Le Mans Sunday Notebook

***Lap times during this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans test day were generally faster than those seen this time a year ago. Brendon Hartley’s benchmark time in the No. 8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid of 3:26.246 was 0.661 seconds faster than Porsche driver Kevin Estre’s chart-topping effort in last year’s test day.

***Times in LMP2 were slower, with United Autosports driver Pietro Fittipaldi’s class-leading time of 3:35.370 comparing to a 3:34.704 from Oliver Jarvis last year, but the pace in LMGT3 took a significant leap, with Jose Maria Lopez’s best time of 3:55.276 in his Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F GT3 nearly a full five seconds faster than the best time set in the class last year by Sebastien Baud.

***Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe technical director David Floury said the improved times compared to last year did not come as a surprise, despite three red flag interruptions in the afternoon session. He told reporters: “We have all gained in power [in the Balance of Performance], so it’s logical. The track was also good for a test day. They had the Ligiers running as well, so it helped to clean the track in the morning and rubber up the track.”

***On the much-increased LMGT3 pace, Akkodis ASP Lexus driver Jack Hawksworth added: “Especially in the second session, the track was super-fast. I think it was a bit of wind direction, and then the grip felt super high. We also had quite cool temperatures due to the cloud cover but the track grip felt higher than last year.”

***The relative lack of pace shown by the LMP2 field was put down by multiple drivers to a new, more durable compound of Goodyear tire that made its debut in the most recent round of the European Le Mans Series at Paul Ricard.

***Floury described Ferrari as the manufacturer to beat at this stage despite Hartley setting a time over half a second clear of the opposition. He said: “I think Ferrari is quite strong, and after that we are quite a few manufacturers. I would say five of us in the same ballpark. Cadillac, BMW, Alpine, Porsche and us are all close, but I see Ferrari slightly in front. They are clearly the favorites. One lap is not representative.”

***Alex Lynn, best of the Cadillac drivers in ninth aboard the No. 12 Hertz Team JOTA car, offered a similar sentiment. “There are a lot of brands that are in great shape, and I would put us as one of them,” he said. “Next week is going to be a big battle to try to win this one. I think we learned what we did right the last couple of years. We tried a few new bits. Some worked, some didn’t and I we know the Cadillac suits this track nicely so we’ll try to put together the things we’ve known for the last couple of years.”

***Two sections of the Circuit de la Sarthe have been resurfaced since last year’s race. One is from Tertre Rouge to the first roundabout along the Mulsanne Straight, and the other is from Arnage to the exit of the first right-hander of Porsche Curves.

***Alpine driver Frederic Makowiecki noted that the latter section remains “quite bumpy” despite the resurfacing works. The French driver told Sportscar365: “It is like it is, and we need to take this into consideration. For sure it was not on purpose, but when you exit Arnage, it’s quite bumpy there.”

***BMW M Motorsport boss Andreas Roos clarified that Sheldon van der Linde’s stoppage in the No. 20 BMW M Hybrid V8 during the afternoon session was down to an oil leak. “We are still investigating the cause. They took the floor off and there was some oil, so we have to see where it was coming from.”

***On where BMW stands in the pecking order after a day in which its top representative was eighth-fastest, Roos added: “Generally we look ok, I would say. Toyota and Ferrari look strong, but all the cars look quite close together.”

***Jack Aitken and Jules Gounon both departed Le Mans by private plane two hours into this morning’s session, in order to make the start of the second DTM race at Zandvoort. Aitken finished fourth in his Emil Frey Racing Ferrari, while Gounon was eighth in his Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG. Read the report here.

***Peugeot driver Mikkel Jensen struck a downbeat tone after the day’s pair of test sessions, which saw the No. 93 Peugeot 9X8 finish 19th-fastest. Jensen told Sportscar365: “We haven’t been quite good today, so [we’re] not super happy with the pace we have. But we have to investigate and see if we can do something to be fast on Wednesday, because we don’t really have more pace than that at the moment to do.”

***On the development and comfort level with the 2024-spec 9X8, Jensen said that a year’s worth of running in the car’s current specification “helps a lot, but it’s the same for all the competitors.” He added: ”I feel like we’ve made big steps since last year. But every time we do a good step, so do the others, and that’s why it’s tough competition against the best manufacturers in the world.”

***Porsche Penske Motorsport reserve driver Nico Mueller got five laps at the wheel of the No. 5 Porsche 963 in the morning session, which according to Porsche LMDh factory director Urs Kuratle said was “all part of the plan.”

***Kuratle added: “We went through the program and it was OK. Nothing to complain today. I believe everybody went through their program. We are not the only ones doing that thing. That’s why I think it’s difficult to judge [the competition]. One thing is for sure, there’s 21 Hypercars and there are like 16, 17, 18 cars who have the possibility to win the race. It will be a very tight race.”

***Of the other Hypercar reserve drivers, Philipp Eng drove five laps in each of the two BMWs, but Peugeot’s Theo Pourchaire and Toyota’s Lopez focused on their respective commitments in LMP2 and LMGT3.

***Earl Bamber meanwhile did not drive either the No. 12 JOTA or the No. 311 AXR Cadillacs as scheduled, while Louis Deletraz was removed from the entry list in Hypercar, having previously been listed against the Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac.

***In LMP2 Sophia Floersch completed 10 laps aboard the No. 25 Algarve Pro Racing Oreca, setting a best lap of 3:41.506, but Bijoy Garg was also removed from the entry list, despite plans for him to turn laps in Inter Europol Competition’s No. 43 car.

***Inter Europol driver Luca Ghiotto was unharmed in a crash at the Porsche Curves during the morning session, with the No. 34 sustaining only cosmetic damage in the impact. The car was repaired in time for the start of the afternoon session.

***LMP2 squad RLR MSport served a 30-minute stop-and-hold penalty at the start of the afternoon session for the use of non-homologated sensors on its No. 16 Oreca 07 Gibson in the early part of the opening session of test day.

***The relevant stewards’ bulletin read: “After hearing the team manager, who acknowledged the infringement and explained that the sensor had been used during a previous private test, the stewards noted that the sensor was used for six laps, providing an undeniable advantage.”

***With the test day complete, teams and drivers now get a two-day break until official practice, which begins on Wednesday with Free Practice 1 at 2 p.m. local time (8 a.m. EDT). Qualifying follows at 6:45 p.m. (12:45 p.m. EDT) for LMP2 and LMGT3, and at 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. EDT) for Hypercar.

John Dagys and Jonathan Grace contributed to this report