Mississauga, Ont. – The Nissan Micra Cup held its second last outing of the season this past weekend during the most important motorsport event at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP), northeast of Toronto, Ontario. Two races were on the program, both of which kept the fans on their feet with numerous cars overtaking one another and a constant change in race leader. In the end, Kevin King won on Saturday and Stefan Rzadzinski on Sunday, while Olivier Bédard maintained his overall lead in the championship.
The American NASCAR Camping World Truck series was also a highlight this past weekend as it brought together tens of thousands of spectators to the site. As part of the festive atmosphere, fans were able to witness the 23 Nissan Micra Cup drivers in action during two magnificent races.
On Saturday, under constant sun and a cool breeze, track records were broken. Qualifying in pole position, the 2016 champion Xavier Coupal started the mid-afternoon race with 2016 novice champion Stéfan Gauthier by his side. At the end of a thrilling 30-minute race that saw a collision in the first lap eliminate Coupal, followed by multiple changes on the leaderboard, Kevin King, Gauthier’s Sorel-Tracy Nissan teammate, crossed the finish line just three-tenths of a second ahead of Olivier Bédard. Holder of the record for the fastest lap in the history of Nissan Micra Cup at the CTMP, Bédard was able to increase his lead at the top of the series standings. The podium was completed by Stéfan Gauthier, Albertan Stefan Rzadzinski and Quebecker Marc-Antoine Cardin, who earned a top five finish for his very first time.
Montrealer Jesse Lazare, who is more familiar with powerful endurance while racing a McLaren GT as opposed to the practically stock Nissan Micra S race cars, made his grand debut in the Nissan Micra Cup this past weekend. Lazare competed on behalf of the MIA (Motorsports In Action) team, with whom he races endurance. He entered in order to experience the fun associated with driving in the Nissan Micra Cup, but admitted to being surprised by the competitiveness of the series. Qualifying in seventh, he fought an outstanding race and challenged the other drivers for a spot at the front of the pack. He finished in sixth place overall, ahead of the top-ranking senior class competitor, Normand Boyer, Australian Keishi Ayukai, Frédéric Bernier and Englishman Jake Exton, who was fastest among the novices.
Sunday was just as thrilling, with the top 10 neck and neck from the start right through until the last lap. Qualifying in pole position, Kevin King led the first few laps before Olivier Bédard and Stefan Rzadzinski took the lead ahead of him. Rzadzinski eventually won, in front of Bédard and King. Starting on the first line beside King, Jesse Lazare finished his very first Nissan Micra Cup race weekend in fourth place. Senior class leader Normand Boyer initially finished in fifth place, but due to a penalty, was pushed back to seventh place. As a result, Valérie Limoges came in fifth place, ahead of Stéfan Gauthier, Norman Boyer, Frédéric Bernier, Jake Exton (once again top novice finisher) and Marc-Antoine Cardin.
After his incident the night before, Xavier Coupal was forced to forfeit the race and was eliminated from the battle for the title. With two strong podium finished, Kevin King is still fighting for the championship title against Olivier Bédard, who leads the championship. The last race weekend of the season is set to be action-packed, with a battle for the overall title as well as for the novice class honours between Jake Exton, Vincent Doyle and Nicolas Barrette. In the senior class, Normand Boyer already holds enough of a lead to claim the title.
The next event will take place in three weeks as the series presents its grand finale of the 2017 season at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant, in Québec. The traditional Fall Classic will attract an impressive crowd to cap off the Nissan Mica Cup’s 2017 championship. Two races will be held during the race weekend on September 23 and 24. Motorsports fans, Nissan Micra owners, and the public in general are invited and are sure to witness an action-packed competition. More details can be found on the Nissan Micra Cup website at www.micracup.com.
For full race results, visit:
http://www.micracup.com/2017-Results_Race?RID=29 (race 9)
http://www.micracup.com/2017-Results_Race?RID=30 (race 10)
Overall championship standings after two races: http://www.micracup.com/2017-Results_ClassGen.
For more information on the Nissan Micra Cup, please visit: http://www.micracup.com/main.
2017 Nissan Micra Cup Season Calendar
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