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| June 21, 2012 |
| Team News: PSL Karting Earns Eight Podium Finishes at Circuit ICAR |
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 | Pier-Luc Ouellette added a third place podium finish at Circuit ICAR to his two feature wins from Goodwood
(Photo: Cody Schindel-CKN) |
Taking on the PSL Montreal track at Circuit ICAR for the third rounds of both the Coupe du Quebec and Eastern Canadian Karting Championship (ECKC), Team PSL Karting pilots added more podiums to their 2012 tally. With high temperatures and high grip levels a driving factor in the weekend events at the former Mirabel International Airport circuit, Team PSL Karting overcame the challenges to score a total of eight podium finishes during the double-header event. Pier-Luc Ouellette walked away with a podium finish in the talent-laden Rotax DD2 field, and the DD2 Masters duo of Luc Sauriol and Marc-Andre Bourgeois continued their quest for the class championship and Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals ticket. Thierry Cote was also a standout in the Mini Max category, earning second place honours, as did Samuel Fontaine in a stacked Rotax Junior class.
After taking both feature wins at the ECKC season opener at Goodwood Kartways, two-time Rotax DD2 World Champion Pier-Luc Ouellette entered the third round as the driver to beat. In an incredibly close qualifying session, PLO’s CRG chassis was third on the time sheets, just 0.030 seconds off the pole time.
"During free practice on Friday, we dealt with a mystery electrical problem that prevented us from focusing on the chassis," explained PSL Karting Team Principal Dominic Labrecque. "PLO was still able to manage a P3 in qualifying, however a better result was definitely attainable."
Avoiding the melee at the start of the prefinal race, Ouellette settled into second until lap eight when he made his bid for the lead. Unable to make his pass stick, Ouellette then bided his time until the last lap. Making his move for P1 through the turn one hairpin, the Canadian karting legend held on for the prefinal victory and pole position for the 20-lap main. At the drop of the green for the final, Ouellette was able to control his place at the front of the pack until lap nine when he was overtaken in the hairpin. Falling back to third, Ouellette waged a battled with the second place kart.
"For sure some of the competitor’s marginal passing attempts slowed PLO, and gave Cooper the win," added PSL Karting’s Director of Race Development Andrew Campbell. "These are just the unknown factors of motorsports."
With the laps winding down, Ouellette’s efforts came up short and the reigning ECKC Rotax DD2 champion would have to settle for the third step on the podium.
In DD2 Masters, two PSL team pilots both have the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals invite their goal in 2012. After a podium finish in Saturday’s Coupe du Quebec round, 2006 Rotax Masters World Champion Luc Sauriol bettered teammate Marc-Andre Bourgeois in qualifying, just missing the pole position with Bourgeois in third. Bourgeois then used his inside line starting position to jump to second at the start of the prefinal. Putting pressure on the leader, Bourgeois was the fastest kart on the track. Attempting a pass for the lead working the last lap, the Masters rookie had to settle for second when the leader countered. Sauriol fell to fourth, putting the two CRGs on the outside for the feature race. A disastrous start to the 20-lap final led to a red flag and complete restart, to the benefit of the two PSL pilots who ended up tangled with the majority of the DD2 Masters field. A more cautious start saw the two escape unscathed, although unable to keep up to the leader. Sauriol got by for second just before the halfway point, and was able to make it stick, earning fast lap honours in the process. Bourgeois was engaged in a heated battle for third, and ended his Circuit ICAR campaign with the final podium position.
Samuel Fontaine added two more podium results to PSL’s credit during the weekend. Taking on a field of more than 30 Rotax Junior drivers, Fontaine claimed P2 in Saturday’s Coupe du Quebec final. Back on track for Sunday’s ECKC round, Fontaine found himself tenth on the grid after the qualifying session. Putting his skills to the test at the tricky PSL Montreal facility, Fontaine turned up the wick in the prefinal, posting the fastest lap and times faster than his own qualifying pace, to finish in the fifth position.
"Despite the P10 qualifying effort, Sam drove a calculated prefinal – ensuring the best possible position to start the final," continued Campbell.
A smart start saw Fontaine slip into second at the start of the final. Moving into the lead by lap six, Fontaine fell back to second for a few laps before retaking the lead. A last lap pass by his nearest rival relegated Fontaine back to second, crossing the stripe just 0.146 seconds back to take his second, second place finish on the weekend.
 | Samuel Fontaine added another podium result with his second place run during an exciting Rotax Junior final
(Photo: Cody Schindel-CKN) |
Campbell added, "After Goodwood, we were able to adjust our line of attack for ICAR. Fontaine has shown balanced progress in this Championship so far."
After just missing out on a podium finish in the two Coupe du Quebec events in 2012, Thierry Cote would finally have the weekend he has been waiting for in the Mini Max class. Starting off with a second place podium result in the Coupe du Quebec round, Cote was also impressive in ECKC competition. Posting second place results across the board on Sunday, Cote would end his Circuit ICAR campaign with another trip to podium presentations.
"Cote was able to take his confidence gained at SH and put a good drive in at ICAR. I am very proud of Thierry’s progress this season," Labrecque concluded.
Alex Somma also had a strong showing during the weekend. Posting third in both the ECKC Micro Max qualifying and prefinal race, the young talent would end his day with a solid fourth place finish to add to his same Coupe du Quebec result.
Team PSL Karting will return to Eastern Canadian Karting Championship action at Mosport International Karting in Bowmanville, Ontario for Round #4 & 5 over the Canada Day long weekend, June 29-July. The Coupe du Quebec series will resume at Circuit Mont-Tremblant for Round #4 July 15.
Team PSL Karting will be trackside in 2012 at the Pan American Rotax Max Challenge, Eastern Canadian Karting Championship, Quebec Cup, Le Monaco de Trois-Rivieres, United States Grand Nationals, ASN Canada FIA Canadian National Karting Championships and SKUSA SuperNationals. Team PSL Karting is associated with CRG, Maxter Kart Engines, Rotax, Tillett Racing Seats, Sniper, Unipro, Douglas Wheels, Vega, MG Tires, Arai, Bell, ULV, Mir, Freem, Elf Fuels, Alfano, MaxJet Software, D.I.D. Racing Chains, KC and Power Mist.
To learn more about the World's #1 CRG distributor, sales & service, arrive & drive opportunities, PSL racing engines or dealer opportunities, please visit http://www.pslkarting.com or http://www.pslkartingusa.com |
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