The timekeeping was dominated by the team that secured the pole position in the GS category, with Varun behind the wheel of the number 12 Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2. The outcome, however, held a cruel twist for the duo, who saw victory slip away due to the race strategy. "This time I didn't even have to sweat since Varun was the one who went out on track for qualifying. But the car is very well set up and expectations are good," said Porto before the race. During the two-hour race, Choksey was responsible for the start and maintained the lead through the first corner, but a widespread collision in the middle of the pack caused chaos on the starting straight. Seven cars were immediately abandoned, forcing race control to display the yellow flag for almost half an hour. When the green flag was waved again, the number 12 Toyota took back the lead with the American in front. The Rafa Racing team opted for a driver change with 1 hour and 18 minutes remaining in the race. Choksey gave way to Porto, who entered the track with the mission of managing the advantage built during the early laps. The Pernambuco native, with surgical precision, maintained the first position and opened a considerable gap over the others. With just over half an hour to go until the checkered flag, the driver had already built a 28-second lead over the second place and had set the fastest lap of the race, proving that the Toyota GR Supra was truly in perfect harmony with the Sebring layout. Victory seemed just a matter of time. However, lacking enough fuel to finish, the team had to refuel before the end of the two-hour competition. Porto went to the pits for a splash and go, that quick pit stop of just a few seconds to put fuel in the tank to make it to the end. With that, all the built-up advantage vanished in an instant. Upon returning to the track, the Brazilian found himself in tenth place, the position in which he crossed the finish line. "The car was the fastest of the entire race, so much so that I managed the fastest lap. In the end, I had to do a splash and go to reach the finish," summarized Kiko Porto. Despite the outcome, the pole position, the absolute lead for more than half the race, and the fastest lap are clear indicators that the Rafa Racing team has a competitive and reliable machine in the Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2 for the upcoming races. The category's calendar shows the third stage of the Michelin Pilot Challenge between May 1 and 3, where Kiko Porto and Varun Choksey will land on the track at Laguna Seca in Monterey, California, with the mission of transforming the potential demonstrated in Sebring into a definitive positive result.