Last year, Alex Tagliani made Sunset Speedway seem like his own playground despite not having raced on the Innisfil, Ontario oval prior to last season’s inaugural Leland Industries 300 presented by Dickies for the NASCAR Pinty’s Series. The Quebec native dominated, leading 192 of the 300 laps with the whole field a lap down at one point en route to his first oval series victory.
While he notes that last year was really cool and he was driving an amazing car that’ll be hard to replicate once again, he’s excited about returning the 3/8-mile oval as it’s one of his favourite tracks on the schedule.
“I hope I will be at the head of the field, again, but you can never predict one year to another,” he told OnPitRoad.com. “You could go back there and things change. I don’t know. I mean, the team has done a lot of effort this year and with Scott (Steckly) not driving, rather keeping an eye on the operation, he has so much knowledge on those cars and series that it’s good to have him there. Its our third year with him and I trust him, I like the group we have, so hopefully we can be there for a long time.”
The track seems to fit in Tagliani’s wheel-house as the multiple grooves reduce the amount of tendency for the drivers to use the bumper, therefore resulting in less yellows. It’s a style of racing the Quebec native enjoys, and was welcomed by the track promoters who said it was “one of the best races” with action and strategy mixed together.
Through the past two seasons, Tagliani has been very outspoken against the rough driving the series has seen on a couple occasions, whether on a road course at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park or a short oval.
“I think even drivers, we have a responsibility to ourselves to stop getting caught into the temptation of dumping someone,” he commented. “There’s a horrible mentality that the bump and run is what we need to do. Alright, you can do the bump and run, but there’s way too much dumping happening in my opinion that is creating yellows. I have a lot more respect for someone that comes into the door – bang – and tries a move, then someone that hits me from behind and here I go. My grandmother could do that. I think that if the series becomes more professional and more elevated with the sponsorship, and the drivers follow that and become more of a V8 Supercar Series, I can promise you that in Canada, it’s going to be very well received from fans.”
With the race-ability Sunset produces, though, it provides a breath of fresh air in knowing the likelihood of “bump and dump” happening is not high.
“200 and 70 something laps under green, if we could have that all the time, I would love it because there’s strategy and saving fuel and saving tires,” he said. “But if you know that you’ll have 125 lap race and then stop, and then another 25 laps, where’s the strategy?
“I would not want to be in the grandstands and watching a NASCAR Canadian Series going 10 laps under yellow. Is there anything more boring in watching that? This non-sense business of going half race under yellow and behind the pacecar that does 30 km/hr, I fall asleep at the wheel myself.”
A victory for Tagliani would not only be huge for himself and the team, but for his marketing partnership Epipen, who continues to spread awareness about food allergies. The transition from Canadian Tire as a series entitlement sponsor to Pinty’s this season falls right in the marketing plan.
“I love Canadian Tire because they were a sponsor, but I think it makes it more sense for our program and marketing across the country to promote food allergies, because you have a company that is in the food business,” he said. “For me, I don’t know if it’ll change or stay the same, but if they raise and elevate the series and helps with activation, hopefully it’ll help Epipen stay in longer.”