@MicraCup • @nissancanada • @DidierMarsaud • @jacquesdeshaies • MISSISSAUGA, ON – Successfully launched in the spring of 2015, the Nissan Micra Cup will makes its debut in the Toronto area this week end, at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park with almost 30 drivers competing on the track. The Nissan Micra Cup will be part of the IMSA SportsCar Weekend at the circuit in Bowmanville, northeast of Toronto, for the only Canadian round of the North American Endurance Championship for prototypes and GT.
At this fast track, which was previously host to the Canadian Grand Prix Formula One and the legendary Can-Am series, motorsports fans will no doubt be thrilled to see the Nissan Micra Cup drivers compete in their small, agile, and practically stock Micra S cars. Tens of thousands of spectators will be on-site this weekend and both races will be worth watching from beginning to end, as some intense battles for victory are expected to take place.
Three Ontario drivers are competing throughout the entire 2016 championship. Currently, the highest ranked of the three is Brian Makse, in thirteenth position. Given the tiny gap between him and those behind him, Brian’s goal this weekend is to remain in the top 15. Another Ontarian, Peter Dyck, is currently leading the novice championship and sits in 18th place overall. Rounding out the three is Craig Willoughby in 28th spot, and if all goes well this weekend, he will have a good opportunity to climb even higher.
These three Ontarian drivers are joined by Martin Gray and Eddy Wong, from Toronto’s Alta Nissan Team, who will be at their first race of the series this year. The two journalists/drivers invited to take the wheel of the Nissan Canada cars are also from Ontario, making a total of no less than seven drivers representing the province at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park this weekend.
At the top of the overall championship standings, Quebec driver Kevin King (Sorel-Tracy Nissan) has a lead of just two points ahead of Xavier Coupal (Albi Nissan Team), followed by Albertan Stefan Rzadzinski (Tire Link Team) who is just seven back from King at this point in the season. Valérie Limoges (H.Grégoire Nissan Team) and the 2015 champion Olivier Bédard (Albi Nissan Team) can still fight for the title, sitting in fourth and fifth place respectively. This outing at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, which marks the end of the first half of the season, is understandably highly anticipated by all of the drivers.
Multiple Canadian touring car champion in recent years and semi-professional hockey player, young Karl Wittmer will be joining the series at the wheel of the third United Autos Racing Team Micra S. The team already consists of Montrealer Chris Sahakian and his sister Ashley, who is vying for the rookie of the year honours. In addition to Ashley Sahakian and Valérie Limoges, a third female driver will join them on the track this weekend as Valérie Chiasson retakes the wheel of the Groupe Nissan Gabriel car after a two-event hiatus.
After the practice day on Thursday, drivers of the Nissan Micra Cup will be on the track for one last practice session on Friday between 12:20 p.m. and 12:50 p.m., prior to qualifying between 6:10 p.m. and 6:40 p.m. On Saturday, July 9th, the first race will begin at of 9:20 a.m. On the following day, Sunday, June 10th, the Nissan Micra Cup will be centre stage with a second race, also 30 minutes in length, starting at 2:30 p.m. Close to 200 Nissan Canada employees will be on- site at the event to support the series drivers.
For more information, please visit the Nissan Micra Cup website: www.nissan.ca/micracup.
Overall championship standings after six races: http://www.micracup.com/Results_2016_ClassGen
Nissan Micra Cup 2016 Season Calendar:
May 13 – 15 Calabogie Motorsports Park, Ontario
May 27 – 29 Spring Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
June 19 Autodrome St-Eustache, Québec
July 8 – 10 IMSA Weekend, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario
July 22 – 24 Summer Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
August 12 – 14 Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Québec
September 2 – 4 NASCAR Weekend, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario
September 23 – 25 Fall Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
About the Nissan Micra Cup: Sanctioned by Auto Sport Québec (ASQ) and presented by JD Promotion & Compétition with the support of Nissan Canada, the 2016 Nissan Micra Cup exclusively features the stock Micra 1.6 S M/T model with minor modifications, including NISMO suspension – to render it race-ready. Unlike most motorsport events, each competing Nissan Micra race vehicle has the exact same specifications, resulting in a competition that truly reveals the most skilled drivers. The Nissan Micra Cup race vehicles were equipped with the Nissan Micra’s stock 1.6-litre DOHC 4-cylinder engine with dual fuel injection and Twin CVTC (Continuously Variable Timing Control) and stock 5-speed manual transmission. In its inaugural season last year, more than 25 Nissan Micras competed on each race weekend which included two hours of track time consisting of: a 30-minute trial, a 30-minute qualifying session and two 30-minute races. Young karting drivers, the average Canadian looking for an entry point into motorsport competition, or anyone who wants to experience the rush of adrenaline inherent with racing cars are all well-suited to this series. In summary, the Nissan Micra Cup is for people who are passionate about motorsports, want to experience all the fun and thrills of racing, but without spending staggering amounts of money. For more information on the Nissan Micra Cup, please go to the website www.nissan.ca/micracup.
About Nissan North America: In North America, Nissan’s operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and has been recognized annually by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year since 2010. More information on Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.NissanUSA.com and www.InfinitiUSA.com, or visit the U.S. media sites NissanNews.com and InfinitiNews.com.
About Nissan Motor Co.: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan’s second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 247,500 employees globally, Nissan sold 5.32 million vehicles and generated revenue of 11.38 trillion yen (USD 103.6 billion) in fiscal year 2014. Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of more than 60 models under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. Nissan leads the world in zero-emission mobility, dominated by sales of the LEAF, the first mass-market, pure-electric vehicle. It is the best-selling EV in history with almost 50% share of the zero-emission vehicle segment. For more information on our products, services and commitment to sustainable mobility, visit our website at http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/.
About Nissan Canada Inc.: Nissan Canada Inc. (NCI) is the Canadian sales, marketing and distribution subsidiary of Nissan Motor Limited and Nissan North America, Inc. NCI directly employs 306 full-time staff across offices in Vancouver (BC), Mississauga (ON), and Kirkland (QC). There are 191 independent Nissan dealerships, 39 Infiniti retailers and 45 Nissan Commercial Vehicle dealers across Canada. A pioneer in zero emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades including the prestigious 2011 European Car of the Year and World Car of the Year awards. More information about Nissan in Canada and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.nissan.ca and www.infiniti.ca.
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