24h Le Mans
At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as at any race, safety is paramount, on and around the track. We explain the various ways that Race Control can suspend racing in order to clear the track after an incident. Officials may decide on Full Course Yellow, a Slow Zone or a Safety Car period, the intention always being to interrupt racing as little as possible.
The race director has three different tools to neutralize all or part of the track, depending on the type of incident encountered.
The 'Full Course Yellow' is mainly used for short neutralizations, for example, to allow marshals to retrieve debris from various parts of the track. The 'Full Course Yellow' imposes a speed limit of 80 km/h over the entire circuit. Drivers must comply with this speed limit as soon as the procedure is triggered, and overtaking is prohibited. To prevent a competitor from gaining an advantage from a pit stop made while others are slowed on the track, the pit lane is closed and stops are not allowed, except for emergency reasons.
The 'Slow Zones' allow neutralizing a defined section of the track to enable marshals to intervene without neutralizing the entire race, for example, to repair a moderately damaged barrier or to clear a car stuck in a gravel trap. The 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit is divided into 9 'Slow Zones'. Entry into the 'Slow Zone' is announced to drivers by a 'Next Slow' sign at the preceding marshal post, after which overtaking is prohibited. In the 'Slow Zone', the speed is limited to 80 km/h and overtaking is prohibited.
The Safety Car is the third intervention tool available to the race director, particularly in the event of an accident involving multiple cars.
Yes, due to the length of the 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit and the duration of the race. The first requires the ability to intervene at any time without necessarily having to neutralize the entire race, while the second necessitates specifically considering parameters such as pit stops or the impact on the gaps observed on the track.
Three Safety Cars enter the track simultaneously at three different locations, grouping the cars behind them, thus forming three distinct packs. This creates time intervals during which no race cars are on track, allowing marshals to intervene safely. The duration of this Safety Car phase varies depending on the length of the intervention taking place on the track. Consequently, the pit lane is open, and stops are allowed. Cars stopping in the pits at this time must wait for the next Safety Car to pass by the pit exit before rejoining the track. This prevents a car from rejoining the track alone to catch up with the Safety Car it initially followed, which could pose a potential risk to the marshals.
Once safety is assured on the track, the race director organizes the race restart. At that point, the pit lane is closed except for emergency interventions, and cars are instructed to regroup behind a single Safety Car, this is called ‘merging’. A 'Pass-Around' is then organized, allowing cars running ahead of their category leader to overtake the Safety Car and join the back of the line behind it. This prevents a category leader from gaining an artificial advantage over their pursuers due to the grouping caused by the Safety Car.
It is impossible to predict the duration of this procedure, as it primarily concerns the safety of the competitors and marshals. It is entirely dependent on the length of the interventions taking place on the track. Once these are completed, the merging and 'Pass-Around' procedure generally takes between 3 and 4 laps. Again, it is impossible to provide a fixed duration, as it depends on track conditions.
