By: Nissan Micra Cup
September 5 2016
Xavier Coupal and Stefan Rzadzinski win the thirteenth and fourteenth races during NASCAR weekend at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
Bowmanville, Ontario - During Labour Day weekend at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in Ontario, the Nissan Micra Cup drivers competed in the second-to-last race weekend of the 2016 season. Two races took place under scorching sun and heat, and in front of thousands of spectators who came together for the most important event of the year on this circuit, where the NASCAR Camping World Truck series was the headliner.
The Nissan Micra Cup saw two spectacular races, with many twists taking place over the course of the weekend. In the end, Xavier Coupal won the first race on Saturday, while Stefan Rzadzinski won the second race on Sunday.
Olivier Bédard, who had qualified in pole position, was leading the pack during Saturday's race until Xavier Coupal surpassed
him and claimed first place. Positions continued to change in every lap throughout the race, with Kevin King and Valérie Limoges losing their spots. A battle between Coupal, Bédard and Hammann, the Nismo GT Academy driver, started to develop during the last few laps but stopped abruptly when a yellow flag was waved due to an accident involving Yves Aubé
The multiple shift in positions included many drivers behind the first three on the podium. Rookie Stefan Gauthier, driver of a perfect race, came in fourth place overall, followed by Ontarian Brian Makse. Both of these drivers secured their best results so far in the series.
The top six was completed by Pierre Clavet, who also fought very hard to get to the front of a very tight pack from the first to the last lap. Normand Boyer, Marc-Antoine Demers, Metod Topolnik and Aaron Povoledo, ex-member of Player's Racing and debuting in the series this weekend, all finished in the top 10. Chris Sahakian and Valérie Chiasson, who started last after missing the qualifying session, managed to climb 16 positions and finish in 11th and 12th.
On Sunday, Bédard and Coupal once again started side–by-side at the front of the pack. Coupal, who began in pole position, had a perfect start, Bédard lost three positions and Nic Hammann fought for the first place against Coupal. Unfortunately, both drivers got caught in an incident one lap later and Bédard took back first place in front of Povoledo, Rzadzinski and Limoges. Halfway through the race, Stefan Rzadzinski took the second place spot and proceeded to fight for Bédard's position. The Albertan driver managed to surpass Bédard two laps before the end, moments before Metod Topolnik's accident which caused a yellow flag that lasted, like the night before, until the end of the race.
This was the second victory of the season for Rzadzinski, in front of Bédard and Limoges who won a spectacular fight with Povoledo for third place. The top 10 was completed by Kevin King, Marc-Antoine Demers, Normand Boyer, Chris Sahakian, Pierre Clavet and Martin Gray. For the rookies, Stéfan Gauthier finished first during a race that saw more than 30 position changes!
In the drivers' championship, Olivier Bédard leads with 334 points in front of Xavier Coupal (430), Stefan Rzadzinski (370), Kevin King (358), Nic Hammann (284) and Valérie Limoges (274). In the rookie championship, Stefan Gauthier is in first place, in front of Peter Dyck and Ashley Sahakian.
It was during this event at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park that Staff Sergeant Chuck Kaizer participated, off-duty, in two races to promote Project E.R.A.S.E. (Eliminating Racing Activity On Streets Everywhere). His goal, as part of Project E.R.A.S.E., was to raise awareness about the dangers of street racing and to encourage safe, responsible driving on public roads and race tracks. Staff Sergeant Chuck Kaizer finished in 22nd and 23rd, respectively.
There is only one race weekend left until the end of the 2016 season, during which more than 40 drivers haven taken part so far. This last race weekend, which will feature the fifteenth and sixteenth races of the season, will take place on September 24 and 25 at Circuit Mont-Tremblant in Québec, during the Fall Classic.
For full race results, visit:
http://www.micracup.com/Results_2016_Race?RID=13 (race 13)
http://www.micracup.com/Results_2016_Race?RID=14 (race 14)
General overall championship standings after 14 races:
http://www.micracup.com/Results_2016_ClassGen
For more information on the Nissan Micra Cup, please visit: www.nissan.ca/micracup
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.