Robert Kubica’s Le Mans glory for Ferrari 14 years after life-threatening crash

Robert Kubica inspired Ferrari to a third consecutive victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans to secure the biggest win of his career since his Formula One breakthrough.

Fourteen years after suffering horrific and life-threatening arm injuries that wrecked his full potential in F1, Kubica anchored a famous win for the No 83 AF Corse Ferrari alongside team-mates Yifei Ye of China and Britain’s Philip Hanson.

While the incredible feat saw the privateer Ferrari team eclipse the two manufacture-run Ferraris as well as 59 other cars to win, it will be the heroic fashion in which Kubica, 40, drove for more than three-and-a-half hours to carry the team to victory that will live long in the memory.

The story of Kubica’s deal to join Ferrari in F1 that never happened because of his 2011 rally accident – which resulted in a partial amputation of his right forearm and compound fractures to his elbow, shoulder and leg – made this success even sweeter. After 387 punishing laps, he finally drove a Ferrari to the top of the podium.

“I need a drink,” Kubica said over the team radio, as his team started the wild celebrations on the pit wall. “A long 24 hours but enjoyable at the end. Thank you everyone and well done, grazie mille.”

He added while speaking in the shadow of the podium: “It’s been a long one. I think Le Mans has always been close. Great job from everyone, we have been strong and it has not been a smooth one but we deserve it. We have been fast and only a few mistakes that we could have avoided. Happy for Ferrari three years in a row with three different cars.”

Kubica and his team-mates were barely mentioned across the first four hours of the race. Pre-race fears that Ferrari had been sandbagging their true potential appeared to materialise when the No 50 car of Antonio Fuoco, Nicklas Nielsen and Miguel Molina charged through the field to take the lead off the early frontrunner, the No 5 Porsche Penske in the hands of Julien Andlauer.

The two Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA cars who locked out the front row in qualifying quickly faded, losing the lead on the opening lap and never getting themselves into the contest as they struggled for grip and straight-line speed. Toyota, BMW and Peugeot all saw their races wrecked by accidents and technical problems.

Regardless of their rivals’ issues, it did not take Ferrari long to seize control of the race and by dusk they already had a one-two-three in position, the sister No 51 of Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pier Guidi and James Calado emerging to challenge them for the lead.

But despite steady progress through the field after starting out of position in 12th, the bright yellow No 83 finally emerged. A little over six hours into the race, Ye hit the front for the first time and displayed an immediate pace to be taken as an outright contender.

The problem was, could Ferrari really allow a privateer team to beat the works manufacturers to victory in the world’s biggest race? Or would the name – and the colour – not matter so long as the name on the trophy read the same as the Scuderia’s 11 previous victories?

Hanson was told to let the faster Ferraris through if they closed in on him, but did phenomenally well to hold them off during a titanic struggle through the night. Kubica, too, was asked to make the same sacrifice.

Tension between Ferraris

The question of who should win for the team was evidently on Kubica’s mind too. Having twice been asked to let the red Ferraris through earlier in the race when they had the superior pace, the Pole bristled on the radio when he felt he was not afforded the same benefit. A prior “strategy” agreed by the three Ferrari teams would mean no car should hold up another if they can close up to the back of them.

As Kubica approached the back of Giovinazzi’s No 51, insisting he was the faster car, he asked why he was not allowed to pass with the help of team orders. “Trust the process,” he was told, while simultaneously Giovinazzi was urged to pull away from him. In one swift moment, the preferential result was made public for all to see. But Kubica was having none of it.

What followed was a phenomenal quint-stint from the former Formula One champion as he remained in the car for more than three-and-a-half hours in an effort to steer them home. Such was the demand placed on him, his immediate reaction on the radio was to ask “we cannot win?” if he were to stay in the car for so long.

But he would clarify: “I didn’t ask, I was asking because I was not supposed to be doing five stints. At the end of a 24 hour race, five stints is three hours something in the car?

“But I managed to control the car without any mistakes and when I needed to push I could.”

The works Ferraris had their chances to win, but a litany of driver blunders saw them receive several timed penalties and drive-throughs for regular yellow flag breaches and pit lane speeding offences. At one stage, it would have been fair to ask whether they were trying not to win it.

And when Pier Guidi carelessly threw first place away by spinning on entry to the pits, it felt as though the error-strewn F1 team was working double time.

Eventually reliability let them down, with both cars suffering serious engine issues in the closing stages to allow the No 6 Porsche to pull away and claim second place on the podium. Given the level of domination Ferrari held this weekend, the sight of a Porsche on the second step of the rostrum was nothing short of exceptional.

The No 51 pipped the No 50 out of the pits across the final stops which proved enough to claim third thanks to a team order not to challenge each other.

But the drama was not contained to the Hypercar category. The No 43 Inter Europol Competition entry dominated the LMP2 contest from Sunday morning onwards as its rivals fell by the wayside, only to self-sabotage its own race by earning a drive-through penalty for a yellow flag infringement with 25 minutes remaining.

The lucky recipients of their generosity proved to be the hometown favourites, the No 48 VDS Panis Racing team of ex-F1 driver Olivier Panis. But no sooner had they taken the lead that a technical issue cost them victory, handing the lead straight back to the Polish-based outfit of Jakub Smiechowski, Tom Dillmann and Britain’s Nick Yelloly. The jubilant scenes of the team rushing to celebrate with Kubica, the first Polish driver to win Le Mans and unarguably the greatest driver the Eastern European country has produced, left it in in little doubt as to who this year’s event belonged to.

Finally, the No 92 Manthey 1st Phorm Porsche stormed to the LMGT3 victory, with Ryan Hardwick, Riccardo Pera and Richard Lietz leading from Saturday night and claiming a 33.259s win that never appeared in doubt for the final two hours.

Provisional Hypercar results

1. No 83 AF Corse - 387 laps
2. No 6 Porsche Penske +14.084s
3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse +28.487s
4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse +29.666s
5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA +2:18.639
6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing + 1 lap
7. No 5 Porsche Penske + 1 lap
8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA + 1 lap
9. No 4 Porsche Penske + 1 lap
10. No 35 Alpine Endurance Team +2 laps
11. No 36 Alpine Endurance Team + 3 laps
12. No 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies + 3 laps
13. No 009 Aston Martin Thor Team + 4 laps
14. No 99 Proton Competition + 4 laps
15. No 007 Aston Martin Thor Team +6 laps
16. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing + 7 laps
17. No 93 Peugeot TotalEnergies + 8 laps
18. No 20 BMW M Team WRT + 12 laps

03:31 PM BST

Robert Kubica

It’s been a long one. I think Le Mans has always been close. Great job from everyone, we have been strong and it has not been a smooth one but we deserve it. We have been fast and only a few mistakes that we could have avoided. Happy for Ferrari three years in a row with three different cars.

On his mammoth quint-stint: 

I didn’t ask, I was asking because I was not supposed to be doing five stints. In the end of a 24 hour race, five stints is three hours something in the car? But I managed to control the car without any mistakes and when I needed to push I could.
 

03:12 PM BST

Provisional results

1. No 83 AF Corse - 387 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske +14.084s

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse +28.487s

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse +29.666s

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA +2:18.639

6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing + 1 lap

7. No 5 Porsche Penske + 1 lap

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA + 1 lap

9. No 4 Porsche Penske + 1 lap

10. No 35 Alpine Endurance Team +2 laps

11. No 36 Alpine Endurance Team + 3 laps

12. No 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies + 3 laps

13. No 009 Aston Martin Thor Team + 4 laps

14. No 99 Proton Competition + 4 laps

15. No 007 Aston Martin Thor Team +6 laps

16. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing + 7 laps

17. No 93 Peugeot TotalEnergies + 8 laps

18. No 20 BMW M Team WRT + 12 laps

03:07 PM BST

What a moment

You have to take your hat off to Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson who played such a pivotal role in the race. But the fairy tale that Kubica’s recovery story represents makes this such a wonderful victory to get behind.

Three and a half hours behind the wheel to lead the team home, a phenomenal effort and a win that rivals his Canadian Grand Prix victory. 

“A long 24 hours but enjoyable at the end. Thank you everyone and well done. Grazie mille,” says the triumphant winner on the radio. 

He’ll tour the Circuit de la Sarthe one more time, before picking up his team-mates on the grid and driving them home towards that famous podium and that famous trophy.

03:03 PM BST

Ferrari win the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours!

Robert Kubica crosses the line to take the chequered flag and secure victory for the No 83 AF Corse Ferrari alongside Yifei Ye and Philip Hanson!

And Ferrari win three consecutive Le Mans for the first time since 1965!

02:59 PM BST

387th and final lap

Kubica gets to the line with a handful of seconds remaining, meaning this will be the final lap of the race for Kubica, Ye and Hanson.

Poland is about to get its first Le Mans winner, China is about to get its first Le Mans winner, and Britain is about to get its 46th Le Mans winner.

02:54 PM BST

The clock ticks down

And we’re into the final six minutes. All Kubica has to do here is to bring it home, with a healthy 16.2s gap over Estre who has pulled away from the two other Ferrari’s by 12s.

But as we all now, it ain’t over til it’s over...

02:45 PM BST

The LMP2 lead changes again!

Heartbreak for TDS Panis Racing, but the No 48 has a very clear issue as it’s lost the best part of 50 seconds to Nick Yelloly, who snatches back the class lead following his driver-through penalty with 15 minutes to go. What an incredible finish.

02:44 PM BST

Ferrari are very concerned...

...about the No 51 and No 50. Both drivers have been asked to turn down the engines and reduce the RPM. Furthermore, the No 50 is told not to follow the No 51 because bits might come off it. That sounds about as alarming as it comes.

02:39 PM BST

The Ferraris are fighting!

Fuoco takes a run at Giovinazzi and passes him on the run to Indianapolis. The No 50 gets a telling off and told “both cars have issues, we finish like this”. He gives the position back to the No 51, but that is playing into the hands of Porsche in the battle for second.

02:36 PM BST

The No 51 pits

And gives up the lead of the race for the necessary splash and dash, with just 25 minutes left to go.

Kubica flashes through and retakes the lead of the race, and Estre follows through 11.2s behind the Ferrari. However, the No 50 doesn’t because of an off for Fuoco at the Porsche Curves that has cost it significant time. Porsche only have 7.5s over the No 51, which may have some gremlins. It’ll go down to the wire.

02:29 PM BST

Penalty for the LMP2 leader!

Oh no! The No 43 Inter Europol Competition LMP2 leader has been his with a drive-through for the earlier infringement. Yelloly has just stopped for the final time, but he will now need to come in again to serve the penalty. His only rival, the No 48 VDS Panis Racing, still needs to stop, we believe, but with a 52s advantage and a drive-through that should be enough to take the outright lead.

02:26 PM BST

35 minutes to go

Here they come. Estre dives into the pits with Fuoco on his tail. Neither will take tyres or change drivers, it’s this right through to the finish...

...and Porsche have turned that around much faster than Ferrari to pull a three-second gap on the No 50 Ferrari. That could be huge.

The No 51 now leads but that does need to stop too for a splash and dash, and when it does then Kubica should have a nine-second lead over Estre.

02:21 PM BST

40 minutes to go

And the leader pits for what should be the final time. Kubica is staying in for an incredible fifth stint and they are also changing tyres largely because they have the advantage to do so and to protect any risk of a safety car. It looked clean and Kubica is away.

Now when will Estre and Fuoco pit? It could be this lap, it could be the next, but this lap looks more likely based on the energy levels.

02:18 PM BST

Drive-through penalties...

...for the four cars mentioned earlier for FCY breaches. But no decision yet on the LMP2 leader. A clarification, it was the 009 Aston Martin, not the 007.

02:15 PM BST

LMP2 development!

The current leader, Nick Yelloly, is under investigation for speeding in the pit lane. That could be a brutal punishment of the stop/go variety, and while he leads the category, he only has a five-second gap plus an additional pit stop for the second-placed VDS Panis Racing to play with.

