnny Herbert (Aston Martin Racing)
2. 007 Rickard Rydell (Aston Martin Racing)
3 63 Ron Fellows (Corvette Racing)
4 59 Jos Mentien (Team Modena)
5 100 Jamie Davies (AMR BMS)
6 008 Casper Elgaard (AMR Larbre)
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