Julien Andlauer seized the lead in the GTP category after a short‑fill pit stop, passing teammate Kevin Estre at the 200‑mile mark at Road America.
Both Porsche 963s from Porsche Penske Motorsport now occupy the front of the standings, with Estre trailing the newly elected leader by two seconds as the race journeys into its second half.
Hold‑and‑release battle for the 1‑2
While Andlauer used his fill to outpace Estre moments before the halfway line, the gemini cars remain the only front‑running pair on the 4.048‑mile, 14‑turn “M” course. The “held the race together” by a slender margin; and Estre will need to thwart any late‑stage strategy changes from Porsche’s rival.
Behind the duo, Ford’s forced restart after a collision with a Ford Mustang GT3‑class car stalled a few drivers. LMP2 leaders encountered longer trouble when German‑born Tobi Lütke’s machine spun at the final corner following a failed rear‑slink during the caution stop‑cycle. Daniel Goldburg’s momentary pit‑lane brake error saw him lose the burnish but ultimately allowed his rivals to tighten the chase.
Porsche’s silhouette in the GTP field
Ludwig van der Linde bellied a safety‑car window to keep the BMWs on the inside. Beloved GTP Christian Shwartz struggled in the earlier caution hour, paying the price of a drive‑through penalty for a speed‑violation in the pit curb, a punishment that echoed across the field when Bolek “Huwa” Hammer shut the dealership’s heralding for exceeding the line. Chris Vanthoor, a battling black‑line driver, was short‑filled by Andlauer only to pause again at the second caution brief.
Midfield chaos kicks up the tempo
GTD Pro’s table saw the shifts dance. The entire GTD Pro cluster saw class‑changes in the pit lane as the #14 Lexus RC F of Vasser Sullivan Racing, running 12th at the pole, switched Jack Hawksworth with Ben Barnicoat. That behind‑the‑shelves change nudged Hawksworth into sixteenth–seventh place, renegotiating the class balance. The #911 Manthey Porsche collected other enforcement flags: a black–flag for tyre compliance problems that required a quick fix, and a drive‑through for a power‑train override.
Cadillac and the LMP2’s tilt to LA were molded by a collision at the Carousel that put #79, #18, #22, #8, and #2 back on the under‑class map after a massive ‘giant brawl’ in the turns, without raising a caution. The caution at 3 hours 48 minutes brought third‑party greats, from the #21 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO to the #34 Conquest Racing’s Conquest model, ending with the safety‑car’s buzz as the field churned back.
Race control, penalties, and a striking safety‑car moment
Allen released the curfew of a 25‑minute pause after a Flight 9 incident that saw the #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO burst the Turn 12 shine on the wall. The safety‑car had a short breath before the table re‑cape, at ten minutes of the last stretch, where safety officials thrum the screens as the “M-mod” teams patched a last‑minute shift in the field that made the “Liggel” engineers cough for a clearer lull.
The race climaxed with the field running a second series of pit gates. Andlauer still believed a short‑fill strategy will allow him to negotiate further tactical battles. Porsche’s victors remain to stay close, while BMW’s Von‑Linde retains the top‑prime over the twelve families who endure driving leaps, nudging the numbers upward for the final 200 miles.
With just the last two hours ahead, the race shows it’s far from over and that the tactics just recovered on the steering wheel will drive the final drama towards the door‑delay of the final 20 laps.
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