Exclusive Autosport’s Braden Eves Scores Third Victory of the 2021 Season
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Exclusive Autosport’s Braden Eves Scores Third Victory of the 2021 Season

Canadian operation maintains Indy Pro 2000 Team Championship lead after the Indy Pro 2000 Oval Challenge of St. Louis

 

MADISON, IL (August 21, 2021) – Exclusive Autosport returned the popular 1.25-mile World Wide Technology Raceway this past weekend for the Cooper Tires Indy Pro 2000 Oval Challenge of St. Louis and, by the end of the weekend, the team had racked up its 14th podium and fourth win of the 2021 season. New Albany, Ohio’s Braden Eves improved one position from his 2020 performance, taking the lead on the opening lap before going flag-to-flag to record his third win of the season. Eves used his stellar performance to close the gap on the championship leader in the process, fueling momentum for the stretch run of the schedule. The Exclusive Autosport crew provided the 22-year-old American with a car set-up capable of winning the 55-lap race, and Eves delivered. Artem Petrov was on the move early in the race when he was taken out from behind entering turn one, and the contact sent his Tatuus PM-18 careening into the track’s SAFER barrier-lined wall.

“I am thrilled for Braden in the #91 Cambridge / Exclusive Autosport Tatuus, collecting the win at WWTR,” said Michael Duncalfe, Team Principal. “As a team, we haven’t won here before, so this was a very special moment for us and very important in the overall championship. With 46 points gained (points and a half plus a bonus point for most laps led), Braden has closed the gap on the championship and is very much in the hunt heading into the final two weekends. Unfortunately, Artem’s weekend didn’t finish on a high note. I want to sincerely thank the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team who were on the scene tending to Artem in a matter of seconds after the incident. The work they do is truly incredible. I am glad Artem is ok. He had such a fast car; it is disappointing his day had to end that way. He, along with the team, will rebound, rebuild and be back in good form for New Jersey this upcoming weekend. Last, but certainly not least, a huge thank you to all the members of the Exclusive Autosport crew for their hard work both in the shop and at the track.”

The second oval event of the 2021 season got underway on Thursday with two unofficial test sessions, which Eves and Petrov used to dial in their race and qualifying set-ups. Friday’s schedule featured a single official practice session ahead of single-car two-lap qualifying. Eves secured a position on the front row for the race with an impressive two-lap average of 139.852 mph, while Petrov lined up directly behind him on the grid in fourth with a speed of 138.058 mph.

In the race, Eves slipped behind polesitter James Roe at the green flag and then made his move to the inside of Turn Three to take a lead he would not relinquish. The first yellow flew on Lap 7 when another competitor’s right front made contact with Petrov’s left rear heading to the turn One-Two apex, and the hard impact with the wall slowed the field for 12 caution laps as the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team tended to the drivers before cleaning up the debris. When the race went back to green, Eves quickly established his gap and then held off advances from point leader Christian Rasmussen all the way to the checkered flag, winning by a comfortable margin of 0.7313 seconds.

In the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires point standings, Eves left the World Wide Technology Raceway sitting second in the championship with a comfortable gap over third. Petrov is now tied with Hunter McElrea for fourth. The team also continues to lead in the Team Championship, gaining a significant gap to the second-place team. This still provides Exclusive Autosport with the first pit boxes on pit lane for the next event, which is coming up this weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park. Exclusive Autosport fans and supporters can catch this race live on www.roadtoindy.tv or on the Road to Indy TV App. As always, follow our social media outlets for coverage throughout the race weekend.

Podium and valuable points for Kevin Lacroix at GP3R.
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Podium and valuable points for Kevin Lacroix at GP3R.

Photo: ©2021 Ray MacAloney/cdn-r.com

 

Trois-Rivières, QC, August 16, 2021 – Kevin Lacroix finished on the third step of the podium at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, which hosted a fiery NASCAR Pinty’s race. The Bumper to Bumper team scored its first podium finish of the season and valuable championship points.

On Sunday, the crowd gathered to celebrate the 2021 edition of the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, the most popular event on the NASCAR Pinty’s calendar. Kevin Lacroix, a fan of this urban track, had high expectations for the 60-lap event, dedicated to essential workers.

