As we near the end of October, the Canadian racing season is fast approaching the checkered flag; in our final weekly preview of the year, we look ahead to remaining Canadian action, including the Canadian Rally Championship, plus DIRTcar, NASCAR, F1 and other international series to watch this fall. Here’s what you need to know.
Canadian Series
There are a few Canadian series to note that haven’t completed their 2024 seasons.
The Hot Rod Classics finale will take place at Bud’s Speedway on Saturday. The series last raced in mid-September, when Jim Rankin recorded the victory at Petty International Raceway. There are seven different winners in eight races so far this season, with Stacey Clements being the only repeat winner.
The Maritime All Star Series street stock tour will conclude its season at Speedway Miramichi next Saturday (October 26); the Miramichi event was previously postponed due to weather, as was the most recent race, held last weekend at Riverside International Speedway. Brodie MacQuarrie recorded the victory at Riverside, joining Michael Cormier (two wins) and Mitchell Arsenault as winners so far in the five-race season. MacQuarrie leads the standings by 22 points over Arsenault and 28 points over Dennis Nickerson entering the finale.
The Canadian Rally Championship (CRC) has three events remaining on its 2024 schedule, with only one non-CRC rally remaining, for competitors out west. The Eastern Canadian Rally Championship (ECRC), Western Canadian Rally Championship (WCRC), North American Rally Cup (NARC), Ontario Performance Rally Championship (OPRC) and Rally Sport Quebec Championship (RSQC) are also part of the remaining events:
Rallye de Charlevoix – La Malbaie, QC – Nov. 1-3 (CRC, ECRC, NARC, RSQC)
Kananaskis Rally (non-CRC) – Kananaskis, AB – Nov. 9-10 (WCRC)
Lincoln Electric Rally of the Tall Pines – Bancroft, ON – Nov. 22-23 (CRC, ECRC, NARC, OPRC)
Big White Winter Rally – Kelowna, BC – Dec. 6-8 (CRC, WCRC, NARC)
Five CRC events are in the books, with the Rallye Defi Petite Nation being the most recent event in early September. The championship battle remains tight, with Jerome Mailloux leading Jean-Sebastien Besner (-4 points) and Antoine L’Estage (-9) in the overall driver standings; Philippe Poirier leads Alan Ockwell by nine points in the overall co-driver standings. Ford leads Subaru by five points in the manufacturer standings.
DIRTcar
A pair of Canadians from the same city are in the middle of championship battles, as the DIRTcar season nears a conclusion.
St. Catharines, ON’s Cody McPherson leads the DIRTcar Sportsman Series championship season entering the finale on Saturday at Brockville Ontario Speedway. The margin is 41 points between McPherson and Gavin Eisele, after McPherson finished runner-up to Matt Janczuk in the Chevrolet Performance 75 during Super DIRT Week; Eisele finished eighth.
In the Super DIRTcar Series, St. Catharines, ON’s Mat Williamson had a big points gain in the Super DIRT Week headlining Billy Whittaker Cars 200 at Oswego Speedway. Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON’s Stewart Friesen picked up the victory, while Williamson finished third, six positions ahead of points leader Matt Sheppard. Williamson trails Sheppard by 15 points entering the final three races, during the World of Outlaws World Finals; the features will take place November 7, 8 and 9 at The Dirt Track at Charlotte (beside Charlotte Motor Speedway).
NASCAR and Formula 1
There are four races remaining for the NASCAR Cup Series – Las Vegas Motor Speedway (Sunday afternoon), Homestead-Miami Speedway (Oct. 27), Martinsville Raceway (Nov. 3) and Phoenix Raceway (Nov. 10). The next three races make up the Round of 8, where Kyle Larson, Christopher Bell, Tyler Reddick, William Byron, Ryan Blaney, Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott and Joey Logano will battle for a spot in the Championship 4. Alex Bowman initially made the final eight before a disqualification at Charlotte meant that Logano had more points and advanced instead.
The same four races remain for the NASCAR Xfinity Series – Las Vegas (Saturday night), Homestead-Miami (Oct. 26), Martinsville (Nov. 2) and Phoenix (Nov. 9). The drivers battling for a spot in the Championship 4 during the next three races are Justin Allgaier, Cole Custer, Austin Hill, Chandler Smith, Sam Mayer, Jesse Love, A.J. Allmendinger and Sammy Smith.
