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Saturday Free Practice & Qualifying

Reporting from Saturday's final Free Practice session will be added shortly. See below for a Qualifying report.

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

With Mike Newton enjoying the longest period of Free Practice that he's been able to run for most of the year, Tommy Erdos came out for the final ten minutes of the Saturday's morning session. We'll ask him later why he completed the opening half-lap with the cockpit door open . . .

RML Lola Mazda, Thomas Erdos, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

LMP2 Free Practice 3

Pos No. O/all Team Driver Car
Best Lap
1
40
5 Quifel ASM Amaral/Pla Ginetta-Zytek GZ09S
1:34.739
2 41 13 GAC Racing Team Ojeh/Gosselin/Peter Zytek 07S
1:38.399
3 33 14 Speedy Sebah Pompidou/Luenberger/Kane Lola B08/80 Coupé
1:38.558
4
45
15 Team WFR Manning/Firth/Hughes WF-01 Zytek
1:39.496
5
37
16 WR Salini Salini/Salini/Gommendy WR Zytek
1:39.556
6
35
17 Oak Racing Ajlani/Lahaye Pescarolo Mazda
1:40.102
7
25
18 RML AD Group Erdos/Newton Lola B08/86 Coupé
1:40.201
8
24
19 Oak Racing Nicolet/Hein Pescarolo Mazda
1:40.474
9
43
20 Q8 Oils Hache Jorda/Cortes/Nieto Lucchini Judd
1:43.840
10
38
21 Pegasus Racing Schell/Thiron/Metz Courage AER
1:44.119
11
28
22 Ibanez Racing Ibanez/da Rocha/Cavailhes Courage AER
1:44.128
12
26
23 Bruichladdich Bruneau/Greaves/Sini Radical SR9 AER
1:44.684

RML Lola Mazda, Thomas Erdos, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

Qualifying

The GT cars took to the track first for their dedicated 20-minute qualifying period, a moment or two after the scheduled 13:45 start, although for the first five minutes just three of the expected seventeen cars appeared on the screens. Even then it was a hesitant beginning, and we didn't see a single GT1 car until the seventh minute, and that was the new-for-Silverstone Gigawave Aston Martin DBR9.

Finally, with half the session completed, the remaining cars took to the track, and what had been a dull start to GT qualifying suddenly came to life. Tom Coronel, who'd held provisional GT2 pole for the Spyker squad throughout the first ten minutes, soon came under the anticipated pressure. The challenge came from a predictable quarter, with the top championship contenders squabbling over pole - first the Felbermayr Porsche with Richard Leitz, then Gianmaria Bruni for JMW Motorsport, and Patrick Pilet in the #76 third . . . and that was how it ended too. Pole in GT1 went to the #50 Larbre Saleen, with the Gigawave Aston second and the new GT1 titleholders, Luc Alphand Adventures' Saleen, third.

There was a short break between the two sessions, but at 14:10:49 the pitlane exit opened, and the Oak Racing Pescarolo #35 edged out onto the tarmac. Tommy was still in the garage, waiting for the tyres to be fitted, but with four cars out there, the Brazilian was booted up and sent on his way. His instructions were to complete four timed laps, and then pit. If he ran into any problems, the team would consider their options when they faced them.

The session followed a similar pattern to the GT period that preceded it, and eight LMP2 cars had completed flying laps before we saw the first LMP1 entry. First to top the screens was Karim Ajlani in the #35 with a 1:39.998, but it was brief glory, because Tommy's first flyer was a 1:38.934, including two out of three fastest sectors overall. Those kind of statistics wouldn't last long, but must have been quite encouraging for the team back on the pitwall, especially as he followed it immediately with another batch of quick sectors. His second lap was a 1:37.280, 2.5 seconds faster than Gommendy, who was the new second-placed runner at this early stage.

Twelve minutes remaining, and the first LMP1 car entered the fray, in the form of the 008 Aston Martin Lola. Tommy's third flyer was a 1:37.820, and no improvement, although satisfyingly consistent. His third flyer started with an OK first sector, and then a new faster middle sector, but crossed the line in 1:37.528 to consolidate the position. Tommy's final flyer followed a similar pattern, and at the end of the lap, Tommy returned to the pitlane, job done. "Good effort, well done, Very consistent, especially through the sectors. Great job Tommy," said Phil as the Lola Mazda eased to a halt outside the RML garage.

