The second half of the 8 Hours of Bahrain, the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, opened with the Ferrari 488 GTE driven by Alessandro Pier Guidi in first place in the LMGTE Pro and Miguel Molina in the number 52, second, 16 seconds behind.
LMGTE Pro. Two hours into the race, the AF Corse cars made their second pitstop and driver change. James Calado managed to pit during a Full Course Yellow. He handed the 488 GTE number 51 to Pier Guidi, who returned to the track as class leader. During the pitstop, Molina replaced Antonio Fuoco in the number 52 car. The Spaniard went back out in fourth 33 seconds behind his teammate.
During the third hour, Molina moved up to third, overtaking Christensen’s number 92 Porsche on lap 61. Then Spaniard closed the gap to the Corvette, which he overtook 15 laps later. At that point, the two Ferraris in the hands of the Maranello company’s official drivers lay first and second. They held the same positions after the third pit stop, four hours and 45 minutes before the end of the race, with Pier Guidi 20 seconds ahead of his teammate. With four hours remaining, the driver of the number 51 car enjoys a 46-second advantage over Nick Tandy’s Corvette, in third. He has a 51-second lead over the number 92 Porsche.
LMGTE Am. Two Ferraris still lead the class for crews that include gentlemen drivers. Iron Dames’ number 85 tops the class standings with Sarah Bovy. The Belgian has built up a 45-second lead over the chasing number 98 Aston Martin. AF Corse’s 488 GTE number 54, driven by Thomas Flohr, lies fourth, 11 seconds off the podium.