The NASCAR Truck Series only has three races to go, having started its Round of 8 at Talladega. The trucks are off this weekend, with remaining events at Homestead-Miami (Oct. 26), Martinsville (Nov. 1) and Phoenix (Nov. 8). A win locked Grant Enfinger into the Championship 4, with seven drivers battling for three spots – Corey Heim, Christian Eckes, Ty Majeski, Rajah Caruth, Taylor Gray, Nicholas Sanchez and Tyler Ankrum. Canadian Stewart Friesen will look to end the season with a trip to victory lane; he missed the playoffs and is currently 13th in points.
There are six races remaining for Formula One – Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX (Sunday afternoon), Mexico (Oct. 27), Brazil (Nov. 3), Las Vegas street race (Nov. 23 late night), Qatar (Dec. 1) and Abu Dhabi (Dec. 8). Max Verstappen leads the standings by 52 points over Lando Norris; Canadian Lance Stroll is currently 11th. Verstappen, the three-time defending champion, won seven of the first 10 races, but is now on an eight-race winless streak. Norris won two of the last four races and finished ahead of Verstappen in five of the last six events. Check back with InsideTrackNews.com for Jeff Pappone’s F1 recaps after each grand prix.
Additional International Series
The CARS Late Model Tour finale will take place at North Wilkesboro Speedway on Saturday. Grimsby, ON’s Treyten Lapcevich finished 12th in last weekend’s race at Tri County Motor Speedway; he’s currently fifth in the points standings. Lapcevich has a win and two runner-up finishes in the last six events; the series rookie was initially disqualified after the win at North Wilkesboro, due to an unapproved part, but the DQ was later overturned to restore the win, without points or prize money awarded. Lapcevich has 12 top-tens in 16 races, with an average finish of 7.5.
The ASA STARS National Tour will conclude its season on Sunday, Nov. 3 at Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway. Hansport, NS’ Cole Butcher made his series return and won last Sunday’s Winchester 400; Milverton, ON’s Kyle Steckly finished third and Belle River, ON’s Chase Pinsonneault crossed the line fourth. Steckly and Butcher (who missed the previous two races) are tied for second in the standings, 155 points back of Casey Roderick.
The FR Americas season will conclude with two races at Circuit of the Americas on Friday, Nov. 1 and Saturday, Nov. 2. Canadian Patrick Woods-Toth clinched the series championship, in his rookie season, while sweeping a trio of races at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on the Labour Day weekend. Fellow Canadians Nicole Havrda and James Lawley are currently seventh and ninth in the standings, respectively.
The Trans Am season wraps up at Circuit of the Americas on Sunday, Nov. 3. This season included a return to Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, while the most recent event took place earlier this month at Virginia International Raceway. The points leaders entering the finale are Paul Menard (TA class), Rafa Matos (TA2), Barry Boes (TA2 ProAm), Danny Lowry (XGT), Kaylee Bryson (SGT), and Chris Coffey (GT).
2024 Champions
With this being the final weekly preview of the season, here’s a recap of the champions so far in the Canadian series we’ve covered throughout the year. Congratulations!
Marc-Antoine Camirand (NASCAR Canada Series), Kyle Steckly (APC United Late Model Series), Carson Nagy (Dayco Super Stock Series), TJ Edwards (Just Foam It OSCAAR Modifieds), Tyler Hawn (JRS Auctions OSCAAR Hot Rods), Cory McAllister/Connor James (Ontario Sportsman Series), Ricky Willigar (Canadian Vintage Modifieds), J.R. Fitzpatrick (Ontario Outlaw Super Late Models), Tim Norris (Ontario Pro Challenge), Dylan Westbrook (Southern Ontario Sprints), Jason Metcalfe (Outlaw Midgets), Daniel Hawn (Can-Am TQ Midgets), John Baker Jr. (Ontario Modifieds Racing Series), Austin Arnel (Great Lakes Legends Series), Mitch Wright (Ontario Legend Car Series)
Jack Polito (FEL SCCC GT4), Richard Boake (FEL SCCC TCR), Eric Kunz (FEL SCCC TCA), Kenny Riedmann (FEL RCC), Tim Sanderson (FEL RCC Masters), Connor Clubine (Toyo Tires F1600), various drivers (CASC-OR), Guillaume Labbé (Super Production Challenge SP), Vincent Desautels (Super Production Challenge P), Frédéric Bernier (Super Production Challenge C), Valérie Limoges (Nissan Sentra Cup)
Ben Young (CSBK Superbike), Jarrett Butcher (ECI Pro Stock Tour), Dylan Dowe (Maritime All Star Series SP), Ayden Christensen (Maritime League of Legends), Ashton Tucker (SLMS), Brody Anderson (Alberta Extreme Sprints)