This could be crucial.

02:07 PM BST

FCY investigations launched

But the No 50 is not there on the list. Instead it’s the No 7 Toyota, plus the No 007 Aston Martin, the No 87 Lexus and the No 13 AWA Racing Corvette.

Meanwhile, Giovinazzi in the No 51 is reporting an issue, and that could be the real reason why that gap suddenly emerged.

02:03 PM BST

Full Course Yellow

Late drama, and this could be bigger than it appears. The heartbreaking news first, the sole surviving United Autosports No 59 McLaren has ground to a halt on the run between Indianapolis and Porsche Curves, and having already been struggling with issues, that looks to be terminal as it’s pushed behind the barrier.

But the bigger issue could be what this means for Ferrari. The No 50 and No 51 were relatively close together and there was the suggestion that they could swap position to try and catch the Porsche. However, when the FCY came out, Giovinazzi slammed on the brakes but Fuoco kept going a substantial amount longer, which has now netted him a five-second advantage. If I was Ferrari, I’d be waiting nervously on the stewards to be looking into the No 50, and if he has transgressed, that could be a drive-through penalty.

01:58 PM BST

One hour to go!

1. No 83 AF Corse - 369 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske

3. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 4 Porsche Penske

10. No 35 Alpine Endurance Team

01:43 PM BST

Kubica and Campbell pit!

The top two both come in on the same lap, and while Campbell hands over to the rapid Kevin Estre, Kubica is staying in for his fourth straight stint. Antonio Giovinazzi, who has taken over the No 51 from James Calado, takes the lead and should be stopping three laps later.

However, the No 50 Ferrari of Antonio Fuoco has also stopped for fuel-only, whereas Estre took tyres, meaning that gap has been eradicated and the pair are separated by just 1.3s! Will we see a resumption of the Ferrari superiority, of have the tables turned in Porsches favour?

By my maths, the No 83, No 6 and No 50 all must stop again, with a maximum stint time in the region of about 55 minutes at very best. I think the No 51 will have to do the same too, but for a splash and dash, unless Giovinazzi can pull a rabbit out of the bag here. He has to pit this lap and I just can’t see him going to the finish on one tank.

01:38 PM BST

The current category leaders

Hypercar: No 83 AF Corse 

LMP2: No 43 Inter Europol Competition

LMGT3: No 92 Manthey 1ST Phorm

01:26 PM BST

What needs to happen between now and the chequered flag?

Any car who wants to be classified as a Le Mans 2025 finisher must compete the final lap in under six minutes, or 15 minutes with penalties involving lap deductions.

For the front-runners, they will all have to stop once more. But we will need to wait and see what the No 83, No 6 and No 50 need to take compared to the No 51 - as the latter was running with roughly a 25 per cent increase on energy before the last stops. That’s worth an extra three laps, which could be crucial in the battle for the podium.

The LMP2 battle is down to just five seconds between one and two but I’m pretty sure the No 48 VDS Panis Racing needs to stop one more time than it’s rival, while in GT3 the No 92 just needs to maintain its 50s advantage over the No 27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin.

01:19 PM BST

Remember those midnight horrors for Team WRT?

They’re back, and in a bad way. 

After losing both GT3s during the night, one to an electrical failure and the other to damage caused by striking a rabbit (yes, really), both Hypercar BMWs are now in the garage with engine issues. 

With just 100 minutes left to go, that would be soul-destroying if neither of them make the final lap as they were both regular top 10 runners since the turn of midnight.

01:09 PM BST

Standings after 22 hours

Into the final two hours we go...

1. No 83 AF Corse - 354 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske

3. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 4 Porsche Penske

10. Alpine Endurance Team

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 22
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #51
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/AQIuQmz53B— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

01:07 PM BST

Here come the stops

And both Ferraris desperately need new tyres. The will mean that not only will Campbell take a huge chunk of time out of Calado, but he will also pass Nielsen for outright second place, having only put those tyres on at the start of his last stint.

Kubica stays in the No 83 and doesn’t change the tyres either, so they are indeed going for a triple-stint. Will he face the same fate on this stint as his Ferrari colleagues? Our friends at Racecar Engineering tell us that the No 83 did a lot of work in the week on their long-run pace and, in particular, their tyre management. Will that prove the difference to avoid the same cliff?

12:53 PM BST

Change for third!

Now where has that come from? Matt Campbell has caught and passed the No 50 Ferrari of James Calado, and is immediately gapping him. Campbell’s lap time was impressive, matching the leader with a 3:28.486 to Kubica’s 3:28.596.

He’s only got 2.8s between himself and Nicklaus Nielsen in second, and the works Ferraris are really dropping off on this set of tyres, whereas the Porsche changed last time in.

12:45 PM BST

Kubica: ‘No way, we cannot win’

What on earth did that radio transmission mean? The race leader is asked whether he would like to triple-stint as Michelin have given the thumbs up on the tyres, but the cryptic response has got many people talking. What did he mean? That a triple-stint would cost them victory, or a far deeper and more concerning message?

12:40 PM BST

The 11th retirement has been confirmed...

As expected, the No 78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus will not be making it to the finish.

And as I type that, the Full Course Yellow is out again. It doesn’t look like it’s for anything major, so you’d think this must be fore debris and a quick track clean up.

It’s exactly that, back to green we go.

12:25 PM BST

Calado stops

After getting three more laps out of his reserves. That could be a very handy difference come the end of the race.

He gets a clear message that they will do fuel-only but also an oil refill, and is warned not to anticipate an immediate restart when fuelling is finished as he would normally so that the oil can be completed. It takes a long time to complete and means he comes out a full 40 seconds behind Kubica and 21 seconds off his team-mate. That’s a painful one to swallow.

12:20 PM BST

Button’s Le Mans swansong?

Jenson Button may well have just hopped out of the No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota for the final time at Le Mans. After confirming to Telegraph Sport on Friday that he does not plan on doing another full WEC season, the 2009 F1 world champion has just handed over the Caddy to Earl Bamber and is not planning on being back in the car.

“I struggled with the balance in that stint as I was on old tires,” says Button after making his way back into the garage. “At the moment now, the focus is on bringing it home. We’ve had a few pit stops where we lost time cleaning out radiators, etc., so that hasn’t helped. We’re very good in high speed corners, you can see that from the race, but our straightline speed isn’t great and that really hurts you when you’re in traffic.”

12:10 PM BST

Tactical battle is raging

All four cars up front are planning their next stops, and what do you do? Tyres? Driver change? Fuel only?

The No 83 and No 50 both look to be preparing for a full service with new tyres laid out, but that’s no guarantee that they’ll be used. Surely Nielsen stays in the car and I think Kubica will too. But Porsche may try and deploy Estre once more before the end of the race - do they go now?

The No 83 leads them in and out, with the No 50 following but the No 6 has an extremely long stop. Both Ferraris go for fuel-only but Porsche go for a full service, fuel, tyres and a new driver in Matt Campbell. That’s an interesting call at this stage.

The 51 continues and will be in next time by.

11:59 AM BST

Standings after 21 hours

1. No 83 AF Corse - 336 laps

2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 5 Porsche Penske

9. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 21
#HYPERCAR@AFCorse #83
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/yMS5vyiVTP— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

11:53 AM BST

Change of position!

Between the two sister Ferraris as Nielsen forces his way past Calado to take second place. This seems to be the Ferrari plan for the pair to reel in Kubica out in front, who now leads by only 14.7s with a long way still to go. Calado is told to tuck in, follow the faster driver and pull in the No 83.

11:50 AM BST

Ferrari or Porsche?

Ferrari look heavy favourites to claim victory, but that No 6 Porsche just refuses to go away. Surely Laurens Vanthoor couldn’t... could he?

11:46 AM BST

LMP2 heartbreak goes on

And now it’s United Autosports’ turn to suffer! The No 22 has an engine management issue and has gone into crawl mode on the Mulsanne. Renger van der Zande is at the wheel and he’s got a long way to limp home from there. There’s little more than three hours left to go, and after 21 hours of graft, that’s just agonising to see.

11:40 AM BST

How’s the fight at the front looking?

The No 51 Ferrari comes in to complete the cycle of stops, handing the lead back to Kubica in the No 83. The 50 and 51 are incredibly close together, with Calado narrowly in front of Nielsen, and the Porsche is just three seconds back off the pair of them. Suddenly, we’ve got the top four cars all within 20s of each other.

11:36 AM BST

The chaos continues

Oh you have to feel for the right-rear wheel gun mechanic at IDEC. Equally, he’s cost them not one but potentially two podium finishes. Having already seen Andre Lotterer retire the No 18 car in the early hours this morning, the same has happened to the sister No 28 car with Job van Uitert at the wheel. He shoots off into the gravel in a frighteningly fast off at the Dunlop Esses, but thankfully the gravel does its job and stops him from hitting anything.

💔Another blow for @IDECSportRacing — this time it's the #28 with Van Uitert at the wheel, losing the right rear wheel. Any hope of a podium in LMP2 category is now gone. #LeMans24#WEC#ELMSpic.twitter.com/k9LQxJc97V— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

The mechanic is seen in the garage in floods of tears, but warmingly his colleagues are there consoling him and the Le Mans crowd are giving him a huge ovation.

The incident brings out a FCY, but the marshals do a great job and it’s withdrawn within minutes.

11:05 AM BST

Standings after 20 hours

We head into the final four hours of the race with a big shake up, with the previous leader dropping down the order and another challenger taken completely out of the equation. That was potentially the most dramatic hour of the race yet, and the daunting prospect for all team remaining is there are still four more to negotiate. We start to enter heartbreak time...

1. No 83 AF Corse - 321 laps

2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

9. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 20
#HYPERCAR@AFCorse #83
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/DD5qYx6lou— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

10:53 AM BST

Drama for Toyota!

And it’s the lead No 8! Hirakawa comes out of the pits and immediately goes off at the Dunlop Chicance in a scary moment. It quickly transpires that the left-front wheel is not on correctly, and he’s got the entire length of the track to navigate at a crawl.

Toyota Gazoo Racing went off the track at Dunlop Curve with the #8. The car is forced to go back to the pits due to a puncture caused by the incident.#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/xQRrt2WGRX— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

The replay shows the wheel nut explode off the spindle and moments later the wheel comes off too, although the fail-safe system that is designed to prevent the wheels coming off appears to have done its job as the wheel is still at least attached to the car. With so far to drive back though it’s only a matter of time before the wheel comes off, and Hirakawa makes it to the first Mulsanne Chicane before it comes loose and leaves him with three wheels on his waggon.

There a lot of damage being down to the floor with the Toyota dragging heavily, and such are the slim margins at Le Mans, he is already down to 12tg and will probably be as low as 16th by the time he reaches the pits.That’s a gutting blow for the Toyota squad with the No 7 already out of contention.

10:47 AM BST

The new leader pits

Yifei is the first to blink, coming in with a 22s advantage that is quickly wiped out as Pier Guidi and Estre stay out. The sister No 50 has already pitted to drop it behind the Toyota, and Ye gets out in front of both to maintain a strong track position. 

10:30 AM BST

Ferrari dilemma

Now Ferrari are facing a very interesting conundrum. The No 83 is of course a Ferrari, and is of course designed and built in Fiorano, but it’s not the Ferrari team and can the Scuderia really accept being beaten by an independently funded team? With an 18.7s gap, we’ve got a good chance of seeing what their plan is.

10:20 AM BST

A huge error

That has proven extremely costly from Pier Guidi, with the No 83 now 22s in front and the No 50 Ferrari also moving ahead into second, although the gap between the two is only 3s. The Porsche of Estre doesn’t look to have the pace to challenge the Ferraris anymore as he’s losing about two seconds a lap, despite closing to within four seconds because of the spin.

10:13 AM BST

The leader is off!

