FRASERVILLE, Ont. (Sept. 22, 2012) – D.J. Kennington won it all.Kennington capped his 2012 NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 championship with a victory Saturday in the final race of the season, the Pinty’s 250 presented by Dodge, at Kawartha Speedway.
It is the second championship in three years for the 35-year-old St. Thomas, Ont., driver. And it was his record seventh win in 12 races on the season.
Kennington took the lead from pole sitter J.R. Fitzpatrick on Lap 231 and led the rest of the way. He held off runner-up Andrew Ranger and third-place Fitzpatrick over a green-white-checkered finish that pushed the race to 255 laps.
Fitzpatrick led a race-high 216 laps, losing the lead only on a cycle of pit stops and when Kennington overtook him for the race-winning pass.
Pete Shepherd III and Martin Roy rounded out the top five. Roy entered the weekend having already clinched the Rookie of the Year honors.
Scott Steckly finished sixth, followed by Mark Dilley, Jeff Lapcevich, Donald Chisholm and L.P. Dumoulin.
Kennington took the points lead early in the season on the strength of five-straight wins and finished it off with back-to-back victories. He ended 27 points ahead of Fitzpatrick and 35 over Ranger. Steckly and Ron Beauchamp Jr. were fourth and fifth, respectively.
With the championship, Kennington earned a locked-in spot to the UNOH Battle At The Beach next February on the .4-mile oval at Daytona International Speedway. The champions of NASCAR’s three international series — Canadian Tire Series, Mexico’s Toyota Series, and Euro Racecar Series — have a locked-in spot to one of the three races (K&N Pro Series, Whelen Modified Tour or Whelen All-American Series) they elect to enter.
Kennington will be honored for his title run along with NASCAR’s other touring series champions on Saturday, Dec. 8 at the NASCAR Touring Series Awards at the Grand Ballroom of the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
RESULTS: UNOFFICIAL
NASCAR CANDADIAN TIRE SERIES presented by MOBIL 1-Pinty’s 250 presented by Dodge Results
Saturday At Kawartha Speedway
Fraserville, Ontario
Lap length: 0.375 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (4) D.J. Kennington, St. Thomas, Ont., Dodge, 255 laps, 51.480 mph.
2. (3) Andrew Ranger, Roxton Pond, Que., Dodge, 255.
3. (1) J.R. Fitzpatrick, Cambridge, Ont., Chevrolet, 255.
4. (5) Pete Shepherd, III, Brampton, Ont., Dodge, 255.
5. (12) Martin Roy, Napierville, Que, Dodge, 255.
6. (2) Scott Steckly, Milverton, Ont., Dodge, 255.
7. (7) Mark Dilley, Barrie, Ont., Ford, 255.
8. (10) Jeff Lapcevich, Grimsby, Ont., Dodge, 255.
9. (6) Donald Chisholm, Antigonish, N.S., Ford, 255.
10. (15) L.P. Dumoulin, Trois-Rivieres, Que., Dodge, 255.
11. (8) Ron Beauchamp, Jr., Windsor, Ont., Dodge, 255.
12. (14) Jason Hathaway, Dutton, Ont., Dodge, 255.
13. (9) Larry Jackson, Oakville, Ont., Dodge, 255.
14. (18) Jason White, Sun Peaks, B.C., Dodge, 255.
15. (27) Dave Connelly, Arnprior, Ont., Dodge, 254.
16. (19) Isabelle Tremblay, St. Hippolyte, Que., Dodge, 253.
17. (13) Howie Scannell Jr., Milton, Ont., Dodge, 251.
18. (22) Ray Courtemanche Jr., Montreal, Que., Dodge, 249.
19. (25) Hugo Vannini, Repentigny, Que., Ford, 243.
20. (20) Elie Arseneau, Laval, Que., Dodge, 232.
21. (16) Max Papis, Como, Italy, Dodge, 219.
22. (17) Derek White, Kahnawake, Que., Chevrolet, 203, fuel pump.
23. (11) Steve Mathews, New Liskeard, Ont., Ford, 195, suspension.
24. (24) Noel Dowler, Sherwood Park, Alta., Dodge, 186, accident.
25. (28) Jarrad Whissell, Calgary, Alta., Chevrolet, 88, accident.
26. (23) Mike Scholz, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., Chevrolet, 80, rear end.
27. (21) Dexter Stacey, Kahnawake, Que., Dodge, 45, oil leak.
28. (26) Joey McColm, Ajax, Ont., Dodge, 7, engine.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 51 minutes 27 seconds
Margin of Victory: .440 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: J.Fitzpatrick (75.263 mph, 17.937 seconds)
Caution Flags: 8 for 65 laps.
Lead Changes: 3 among 3 drivers.
Lap Leaders: J. Fitzpatrick 1-118; J. Hathaway 119-132; J. Fitzpatrick 133-230; D. Kennington 231-255.
Standings: 1. D. Kennington, 517; 2. J. Fitzpatrick, 490; 3. A. Ranger, 482; 4. S. Steckly, 471; 5. R. Beauchamp,Jr., 422; 6. L. Dumoulin, 396; 7. J. Hathaway, 390; 8. M. Roy, 383; 9. J. White, 375; 10. N. Dowler, 355.
Expanded Race Results: http://hmtk.co/NJGGmI
Updated Point Standings: http://hmtk.co/KHKCi7
From Shon Sbarra / NASCAR IMC
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