DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The 2016 NASCAR Pinty’s Series returns to the road with the sixth annual Ecko Unlimited 100 at Circuit ICAR on Sunday in Mirabel, Quebec. Below is a statistical look at the performance of the series and selected drivers:
Ecko Unlimited 100 Setup:
• Kevin Lacroix took the lead on Lap 2 and led the rest of the way to record his first series win at ICAR last year and also set a record becoming the first driver in the history of the series to win a caution-free race.
• Andrew Ranger has been victorious in three straight races between 2012-2014 and finished second to Lacroix last year at Circuit ICAR. He was two laps away from winning the inaugural 2011 event before being involved in an accident.
• Ranger has won 10 of the 20 road course events in series history contested in his native Quebec: three at ICAR, three at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, four at Circuit de Trois-Rivieres.
• Despite not recording a win yet this season, Josten’s Rookie of the Year contender Cayden Lapcevich enters as the points leader in his debut at ICAR on strength of back-to-back runner-up finishes.
At Circuit ICAR:
History
• The International Center of Advanced Racing (ICAR) is located on the grounds of Montreal-Mirabel International Airport, which closed to passenger flights in 2004.
• The racing facilities began operation in 2008 as a private club, and competition was opened to the public in 2009.
• The complex includes facilities for auto and motorbike racing, drag racing and karting.
Notebook
• Robin Buck won the inaugural NASCAR Pinty’s Series event at Circuit ICAR on June 5, 2011. Alex Tagliani was the series’ first ICAR pole winner.
• Andrew Ranger has won the three races in a row at ICAR between 2012-14. He led wire-to-wire in 2013.
• Qualifying was rained out in 2012. Ranger’s pole-winning effort in 2013 established the track record.
• Ranger has led 49-percent (75/154) of the total laps contested in the first four ICAR races.
• Dodge has been the winning manufacturer for all five previous NPS ICAR events.
Circuit ICAR Data
Race #: 4 of 12
Track Layout: 2.113-mile, 14-turn road course
Race Length: 30 laps (63.37 miles/102 kilometers)
Telecast: TSN – July 9 at 5 p.m. ET; RDS – July 23 at 2 p.m.
Qualifying/Race Data
2015 Race Winner: Kevin Lacroix, Dodge, 78.956 mph, 49 mins. 8 secs.
2015 Pole Winner: Alex Tagliani, Chevrolet, 78.956 mph, 96.342 secs.
Qualifying Record: Andrew Ranger, Dodge, 79.289 mph, 95.938 seconds, July 7, 2013
Active Category Leaders at Circuit ICAR:
Wins
1. Andrew Ranger … 3
2. Robin Buck … 1
Kevin Lacroix … 1
Poles
1. Andrew Ranger … 2
Alex Tagliani … 2
Top Fives
1. L.P. Dumoulin … 5
2. Andrew Ranger … 4
3. Alex Tagliani … 2
Top 10s
1. L.P. Dumoulin … 5
2. Andrew Ranger … 4
3. Three drivers … 3
Laps Led
1. Andrew Ranger … 75
2. Kevin Lacroix … 28
3. Alex Tagliani … 26
Laps Completed
1. L.P. Dumoulin … 154 (all)
D.J. Kennington … 154
Andrew Ranger … 154
Starts
1. Eight drivers … 5 (all)
Select Driver Highlights:
Robin Buck (No. 56 OMVIC/ B&B Decals Dodge)
• Has scored two NPS wins with his first coming at the inaugural event at ICAR in 2011. He added a second win at Trois-Rivieres later that season.
• Has made two starts at ICAR.
• In addition to his pair of wins, Buck has collected 12 top-five and 17 top-10 finishes in 27 career starts – all on road courses.
• Has 17 top 10s in 31 career NPS starts with a best finish of third at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park last May.
• 22 of his 31 appearances have come on road courses, where he’s posted an average finish of 13th.
• Has an average finish of 13th and a best result of seventh (2012) across the five previous ICAR events.
L.P. Dumoulin (No. 47 WeatherTech Canada/Bellemare Dodge)
• The 2014 NPS Champion and 2011 Rookie of the Year has four wins, a pole, 24 top fives and 38 top 10s in 62 career starts.
• Has three wins, 14 top fives, 17 top 10s and an average finish of ninth in 26 career road course starts.
• Has registered finishes of three fourth and two third-place finishes in the five previous ICAR races.
Jason Hathaway (No. 3 Fast Eddie/Choko/HGC Chevrolet)
• Has eight wins and 70 top 10s in 112 career starts. Is one of two drivers to compete in every race in NPS history.