Pier Guidi has incredibly spun the No 51 Ferrari while coming into the pits! Clearly coming in too hot, he clatters over the kerbs and loses the back-end to spin off and into the gravel. The Ferrari has enough grunt to get out of the gravel trap, but that has cost him about 30 seconds in time and it’s now up to Yifei Ye as to whether he’s will pass him when he stops.

Alessandro Pier Guidi loses control in the #51 works Ferrari on pit-in! And loses the lead to the #83 AF Corse Ferrari. Anything can still happen in this race! #LeMans24pic.twitter.com/VJWo0wFbB7— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

10:09 AM BST

Full Course Yellow

A nightmare for the No 78 Lequs as the crash with just five hours remaining. Finn Gehrsitz was behind the wheel when he appeared to lose control coming through the Porsche Curves and despite his best efforts, he clipped the barrier and has suffered significant damage to the left-side of the car. He managed to make it back to the pits, but the team don’t look too confident that it can be fixed.

10:06 AM BST

Standings after 19 hours

1. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse - 305 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske

3. No 83 AF Corse

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

9. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 5 Porsche Penske

09:53 AM BST

What about the other categories?

The LMP2 battle remains a keenly-fought contest between the No 43 Inter Europol Competition, the No 48 VDS Panis Racing, the No 28 IDEC Sport and the No 9 Iron Lynx - Proton. It’s the No 43 who has a slender advantage right now but the gap to the leader is only 7.7s, with the other two still on the same lap.

In GT3 the No 92 Manthey 1ST Phorm Porsche continues to lead the way and has about a third-of-a-lap lead on the No 21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari. There’s then a large group headed by the pole-sitting Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin that is bidding to stay on the lead lap, but it looks as though it’s Manthey’s to lose as things stand.

09:43 AM BST

Full Course Yellow

For debris at marshal post 26 and 27...for 45 seconds. Back to green.

09:40 AM BST

What are the gaps?

I’m afraid it’s not great news, as rather comfy gaps have emerged between the frontrunners between the pit stops.

Pier Guidi, now in the No 51 Ferrari, leads by 18.6s over the No 83 of Ye, who in turn has 16s on the third Ferrari of Molina. The best chance of a Ferrari upset if the No 6 Porsche of Kevin Estre, who is currently 24s behind and lapping two seconds a lap slower...

The No 8 Toyota is a further 27s back from the Porsche, with the No 12 Cadillac 25s behind that. The only other cars still on the lead lap are the No 15 BMW, No 7 Toyota and the No 38 Cadillac, with the rest of the Hypercar field at least a lap down on the No 51.

09:33 AM BST

Eeek that’s a close one

Alex Riberas has a huge moment in the No 009 Aston Martin as he tries to clear a gaggle of LMP2s and GT3s, ending up with two wheels on the grass for about 300m as he struggled to get it back onto tarmac and away from the barrier. He just holds onto the Valkyrie as it grabs the front end towards the wall, but Riberas lives to fight another day.

09:25 AM BST

No 83 up against it

The chips are not falling in favour of the chaser. The No 83 Ferrari, now in the hands of Yifei Ye, finds itself 15s down on the No 51 after the leader stops but elects against changing its tyres. The No 6 Porsche inherits the lead once again but we know Matt Campbell should be bringing it to pit road this next time by, and true to form here he comes. That will restore the Ferrari 1-2-3.

09:18 AM BST

No 50 stops for tyres

Ferrari give the No 50 a new set of boots, and driver change and Miguel Molina jumps in for Antonio Fuoco, dropping them down behind both the No 6 Porsche and the No 8 Toyota. Crucially though he holds position ahead of the No 12 Cadillac, which could easily have held him up had he taken a second longer.

Actually, scratch that... Alex Lynn outbrakes Molina into the second Mulsanne Chicane and takes the position anyway.

08:57 AM BST

Standings after 18 hours

We’re three-quarters of the way through the race and the final push starts now... for the next six hours!

1. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse - 288 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

6. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

10. No 5 Porsche Penske

08:44 AM BST

The No 6 relinquishes the lead

Campbell comes in from the lead and will take fuel only, matching the Ferraris. He also gets a tear-off removed which is literally covered in dead flies and mosquitoes. The warm and humid weather this year has made it a particularly busy year for flying insects, and the windscreens have not escaped them.

Campbell comes out in fourth, behind the No 50 of Fuoco by 11.4s.

08:36 AM BST

Kubica stops...

...from second position, elevating the No 6 Porsche in the process. He comes out of the pits with the Toyota of Brendon Hartley only a few seconds behind...only for Hartley to pit as well. That gives Kubica a healthy buffer to the No 12 Cadillac JOTA, that needs to pit, and the No 50 Ferrari that is nearly 40 seconds behind.

Giovinazzi pits next time around and takes fuel only, and comes out to a larger gap of four seconds to Kubica behind. That’s worked out rather nicely for the Ferrari team.

08:21 AM BST

Drive-through penalty...

...for the No 77 Proton Competition Mustang, a slam dunk after making contact with one of the Aston Martin Vantages and spinning them into the Dunlop Chicane.

The next one follows immediately for yellow flag infringements against the No 87 Lexus that is currently running in fourth place in GT3, just in front of the sister No 78.

I must admit, the endless stream of penalties is rather draining, but it could turn the race in a heartbeat - especially when Ferrari’s ill-discipline is concerned. Everyone in the media centre is glued to the timing screens for the next penalty (well, those who are still awake).

08:17 AM BST

Full Course Yellow

It must be for debris as I can’t see anything to have brought out the yellow flags, and indeed it’s a small bit of wing on the run out of Arnarge. We should be back to green imminently, and the FCY is withdrawn after two minutes.

08:11 AM BST

It’s getting feisty...

...between Kubica and Giovinazzi. Jubica is clearly the faster man right now, and has made his feelings clear on the radio already. Ferrari have responded “trust the system” which is that if the car behind catches you, you don’t hold them up. Earlier in the race, Kubica twice adhered to that agreement, now he is demanding the same in return.

08:09 AM BST

The best snaps from this morning’s ‘golden hour’

08:03 AM BST

Standings after 17 hours

1. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse - 272 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

6. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

8. No 5 Porsche Penske

9. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

07:55 AM BST

Yellow flag

The No 36 Alpine has beached itself in the gravel on the exit of Mulsanne Corner, with Jules Gounon trying - and failing - to brake into the corner and sliding instead off the track. It’s upgraded to a FCY, so we have a hiatus. The 83 just stopped, but the leading No 51 needs to stop very soon. This could turn the race if it goes against them...

The Alpine is winched out of the kitty litter and Gounon goes about refiring it to get back on his way.

The fatigue of the night was making itself felt. The #36 @SignatechAlpine ended up in the gravel before getting back on track.#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/ijRMS4RxqE— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

Giovinazzi appears to have got away without having to come in for a splash and dash, maintaining the slimmest or margins to Kubica as we go back to green.

07:29 AM BST

More Cadillac woe

Earl Bamber brings the No 38 Cadillac unexpectedly to pit lane with an apparent puncture, dropping the team out of the top 10 after yet another setback. The only hopes of a positive result sits with the No 12, which currently runs in six but has an outside chance of third place. But after the highs of qualifying, this has not been a good race for Cadillac.

07:06 AM BST

Yellow flag AND penalties!

The No 301 Cadillac Whelan has stopped on the opposite side of the road to pit exit, in a very precarious position that will almost certainly need a FCY and possibly a safety car. Replays show that the engine pretty much just ate itself, with a horrible grinding noise culminating in an immediate loss of power. Behind the barriers it goes and that’s it for the 311, the second Cadillac retirement of the race.

Unfortunately this is the end for the Cadillac #311.
It still remains the two Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA in the race.#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/7wXRE7Dfg6— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

However, the big news is that 13 cars have been given drive-through penalties - yes 13 different cars for the same yellow flag infringement - including the leading and second place Ferraris. The slow zone may actually help them mitigate any time lost to the third-placed Porsche, but that just goes to show how easily things can change.

The No 51 lead car comes in to pit and Calado hands over to Antonio Giovinazzi.

The other cars to receive penalties were 9, 11, 13, 16, 27, 33, 57, 77, 90, 92 and 183, while the race goes back to green without the need for a FCY or slow zone. Quite impressive, that.

07:02 AM BST

Standings after 16 hours

1. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse - 256 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

6. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

9. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 16
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #51
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/B1FJcgMkr6— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

06:51 AM BST

Hypercar battle to watch...

...is the fight for 15th. It may not be for any honours but the No 94 Peugeot, No 35 Alpine and No 009 Aston Martin are nose to tail, and only because Marco Sorenson in the Aston ran on at Mulsanne and had to take a lap of the roundabout before rejoining behind both.

Nearly every lap Charles Milesi is having a run at Malthe Jakobsen into Indianapolis, but each time the Peugeot somehow out-drags him. Sadly the fight comes to a halt when Milesi pits.

06:43 AM BST

Speaking of dogfights...

The GT3 battle is really kicking off between the No 92 Manthey 1ST Phorm Porsche, No 21 Vista AF Corse Ferrari and the TF Sport Chevrolet.

It’s a bid deal for the Chevrolet team after leading their class at Le Mans for the first time since joining the GT3 era, such has been the struggles to get the best out of the Z06 LMGT3.R over the last two years. However, with British driver Charlie Eastwood having an inspiring ride, they are firmly in the mix for the win, just 90 seconds behind the class leader.

Eastwood’s team-mate Rui Andrade has just jumped out of the car, and said: “The safety car was really lucky. It came out at a good time for us and put us right in the mix. So far so good. Our car is good. We haven’t made many mistakes. Everyone is driving really well. The team is doing a good job. Fingers crossed we can keep this up.”

06:34 AM BST

Fighting for position

There’s an absolute dogfight for third place right now, with the No 6 Porsche, No 50 Ferrari and No 8 Toyota all swapping position with every pit stop.

There should also be a major scrap for the victory, but the No 83 had a very clear chance to pass the No 51 after the last cycle of shops but Hanson elected not to take advantage of Calado’s cold tyres. I think that should tell us everything we need to know about who Ferrari want to win this...

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐢 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐨𝐨𝐨 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 🔴🟡#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/KcPw4g5qGA— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

06:08 AM BST

Confirmation of our ninth retirement

Sadly, the statement is in on the No 18’s retirement after that lost rear wheel. It follows the No 54 Vista AF Corse Ferrari in retiring from the race after the halfway mark:

“After more than 12 hours of solid racing and a very strong pace on track, the #18 IDEC Sport car, supported by Genesis Magma Racing, unfortunately had to retire. The exact reasons are still to be determined.

“It’s a huge disappointment. Our team and three drivers, Mathys Jaubert, Jamie Chadwick and André Lotterer, drove with determination and professionalism until the very end.

“Le Mans is an exceptional race — as beautiful as it is cruel — and once again, it has reminded us of that.

“IDEC SPORT and Genesis Magma Racing remain motivated than ever to come back even stronger.

“From now on, all our support goes to the #28 IDEC SPORT car, still in the race.”

06:01 AM BST

Standings after 15 hours

1. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse - 239 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 6 Porsche Penske

6. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

7. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

9. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

10. No 5 Porsche Penske

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 15
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #51
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/wBaIcqxLoF— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

05:58 AM BST

Yellow flag

More trouble for the Iron Dames, with Rahel Frey grinding to a halt on the exit of Mulsanne Corner. She waves to the marshals not to come to her aid, recycles the system and manages to get the 911 going again, albeit with an apparent ongoing gearbox issue.

05:52 AM BST

New fastest lap...

...for the No 12 Cadillac, taking that crown back from the No 50 Ferrari. Norman Nato has just set a time of 3:27.043, and with drivers still pushing on we could see something in the 3:26s soon.

