A Challenging Race for Kevin Lacroix at CTMP
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A Challenging Race for Kevin Lacroix at CTMP
 (Photo by Ray MacAloney / CDN-R.com)

Bowmanville (ON), May 22, 2023 – Kevin Lacroix finished fourth commandeering his #74 Adaptive One Brake Calipers | NAPA Auto Parts car during the NASCAR Pinty’s event at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (CTMP) last Sunday.

The weekend didn’t go as planned as rain and fog invited themselves to the party on Saturday. While it seemed uncertain if the drivers would bring out their cars, the series elected to build the starting grid based on last year’s championship points, cancelling the qualifying session. The drivers had the opportunity to run a practice session later in the afternoon, but most teams decided not to take any unnecessary risks while the track was still wet.

Lacroix started the 51-lap eBay Motors 200 from the second position with Marc-Antoine Camirand at his side. Very quickly, he found himself in a thrilling battle with the leader for a good part of the race.

His success quickly turned into misfortune as he stopped in the pits on lap 15. Kevin left his pitbox too quickly, thinking that the order was given for a safe release while the team was still in the refuelling phase. This incident forced Lacroix to stop on the pit lane and go back on track without the right amount of fuel.

Lacroix had to return to the pits to put the missing fuel into the tank. Then a third and fourth time for tires. “We made an unscheduled stop, which cost us a lot of track time,” said Lacroix.

Then, on a restart with just over 30 laps completed, Kevin found himself behind a much slower competitor, “I tried to pass him, but we touched, and the front wheel was damaged. The car’s alignment was compromised, which prevented me from making my way up the field”.

He held on to the fourth place for the last few laps, not without pressure from Louis-Philippe Dumoulin, who was eyeing the position. Lacroix finally held on, collecting precious points in the standings.

The next NASCAR Pinty’s race will be held on June 10th at Autodrome Chaudière in Vallée-Jonction.

Super Production Challenge series confirms more than 50 entries to its 2023 season
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Super Production Challenge series confirms more than 50 entries to its 2023 season

May 13, 2023.- Super Production Challenge series will begin its 2023 season at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Bowmanville, Ontario) from May 19 to 21. This will be the first of five events (each consisting of two or three races) for about fifty competitors entered (more than 60 drivers in total).

On the official side, Super Production Challenge also wanted to hire staff with great experience and professionalism. Thus, after the announcement during the winter of the recruitment of Steven Hubert as Chief Steward, the series is pleased to confirm today the presence of Ronald Woltman as Deputy Chief Steward. He replaces Jean-Marc Lavoie in this position.

Ronald Woltman was Series Chief Steward for the last few years, a position he held, among others, in many motorsport organizations throughout his decades-long career as race official. He has notably worked in series such as the Honda/Michelin in Canada, the Indy Lights in the United States, in addition to having been a driver in Formula 1600 and in the Production class.

It should also be remembered that the series’ new Chief Steward, Steven Hubert, has 12 years of experience in Canadian motorsport. A volunteer in his early days at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, he was then a flagger and official. He has been Race director in various provincial and national karting championships since 2013, assistant race director at GP3R (since 2022), Porsche GT3 Cup Canada official (2014-15) and for a multitude of other series and events.

In addition to Steven Hubert and Ronald Woltman, Super Production Challenge also reveals the full list of its officials for the upcoming season. We find Dominic St-Jean (President), Patrik Wittmer (Team Manager), Charles Matte (hospitality and set-up manager), Luc Bouchard (timing and scoring), Marie-Jeanne Bouchard (Hospitality, timing and scoring assistant and false grid help), Brigitte Lemieux (registration and stewards help), Ludovic Landry (data analysis), Mike Nilson and Mary McClure (technical inspection), Jean-Pierre Moisan (data retrieval and Tech inspection assistant), Nicolas Gariepy (photographer), Adam St-Amant (social media) and Pierre-Alexandre Gauthier (videographer).

“We have a list of competitors exceeding 50 teams and representing more than 60 drivers. With all these great people, it was also very important to have a solid staff of officials and that’s exactly what we managed to put in place for this 2023 season,” said Dominic St-Jean, president of the SPC series. “I welcome them, drivers, teams and officials,” he adds.

TOP 3 FOR KEVIN LACROIX TO KICK OFF THE NASCAR PINTY’S SEASON
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TOP 3 FOR KEVIN LACROIX TO KICK OFF THE NASCAR PINTY’S SEASON

Innisfil (ON), May 14, 2023 – Kevin Lacroix conquered Sunset Speedway in his #74 NAPA Synthetic Motor Oil |Valvoline car as he stepped on to the podium after an action packed race.

The 2023 NASCAR Pinty’s season kicked off at Sunset Speedway, a 1/3 mile oval track 40 minutes north of Toronto. It was the time to reconnect and get back to racing the most competitive field in Canada.

Lacroix slotted himself into the Top 5 right from the get-go in the practice session; “It was a new car that we had previously tested at Autodrome Chaudière” explained Kevin. “We were happy to get a top 5.”

The NASCAR Pinty’s drivers had the opportunity to try to set their best lap times during the qualifying session. Lacroix was back in fifth place again, starting from the third row for the 250-lap NTN Ultimate Bearing Experience 250.

As the green flag waved, the games had begun. Kevin was jostling between 6th to 4th place, fighting with Alex Tagliani and Marc-Antoine Camirand. The race was punctuated by a lot of cautions, especially during the second 125-lap segment in the latter half. Towards the end of the race, a red flag came out to put a temporary stop to the on-track action. Lacroix was now up in fourth position.

