Porsche in Control at Halfway Mark in Shanghai

Photo: Vision Sport Agency

Porsche is in control and is poised to clinch the FIA WEC Manufacturer’s World Championship as the Six Hours of Shanghai reaches the halfway mark.

The No. 1 Porsche 919 Hybrid of Timo Bernhard holds a 32-second lead over Kamui Kobayashi’s No. 6 Toyota TS050 Hybrid, with the No. 2 Porsche of Romain Dumas running in third.

A lap 1 safety car period for an accident by the No. 45 Manor Oreca 05 Nissan of Mathias Beche, who clipped Richie Stanaway’s No. 97 Aston Martin Vantage GTE saw Brendon Hartley retake the lead from Sebastien Buemi.

The Porsche has remained out front since, in what’s so far been a dominant effort from the German manufacturer.

Audi’s title hopes for the No. 8 entry has taken a big hit, with refueling issues for the Loic Duval, Lucas Di Grassi and Oliver Jarvis-driven R18 since its second stop, which has seen them drop from second to sixth overall.

The No. 26 G-Drive Racing Oreca 05 Nissan of Roman Rusinov leads LMP2, having taken over the top spot from the No. 30 Extreme Speed Motorsports Ligier JS P2 Nissan following a fuel-only stop.

Ford Chip Ganassi Racing is out front in GTE-Pro, with the No. 67 Ford GT of Harry Tincknell ahead of the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari of James Calado.

An unscheduled stop for a slow puncture for the No. 66 Ford of Stefan Muecke has dropped them to third in class.

GTE-Am has seen Aston Martin Racing also in control since the start, ahead of the No. 78 KCMG Porsche 911 RSR.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John