05:46 AM BST

Deja vu

It was the third hour when the No 87 and No 51 Ferraris were fighting with Peter Hanson and James Calado duelling for the lead of the race. Twelve hours later, here we are again, with the No 87 leading the way from the No 51.

It doesn’t stay that way for long as this time Calado is past Hanson before Indianpaolis with a slick move to take back the lead of the race.

05:40 AM BST

Full course yellow

The No 85 Iron Dames Porsche is in the gravel at the second Mulsanne Chicane after getting a helping hand from what looked to be a Lexus behind it, which also caused the following Alpine to spin in the process. That will require a crane to get the car out and get Rahel Frey back on track, while the Alpine got going again without assistance.

The #85 @IronDames_ Porsche was in trouble at the Michelin chicane, as Rahel Frey was hit by the #87 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus. The car was stuck in the gravel.

Thanks to the marshals' assistance 🧡, the car is back in action! pic.twitter.com/UMmYKvrbmw— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

05:23 AM BST

Sleep where you can

We’re into the brutal period of the race where your body and mind is telling you to go to sleep, yet there’s still a horribly long time left to race still. It won’t be until 10am local time, another 3hr40m away, that we’ll be within one WEC race of the finish line.

That’s why you have to sleep whenever and wherever you can get it...

05:03 AM BST

Porsche gives up the lead

Typical. As soon as we issue the 5am update, the race leader pits for new tyres and a driver change. The bad news is that drops the No 6 down to 5th, behind the three Ferraris and the Toyota No 8. But the good news is that Kevin Estret is back behind the wheel, having deliver that mega-stint during the night. Let’s see what he can do, 93s down on the lead Ferrari.

05:01 AM BST

Standings after 14 hours

1. No 6 Porsche Penske - 223 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

5. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

6. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

7. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

9. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

10. No 20 BMW M Team 

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 14
#HYPERCAR@PorscheRaces #6
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@AFCorse #21
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/dAtgdKLj1Y— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

04:47 AM BST

That brings out the yellow

A slow zone is in place on the Mulsanne to retrieve to rogue wheel and salvage the stranded Lotterer, who hasn’t yet got out of the car.

Toyota have taken the chance to take Hirakawa out of the car and put in Buemi, but not with any new tyres. The No 83 pits as well, with Peter Hanson now at the wheel.

Here’s the latest conditions from the paddock, where it was a fairly lonely walk for once.

The morning is coming, 10 and a half hours to go at Le Mans pic.twitter.com/8a5qYBkYqb— Jack de Menezes (@JackdeMenezes) June 15, 2025

04:43 AM BST

Wheel calamity for No 18!

Oh no! I took the brief lull in action to take a quick walk around what is currently a ghost town paddock, just as the sun starts to come up and momentarily allowed myself to think this is all going pretty smoothly.

A minute later, the Genesis Magma Racing IDEC No 18 ground to a chaotic halt as the right-rear wheel came off at high speed on the Mulsanne. With Andre Lotterer at the wheel, the Goodyear ripped off and flew into the second chicane just half a lap after he made a pit stop, and without the power output being put down on the right-rear, that could well be curtains. What a gutting way for them to go out.

💔 Heartbreaking moment for @IDECSportRacing #18 — André Lotterer loses the right rear wheel on the Mulsanne Straight. A tough blow for the team. 😞 #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/THBuuoszaR— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

04:21 AM BST

An LMP2 update

And it’s cracking news for IDEC SPort, who are not running two and three behind the frontrunners No 199 AO by TF. Louis Deletraz currently holds a 2.8s lead over Sebastian Alvarez in the No 28 IDEC, with Mathys Jaubert just a further 7s back in the No 18 Genesis Magma Racing.

04:17 AM BST

And there it is

Molina pulls off a lovely overtake around the outside of Campbell into the first Mulsanne Chicane, only for the No 6 Porsche to fight back into the second one. He can’t het the Porsche stopped though, cutting the corner and resulting in the Ferrari driver being gifted the place.

And just like that, we’re back to a Ferrari 1-2-3

04:13 AM BST

Another round of stops...

...and last time it was Toyota who took full advantage. However, this time they give Hirakawa a fresh set of boots and that allows both the No 51 Ferrari ad No 12 Cadillac to leapfrog them in the pits. Ye, Molina, Campbell and Jaminet stay out for one extra lap before diving in.

This time it plays out beautifully for Ferrari as Ye emerges from the field in the lead, with Pier Guidi in the No 51 about 7.2s behind him in second to restore a Ferrari one-two.

The No 6 Porsche is back up into third, with the No 50 Ferrari fourth. Suddenly, it feels very familiar to eight hours ago - but how different it’s been during the night!

04:03 AM BST

Standings after 13 hours

1. No 83 AF Corse - 208 laps

2. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

5. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

6. No 6 Porsche Penske

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

8. No 5 Porsche Penske

9. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 4 Porsche Penske

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 13
#HYPERCAR@AFCorse #83
#LMP2@IronLynx_ #9
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/NC3fSMpSiu— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

03:52 AM BST

NEW LEADER

Brilliant battle between Hirakawa and Ye in the Toyota and Ferrari respectively. Ye shows his nose in the Porsche Curves but cannot find space as backmarkers block his path, but the superior power of the Ferrari helps the No 83 beat the No 8 Toyota into the second Mulsanne Chicane. However, he runs wide on exit and that gives Hirakawa a shot as passing back into Mulsanne. The two go wheel-to-wheel, but the Ferrari just holds him off and takes back the lead.

🚨 @AFCorse #83 takes the lead!#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/N6F8zGyhPs— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

03:49 AM BST

Hypercar is wide open right now

The safety car has really bunched up the Hypercar field, with the top 12 cars all on the lead lap and separated by just 1m42s from Ryo Hirakawa in the lead and Rene Rast in 12th. That dozen is currently made up of all three Ferraris, three Porsches, the two Toyotas, two BMWs and the two Jota Cadillacs. Everyone else is at least a lap down.

As expected, Cadillac Whelan are a confirmed retirement after stopping on track.

03:31 AM BST

NEW LEADER

We have our seventh new leader of the race as the No 6 Porsche has plummeted down the order having taken tyres where others didn’t. That has allowed the No 8 Toyota to assume the lead for the first time this race, ahead of the No 83 Ferrari and the No 51 Ferrari. How will that balance out with Matt Campbell now fifth but on fresh rubber?

03:26 AM BST

A flurry of pit stops

It’s Hypercar pit stop time, as the safety car has put a lot of cars back onto the same sequence. The No 8, No 15, No 51 and No 12 all come in line astern, but they leave with the Ferrari in front of the BMW to move up to sixth. That’s one for the AF Corse team to celebrate.

03:22 AM BST

Limber up... here comes the second half

It’s been a long journey to get here, but there’s still a heck of a long way to go. How do you look at it, a gruelling endurance exercise or the positive that we’re now closer to the finish than we are to the start?

03:15 AM BST

Another BMW issue...

This time for the team-leading No 15 BMW M Team WRT who is under investigation for not following the race director’s instructions behind the safety car. That’s a confusing and slightly alarming one, as that could be a hefty penalty, or it could just be a misunderstanding. Either way, that car is currently up in fifth and challenging for the podium.

03:07 AM BST

Bad news from Team WRT...

And bad news for animal lovers, I’m afraid. The cause of the No 31’s damage was put down to hitting a rabbit out on the track. That’s not going to be a nice one for the mechanics to deal with...

03:06 AM BST

HALFWAY: Standings after 12 hours

1. No 6 Porsche Penske - 192 laps

2. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

3. No 83 AF Corse

4. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

5. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

6. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

8. No 5 Porsche Penske

9. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

10. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

03:04 AM BST

In amongst the restart...

The No 93 Peugeot managed to spin behind the safety car after being released to join the next line. In the hands of Mikkel Jenson, the 9X8 lost the rear in the Ford Chicane and hit the pit entry sign, before returning to the track.

Here come the penalties... and it’s a double-whammy for Porsche with both the No 4 and No 5 penalised with drive-through penalties. Wehrlein comes straight in, but it’s for a regular pit stop so he will need to come back in to serve the penalty.

The No 101 Cadillac also gets a drive-through penalty, but that car is going nowhere fast. The stewards can hold on to that one.

02:59 AM BST

Yellow flag

The No 101 Cadillac WTR has pulled over at the second chicane and rolled behind the barrier, and that could yet be another retirement there as Felipe Albuquerque is dealing with a mechanical issue. What is it specifically? An engine failure, comes confirmation over the radio. That sounds terminal.

Heartbreak at the restart: the #101 @CadillacVSeries@waynetaylorrcng comes to a halt on the Mulsanne Straight with an apparent engine issue.

A brutal blow just as the race resumes. 💔 #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/op4WaSWzoa— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

02:54 AM BST

Oh no!

A nightmare is unfolding for Team WRT as the No 31 The Bend car now comes into the pits with steam rising from its engine. It’s back into the garafe and being stripped, but it’s turned into a terrible night for the GT3 WRT team.

02:50 AM BST

BACK TO GREEN!

The safety car peels off and away we go!

02:47 AM BST

Retirement confirmed

That’s it for the No 46 Team WRT of Valentino Rossi, Ahmad Al Harthy and Kelvin van der Linde. The shutters are closed on the garage and that’s the fourth official retirement. The No 24 will soon be the fifth.

We’re nearly ready to get back to racing...

02:42 AM BST

Winners and losers

There doesn’t seem to be many winners other than the No 6 Porsche Penske, which now has the outright lead with the No 83 Ferrari’s advantage wiped out completely. The No 83 is clearly among the losers, having lost its 40 second-odd advantage.

With all three queues now merged, not comes the long bit. The safety car needs to pick up one of the class leaders, who are all at the back of this pack, so nearly the entire field will be allowed to pass the safety car and then given time to catch up with the leaders, although they don’t always let them catch up fully.

Of the few cars left behind the safety car, the No 6 Porsche has the No 8 Toyot and the No 83 Ferrari right behind it for company.

02:13 AM BST

SAFETY CAR

The first Safety Car of the race is deployed for what looks like a heavy crash for the No 24 Nielsen Racing car of Cem Bolukbasi. The high-impact sensors have been set off by the scale of the impact, and there may well be barrier repairs needed for that one too.

#24 @RacingNielsen car went off into the tyre barrier at Tertre Rouge (driver ok☑️) — first safety car of the race is out! 🚨 #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/oJ5xb8Ky0r— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

Bolukbasi appears to be OK after getting out of the car, which is a relief. He will be taken to the medical centre as a precaution to be checked over, but the barrier does indeed need some repairs to it.

In ↔️ Out#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/7HMTlH1639— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

02:06 AM BST

Bruises and breaks

The No 7 Toyota pits having made it into the top 10 for the first time since the start of the race, but it does so with serious war wounds on the left hand side. A huge gouge on the top of the body work, on a section that is not easy to replace, suggests there’s been heavy contact somewhere along the way. But Toyota are happy to send it on its way and cope with the effects of it.

However, the same cannot be said about the No 46 Team WRT BMW, which is back into the garage and, it seems, out of the race. Glum faces and no urgency in looking at the car suggests that’s the soon-to-be fourth retirement of the race.

01:59 AM BST

Standings after 11 hours

1. No 6 Porsche Penske - 179 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

5. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

6. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 7 Toyota Gazoo Racing

10. No 4 Porsche Penske

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 11
#HYPERCAR@PorscheRaces #6
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/ShZfEVOeWN— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

01:54 AM BST

Better news for Ferrari

The No 50 has caught up with the No 8 Toyota, and after rapidly closing in on the Mulsanne, Fuoco drafts alongside Hartley and goes around the outside just before Indianapolis. A lovely move that takes a huge amount of courage in the pitch black...but just as he returns to third, in comes another penalty!

It’s just five seconds as we suspected, and will be served during the next stop.

01:47 AM BST

FULL COURSE YELLOW

Our third of the race - I think - for debris at marshal post six, but it;s another short one and we’re quickly back to green racing.

