BOWMANVILLE, On, Canada (Sunday, July 12, 2026) – RAFA Racing Team enjoyed a historic Saturday at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, claiming its first-ever IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge victory and a record-breaking seventh consecutive IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge GSX win.
Kiko Porto and Varun Choksey delivered the breakthrough Michelin Pilot Challenge victory, while Westin Workman continued his unbeaten start to the season. The victory marked RAFA Racing Team’s first overall Michelin Pilot Challenge triumph, adding to the organization’s previous IMSA success with a GS Bronze class victory in IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge.
The landmark Michelin Pilot Challenge victory came in the No. 12 Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2 after a perfectly executed fuel strategy in the two-hour Canadian Tire Motorsport Park 120.
Choksey completed the opening 21 laps before handing the car to Porto. During the race’s third full-course caution on Lap 25, RAFA Racing Team elected to top off the Toyota with fuel while several rivals remained on track. As the final round of pit stops unfolded, Porto inherited the race lead.
Initially attempting to make it to the finish without another stop, RAFA Racing Team ultimately called Porto to pit for a brief splash of fuel with less than 15 minutes remaining. Having built an advantage of more than 40 seconds, Porto rejoined with enough of a buffer to retain the lead before driving to victory by 9.881 seconds.
The result marked a long-awaited reward after the team had shown race-winning pace throughout the season.
“This is definitely a huge relief,” Porto said. “We knew we had the pace all season, but little mistakes here and there meant we hadn’t been able to capitalize.
“I promised myself I would keep working harder every weekend, and it definitely paid off. The car was amazing, the team did a great job and I’m very happy.
“It was tough because, at one point, the team was telling me to save fuel. I did my absolute best, but it’s very difficult to save fuel at a high-speed track like this.
“Then they told me to start doing qualifying laps every lap and see if we could build a gap. I did that, and I honestly wasn’t expecting we’d still be able to get the win. It feels very, very good.
“We’ve got Road America in two weeks and there’s still a lot of racing left with plenty of points available in this championship.”
Choksey praised Porto’s pace and the team’s strategy after securing RAFA Racing Team’s maiden Michelin Pilot Challenge victory.
“I almost expected that performance from Kiko because he’s been so solid all year,” Choksey said. “Watching him put in those lap times over and over again wasn’t a surprise. I have complete faith in him and the rest of our team.
“I didn’t really know how our strategy was going to play out. During the first few laps after Kiko came by, I kept wondering whether timing and scoring had updated correctly and whether we were actually leading.
“Then it started to dawn on me that we were in a really good position.”
Earlier in the day, Workman added another milestone to his remarkable VP Racing SportsCar Challenge season.
Driving the No. 8 RAFA Racing Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2, Workman claimed his seventh consecutive GSX victory, establishing a new series record for the most consecutive wins while remaining unbeaten through the opening seven races of the season.
The victory also extended RAFA Racing Team’s remarkable qualifying record in the championship. Since entering the VP Racing SportsCar Challenge in 2025, the team has claimed pole position in all 19 races it has contested.
“The race went really well,” Workman said. “The balance stayed pretty much the same throughout the whole race, and I was super happy with the car.
“RAFA Racing Team always does a great job of giving me a car that’s strong on both the short run and the long run, so I’m super happy with the effort from everybody today.
“It wasn’t any easier or harder than any of the others. I give 100 percent every time I’m out there on the track, so today was just like any other race. Everything came together.”
Workman will have the opportunity to extend the record in today’s second VP Racing SportsCar Challenge race, where victory would increase his streak to eight consecutive GSX wins.
RAFA Racing Team’s successful Saturday was rounded out by Rafael Martinez, who finished fourth in the GSX Bronze class aboard the No. 68 Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO2.
“While I was happy to earn another Bronze podium, seeing our team achieve these incredible victories means even more,” Martinez said.
“Our first Michelin Pilot Challenge victory and Westin’s record-setting win made this one of the biggest days in RAFA Racing Team’s history. I’m incredibly proud of every member of this organization. These results are a testament to the hard work, belief and commitment that everyone has put into building this team.”
The pair of victories capped one of the most successful days in RAFA Racing Team’s history, highlighted by the organization’s first overall Michelin Pilot Challenge victory, Workman’s record-setting seventh consecutive GSX win and the extension of the team’s perfect VP Racing SportsCar Challenge qualifying record to 19 consecutive pole positions.
