Drama Filled Finale Produces First-Time Winner

Calabogie, Ontario - Round 4 of the F2000 Canada Championship, the MCO May Madness Races at Calabogie Motorsports Park, saw plenty of drama even before the drop of the green flag.

The conditions were cold and windy but the projected rain-storms had missed the track as the field lined up for the 30 minute race.

Confusion on the mock grid had the cars released with Brampton, ON’s Chase Pelletier being slotted into the wrong spot. In an attempt to rectify the situation the grid was stopped on an access road and realigned. Pelletier’s car stalled and the field was allowed to go around him while a safety truck restarted him. He could not get back to his spot in time and when the green flag was given to pole sitter Nathan Blok of Pembroke, ON. Pelletier was in dead last.

Frustrated, and in control of a very fast car, Pelletier put his head down and started to carve his way through the field. He would set several blistering lap times and would be in the top 5 by lap 4. Next time by he was in 2nd but was 11 seconds back of leader Blok.

The race settled down at that point with Blok in control and Pelletier chipping away at his lead little by little. Disaster then struck for the leader on lap 10. As Blok accelerated out of corner 7 his throttle pedal went to the floor. The engine was running but the cable had broken. He would coast to a stop on the access road at corner 8, totally dejected and handing the race to Pelletier.

As he crossed the line Pelletier was visibly very excited about the turn of fortune, coming right up to the wall to congratulate his equally happy crew.

Kitchener, ON’s Jim Hallman brought his car home in a very satisfying 2nd place and Tom Drake, of Westford, VT was elated to get the final step on the podium after hours of making repairs to his car and missing the race yesterday.

Winner Chase Pelletier – “I am really happy with that result. I don’t know how we got the grid mixed up at the beginning but I could not believe what happened to me. When the car stalled and they waived the field by I had no idea what was going on. Then we got the car restarted behind a tow truck but when I got to the front straight they had already started the race. I was pretty upset at that point. All I could do was go as hard as possible. The car was awesome though and the win is very rewarding.”

Points Leader Nathan Blok – “The grid issue was a little strange and I wasn’t really sure what happened to Chase but when we dropped the green flag I just wanted to get a gap and look after car and tires for the rest of the race. I was pretty upset after the throttle cable broke. I really wanted to sweep the weekend but hey, that’s just racing sometimes. We will head to the next one and try to put on the same performance as here.”

The next event for the F2000 Canada series is the BARC Canadian Touring Trophy races, June 27,28 at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

Follow the series at www.formula2000.ca on facebook.com/F2000Canada on twitter @F2000Canada and Instagram @f2000canada

The F2000 Canada Championship is the premiere wings and slicks series in Ontario, sanctioned by CASC Ontario Region and proudly supported by Hoosier Tire, Stäubli, Lincoln Electric, and Move Motorsports Management. The series is comprised of a six event, double-header format and competes at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Shannonville Motorsport Park and Calabogie Motorsports Park.