Demonstrating his patience around the last few laps, Kevin Lacroix moved up into 3rd place on the last restart with three laps to go. “I am very happy with the result, I was patient and opportunistic. We have collected a good amount of points. I think we secured a better result than what the car would have typically allowed for. We need to continue to get to grips with this new car to improve our performance on oval tracks.”

Kevin will be back on track next weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for the first road course event of the season.

A Learning Experience for Thomas Nepveu in his First NASCAR Pinty’s Event
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A Learning Experience for Thomas Nepveu in his First NASCAR Pinty’s Event

Innisfil (Ontario), May 14, 2023 – Last Saturday marked the kickoff of the 2023 NASCAR Pinty’s season at Sunset Speedway. It was also Thomas Nepveu’s first-ever race in the Canadian stock car series.

Thomas was behind the wheel of the #24 Evirum | Home Hardware Nepveu machine prepared by Jacombs Racing, taking on the 1/3 mile oval track on Saturday night in front of hundreds of fans who came to cheer on their favourite drivers.

He was immediately at ease while driving his Ford in his first laps of the practice session, setting the 14th fastest time. In the qualifying session, where the drivers had the opportunity to set the fastest time across two flying laps, he achieved a respectable 12th place finish.

“I’m satisfied with my first stock car qualifying on an oval track,” he said. “I learned a lot about the car, but also about the series. Sunset Speedway is a notoriously challenging oval, so I’m happy to have been able to set that time.”

As he started the NTN Ultimate Bearing Experience 250 from the 6th row on the outside line, Thomas followed the pack, fighting with the competitors around him and swapping positions with them.

The 250-lap event was punctuated by a 5-minute break on the 125th lap, allowing the team to make some adjustments to the car. While they were able to proceed with the first part of the race without any major problems, a different story unfolded in the second half.

In the second portion of the race, Thomas was sent spinning after some contact with a competitor. During the caution, the car suffered an electrical problem, forcing the team to return to the paddocks for a repair. This was detrimental to Thomas’ progress, who returned to the track 37 laps down.

“In the first half of the race I lacked some speed, but during the break the team made adjustments. I am very happy with the progress we made despite the electrical problem. I learned a lot from this first event, and I’m already looking forward to getting back on track this weekend at CTMP.”

EXCLUSIVE AUTOSPORT LEAVES SEBRING WITH THE USF JUNIORS DRIVER AND TEAM POINTS LEAD
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EXCLUSIVE AUTOSPORT LEAVES SEBRING WITH THE USF JUNIORS DRIVER AND TEAM POINTS LEAD

Team drivers Brienza and Jeffers deliver first team win and five podium finishes

opening round of the 2023 schedule at Sebring International raceway on March 23-24. Driver Joey Brienza showed incredible speed and consistency, starting all three races from the pole, while collecting a pair of runner-up finishes before notching his first series victory in a dominant Race 3 performance. Brienza’s success has put him in the point lead heading to the next event for the first rung of the USF Pro Championships Presented by Cooper Tires ladder. Texan Jack Jeffers was also racing at the front of the pack throughout the event, eventually scoring a pair of third-place podium finishes to sit third in the points. The team has a dedicated quartet of drivers in the series. Erick Schotten in the #90 Exclusive Autosport car and Giovanni Cabrera in the #93 Exclusive Autosport car maximized the event to gain crucial experience, each making considerable progress. As a result, Exclusive Autosport left the Sebring weekend leading the Team Championship standings.

“I am thrilled to kick off the Juniors season with a win, 5 podium finishes, and the team and driver championship leads,” said Michael Duncalfe, Team Principal. “A lot of work has gone into this program, and it was great to celebrate the team’s success at Sebring. The unique part of our Juniors program is that we have drivers with very different levels of experience. That said, I am proud of all four of our drivers as I believe they each, individually, achieved their goals through the weekend. We are going to really keep pushing to develop their skills so we can have all four challenging upfront. We have very positive momentum to capitalize on as we shift our focus over to Barber at the end of April.”

“Race 3 was about how you would imagine it when you go to sleep or when you are in the car 10 minutes before,” Enthused Joey Brienza, driver of the UBS #91. “I made a good start, nothing fantastic, but enough to keep the lead through Turn One. Nicolas (Giaffone) and Jimmie (Lockhart) both pushed hard at the start of the race and applied a lot of pressure, but I was able to hold them off. As soon as I got some clear track, I was able to push. The car was fantastic. Exclusive Autosport did an awesome job with the car and I can’t say thank you enough to them. This win and my two second-place finishes in Race 1 and 2 give us good momentum for the long season.”

“The races started off decent. We didn’t have the pace of the other guys and we fell back a little bit,” said Jack Jeffers, driver of the Corpay Cross-Border Solutions #92. “We were still fighting hard and then they were battling so I was able to catch up a little bit. My pace really came through as I gained more confidence with the car. I was able to get past the two VRD cars and catch the leaders. Giaffone made a mistake at the end that allowed he and Brienza to battle a bit more. I think if we had a few more laps, I could have been there. Overall, a good comeback from what wasn’t an ideal start, especially after grabbing two podiums in my first two starts. I’d like to thank Exclusive Autosport, my parents, and Corpay Cross-Border for getting me here.”

The team will now head back to the shop and prep the cars for Rounds 4 and 5 at Barber Motorsports Park on April 26-27.