Photo Credit: Ashley McCubbin
With only two races remaining on the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series schedule, it’s evident that the championship has become at the forefront of discussion as the cream as risen to the top, so to speak, in the standings. A pair of past champions look to duke it out for the title, with a possible spoiler if the cards fall right this weekend.
Coming off a win at Riverside International Raceway, three-time series champion Scott Steckly leads two-time series champion Andrew Ranger by 12 points.
Steckly has been consistent thus far this season, posting eight top-10 finishes in the nine events, highlighted by three wins. He is showing the same form that led him to the championship last season with a mix of dominating wins to go with solid performances when the days don’t go as planned. Based on previous races at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, he will look to continue the consistency as he has posted six top-fives with an average finish of 11.5 in 11 starts. Notably, despite having a 19 career wins, he has yet to win on a road course, finishing in the runner-up spot on four different occasions.
The opposite could be said for his championship foe, as Ranger knows exactly what it takes to win on a road course. The two-time series champion is the series’ all-time leader in wins at 20 and is tied for the poles record at 16. Notably in 35 career road course starts, he has posted 15 wins, 16 poles, led 27 races, 29 top-fives and 32 top-10s with an average finish of fourth. In his nine previous starts at CTMP, he has recorded a record five poles to go with seven top-10s and an average finish of eighth. This weekend presents the perfect opportunity for the Quebec driver to gain points and close the gap.
“We’ve had a lot of success in the past and the team has given me a good car to drive all season, now we have to try and capitalize this weekend,” Ranger said in the pre-race press release. “It’s a close fight, we’re only a few points behind in second and on this track we want to take advantage.”
The pair know what its like to battle against each other as they have battled before for championships, but also for race wins. It was earlier this season in May that the pair made contact while racing for the lead that handed the opportunity and win to rookie Gary Klutt.
Though while the focus remains on Steckly and Ranger, there is the chance of a spoiler. A full field of cars is enters into this weekend, which means a DNF could be costly for anyone within the championship hopes. Though should Steckly and Ranger both run into issues, it goes with certainty that Jason Hathaway will look to capitalize.
Jason Hathaway enters this weekend sitting third in points, 19 points behind points leader Scott Steckly with two races left in the season, with a win and seven top-10s in the nine races thus far this season. While he has six career NCATS wins, none of those have come on a road course. Notably in 11 starts at CTMP, he has only posted five top-10s with an average finish of 15th. A solid run by Hathaway, combined with trouble for his competitors, could be the perfect ticket to improve his chances at his first championship crown.
No matter what happens, the action is going to be crazy and hectic, as it always is around the 2.459-mile, 10-turn road course for 51 laps. Though, in the end, it could be a race that is talked about post-season for bigger reasons.