01:43 AM BST

What do yellow flags cause?

Yellow flag infringements, if this race is anything to go by. And it’s the No 4, the No 15 and the No 5 who are all pinged and placed under investigation, which could result in time penalties. That’s the third-placed Porsche, the ninth-placed BMW and the 11th-placed Porsche that could be in trouble.

01:36 AM BST

Yellow flag

It’s been a really long time since we’ve had an off, but suddenly the risks of bad luck returns as the leader of the GT3 class is off! Kelvin van der Linde in the No 46 Team WRT is stuck in the gravel trap at the Porsche Curves, having suddenly veered off on the first right-hander. The replay looks a lot like it’s some sort of power or electrical failure as the BMW just seems to stop. He remains in the gravel trap awaiting rescue, but let’s see if he can get the car going again.

⚠️ Kevin van der Linde went straight on at the Porsche Curves. The #46 @BMWMotorsport is stuck in the gravel — slow zone in place! #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/YLm0wzBFmX— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 15, 2025

The good news is that the BMW fires up as soon as the tractor winches it out, and Van der Linde limps back to the pits for the team to give it a full check over - Sadly it’s going back into the garage.

The yellow slow zone is removed and back to full green we go.

01:26 AM BST

This is not a duplicated post...

...but a Ferrari is now under investigation, again, by the stewards. The No 50 is being looked into after cutting the track and gaining an advantage. That shouldn’t be too bad, but if guilty they’ll likely get another five-second time penalty at the next stop. It’s starting to go really bad for the works Ferrari team.

01:17 AM BST

You won’t believe this...

But it looks like another Ferraro issue, this time for the No 50. Antonio Fuoco comes in after just five laps since his last stop and changes a full set of tyres, meaning it may well be another slow puncture issue. That drops him down to seventh, elevating the No 51 to fifth and the No 15 into sixth.

01:12 AM BST

IDEC update

As expected, Lotterer delivered another excellent stint and brought the No 18 Genesis Magma Racing IDEC in from third position, handing back over to Jamie Chadwick for her second spell in the car. She’s running around 27s behind team-mate Paul Lafargue in the No 28 IDEC, and this really has been a strong showing from all involved.

01:09 AM BST

More night-time snaps

01:00 AM BST

Standings after 10 hours

1. No 6 Porsche Penske - 163 laps

2. No 83 AF Corse

3. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 4 Porsche Penske

6. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

12:48 AM BST

Ferrari cracks appearing

Giovinazzi pits to serve his five-second penalty, dropping him down to eighth, and he then receives a message to say “do not try to make these five seconds up. Drive to the max, but no more fancy stuff”. Consider him told, no more penalties!

But he doesn’t even reach the line before the next one arrives in the form of a brutal 20-second stop/go penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Ferrari knew they were under investigation so will have known what was coming their way, but that will end any hope of the No 51 winning this year’s Le Mans, barring a miracle.

12:40 AM BST

All change once again...

...as the No 6 Porsche pits from the lead, handing it back to Kubica in the No 83. They are the confirmed top two now, trading the lead each time the other pits, but when they’ve cycled through it’s the Ferrari who has a 43s advantage.

The No 8 Toyota pitted from third to elevate the No 50 and 51 Ferraris but they are due to be in as well in the next few laps.

12:35 AM BST

Another Ferrari penalty!

Not quite as bad this time, but it’s a five-second time penalty for the No 51 to be served at the next stop. That shouldn’t hurt Giovinazzi behind him, but it won’t help him at all in his efforts to claw his way back onto the podium.

12:31 AM BST

The problem with the No 311 Cadillac...

...is a steering torque sensor and ECU replacement. The Whelan team have confirmed that they are trying to solve an issue reported by Frederik Vesti in the second half of his triple stint that then continued with Aitken.

The good news is that as the message comes through, the Cadillac re-emerges from the garage and Aitken rejoins the race, albeit five laps down and last in the Hypercar class.

12:27 AM BST

Ferrari riddle solved

The issue for the No 51 Ferrari was reported to have been a puncture, just one lap after Giovinazzi had taken over. That’s how quickly your luck can change at Le Mans.

12:22 AM BST

Mixed fortunes for Cadillac

The No 38 of Earl Bamber flashes past the No 5 Porsche of Michael Christensen to take P9 away from him, but at the same time the No 311 Cadillac of Jack Aitken has come into the pits for an unscheduled stop and hasn’t left yet. That’s dropped him straight down to 20th, second-last in class and only ahead of the No 93 Peugeot who remains five laps off the pace. That’s a bitter blow for the Whelan team.

12:09 AM BST

And there it is!

We saw it coming, and the No 8 Toyota has got in front of the No 50 Ferrari. But something very, very strange has happened with the No 51 as it’s just stopped again after a couple of laps out under Giovinazzi. That has dropped the No 51 behind the No 50, and puts them behind the No 6 and No 4 Porsches as well as the No 15 BMW. This race has just completely turned on it’s head.

12:03 AM BST

Standings after nine hours

1. No 83 AF Corse - 148 laps

2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 4 Porsche Penske

6. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

8. No 5 Porsche Penske

9. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

10. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 9
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #51
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/YP7PhndNxo— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

11:58 PM BST

Ferrari vs Porsche part III

This will be interesting, as Antonio Giovinazzi gets ready to jump back into the No 51. Hansen is just 0.7s behind him, but it’s Nielsen in the No 50 who I’m watching closely. Buemi brought the No 8 Toyota in on the last lap and handed it over to Brendan Hartley, and we should be expecting Nielsen into the pits in about three laps’ time. Could the Toyota overhaul one of the Ferraris? Nielsen says he’s not happy with the softs.

11:52 PM BST

Sights of the night

No race does pictures like Le Mans at night, so as the images in the dark of the night start to roll in, we’ll bring you the very best of them as they drop.

11:47 PM BST

I cannot work out the Cadillacs

The Cadillac Hertz Team JOTAs have dropped down the order again, but the fastest man on track right now is Earl Bamber in the No 38, so fast in fact that he’s set a new fastest lap of the race by a whopping four-tenths. “It’s coming in” he reports on the radio. About time, the race is nearly nine hours’ old!

11:39 PM BST

So what are the gaps?

Currently Hanson leads Calado by just 3.7s and Estre is having a storming stint here, just 10.8s off the lead Ferrari and 7s off Calado. Nielsen, currently running in fourth in the third Ferrari, is only 40s off the lead now, and he’s clawing back the time lost by the drive-through penalty. The Toyota of Buemi is right behind Nielsen though and has been for the last hour. It’s all to play for in the top five.

11:25 PM BST

Mixing it up

Calado pits and gives up the lead as quickly as he took it, but Hansen will be in this lap to release the No 6 Porsche once more. I think we’re going to have to settle down into this for the foreseeable future, as the three cars look so evenly matched now during the night that no one is going to be able to make a break.

11:14 PM BST

What’s that noise?

I didn’t think I’d hear anything louder than the Aston Martin Valkyries this week, but we’ve just had an almighty fireworks display that somehow managed to drown out the cars. If anyone was trying to grab a few winks (I’m thinking some exhausted drivers...) then there’s absolutely no chance they’re asleep anymore. But for those of us who were awake, it was quite the show.

Fireworks , fireworks 🎆#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/05ep1m8c11— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

11:11 PM BST

Error for the leader and a change up front!

Those weird radio messages have had an effect, and not the one that Ferrari will have hoped for. Peter Hanson in the No 83 runs long at Mulsanne Corner and into the gravel. He makes it back out but it costs him the lead of the race as the No 51 Ferrari becomes the latest leader - I make that sixth different leader of the race now. The gap is 2.4s, and Hanson receives a message just to tell him too cool down as he had braked 20 metres later than he was supposed to.

11:07 PM BST

Standings after eight hours

1. 3. No 83 AF Corse - 131 laps

2. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 6 Porsche Penske

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

6. No 4 Porsche Penske

7. No 5 Porsche Penske

8. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

9. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 8
#HYPERCAR@AFCorse #83
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@followWRT #46
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/h8euOGNtRD— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

11:01 PM BST

BMW blunder

Rene Rast delivered a mammoth shift to drag the BMW into contention, but the good work has been undone by the No 20 BMW being the latest to fall foul of the pit lane speed limit. That’s a 15-second stop/go penalty, which will really hurt its chances and cost it close to a minute. That one hurts.

10:59 PM BST

What’s going on at Ferrari...?

The No 51 team of James Calado have just told him that the leading No 83 will “wave you through” when you catch him. However, they are not team-mates, so why would the No 83 let him sail through? Is that a bit of mind games, or does the No 83 not want to lead?

10:51 PM BST

A new frontrunner has emerged

Kevin Estre is really putting the No 6 Porsche back into the mix here. He’s saving a little bit more energy than the Ferraris have managed, and he’s pulled an impressive 22 seconds on the third Ferrari now. In fact, Nielsen isn’t even in fourth anymore, as Rene Rast has managed to get the No 20 BMW ahead having cycled through the stops. He really is on the charge, but he’s been in the car for an eternity.

Estre meanwhile is just 10s behind James Calado, and 13s off the lead.

10:40 PM BST

Quote of the day...

...so far goes to Jack Aitken of the No 311 Cadillac:

I hate my Peugeot rental car, and I hate this Peugeot buddy. He’s killing us right now. We’re minus-five to Button right now. Button’s pulling away from us.

He’ll need to be careful leaving the track with talk like that in the heart of France...

10:36 PM BST

Third official retirement...

...is as we expected, with the No 95 garage doors closed without a car inside. The McLaren remains stranded out on the Mulsanne straight, where it will need to be rescued from by a flat-bed truck.

BREAKINGS - #95 McLaren retires from the race after 6 hours due to a mechanical failure.#LeMans24 | @UnitedAutosportpic.twitter.com/maeogH8AiK— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

10:25 PM BST

Order reshuffled

Now that Neilsen has served his drive-through penalty, the order is somewhat different to how it looked just 22 minutes ago. The No 83 Ferrari leads now from the No 51, with the No 6 Porsche now promoted up to third. Nielsen is only a second behind Kevin Estre though to the Ferrari v Porsche battle is back on. 

Rene Rast has pitted the No 20 BMW so the pressure behind Nielsen has been eased somewhat, with the No 8 Toyota now in fifth, the No 4 Porsche in sixth and the sister No 5 in seventh, ahead of Rast. The Cadillacs have suffered again somewhat, with the No 311 ninth and the No 12 down to 11th, sandwiching the No 15 BMW. 

10:17 PM BST

The view from the paddock

After Jamie Chadwick handed over the No 18 IDEC Sport LMP2 to Mathys Jaubert, it’s now back in the hands of Andre Lotterer, who started the race seven hours and 15 minutes ago. Jaubert has impressed a few around the paddock already this weekend, and with the team still running up in sixth, all eyes are on what Lotterer can do from here.

10:14 PM BST

It’s a stewards frenzy...

...with drive-through penalties coming so fast I can barely keep up. No sooner had the No 34 Inter Europol Competition been penalised than the No 311 Cadillac of Jack Aitken is pinged. I’d expect them to continue, with a lot more cars still under investigation.

10:10 PM BST

Drive-through penalty!

For the No 50 Ferrari, the second-placed car after becoming the latest to fall foul of the yellow flags. That’s why you can’t just assume things are going to fall your way, even if you have a 1-2-3.

Nicklaus Nielsen is behind the wheel currently, seven seconds behind the leader and with 28 seconds to the No 6 Porsche, meaning it should dropped down to fourth and will be touch and go with the fifth-placed BMW.

Paul Di Resta, now back in the No 93 Peugeot, must have crossed a black cat walking under a ladder on his way to the track. No sooner had he jumped back into the car than he is hit with a drive-through penalty for a yellow flag infringement by one o his team-mates. When you’re luck is out...