Meanwhile, other cars were taking to the track, including the Quifel ASM car, which narrowly missed being taken out by a spinning Kolles Audi at Chapel, but escaped unscathed to set a new fastest time for LMP2, quickest overall, on 1:36.092. As Phil Barker suggested yesterday, Olivier Pla is "on a different planet", or more accurately, a different tyre. Dunlop is known to have introduced a new compound this weekend, and as the times set by Pla suggest, it seems to be working. That belief is confirmed by the Oak Racing Pescarolos, which are using the same tyres and have also been quick around Silverstone.

Several cars spun off in the later stages of the session, including the #15 Kolles Audi and the #16 Pescarolo, neither of which would then set times, although Boullion would get the Pescarolo out for a lap, alberit untimed. Another car missing from the screens was the Strakka Racing Ginetta-Zytek, which had been one of the pre-event favourites for pole in LMP1.

In LMP2, with five minutes remaining, Jonny Kane moved through to second in LMP2, setting 1:37.128 to deny Tommy a front-row slot. With yellow flags around several segments of the track times should not have improved in the final minutes, but as happened at the Nurburgring, a number of drivers chose to ignore the warning flags, and pushed as hard as ever.

With a minute to go, the yellow flags were withdrawn, but nobody of significance would make an improvement during the last dash for the chequered flag. Fastest overall was Nicolas Lapierre on 1:32.798 for Oreca, with Astons 007 and 009 second and third. In LMP2, Pla's time was more than a second to the fore in the class, with Kane second and Erdos third. Fourth fell to Philipp Peter in the #41 GAC Zytek, and a strong return from Warren Hughes in the #45 WFR Zytek claimed fourth.

LMP2 Qualifying Times

Pos No. O/all Team Driver Car
Best Lap
1
40
8 Quifel ASM Amaral/Pla Ginetta-Zytek GZ09S
1:36.092
3 33 10 Speedy Sebah Pompidou/Luenberger/Kane Lola B08/80 Coupé
1:37.128
3
25
11 RML AD Group Erdos/Newton Lola B08/86 Coupé
1:37.280
4 41 12 GAC Racing Team Ojeh/Gosselin/Peter Zytek 07S
1:38.210
5
45
13 Team WFR Manning/Firth/Hughes WF-01 Zytek
1:38.810
6
37
14 WR Salini Salini/Salini/Gommendy WR Zytek
1:39.096
7
35
15 Oak Racing Ajlani/Lahaye Pescarolo Mazda
1:39.396
8
24
16 Oak Racing Nicolet/Hein Pescarolo Mazda
1:40.116
9
28
17 Ibanez Racing Ibanez/da Rocha/Cavailhes Courage AER
1:41.922
10
26
18 Bruichladdich Bruneau/Greaves/Sini Radical SR9 AER
1:42.340
11
43
19 Q8 Oils Hache Jorda/Cortes/Nieto Lucchini Judd
1:43.470
12
38
20 Pegasus Racing Schell/Thiron/Metz Courage AER
1:44.486

Radio & On-line: Full coverage of all the weekend's events and happening's was broadcast live by Radio Le Mans, including Practice and Qualifying. Articles and features about the Le Mans Series, including a podcast of the Lola Cars preview to the weekend, are also available from the RLM website. Click the button below for access.

Click here to open the Radio Le Mans home page

Live timing can be found by following the appropriate highlighted link here.

A gallery of high and medium-resolution images from Silverstone can be viewed here.

Sometimes the camera does lie . . . and creates some strange effects all by itself! The shot below appeared on the flashcard after Saturday's third Free Practice session, along with half a dozen other similar views. All we've done is add a "pastel" filter.

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

Le Mans Series 2009

Round 5. Silverstone 1000 Kilometres.
September 12th 2009
Saturday Review

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

 

 

 

 

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC

 

 

 

 

 

 

RML Lola Mazda, Mike Newton, Le Mans Series, Silverstone. Photo: Marcus Potts / CMC