Avondale, Newfoundland – NASCAR Canada completed its trip to Newfoundland with a thrilling 250-lap race at Eastbound International Speedway, a track renowned for its speed. Andrew Ranger, driver of the #27 GM Paillé/Chevrolet Canada machine, claimed the highest honours, marking his 33rd career win and second of the season to date.

 

The day started off strong for Kevin Lacroix in the #74 Valvoline/NAPA Racing Dodge, who clinched the fastest lap in the Practice session. Lacroix then went on to set the fastest lap time in Qualifying, earning the E3 Spark Plugs Pole Award thanks to his lap of 15.814 seconds, edging out D.J. Kennington in the #17 Castrol Edge/CIM Metals/Brimstone Games Dodge by a mere 0.035 seconds.

 

Spectators in attendance at the Pro•Line 250 were treated to a thrilling and action-packed race across the board, as all 15 drivers battled it out to the very end. Once the green flag waved, Lacroix set sail and pulled a healthy gap on Kennington and the #96 GM Paille/Chevrolet Canada car of Marc-Antoine Camirand.

 

Camirand boldly jumped up to second place, closing the gap behind Lacroix. This tense battle defined the race until lap 86, when Marc-Antoine made a strategic move to take the lead.

 

Eventually, Lacroix and Camirand made contact, which sent them both to the end of the field but didn’t prevent them from finishing the race.

 

Andrew Ranger then seized the opportunity to take over the lead. However, he had his work cut out for him, as Donald Theetge in the #80 Groupe Theetge/Vulcain Chevrolet was also looking at climbing on the highest step of the podium. Camirand and Lacroix both made their way back up the field but were short on time in their pursuit for the win. Lacroix had to settle for second place, with Camirand rounding off the podium.

 

"It's unbelievable,” stated Andrew Ranger after the race. “It's our second win this year, I'm so proud of this team. Newfoundland has been tough for us in the past, but we finally found a win here. I think we are leading the championship, which makes this victory all the more special.”

 

“It was a fun race,” said runner-up Kevin Lacroix at the podium ceremonies. “I led several laps, got into an incident and still finished second, with my teammate winning the race. It's great for the team, but I’m personally not satisfied with this result. However, the car is fast so I am confident we'll turn around our luck and get a win later.”

 

Camirand, who started from third, had to fight hard to secure his spot in the Top 3 after his collision with Lacroix. “I wish I had won, but it was a good and interesting race with a strong battle against car #74,” he reflected. “I don't understand the move he made halfway through the race, it seemed a bit early. He said I squeezed him on a restart, so I'll need to watch the video to see if I'm at fault, but I'll take third place. We're headed to Antigonish next, and we’ll try to bring home the win."

 

Theetge and Dumoulin rounded off the Top 5, with Jason Hathaway in the #3 ASSA ABLOY/Leland Industries Chevrolet in sixth place, and D.J. Kennington in 7th place. Local driver Brandon McFarlane made a strong comeback from starting 11th to finishing 8th in his #23 Auto Direct USA/Wing'N'It Restaurants Chevrolet. He also clinched the Josten’s Rookie of the Race award. Right behind him was Larry Jackson in the #84 Dooley's Trucking/Big Chief/O'Neil/E3 Dodge, claiming 9th place. The Top 10 was completed by Bryan Cathcart in the #98 Curb Records/Darkhorse Trailers/Strode's Ford.

 

Local driver Sara Thorne had an unfortunate incident aboard her #06 Bay By Bay/Brimstone Games/Turner's Garage, which forced her to retire from the race.

 

NASCAR Canada will be back in action next week as the series heads to Antigonish for two more races on June 29th and 30th at Riverside Speedway.

 

The Pro•Line 250 will air on TSN on June 29 at 3 p.m. ET and on RDS on July 6 at noon ET.