• Has 19 top 10s, an average finish of 11th with one win in the second visit at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park last year in 40 career road course starts.
• In the five ICAR events he’s posted an average finish of 16th with a best showing of ninth (2014).
D.J. Kennington (No. 17 Castrol Edge Dodge)
• The 2010 and 2012 NPS champion. Currently is tied for second in all-time NPS career wins (19), top fives (74) and top 10s (93), and is one of two drivers to start each of the 112 all-time events. Also ranks second in series history in laps led (2,797) and fifth in poles (11).
• Suffered first DNF in 69 races last fall at Riverside after starting on the pole. His most recent DNF before last year also came at Riverside International Speedway in 2009.
• Has two wins, 26 top fives, 32 top 10s and an average finish of seventh in 40 career road course starts.
• In the five ICAR events he’s recorded an average finish of 11th with a best result of fifth (2012).
Gary Klutt (No. 59 Pioneer Family Pools/PoolSuppliesCanada.ca Dodge)
• Has a win, a pole and 11 top 10s in 20 career NPS starts. Both the pole and win came in last year’s season-opener at CTMP.
• Has a win and a pole (CTMP, May 2015), six top 10s and an average finish of 10th in 10 career road races.
• Finished eighth twice in his two previous ICAR starts.
Alex Labbe (No. 36 Can-Am/Kappa/Cyclops Gear Dodge)
• Has one win (Chaudiere – 2016) four poles, six top fives and 10 top 10s in 18 career starts. His first career pole came at Autodrome St-Eustache and he also won the pole at Chaudiere the past two years.
• In 11 career road course starts he has six top 10s, an average finish of 12th and a best result of fourth.
• Has finishes of sixth (twice), 11th and fourth at ICAR the four previous seasons.
Kevin Lacroix (No. 74 Bumper To Bumper/Total/Go Fast Dodge)
• Recorded two wins in seven starts during his debut season in 2015. Won road races at Circuit ICAR and Circuit de Trois-Rivieres.
• Is the first driver in series history to win two of his first four starts, and first to record two victories in rookie season.
• Finished 15th in last year’s final season standings.
• Became the first driver in the history of the series to win a caution-free race last season at ICAR in his first start at the track.
Cayden Lapcevich (No. 76 Fastline Motorsports Dodge)
• Has made nine career starts in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series and recorded his career-best second-place finish twice in the past two races at Sunset Speedway on June 18th and last Friday at Chaudiere.
• Current leader in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series points standings and will make his debut at ICAR on Sunday.
Andrew Ranger (No. 27 Mopar/Pennzoil Dodge)
• The 2007 and 2009 NPS champion and after his season opening win at CTMP holds the record for all-time wins with 20 and tied for first in poles (17). Has 49 top fives and 72 top 10s in 86 career starts.
• Finished 21st in the inaugural ICAR event, and then won the next three (2012-2014), including the last two from the pole. He led 71 of the 91 laps contested during those three triumphs.
• Currently holds the series’ record for consecutive wins at a track with three (ICAR, 2012-14; Trois-Rivieres, 2008-10).
Alex Tagliani (No. 18 EpiPen/Riobel/Complexe JCP/Juste du Chevrolet)
• Has three wins, six poles and 12 top 10s in 36 career NPS starts.
• Has a win (Edmonton, 2008), four poles, five top fives and an average finish of 16th in 14 road course starts.
• Earned the inaugural ICAR pole in 2011 and again last season and has finishes of eighth (2011) and fifth (2014) and third (2015) there.
Other Driver Notes
• Rookie Josh Collins is scheduled to make his first start at ICAR. He’s the first driver in series history to compete in the series from Newfoundland. Finished seventh at Sunset for his best career finish in four starts.
• Elie Arseneau’s best finish in 12 career starts is 12th, recorded in 2011 at ICAR, a facility owned by his family.
Up To Speed:
• The 2016 season is the first for new series sponsor Pinty’s and the 10th overall for the Canadian-based NASCAR division.
• The 2016 schedule features 12 races at 11 different tracks across five provinces and a return to the road course in Toronto as part of the IndyCar weekend in July.
• Quebec native Andrew Ranger took the lead on the penultimate lap of the season opening race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park to score the win.
• Alex Tagliani made Quebec drivers two-for-two this season after he won the Leland Industries 300 at Sunset Speedway for his third career series victory.
• Alex Labbe won from the pole last weekend in an exciting finish with rookie Cayden Lapcevich. It was Labbe’s first career win.
• The next race for the NPS will be the Pinty’s Grand Prix of Toronto on Saturday, July 16, at Toronto Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario.
