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News Archive » Chapter 2: 2100hrs to 0300hrs June 17, 2007 The Le Mans 24 Hours has just reached half distance and the Scuderia Ecosse Ferrari 430 is running steadily in third place. As darkness began to fall at Le Mans, Chris Niarchos completed his first stint of the race. “It was good to get my first stint done as the nerves are always there until after that initial run, said Chris. “The sun going down on the back straight was a big problem; I couldn’t see anything, at all. The car itself is feeling very sorted though, the rear is steady and the front is pushing just as much as I want it to.” Since nightfall, Tim Mullen has completed another double stint to add to the long run he did at the start of the race. The safety car came out halfway through Tim’s first stint whilst some debris was cleared from the Dunlop Chicane; the result of contact between an Audi and a Corvette. Tim then pitted while the safety car was still out and embarked on his next stint before coming in for a well-deserved forty winks! Andrew Kirkaldy took over to continue the battle with the #97 Risi Ferrari and the #93 Autorlando Porsche. Running in third at the start of his second stint, Andrew locked up and went across the first chicane. He explains: “The car was okay after I went over the chicane. I flat-spotted one of the tyres but it was fine to continue for a while. I kept going until the vibration was too bad but I only had to pit two laps early so it wasn’t a problem. Other than that the car is great and going well.” Chris then went out on new tyres, reporting that the vibration had gone and the car was feeling good. He completed another good stint before handing over to Tim Mullen who is still behind the wheel of the Ferrari at 0300hrs. “We’re doing okay,” said Team Principal, Stewart Roden. “We picked up a bit of debris which has forced us to single stint tyres and lose a bit of time. Second, third and fourth place are running close together so we plan to just keep on doing what we’re doing. Anything can happen here and we’re only half way into it now.” ENDS |
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