Get ready for some serious speed and drama on the track! The battle for supremacy at the 28th annual Motul Petit Le Mans is heating up, and Jack Aitken with the Cadillac Whelen team are setting the pace once again. After a strong showing in Practice 1, they dominated Practice 2, leaving competitors in the dust.
But here's where it gets intense: With just minutes left in the 90-minute session, Aitken pushed the red No. 31 Cadillac V-Series.R to its limits, clocking an astonishing 1m10.882s—the fastest time of the weekend. This dethroned Filipe Albuquerque in the blue No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac, who had previously set a 1m11.290s. Is Aitken’s late surge a sign of things to come, or can Albuquerque bounce back in qualifying?
Practice 2 wasn’t without its chaos, though. Three red flags disrupted the session, each with its own story. Early on, the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 suffered a mechanical issue, halting Albert Costa’s momentum and costing the team their fastest lap in tomorrow’s qualifying. Should teams be more cautious in practice to avoid penalties, or is pushing the limits worth the risk?
Later, the No. 99 AO Racing ORECA LMP2 spun while avoiding another car at the Turn 10 chicane, only to be struck by Christopher Mies in the No. 65 Ford Multimatic Mustang GT3. And with 20 minutes remaining, Wyatt Brichacek spun the No. 80 Lone Star Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, mirroring an incident from Practice 1. Are these red flags a preview of the unpredictability we’ll see in the race?
Behind Aitken, GTP championship leader Matt Campbell in the No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport 963 secured second place with a late 1m11.175s, edging out Albuquerque, who dropped to fourth. Dries Vanthoor, who led much of the session in the No. 24 Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8, finished third, while Ross Gunn held steady in fifth with the No. 23 Aston Martin THOR Team Valkyrie.
In the LMP2 class, Alex Quinn dominated for Crowdstrike by APR, setting a 1m13.074s in the No. 04 Oreca 07-Gibson—three-tenths ahead of Hunter McElrea in the TDS Racing entry. Oliver Jarvis, Juan Manuel Correa, and Benjamin Pedersen completed the top five. Can Quinn maintain this momentum, or will the competition close the gap in qualifying?
Over in GTD PRO, Aaron Telitz in the No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 set the pace with a 1m19.180s, just two-hundredths quicker than Sebastian Priaulx in the No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Mustang GT3. However, the fastest GT time overall belonged to Lorenzo Patrese in the GTD class No. 47 Cetilar Racing Ferrari 296 GT3, with a stunning 1m19.077s. Are the Ferraris poised to dominate the GT categories, or will other teams rise to the challenge?
Ferrari’s strength was further highlighted by a 1-2-3 finish in GTD, led by Kenton Koch in the No. 023 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari, followed by Riccardo Agostini in the sister No. 021 entry. Patrick Gallagher and Jan Heylen rounded out the top five. Meanwhile, in GTD PRO, Albert Costa rebounded to finish third fastest, ahead of Nicky Catsburg and Dan Harper.
As Practice 3 kicks off tonight at 7:30pm ET, the stage is set for even more thrilling action. Who will rise to the top, and who will falter under pressure? Let us know your predictions in the comments—and don’t forget to tune in to see how it all unfolds!
