Porsche Has Lead at the Halfway Point at Le Mans
A Porsche 962 driven by defending champions Hans-Joachim Stuck of West Germany, Derek Bell of Britain and American Al Holbert held the lead over a pair of Jaguars early this morning after 12 ours of the Le Mans 24 Hours race.
The Porsche, the last remaining factory-built Porsche left in the race, led by three minutes. The trio of drivers won last year, with Bell taking his fourth Le Mans title.
The Porsche had completed 174 laps over the 8.41-mile circuit and covered 1,463 miles at an average speed of 122 m.p.h.
The Jaguar XJR-8 of Britain’s Martin Brundle, Denmark’s John Nielsen and West Germany’s Armin Hahne was second, a lap ahead of the Jaguar driven by American Eddie Cheever and Brazil’s Raul Boesel. The Jaguar XJR-8 led after the first six hours.
Stuck’s Porsche was running well, but engine problems knocked out the pole-sitting Porsche 962 of France’s Bob Wollek and Joachen Mass.
About an hour into the race, while still among the leaders, Wollek drove into the pits with a broken piston caused by overheating.
The race had become a survival contest as just 28 of the 48 starters were still running. Of the original total of 13 Porsches, just 5 were still running at the halfway point.