10:04 PM BST

Standings after seven hours

1. 3. No 83 AF Corse - 114 laps

2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

7. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

8. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

9. No 4 Porsche Penske

10. No 36 Alpine Endurance

09:58 PM BST

Drive-through penalty for Button

The latest victim of the stewards’ wrath is the No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA, with Jenson Button pinged for a slow zone infringement. The car sits in 12th currently but that penalty will probably drop it off the lead lap.

09:56 PM BST

Rene FAST

The No 20 and No 15 BMW M Team WRTs have been sneaky fast all race, swapping positions in the top 10 regularly every hour. However, Rene Rast is charging now in the cooler conditions and passes the No 8 Toyota of Sebastien Buemi on the Mulsanne Straight thanks to some assistance from an LMP2 backmarker to take sixth place.

With the No 12 Cadillac of Norman Nato just eight seconds down the road, the top five beckons.

09:51 PM BST

Ferraris have started lapping the Hypercars

There’s currently seven cars in the top category who have fallen off the lead lap. The No 101 Cadillac WTR has never really shown any pace so far, and is now a lap down along with the No 99 Proton Competition Porsche, the No 7 Toyota (after it’s stop/go penalty), the No 35 Alpine following it’s earlier collision, the trouble-hit No 93 Peugeot and sadly both Aston Martin Valkyries. The 007 and 009 are running 19th and 20th, but their task here is to finish and finish only in what is their first Le Mans outing.

09:46 PM BST

Coffee break

I’ve just been outside to stretch the legs and get my first coffee and the race - the fewer coffees the better is the theory - and there’s already a lot of weary bodies moving around the paddock. We’ve cleared a normal WEC race distance of six hours, but the daunting reality is there is still another three of those to go.

With the fatigue kicking in and drivers about to head out for their second round of stints, this is where the concentration is needed and mistakes kept to an absolute minimum.

09:35 PM BST

Another LMP2 leader penalised!

The No 199 AO by TF LMP2 leader is the latest to be hit with a drive-thru penalty for yellow flag infringements, which will cost it a lot of time. That should hand the lead back to the No 48 VDS Panis Racing who led briefly earlier in the race, though they had a sizeable lead of a lap on the rest of the field so the damage should be limited.

09:33 PM BST

Problem for Peugeot!

The No 94 that had been making a strong fist of it is spun around by the No 35 Alpine while fighting for position! The crash, which looks to be the fault of Pierre Chatin in the Alpine after out-braking himself, forces the Peugeot of Loic Duval to go right around the Mulsanne roundabout to rejoin the circuit, costing him bags of time. Chatin pits at the end of the lap, having flat-spotted his tyres with an almighty lock-up, while Duval can continue without pitting.

⚠️ CONTACT between the #35 Alpine and the #94 Peugeot under braking at Mulsanne Corner — both cars off the track. #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/O92SS1nOQd— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

09:22 PM BST

Second official retirement

Sadly the shutters are down on the No 60 Iron Lynx, becoming the second retirement of the race. The Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 came in with quite a significant engine problem after just 80 laps, for the team to find oil all over the engine bay floor. Despite trying to fix it, the engine did exactly the same when fired up again and sadly, that’s all she wrote.

The No 95 United Autosports looks set to become the third retirement as it has not moved an inch out on the Mulsanne.

#LeMans24 - Tough one. 💔

The #60 @IronLynx_ Mercedes-AMG #LMGT3 is officially out of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Not the outcome we worked so hard for.#AMG#24hAMGpic.twitter.com/5N0PVPWVKI— Mercedes-AMG Motorsport (@amgmotorsport) June 14, 2025

09:17 PM BST

Lead change!

The No 83 Ferrari has taken the lead, with Yifei Ye our fourth overall outright leader of the race after the No 12 Cadillac, No 5 Porsche and No 50 Ferrari.

The seventh pit stops cycled through to see the Chinese driver ahead by just one second, with Molina now second in the No 50 and Pier Guidi in third.

Night has fallen and the blinding headlights have well and truly taken over as we start to head into the dark.

09:09 PM BST

Standings after six hours

1. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse - 100 laps

2. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 83 AF Corse

4. No 6 Porsche Penske

5. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

6. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies

10. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 6
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #50
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@followWRT #46
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/ceVFbWC63Z— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

08:52 PM BST

We have a battle on our hands

The second-placed No 51 Ferrari has been chipping away at the lead, and it’s down to under six seconds and dropping fast. Pier Guidi is about a second a lap faster than Molina at the moment, and with Ye only a further three seconds behind, the front three are all within 8.3s of each other.

Meanwhile, Toyota’s hopes for the No 7 have just suffered a massive blow after landing a 50-second stop-go penalty for speeding in the pit lane, plummeting them down the order after losing the best part of half-a-lap. They’re now down to 16th in the running order.

The No 29 pole-sitting TDS Racing MP2 has also just been hit with a drive-thru penalty, which will cost it dearly, after a slow zone infringement.

08:44 PM BST

And back to green

I’m not sure a full course yellow was necessary there if I’m honest. We were under FCY for 60 seconds and Leung had done well to pull over next to a gap in the barrier. The early reports are not good, however, that it sounds like a rear axle failure and that might be it for the McLaren. With the big boss Zak Brown here yesterday for the unveiling of the McLaren Hypercar project, that’s not how the team would have wanted things to go.

08:41 PM BST

Yellow flag

Problems for the No 95 United Autosports McLaren of Darren Leung, who has pulled over to the side of the track on the final section of the Mulsanne. In fact, it’s a Full Course Yellow, our second of the race. Keep an eye on those gaps...

08:34 PM BST

The view from the paddock

News in from our friends at the Genesis Magma Racing team. IN her first ever Le Mans outing, Jamie Chadwick completed a quadruple stint to keep the No 18 IDEC Sport in contention in the LMP2 class. Having taken over from Andre Lotterer, the Bath native kept a very solid pace to back up the German’s opening stint, and hand the car over the fellow rookie Mathys Jaubert with the team running in a strong sixth place, right behind the sister No 28 IDEC Sport car.

08:28 PM BST

Button on the... button

A thrilling fight between the No 5 Porsche, No 38 Cadillac and No 7 Toyota is being played out right behind the No 4 Porsche and No 311 Cadillac.

The No 5 gets a run on a blocked No 311 Cadillac entering the Ford Chicane, but with nowhere to go Michael Christensen has to bail out and cut the corner, gaining a bit of air in the process and he bounces over the kerbs. That allows Button to tuck in behind him and sweep past on the Milsanne Straight, and it gets worse for the Porsche when Nyck de Vries follows through in the Toyota. It’s slim margins at this level.

08:23 PM BST

How is the race playing out?

We’re starting to see things settle into a bit of a rhythm now. The three Ferraris look to be battling for the win as things stand, although we’re not even a quarter of the way through the 24 Hours. The advantage, however, seems to be slowly falling into the hands of the No 83, as it’s superior energy-saving ability means it’s already got have a stint’s advantage on the other two Ferraris, who have just pitted for the seventh time.

The battle behind is then between Porsche, BMW, Cadillac and, dare I say, Peugeot as the No 94 is the current best Hypercar when it comes to fuel-saving. If it can somehow save a pit stop, it could put itself right in the mix later in the race.

08:07 PM BST

Big change in LMP2

The long-time leaders in LMP2, the No 43 Inter Europol Competition, has dropped to third after a bit of a nightmare pit stop, spending two minutes and 20 seconds stopped that has sacrificed its healthy lead. That has handed the front spot to the No 48 VDS Panis Racing, with Britain’s Oliver Gray currently behind the wheel, and the No 9 Iron Lynx - Proton into second.

08:01 PM BST

Standings after five hours

1. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse - 81 laps

2. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 83 AF Corse

4. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

5. No 6 Porsche Penske

6. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

7. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 4 Porsche Penske

10. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 5
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #50
#LMP2@vdSPanisRacing #48
#LMGT3@manthey_racing #92
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/GAY6Vl1sYB— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

07:45 PM BST

A subtle change...

...but a change nonetheless. The No 51 Ferrari is up into a net second place in the hands of Pier Guidi as Yifei Ye, who has taken on the No 83 Ferrari from Kubica, emerges from the pits in fourth (third, once the Peugeot stops). It’s still a Ferrari 1-2-3, but now it’s the two works cars out in front ahead of the AF Corse entry. Formation flying for the Scuderia.

07:39 PM BST

As the evening wears on...

...the Cadillacs appear to be regrouping somewhat. Sebastian Bourdais sweeps around the outside of Pascal Wehrlein into Indianapolis and moves ip to 10th, with the 311 Cadillac close behind for good measure. Up ahead, the No 12 Cadillac of Alex Lynn is going along well in sixth.

07:28 PM BST

Driver changes up front

The No 51 pits and Giovinazzi hands over to Alessandro Pier Guidi for the first time today, but interestingly the No 50 has another lap of energy left. The pair pitted together last time in but Giovinazzi has been using up a bit more fuel than Fuoco, who pits next time by and swaps drivers for Miguel Molina.

07:17 PM BST

More friendly fire

We may be watching the early stages of a Ferrari domination, but that isn’t stopping them from fighting each other. Giovinazzi is hassling Kubica in the battle for second, and the yellow AF Corse is giving as good as it’s getting. Kubica is having to pump his brake before corners, which is causing a bit of concern for Giovinazzi, but he’s currently doing enough to stay in front. The pair are around 19.7s behind the leading Fuoco.

07:06 PM BST

All change!

Well those standings did not last long. Kubica finally gets past Vanthoor going into the Indianapolis kink, before Giovinzzi then follows later in the lap through the Porsche Curves. That gives us the Ferrari 1-2-3 we were expecting, although a five-second penalty arrives simultaneously for the No 83 after Kubica is penalised for going off track and gaining an advantage. He’ll serve it at his next stop.

07:04 PM BST

Standings after four hours

1. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse - 65 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske

3. No 83 AF Corse

4. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

6. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

7. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

8. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

9. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

10. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 4
#HYPERCAR@FerrariHypercar #50
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@followWRT #46
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/dRqFVtRHh9— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

06:56 PM BST

...maybe not!

Well that’s a surprise, as Vanthoor beats Kubica out of the pit lane, with both cars in front of the No 51 Ferrari. Giovinazzi must have lost a significant amount of time somewhere to fall back to fourth (well fifth for now, with the Peugeot of Stoffel Vandoorne yet to pit and therefore leading.

For now, the battle between Porsche and Ferrari continues.

Speaking of Porsche, Jaminet’s tough stint is over as he handed the No 5 over to Michael Christensen, but they have plummeted down to 16th as a result of that drive-thru.

06:51 PM BST

Another Ferrari leader...

...as Kubica gets past the No 6 Porsche to take the provisional lead of the race, although both still need to stop to balance out the cycle. That means providing Giovinazzi hasn’t suffered any delays, then we should be looking at a Ferrari one-two-three when they stop.

Indded, both Kubica and Vanthoor pit at the end of the lap.

06:46 PM BST

Drive-thru penalty alert

For the No 5 Porsche, the car that was running in fifth place before the pit stops started, as Jaminet is penalised for not respecting slow zones. Jaminet pits immediately but for his regular service, fuel and tyres, meaning he’ll have to come in again to serve the penalty and will lose about 45 seconds. A tough break for the early leader.

06:44 PM BST

Ferraris pit in tandem

The No 50 followed by the No 51 in tandem, releasing the No 6 Porsche and No 83 Ferrari who are on slightly different strategies thanks to their energy-saving exploits. They drop to 10th and 11th but will cycle back through as the rest of the Hypercars pit. The question is, will the Porsche still be second?

06:39 PM BST

Advantage Ferrari

The ending of the slow zone has massively played in favour of Ferrari. Not only has it benefitted the lead car by stretching the lead out to 21.8s, but the second-placed Porsche of Laurens Vanthoor has now slipped back into the clutches of Giovinazzi, who is right on his gearbox, with the No 83 Ferrari of Robert Kubica now up to a impressive fourth position.

