Mississauga, Ont. (July 14, 2017) – The Nissan Micra Cup will be back in action next weekend at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant, for the third of six race weekends that make up the 2017 season. Two races will take place as part of the Summer Classic, marking the end of the first half of the season. The race weekend will feature a battle for the mid-season champion title between six drivers as well as an intense competition in the novice and senior classes. This outing will also see the return of popular actor and comedian Michel Barrette, who will be competing with his two sons as teammates and rivals on the track. Spectators can also expect a number of exciting on-track activities put on by Nissan for Micra owners and fans.
The Summer Classic at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant is a major event in Canadian motorsport. The Nissan Micra Cup drivers love returning to this beloved track nestled in the heart of the Laurentian Mountains, and the spectators love taking advantage of the time to vacation. This year, the third race weekend is taking place on July 22 and 23.
On the track, the 24 drivers entered in the 2017 edition of the Summer Classic are expected to put on an action-packed show. This time, Michel Barrette will appear among the drivers at the wheels of their practically stock Nissan Micras. After an excellent series debut last May, Barette and his sons decided to buy a third car so that going forward, their team will consist of Michel, Nicolas and Martin, each at the wheel of a Nissan Micra race car this weekend at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant.
Current overall championship leader Kevin King will attempt to strengthen his lead with his first victory of the season. With 132 points, the Sorel-Tracy Nissan Team driver is ahead of Total Canada teammates Olivier Bédard (118 points) and Xavier Coupal (113). Jean-Michel Isabelle, the driver from the Perry Performance/Hull Nissan team who won the first two races of the season at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (Ontario), is fourth with 106 points, just ahead of Valérie Limoges (Total Canada) with 102. Australian Keishi Ayukai, with 99 points, is also still in the battle for the title.
Absent for the first two race weekends after he was invited to race GT cars in South Korea in the spring, Albertan Stefan Rzadzinski will return to the Nissan Micra Cup next weekend. In light of his numerous victories during the past two seasons, he is also an obvious candidate to win the Summer Classic.
In the senior category, Quebeckers Normand Boyer and Metod Topolnik, as well as Ontarian Peter Dyck, will battle for the win. In the novice class, only one point currently separates each of the top three drivers, including Nicolas Barrette, Vincent Doyle and Austin Riley, the young karting driver with autism who is excelling in his debut season with the Nissan Micra Cup.
Canadian Nissan Micra owners are once again invited to take part, free of charge, in the race weekend at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant. Two entry tickets, one parking pass and a meal voucher are being offered to owners, but the most captivating highlight of the weekend will be the parade laps around the track during Saturday and Sunday’s lunch break.
Drivers of the Nissan Micra Cup family will be on the track six times this weekend at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant. Two 25-minute practice sessions will take place on Friday, followed by a 20-minute qualifying session at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, ahead of the first race at 1:30 p.m. On Sunday, the day will start with a qualifying session between 9:00 a.m. and 9:15 a.m., with the start of the second race at 1:40 p.m. Each race will last a duration of 30-minutes.
Twitter users can obtain real time information live from the track by following the series @MicraCup.
2017 Nissan Micra Cup Season Calendar
May 19 – 21 Victoria Day Weekend SpeedFest, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario
May 26 – 28 Spring Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
July 21 – 23 Summer Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
August 11 – 13 Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Québec
September 1 – 3 NASCAR Weekend, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario
September 22 – 24 Fall Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
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., Ltd.
Nissan is a global full-line vehicle manufacturer that sells more than 60 models under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. In fiscal year 2016, the company sold 5.63 million vehicles globally, generating revenue of 11.72 trillion yen. Nissan engineers, manufactures and markets the world’s best-selling all-electric vehicle in history, the Nissan LEAF. Nissan’s global headquarters in Yokohama, Japan, manages operations in six regions: ASEAN & Oceania; Africa, Middle East & India; China; Europe; Latin America; and North America. Nissan has a global workforce of 247,500 and has been partnered with French manufacturer Renault under the Renault-Nissan Alliance since 1999. In 2016, Nissan acquired a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors, which became the third full member of the Alliance – a grouping with combined annual sales of almost 10 million units a year.
For more information on our products, services and commitment to sustainable mobility, visit our website at http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/. You can also follow @NissanMotor on Twitter.
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 194 independent Nissan dealerships, 41 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.
Media contacts:
Didier Marsaud
Director, Corporate Communications
Nissan Canada
Telephone: 905-629-6400
Email: didier.marsaud@nissancanada.com
Stephanie Ronson
Cohn & Wolfe
Telephone: 647-259-3278
Email: stephanie.ronson@cohnwolfe.ca
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