“GP3R is a race that every driver wants to win,” said Lacroix, driver of the #74 Bumper to Bumper  / Lacroix Tuning Dodge. “The level of the field was particularly strong, so I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy race.”

Lacroix was very fast in Friday’s practice session, setting the third-fastest lap time behind Marc-Antoine Camirand and Louis-Philippe Dumoulin. However, in the qualifying session, Lacroix could only post the 6th fastest time before having an incident that forced him to retire from his fast lap.

Far from being satisfied with this position, he began his ascent right at the start of the race on Sunday afternoon. In front of a sea of fans wearing red Bumper to Bumper jerseys, Lacroix worked his way through the field quickly, setting his sights on pole position.

It was on the mid-race restart that Lacroix was able to take the lead from Alex Tagliani. A heated battle ensued between the two competitors until Kevin fell back into 2nd place a few laps later. The last few laps were the ones that caught the attention of the audience as Louis-Philippe and Jean-François Dumoulin, and Lacroix had an intense battle.

Kevin Lacroix had to settle for the third place while Jean-François Dumoulin had the better of their battle on the track.

“The team worked very hard to give me a perfect car,” said Lacroix. “We were very fast the entire race, and I think we had a chance for the win, even if I had to keep the #04 (J.F. Dumoulin) behind me! In the last few laps, I felt I was getting back on Alex (Tagliani), so I was both stressed and confident…in both ways!”

“It’s a shame there was a final restart on lap 56 because it would have been a great fight for the win between the three of us. The late restart came in to shuffle the cards, and the top two got away,” Lacroix concluded.

“I was thrilled to see all the fans in red in the stands; it certainly motivated me!” Indeed, the Bumper to Bumper fans were a big part of the stands, all cheering Lacroix on.

The next NASCAR Pinty’s races will be in two weeks, August 28 at Circuit ICAR and August 29 at Vallée-Jonction. The GP3R race will be broadcast on TSN on Sunday, August 22, at 1 pm.

 

Hard Luck for Marc-Antoine Camirand and GM Paillé in Trois-Rivières
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Hard Luck for Marc-Antoine Camirand and GM Paillé in Trois-Rivières

Photo: ©Ray MacAloney/cdn-r.com

 

Trois-Rivières, August 15th, 2021 – Marc-Antoine Camirand and GM Paillé were full of hope when they entered the 51st Grand Prix of Trois-Rivières; Camirand had not one, but two chances to improve his own record for most victories (14) at GP3R, as he was racing in the Défi Urbain Chevrolet and the NASCAR Pinty’s series. Although he qualified strong for both races, he was forced to retire early in both events.

 

Camirand had been fast all weekend at the wheel of his GM Paillé n°22 Chevrolet Camaro in the NASCAR Pinty’s series. Second in practice, he also qualified outside pole for Les 60 tours des Anges Gardiens, the main event of the 51st Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières. 

 

“I really thought that it would be a great weekend for me at GP3R. I wanted to achieve a 15th win at this event,” stated the driver from Saint-Léonard-d’Aston, located just 20 minutes south of Trois-Rivières.

 

After the green flag dropped for Sunday’s race, Camirand managed to stay in second place and kept a good pace behind the leader. He knew that his GM Paillé n°22 Chevrolet Camaro was fast and that he would be able to fight for the lead later in the race. Unfortunately, he completed only nine laps out of 60 and was forced out of the race because of a transmission failure.

 

“I am so disappointed of how the weekend finally turned out. I know that we had a car to win and it makes the situation even more frustrating. There is nothing that I could have done differently. We have been having hard luck for a few years here in Trois-Rivières and I’m just hoping that this is now behind me… We will come back next year to finally get that 15th win at GP3R,” Camirand told.

 

Marc-Antoine Camirand and the GM Paillé team also experienced difficulty on Saturday, for the Défi Urbain Chevrolet. DIRT Sportsman Modified were on the GP3R narrow street course in a unique race, as these cars are used to race on clay oval. 

 

Marc-Antoine Camirand teamed up with dirt track specialist David Hébert with ONE Racing team, and quickly managed to adapt to these open-wheel cars used to turn left only on a totally different racing surface. 

