Trois-Rivières, August 11, 2013 –The Canadian Touring Car Championship (CTCC) presented by Continental Tire raced this weekend at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières in front of a huge crowd. CTCC was featured on Friday for the exciting night race tradition and on Sunday morning. Drivers anticipated the weekend, GP3R is always great racing.
Drivers had a practice session on Friday morning. CTCC pilots were ready to entertain the crowd with an impressive grid, 31 cars took the green flag all trying to be faster than the others. They took their time to adapt to each corner of the track.
Back on the track on Friday afternoon for the qualifying session, Scott Nicol encountered engine issues. In order to be able to participate in that same day’s race, he borrowed a competitor’s car in hope of still getting some points to stay in the game for the championship.
In Super Class, Mathieu Audette took pole position in his No. 12 Acura RSX Type S, with his brother Rémy Audette in second in his No. 21 Honda Civic Si. Scott Nicol qualified in third position behind the wheel of his No. 41 Honda Civic but since he would start the race with another car, he was placed last on the starting grid of Round 9. In Touring Class, Michel Sallenbach was first on the grid in the No. 46 MINI Cooper S JCW followed by Jocelyn Hébert in the No. 89 Honda Civic Si. Veteran driver Normand Boyer No. 7 took pole position in B-Spec Class followed by Karl Wittmer No. 82 and in third place Alain Lauzière No. 44.
The GP3R Friday night race once again featured CTCC.
The thrilling night race with the headlights and the glowing brakes is a huge hit with the race fans. Carl Nadeau driving No. 25 Mazda 2 had a mechanical issue which caused him to hit the wall, ending his race. It was a very clean race, drivers had a lot of fun and so did the fans.
In Super class Mathieu Audette climbed the first step of the podium followed by Bob Attrell in second place and Alex Healy in third. In Touring Class, Jocelyn Hébert worked his way up to first place just in front of Michel Sallenbach and Damon Sharpe in third place. In B-Spec Class, Karl Wittmer finished first, Normand Boyer second and Alain Lauzière third.
A second qualifying session took place on Saturday morning. Drivers had a chance to upgrade their starting position for Round 10. Pole positions were grabbed by Rémy Audette in Super Class, Damon Sharpe in Touring Class and Karl Wittmer In B-Spec Class.
The start of Round 10 was very exciting and fast.
A few drivers had very good starts, such as Nick Wittmer had already moved up three positions when going into the second turn. Mathieu Audette had engine problems and had to abandon the race, Alex Healy was hit by another car and went into the wall but was still able to get back on the track and finish the race in ninth place. Paul Gravel and Jocelyn Fecteau were both involved in an accident, putting them both hard into the wall, drivers got out fine but their cars didn’t.
Exchanging places with his brother from the previous day, Rémy finished first in Super Class. Second place was taken by Nick Wittmer and third place by a very happy Roger Ledoux. In Touring Class Michel Sallenbach managed to keep Jocelyn Hébert behind him and got first place.
“I was already very happy to be part of such a great event at such a great track, to beat Jocelyn Hébert on his own racetrack, it is more than I could have ever dreamed of” he stated.
Jocelyn Hébert completed his 18th podium in Trois-Rivières by finishing second behind him. Carlos Tesler-Mabe was third. In B-Spec Class, first position was once again won by Karl Wittmer, he was followed by Normand Boyer and Alain Lauzière.
Rounds 11 and 12 will take place on Labor Day weekend August 30-31 and 1st September at CTMP.
About CTCC
The Canadian Touring Car Championship (CTCC) presented by Continental Tire is the only truly Canadian professional road racing series and it showcases race cars based on their original stock street version. The entry-level B-Spec Class introduces a sub-compact car category with a stock engine and strictly controlled modifications; the Touring Class features cars with minimal modifications, while Super Class machines have powerful and heavily modified engines and advanced aerodynamics. All three classes compete at the same time on the track and challenge for supremacy in their class.
Experience the rush of touring car racing!-END-
Information: Alexandra Paquin/ Communications Coordinator
alexandra@touringcar.ca
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