We’ve barely spoke about the No 83, but that long-run pace advantage that Ferrari had shown is really showing here, with Kubica passing Jaminet to make it a Ferrari 1-3-4. You feel it’s a matter of time before it gets even better.

Big battle on track for these 3 for places on the top 🫣#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/jdsdaI9vjb— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

06:32 PM BST

Back to green

A speedy job by the marshals down at Tertre Rouge means that after just five minutes under FCY, we’re back racing at full speed.

06:28 PM BST

I spoke too soon...

We’re into Full Course Yellow because of the amount of debris still on the track. That means all cars have to reduce their speed to the pit limiter for the entire lap, allowing marshals to get out on track and begin a quick clean-up.

06:26 PM BST

More damage...

...caused by that big accident, as the No 25 Algarve Pro Racing of Matthias Kaiser has suffered a lot of damage to the front-right corner. It appears the LMP2 driver may not have stopped in time for the slow zone and ploughed into the back of another car. The question is, who was it?

Kaiser races the car back to the pits with smoke billowing out as it rubs on the bodywork, and he’s really got to be careful here that he doesn’t create even more damage or cause the wheel to rip off.

He makes it back to the pits in one piece, and miraculously the damage is not too bad. A new front end, a check of the suspension and he’s back in the race. Meanwhile, the slow zone is removed and we’re back to green.

And now we have proof. Video replay shows Kaiser completely misjudged the slow zone and clattered into the back of the No 16 RLR M Sport of Michel Jensen, sending him into a spin and leaving him with damage to the rear of the Oreca. Miraculously, both pitted and got back out in time to stay on the lead lap in LMP2.

Algarve Pro Racing in trouble with a piece of bodywork dragging on the track aftter contact with another LMP2 car.
Into the box for car #25 (#45) pic.twitter.com/2l6nrWJms2— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

06:14 PM BST

Big crash!

The No 88 Proton Ford Mustang has suffered a big off at the entry to the Mulsanne. We’ll need to see a replay, but it had the two squabbling Hypercars battling for third place of Jaminet and Giovinazzi very close to it on the track map. Replays show that the Ford was two cars in front of the thrid-place Porsche of Jaminet, and may have received a helping hand from the car between them, but the two frontrunners had a lucky escape there.

There was a sizeable collision with the tyre wall too, so this may be our first slow zone of the race.

Indeed the yellow flags come out and the slow zone is implemented from the entry to Tertre Rouge through to halfway down the Mulsanne.

Sadly that will be the end of the race for the No 88 with the rear wheel ripped off the car completely and significant damage to the left-rear corner. We have our first retirement.

Big off-track moment for the #88 @ProtonRacing@FordPerformance Mustang at Tertre Rouge — slow zone in the sector. 🟡#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/cSHiKbuW0U— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

06:12 PM BST

What happened to the JOTA Cadillacs?

Having started one and two on the grid, JOTA fans will be slightly concerned with how quickly the two Cadillacs dropped down the field. The reason? Traffic, according to Will Stevens:

“We had a good, clean start, we were staying out well with the Porsches at the start, but in the third sto, we lost a little time to some traffic that came out of the pits ahead of us and that had a domino effect. We were then stuck in the traffic, having battles that we shouldn’t have been having. Now we just need to get back into the rhythm. Tire deg feels OK. The main thing today is avoiding flat spots. The first couple of hours are always a bit of a mess as everyone is bunched up together.”

06:05 PM BST

Standings after three hours

1. 2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse - 49 laps

2. No 6 Porsche Penske

3. No 5 Porsche Penske

4. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 83 AF Corse 

6. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

7. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

8. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

9. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

10. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 3
#HYPERCAR@PorscheRaces #6
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@followWRT #46
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/awD8yK05aH— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

05:50 PM BST

Giovinazzi up into fourth

This race is very quickly coming to Ferrari. It may be the cooler temperatures that we’ve seen today compared to Thursday, but Giovinazzi makes light work of Felipe Drugovic in the No 311 Cadillac and seizes fourth place, making the running order Ferrari, Porsche, Porsche, Ferrari. Such was Giovinazzi’s superior pace, he’s running three seconds a lap faster than the two Porsches! As I type that, the leader pits for the fourth time.

05:43 PM BST

Friendly fire

Eesh that’s close! Jaminet gets stuck behind a backmarker on entry to the Porsche Curves and team-mate Laurens Vanthoor doesn’t need a second invitation, sweeping around the outside of the pair of them and pinching second place for the No 6. In a handful of laps, the No 5 Porsche has gone from first to third.

05:41 PM BST

The view from the paddock

After an excellent first stint in taking the No 8 IDEC Sport from 14th to fifth, Andre Lotter hands over to Jamie Chadwick for her first taste of the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Chadwick spent two years racing in the US before returning to Europe this season, where she’s already won twice in the European Le Mans Series this season.

For Lotterer, it’s a job well done and he’s happy with where the car is as he hands over to his much younger rookie team-mate.

05:35 PM BST

Ferrari lead!

Our first change of lead outright since the opening lap of the race. Fuoco has three looks along the Mulsanne Straight, into both Chicanes and then Mulsanne Corner itself. But each time Jaminet does enough to keep him at bay. The Ferrari gets a great exit from Mulsanne though and gets by the Porsche before the Indianapolis kink, taking the lead of the race. The defending champions are out in front!

NEW LEADER ALERT 🚨@FerrariHypercar #50 leading the 24 Hours of Le Mans. #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/1ZrVePZjmK— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

05:29 PM BST

Ferrari making their move

The lead Ferrari is sitting pretty in second, but the sister car is now on the charge. Having dispatched both Cadillacs, he’s quickly past the BMW of Dries Vanthoor and straight onto the tail of Hartley in the No 8 Toyota in the battle for fifth. The Italian is also dragging Vanthoor along with him, making it a three-way fight.

Up ahead, Fuoco has got the lead down to under two seconds and the battle is on for the lead of the race. The Ferraris have come alive.

05:23 PM BST

Driver change...

...for the leader as Julien Andlauer jumps out after a super start and hands over to Mathieu Jaminet in the No 5 Porsche. The No 50 Ferrari is now in the hands of Antonio Fuoco, with Laurens Vanthoor in the No 6 Porsche. The No 311 Cadillac swaps too, with Felipe Drugovich in.

Behind there’s a right ding-dong going on with the Jota Cadillacs, which have dropped down the order after both changing tyres, but they’ve decided to stick with Stevens and Bamber who are the first to quad-stint straight out the gate. They’ve lost position, however, to the No 8 Toyota (now with Brendan Hartley at the wheel) and the No 15 BMW M Team WRT of Dries Vanthoor. Stuck in heavy traffic, Stevens gets well out of shape and has to take evasive action going into the second chicane, and Antonio Giovinazzi approaching behind at speed makes slight contact with the read of Stevens, before getting by him on the next straight.

The radio call then comes from the team asking Stevens to let the No 38 of Bamber through as he has more pace, and eventually the switch is made.

05:16 PM BST

All change...

...in LMP2 where the pole-sitting No 29 TDS Racing has fallen down the order. Patrick Pilet in the No 16 RLR M Sport now leads the way by a healthy 24.6s - a huge advantage when it comes to LMP2 - over the No 43 Inter Europol Competition and No 28 IDEC Sport.

05:12 PM BST

Standings after two hours

1. No 5 Porsche Penske - 33 laps

2. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

3. No 6 Porsche Penske

4. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

5. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

6. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota

7. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

8. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

9. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

10. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

Class leaders
⏱️ Hour 2
#HYPERCAR@PorscheRaces #5
#LMP2@IE_Competition #43
#LMGT3@followWRT #46
#LeMans24pic.twitter.com/Y3euuGCB2W— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

05:02 PM BST

A new contender emerges

That battle between Porsche and Cadillac has gained another car, with the No 8 Toyota of Sebastien Buemi catching the tail of the No 38 Cadillac and putting himself firmly in the podium battle. Toyota were confident they had better race pace than qualifying pace and so it looks. Meanwhile, the frontrunners are approaching another round of pit stops, and we could see driver changes here.

04:49 PM BST

Porsche vs Cadillac

An intriguing battle for third is developing between the No 6 Porsche of Estre and the three chasing Cadillacs of Jack Aitken, Will Stevens and Earl Bamber. Estre has a lead of under four seconds now, and the three Cadillacs appear to be trying to help drag each other back up into the podium positions, even though Stevens has been given the go ahead to pass Aitken if the chance arises.

04:38 PM BST

Road rage...

...between the two heavy hitters. Porsche pull off a strategic masterstroke to get the No 6 of Kevin Estre into second place ahead of the No 50 Ferrari, but Nielsen has other ideas and, with the warmer tyres, immediately challenges the Porsche. Estre defends and forces the Ferrari wide off the track on the second section of the Mulsanne Straight, causing Nielsen to wave in anger at his rival. I don’t think he was too happy about that one, but he gets the move done and is up into second, 7.6s down on the No 5 of Andlauer who continues to lead.

04:27 PM BST

Second stops for the leaders

The No 38 and No 50 cars pit from second and third respectively, and although they come out of the pits in the same order, a backmarker hinders Will Stevens in the Cadillac and gives Neilsen a perfect run onto the Mulsanne. The Ferrari makes light work of the Cadillac to pass smoothly before the second Chicane and takes what should be second place once the stops cycle through.

04:21 PM BST

First penalty of the day

That collision caused by Ben Keating in the Chevrolet Corvette has landed himself a 10-second time penalty that he’ll serve at the next stop. Keating had only just jumped into the No 33, but the drivers fresh out of the big Chevvys are not too happy about the early stints.

Charlie Eastwood, No 81 Chevrolet Corvette 

“That stint was pretty routine. I felt like stint it could have been a lot worse. It definitely wasn’t great but not unexpected. Like always with this Corvette, the high-speed corners and degradation is really good. That’s what could potentially keep us in the race. It’s so strong in the Porsche Curves. Even to the guys like the Lexus who have been the standout, we seem to sort of be able to eat back into them by the end of the stint. Raceability is going to be tough but ultimately in laptime I don’t think we’re super far away.”

Daniel Juncadella, No 81 Chevrolet Corvette

“We are participating at Le Mans because competing is another thing. It’s pretty clear we are 8-10 kph down on the straight. We can’t overtake any cars. The car is super-quick in the corners and the guys did a great job to give us a super-fast car in corners. It’s just really disappointing because that’s been the trend the last couple of races.”

04:14 PM BST

Change of position...

...for third place. The No 50 Ferrari of Nicklas Nielsen leapfrogged the No 4 Porsche of Nasr during the pit stop cycle, and now he has passed the No 38 Cadillac to take third on the road, just two seconds behind the second-placed Cadillac.

04:09 PM BST

Another spin...

...this time in the GT3 class as the No 33 TF Sport Corvette of Ben Keating tries an ambitious and quite frankly poorly judged move into the final chicane, clouting the rear of the No 150 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari and spinning Custodio Toledo around. Keating takes the position as a result, but I imagine that will land him a slap on the wrists.

04:05 PM BST

Trouble for Peugeot!

And Paul Di Resta, who loses the rear of the No 93 Peugeot entering the Porsche Curves and spears off the track through the gravel trap. The Scot looks like he’s heading for the tyre wall, but does a brilliant job to slide towards the escape road and just clips the rear instead. The collision still does a lot of damage, ripping off the rear engine cover and rear wing, and that will have done a lot of internal damage to the left-rear too. He limps back to the pits, but incredibly the car gets a new cover and rear wing, a quick look over and is straight back out.