 

He qualified on pole on Friday, and he was aiming at a podium finish for his first race in a DIRT Sportsman Modified car. Camirand didn’t make it through the first turn of the race, as he was pushed from behind at the green flag and wasn’t able to turn. His GM Paillé ONEc car ended up in the tire barrier outside turn one. 

 

“I’m the one who had to dictate the pace before the green, but the car behind entered turn one faster than me and pushed into my rear bumper so hard that I couldn’t make my car turn right. I really thought that I could have a good race, but it’s a shame that it ended up that way. I’m disappointed for my sponsor GM Paillé and ONE Racing team who worked very hard to prepare the car for GP3R”, Camirand explained.

 

Camirand’s teammate in the Défi Urbain Chevrolet, David Hébert, was having a strong race in the GM Paillé ONE car. He was fighting for the lead with only a few laps to go, but he was given a disputed penalty and was forced to go to the rear of the pack.

 

Marc-Antoine Camirand will be back on track at the wheel of his GM Paillé n°22 Chevrolet Camaro in two weeks, as the NASCAR Pinty’s series heads to Circuit ICAR in Mirabel, QC, on Saturday, August 28th, then to Autodrome Chaudière in Vallée-Jonction, QC for a doubleheader on Sunday, August 29th. David Hébert and the GM Paillé ONE car will be back on dirt at Autodrome Granby, next Friday.

Kevin Lacroix in the Hunt for a Third GP3R Victory!
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Kevin Lacroix in the Hunt for a Third GP3R Victory!


Photo : Ray MacAloney

Saint-Eustache, August 11, 2021 – The streets of Trois-Rivières hold no secrets for Kevin Lacroix, who has made five appearances at the GP3R since his NASCAR Pinty’s debut in 2015. He is one again thrilled to be participating in the 60-lap race on the 2.46 km urban track this weekend.

 

He had won the 2015 and 2016 editions before accumulating bad lucks in 2017 and 2018. Lacroix could have won the last GP3R event in 2019 (the 2020 event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic) but finished in 4th place, a step away from the podium.

 

Lacroix is looking to win once again in his #74 Bumper to Bumper  / Lacroix Tuning  Dodge. “We’ve done some testing, and I have a very fast car,” said Kevin. “I know the GP3R track like the back of my hand, so I’m confident that this event will go better than the first one at Sunset Speedway.

 

Lacroix was unlucky at Sunset Speedway two weeks ago as he did not finish the second race of the night due to a mechanical failure.  However, he plans to make up for it at the Trois-Rivieres Grand Prix in front of the Bumper to Bumper guests in the stands.

 

“I’m glad to see the fans back at GP3R; it’s always a fun and festive atmosphere.” While things may not be back to normal yet, fans can opt to watch the race live on RDS on Sunday, August 15 at 2:18 p.m.

The 60-lap Grand Prix of Trois-Rivières will be broadcast on TSN on Sunday, August 22 at 1:00 pm.

THOMAS NEPVEU BACK IN SKUSA AT NEW CASTLE MOTORSPORTS PARK
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THOMAS NEPVEU BACK IN SKUSA AT NEW CASTLE MOTORSPORTS PARK

Oka (Quebec, Canada) – August 10th, 2021. After a pause in karting since the end of May, Thomas Nepveu returns this weekend to the SuperKarts! USA SummerNationals series (X30 Senior class) on the fast one-mile New Castle Motorsports Park located in New Castle (Indiana, USA). Thomas Nepveu is familiar with this high-speed layout which features a long straightaway of 950 ft. (290 meters), after having raced there in 2019 during a concentrated six-race programme in which he achieved good results.

 

This return to the track will also be marked by a major change for the team as Thomas Nepveu will be driving a new brand of machine made by “Kart Republic”. Thomas and his sporting manager, Coy Arbour, will be participating in the event as an independent team. Founded in Italy by the renowned Dino Chiesa in 2017, the brand has taken several drivers to the highest levels of motorsport such as Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg and Lance Stroll to name a few.

 

“I am expecting a very good weekend as I feel we have the equipment we need to succeed. I’ve been racing against Kart Republic karts since their inception in 2017. Everything is in place for us to reach the podiums and play for wins. I like this type of track at New Castle, fast and with some places where we can overtake. We are ready for a big weekend, especially when we add the knowledge that we have developed since the beginning of the season in USF2000,” explains Thomas Nepveu.