While BMW didn’t have the outright straight line speed at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, the Bobby Rahal-run squad proved that persistence counts with a strong second place finish at the checkered flag.

Now standing second in Manufacturer, Team and Driver points the team recently finished a successful two-day test at the 3.74-mile, 17-turn Sebring International Raceway with the No. 56 Z4 GTLM and drivers Andy Priaulx and Dirk Werner on February 20-21.

The test was critical in order to gather data resulting from the Feb. 14 Balance of Performance adjustments that saw 15 kilograms of weight added and 10 liters of fuel removed from the Z4 for endurance classic.

“Sebring will be a different challenge for us compared to Daytona,” ex-DTM star and new TUDOR Championship signing Andy Priaulx said.

“I imagine the race to be more intense, with at least 60 cars on track. I am very happy with our testing preparations and the car set up is in the ball park. We just need to see how competitive we are compared to the others. I hope we can have a faultless race and be in with a chance.”

After starring while filling in for Joey Hand on DTM duty last year, John Edwards returns in 2014 as a full-time BMW driver.

“This year’s 12 Hour marks one year with BMW Team RLL for me,” Edwards said.

“Last year we were still developing the Z4 and at the most recent test in February we were fine-tuning. I was not scheduled to drive the car, but got in for a few laps in the last session.

“I was very satisfied and am confident we’ll be able to continue our strong start to the 2014 season.”