Allan McNish and Audi set the pace in the first free practice session for the 1000km Le Mans Series race at Silverstone on Friday.
In an odd session that was interrupted by a safety car test just as a brief but sensibly sized rain shower soaked the track halfway through, the No. 7 Audi TDI R15 set the pace throughout, with Tom Kristensen leading the way in the rain, too.
But McNish was quickest early on, when the track was at its driest, when it counted.
It was only in the last 10 minutes of the session – which was delayed by a brief red flag for to recover the Hope Polevision Oreca from a spin – that teams began experimenting with drys and intermediates again as the track dried out again.
It was in that period that Anthony Davidson secured the second fastest time with a 1m46.698sec – some four tenths behind his fellow Briton, in the fastest of the Peugeots.
Neel Jani was an impressive third fastest in the Rebellion Lola, which revels in such conditions because of its ability to garner heat in its tires, ahead of Nicolas Lapierre in the Oreca Peugeot.
Le Mans-winner Timo Bernhard joins Dindo Capello in the No. 8 Audi, which was fifth fastest ahead of Jean-Christophe Boullion in the second Rebellion Lola.
The No. 009 and No. 007 Aston Martins were seventh and eight fastest, just in front of the giant-killing LMP2 Strakka Acura which was ninth, and quickest in class.
The Larbre Competition Saleen was the only GT1 runner, while Richard Westbrook and Marco Holzer's Prospeed Porsche headed the GT2 battle.
Times to follow.