😨 @peugeotsport #93 hits the tyre barrier in the Porsche Curves! #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/tyulROsEDR— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

04:00 PM BST

Standings after one hour

1. No 5 Porsche Penske - 16 laps

2. No 12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA

3. No 38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota

4. No 50 Ferrari AF Corse

5. No 6 Porsche Penske

6. No 311 Cadillac Whelan

7. No 20 BMW M Team WRT

8. No 51 Ferrari AF Corse

9. No 8 Toyota Gazoo Racing

10. No 15 BMW M Team WRT

03:53 PM BST

IDEC update

Remember that early stop for the No 18 of Andre Lotterer? Well, the Magma Genesis Racing car has gone from starting in 14th to now running in seventh and challenging the No 199 AO by TF car of PJ Hyett, which he makes short work of. That’s now sixth place for the team.

03:49 PM BST

Yellow flag

The first crash of the race as the No 22 United Autosports of David Heinemeier-Hansson hits the No 193 Ziggo Sport Tempesta of Christopher Froggatt and spins both cars at the Dunlop Chicane, forcing several others to take avoiding action. Both cars get going again and the section returns to green, but there will be plenty more of that...

Collision between @UnitedAutosport #22 & @FerrariRaces #193 at the top of the Dunlop curve. #LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/fzkTZ7fB8X— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

03:44 PM BST

Leader stops...

...as Andlauer brings the No 5 Porsche in for fuel-only. The No 4 doesn’t follow him in though, taking the lead as Felipe Nasr goes for a 13th lap on this stint along with the No 83 Ferrari and No 94 Peugeot.

03:41 PM BST

Stint windows

The GT3 field have started their cycle of first stops, meaning they getting around 10-11 laps out of their fuel tanks. The Hypercars look like they will start to put this time by, and right on cue the frontrunners come in for their first service. Both JOTA Cadillacs are in but the two lead Porsches stay out for another lap. The No 20 BMW, No 36 Alpine, No 7 Toyota and No 101 Cadillac also come in, putting themselves at a slight disadvantage to the rest of the Hypercar field.

Does one lap make that much of a difference? Absolutely, when played out over the course of a 24-hour race, saving one lap every stint could go to saving a car as much as three stops over the course of a race.

03:32 PM BST

Early stops...

...for three LMP2 cars, including the No 18 IDEC Sport of Andre Lotterer. That’s an early stop after eight laps, with the No 48 VDS Panis Racing and No 23 United Autosport also stopping, but that could just be to take them out of sequence and be a strategic call.

03:28 PM BST

Mind the traffic

It’s taken just seven laps and 25 minutes for the Hypercars to catch the GT3 class, and now the chaos begins. With the GT3s battling it out between themselves - British driver Jack Hawksworth is up to second in the No 78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus - the Hypercars have to be so carefull as they start to lap the field. Will Stevens is heavily hampered and allows Earl Bamber onto his tail, while the No 51 and No 83 Ferraris are also neck-and-neck as they negotiate the traffic.

03:19 PM BST

More Aston worries

We spotted the slow start from the Astons and it’s no surprise to see the No 007 come in to the pits after only five laps, which is concerning. Fuel-only for Tincknell, which is a surprise, as there didn’t seem to be any damage or concern. So just an offset strategy? I’m not so sure.

Confirmation comes through from the pits that there was indeed an issue, with telemetry showing a slow puncture that required an early change. The team opted to change all four tyres and put on a new set.

03:17 PM BST

How’s the gap?

Andlauer’s lightning start has steadied out at about 2.8s over Will Stevens, with the Cadillac matching the Porsche’s lap time last time around. The No 311 Cadillac is also looking very threatening in seventh, with Jack Aitken at the wheel. Aitken is the quickest driver so far this week, setting the fastest time in Free Practice 4 on Thursday night, and having already passed Rene Rast’s BMW, he now has Kevin Magnussen’s in his sights.

03:09 PM BST

Early Aston concerns

British interests are keeping a close eye on the two Aston Martin Valkyries, but they’re not off to a good start at all with the 007 of Harry Tincknell and 009 or Marco Sorensen now second-last ad last in class. I don’t think there’s an obvious issue there, but I didn’t expect them to plummet that quickly.

03:04 PM BST

What a start for Porsche

Julien Andlauer is off to a flyer in the No 5 Porsche, taking second place from the first JOTA Cadillac at the Dunlop Chicane and then taking the lead from the second one at the first Mulsanne Chicane. Behind him, the No 4 Porsche of Felipe Nasr is showing equally impressive speed, moving into fourth and threatening the Cadillacs. And what’s that behind in fifth? It’s the No 50 Ferrari already on the move. As for BMW, it wasn’t a good start, dropping to sixth and seventh on the opening lap.

03:00 PM BST

The flag drops...

...and the race is under way! The 93rd 24 Hours of Le Mans has begun!

The 93rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans has officially begun and the Porsche #5 has already taken the lead!#LeMans24#WEC#Rolexpic.twitter.com/hUWMeEeLDU— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

02:58 PM BST

Final pre-race thoughts...

The smart money in the paddock is that Ferrari are still the best bet for victory. Despite only qualifying seventh, many feel the Italian team may have sandbagged slightly up until now, hesitant to show their true pace. They will have to fend off Porsche and BMW, though, and overhaul the very impressive Cadillacs - a four-prong attack across JOTA, Wayne Taylor Racing and Whelan. And you can never rule out Toyota, they know how to win this...

02:53 PM BST

Formation lap under way!

As Feder gives the command “Demarrez votre moteur!”, Will Stevens leads them away. Above, two French Air Force Eurofighters soar along the grid, before a barrage of fireworks go off to form an aerial Tricolor above the paddock. Even by Le Mans’ standards, this has been something quite special.

SOUND ON 🔉#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/gc3KfZz6sV— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

02:49 PM BST

Drivers ready

The grid is finally being cleared as the starting drivers, all 62 of them, get the five-minute warning for the warm-up lap and start to climb into their cars.

We spent some time with Goodyear this morning, who are supplying the entire LMP2 and LMGT3 field with tyres, and it’s one almighty operation in force - the largest ever seen at Le Mans. The tyre supplier have brought 8,000 tyres to supply their 41 teams on the grid, and they will have their work cut out throughout the 24 hours. Each team is only allowed eight sets of tyres, meaning they must transport them to and from the Goodyear tyre tent, where the crew replace a full set in about 30 minutes to send back to the team.

With Michelin supplying the entire Hypercar category, there is a huge workforce here solely devoted to tyres - treat them kindly, and it could win you the race.

02:34 PM BST

And here comes the trophy

There is no pomp quite like the start ceremony of Le Mans. In an electric blue Ferrari , the towering Monnaie De Paris Trophy is paraded in front of the drivers before being placed on a plinth for all to see, ahead of the French national anthem.

🏆🏆🏆#LeMans24#WECpic.twitter.com/Q5JXwGxR8j— 24 Hours of Le Mans (@24hoursoflemans) June 14, 2025

We’re yet to see the arrival of the Tricolor, however... until a French militaru helicopter swoops down from the skies and two paratroopers deliver the flag to Federer, to huge ovations, of course

Fed gets the flag

Roger Federer, the Le Mans 2024 honorary starter pic.twitter.com/ScJuZKuWFh— Jack de Menezes (@JackdeMenezes) June 14, 2025

02:28 PM BST

Inside the paddock

We have been lucky this week to secure exclusive access to the Genesis Magma Racing team, who are running the No 18 IDEC Sport entry in the LMP2 class that will be driven for the first time by British female driver Jamie Chadwick, as well as three-time Le Mans winner Andre Lotterer and young French rookie Mathys Jaubert.

We’ll also be getting live updates throughout the race from the drivers themselves fresh out of the car – and Lotterer provides insight into how he’s preparing for the start of the race – the German will be the first one in the car when it gets going shortly.

02:01 PM BST

The honorary starter...

...this year is none other than Roger Federer, the 20-time tennis grand slam tournament champion. We may still be an hour away from Federer dropping the French tricolor to start the race, but that’s not stopped Roger soaking up the occasions. The man himself is currently doing a lap of Le Mans in the passenger seat of a Mercedes, waving to the near-280,000 expected to be in attendance, while receiving a standing ovation from the hundreds of marshalls that are lining the track.

Federer will wave the start flag through his long-term partnership with Rolex – if you wondered why on earth he was here – but with the likes of Zinedine Zidane, Brad Pitt and Jackie Chan all doing so in the past, he’s in good company among the A-listers who have had the honour.

The full grid ceremony is due to start at 2.25pm (BST), but the cars have already been out the for nearly two hours now and drivers will have to manage the emotions and excitement as things start to ramp up. There’s a long way to go from here...

01:55 PM BST

Who’s on pole position?

Thursday’s Hyperpole session was a thrilling spectacle played out in front of more than 200,000 fans – many of whom have flooded the home straight right now for the grid walk. They will see the two Hertz Cadillac Team JOTA cars placed in first and second, after Alex Lynn delivered a brilliant fastest lap in Hyperpole to take bragging rights 12 months on from missing out at the very last moment.

Behind them, the next two rows are split between the Porsches and BMW, before the first Ferrari in the form of the No 50, the defending champions, starts in a surprising seventh place.

In LMP2, the field is headed by the No 29 TDS Racing entry, having narrowly pipped the No 43 Inter Europol Competition and the No 199 AO by TF cars to pole position, while the No 24 Aston Martin of Heart of Racing Team will lead off the GT3 category, closely followed by the No 21 Ferrari and the No 46 Team WRT BMW of a certain Valentino Rossi, the seven-time MotoGP world champion.

A special treat was in store on Friday when we joined the pole sitters for a mini-celebration of Lynn’s achievement, where the team’s drivers talked through the session and wider plans for the race. It was Jenson Button, the 2009 Formula One world champion, who stole the show though, announcing to Telegraph Sport that his sights are set firmly on victory because this will be his final full season in motorsport before winding back to focus on his family.

01:35 PM BST

In the hands of the gods…

The weather has decided too many previous Le Mans’ to remember, with the threat and risk of rain never far away. Given the track is an enormous 13.6km long, sections of the track can be drenched while the rest of it remains dry, such is the uncertainty over when and where storms could hit.

Catch the rain at the wrong time and it can wreck an entire race, but catch it at the right times and teams can gain significant ground if the gods play into their favour.

So how is the forecast looking for the next 24 hours? There is a fair deal of cloud around as we head towards the start, but there hasn’t been any showers so far today and the forecast suggests we should be in store for a completely dry race, with Sunday looking to be a lovely blend of sunshine and clearer skies.

However, the French Meteo Office issued a severe weather warning alert this morning that there remains the risk of severe thunderstorms, and given we’ve had a major downpour every day this week without fail, I’ll believe a fully dry race when I see it.
 

01:23 PM BST

Welcome to Le Mans!

The 93rd edition of Le Mans 24 Hours promises to be one of the most competitive events in the race’s 102-year history as Cadillac, Ferrari, Porsche, BMW, Toyota, Alpine, Aston Martin and Peugeot battle it out for victory.

The gruelling endurance race is made up of three categories, with the top-class Hypercars made of the world’s leading supercar manufacturers. With three drivers for each car, teams must mix speed, strategy and precision to stay the course of the 24 hours’ racing and reach the finish line in one piece.

Behind the Hypercars comes the LMP2 category - Le Mans Prototype 2 to give it its full name - which consists of privateer teams who run similar-looking cars to the Hypercar category, albeit within the hybrid energy system that makes the top class that little bit faster.

Finally, the LMGT3 class is filled with GT cars, racing versions of the supercars you’ll see on the road with a mix of Ferraris, Porsches, Aston Martins, McLarens, Corvettes, BMWs, Ford’s, Mercedes’ and even a pair of Lexus’.

The race gets under way from 3pm on Saturday - 4pm local time here in Le Mans - and concludes at the same time on Sunday with drivers running through the night in their bid to be the first to the finish line.

Telegraph Sport will be with you for the entire duration, bringing you all the latest updates from the paddock as we follow the biggest challenge in motorsport.