24 Hours of Le Mans 2024: Toyota leads after nine hours

Ferrari sets best time in warm-up, Toyota crashes

Official Porsches set the pace during Test Day

Toyota led the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race after nine hours on Sunday with Japanese driver and 2022 winner Ryo Hirakawa at the wheel.

The #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid led the race by 30 seconds from the #36 Alpine A480-Gibson of Nicolas Lapierre, with the #7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid of Mike Conway third.

The race has been incident-packed so far, with the #709 Glickenhaus 007 LMH of Romain Dumas crashing out of the lead on the opening lap.

The #93 Peugeot 9X8 of Paul di Resta also crashed out of the lead in the second hour, while the #38 Jota Sport Oreca 07-Gibson of Antonio Felix da Costa suffered a major engine failure.

Despite the incidents, the race is still very much in the balance, with the top three cars covered by less than a minute.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest and most prestigious endurance race, and is held annually on the Circuit de la Sarthe in France.