DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – At the start of the 2016 season for the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, there was a new level or excitement for the NASCAR-sanctioned division.
From brand new series sponsor – Pinty’s Delicious Foods, Inc. – coming on board this season with a new three-year deal to a return to Toronto, this season will be one of the most anticipated in the history of NASCAR’s only Canadian touring series.
In addition to sponsoring the series, Pinty’s also stepped up to sponsor the Pinty’s Grand Prix of Toronto this Saturday at Honda Indy Toronto. The stock cars will join the IndyCar Series for the third time.
This will be the first time the series has competed at the 1.755-mile road course since 2011 and one driver looking forward to returning is current points leader and two-time series champion Andrew Ranger. Ranger won both previous events at the course in 2010 and 2011, respectively, and he returns this weekend looking for his third win of the season.
While there nearly 10 drivers competing in their third NPS race on the road course near downtown Toronto, the only other drivers to finish in the top-five in both races are Kerry Micks and D.J. Kennington.
Micks, who makes a majority of his series’ starts on road courses, finished fourth in 2011 and fifth in 2010, respectively. Kennington finished third in the inaugural event in 2010 and fifth in 2011.
This Honda Indy Toronto weekend is often the highest attended sporting event in the province of Toronto every year.
| RACE: | Pinty’s Grand Prix of Toronto |
|---|---|
| PLACE: | Honda Indy Toronto, Toronto, Ontario |
| DATE: | Saturday, July 16 |
| TIME: | 3:50 p.m. ET |
| TELECAST: | TSN 3/5 – Saturday, July 23, 2:30 p.m. ET; RDS – Aug. 5, 10 p.m. ET |
| TRACK LAYOUT: | 2.113-mile, 14-turn airport road course |
| 2015 POLE SITTER: | No Event Held |
| 2015 RACE WINNER: | No Event Held |
| EVENT SCHEDULE: | Saturday – Practice 11 a.m. – Noon, Qualifying 5 p.m.; Sunday – Driver Autograph Session 12:40 p.m. |
| TRACK CONTACT: | Kathleen Stelmach, (416) 341-9929, kathleen@torchiacom.com |
| TRACK TWITTER: | @HondaIndy |
| EVENT TWITTER HASHTAG: | #PintysGP |
| NASCAR CONTACT: | Tim Southers, 386-235-3634, tsouthers@nascar.com; Twitter: @tsouth1968 |
Fast Facts:
The Race: This event is the fifth of 12 races on the NASCAR Pinty’s Series schedule and the third of five road-course events. This is the series’ third time participating in the event in Toronto.
The Procedure: The starting field is 32 cars, including provisionals. The first 27 cars will qualify through NASCAR road race style qualifying. There will be two qualifying groups based on practice times. The remaining five spots will be awarded through the provisional process. The race will be 35 laps covering just over 100 kilometers (61.4 miles).
The Track: The 11-turn, 1.755-mile temporary road course is set up on the streets of Toronto’s Exhibition Place, a unique site situated along the shores of Lake Ontario immediately west of downtown Toronto. Exhibition Place is home to more than 100 special events and trade and consumer shows annually.
The History: Originally known as the Molson Toronto Indy, the event dates back to 1986 at the site formerly known as Exhibition Place. The CASCAR Super Series, predecessor to the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, was a regular support series at the event.
The Pole Winners: Andrew Ranger was the inaugural event’s pole winner in 2010. Jason Bowles captured the pole in 2011. Bowles set the track record at 76.260 seconds (82.801 mph) on July 9, 2011.
The Race Winners: Andrew Ranger has won both previous events for the NPS and set a race record time of 69.065 mph on July 17, 2010.
Pinty’s Grand Prix of Toronto Notes:
Returning Drivers: Joining Ranger, Kennington and Micks in starting their third race at the facility include: Jason Hathaway, Peter Klutt, Jason White, Mark Dilley, L.P. Dumoulin, and Robin Buck.
Rookies Making First Start: A total of nine rookies are slated to start in Saturday’s race tying the previous mark for most rookies with the 2011 event. Cayden Lapcevich leads this year’s crop of talented rookies currently in second place in the standings – just six points behind Ranger (168-162).
Ranger Out Front At Toronto: In both of his wins, Ranger has done it in dominating fashion leading every lap in the inaugural event in 2010 (36) and the Roxton Pond, Que. native led 26 of 37 laps in 2011.
