2023/09/03

Mississauga, Ontario - The Nissan Sentra Cup presented this weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, located northeast of Toronto, races 9 and 10 of its 2023 season, as part of an event that saw Valérie Limoges triumph on Saturday and Alexandre Fortin on Sunday.

Qualified in pole position for both races, 2022 champion Valérie Limoges led the first lap in Saturday's race, under pressure from Alexandre Fortin. Slightly off-track at the end of the first lap, Fortin conceded 4 places and Nicolas Barrette became Limoges' most serious rival for the lead. Halfway through the race, Alexandre Fortin had managed to get back behind Nicolas Barrette and a spectacular battle between 3 drivers began for the victory.

On the 12th of the 22 laps, Fortin regained 2nd position after having overtaken Barrette, while Valérie Limoges stayed in the lead of this exciting race. However, a full course yellow after Nicolas Miron went off track provided a restart with only 4 minutes to go. Valérie Limoges made all her experience speak by immediately managing to distance her rivals, en-route to victory, her second this season. Nicolas Barrette finished second, only 996 thousandths of a second behind.

The fight for third place was also spectacular, with Mathieu Miron, Daniel Fortin and Simon Vincent contesting this last podium place from Alexandre Fortin, who slowed down at the end of the race. Mathieu Miron finally clinched his first Top 3 in the series, ahead of Daniel Fortin, Simon Vincent and Alexandre Fortin.

In the Micra class, it was also a very spectacular race. Qualified in pole position, Charles-Étienne Boucher dropped two places at the start of the race, Nicolas Lévesque and defending champion Raphaël St-Pierre swapping first place during the first half of the race. Boucher however returned to the lead 5 minutes from the end, but the positions were not fixed. Lévesque finally wins ahead of St-Pierre and Boucher. The first three crossed the finish line in less than a second.

Presented on Sunday, still under the sun, the second race saw Alexandre Fortin take the lead from the 1st corner. A mechanical problem for Nicolas Barrette then a loss of control for Daniel Fortin who hit Valérie Limoges' car caused full course yellow periods and changed the hierarchy at the end of the race. At the finish line, it was Alexandre Fortin who won ahead of Simon Vincent, for whom it was the first Sentra podium. For 3rd place, Nicolas Miron beat his brother Mathieu by 109 thousandths of a second. Christian Thibault completed the Top 5.

In the Micra class, this second race was a repeat of the first one, with Nicolas Lévesque, Raphaël St-Pierre and Charles-Étienne Boucher finishing in the Top 3.

In the drivers' championship, after ten contested races, Alexandre Fortin increased his lead, ahead of Nicolas Barrette and Valérie Limoges. These three drivers can still hope for the 2023 title. The championship titles will be decided at the final event of the season, in three weeks at Circuit Mont-Tremblant.

For more information on the Nissan Sentra Cup, visit sentracup.comOpens in a new tab. and the series' social media. To watch all the events of the 2022 season, visit the Nissan Sentra Cup YouTube pageOpens in a new tab..

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SCHEDULE 2023 - NISSAN SENTRA CUP

May 26, 27, 28                    Spring Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec
July 9                                   Nissan Grand Prix, Complexe ICAR - Mirabel, Québec
August 4, 5, 6                     Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Québec
August 26                           NASCAR Event, Complexe ICAR - Mirabel, Québec
September 1, 2, 3               Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario
September 22, 23, 24         Fall Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec

To follow the Nissan Sentra Cup on social media:

Facebook: @CoupeSentraCupOpens in a new tab.
Instagram: @nissansentracupOpens in a new tab.
Twitter: @SentraCupOpens in a new tab.
YouTube: SentraCupTVOpens in a new tab.

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