A first on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for THE stock-car specialist in Quebec
WITH BACKING FROM THE DODGE DEALERS OF QUEBEC, FANS OF PATRICK LAPERLE WILL BE ABLE TO CHEER HIM ON AT THE NAPA AUTO PARTS 200 PRESENTED BY DODGE
Montréal, August 13, 2009 - Stock-Car Montréal, the organizing body of the NAPA Auto Parts 200 presented by Dodge, is pleased to announce that it has concluded an agreement with the Quebec Dodge Dealer Association whereby stock-car specialist Patrick Laperle will make his first-ever start on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on August 30. A short track crowd favourite, Laperle is listed on the American Website speed51.com as the fifth best short track driver in North America. The Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu driver will pilot the No. 91 Dodge Avenger, owned by Derek Lynch of Ontario, in Sunday morning's NASCAR Canadian Tire Series event.
"With the support of our friends at the Quebec Dodge Dealers Association, we are now able to fulfill a wish that has been brought up many times by a great number of Quebec stock-car fans. Evidently, Patrick has a lot of admirers, and we quickly realized that it would be proper to give him the opportunity to showcase his racing skills in the biggest race event of the summer," explained François Dumontier, promoter of the NAPA Auto Parts 200 presented by Dodge.
The 33-year old Laperle is undeniably one of the best active stock-car drivers from the province of Quebec on a short track. In 1999, he started to establish quite a reputation for himself in Quebec and the north eastern part of the United States with his first win in an American Canadian Tour (ACT) race in Plattsburgh, New York. In 2002, he was runner-up in the ACT final standings, taking third two years later. He then won the Quebec-based ACT-Castrol crown in 2007. Laperle is also a three-time winner of the Annual Chittenden Bank Milk Bowl stock-car event held each year at Thunder Road International SpeedBowl in Barre, Vermont. Last season, he returned to the ACT series to win his first title. However, one of his greatest feats came last February at the World Series of Asphalt Stock-Car Racing held during the Daytona Speed Week at the New Smyrna Speedway located near the famed track. During the eight-race, nine-day program, he won three races, and finished second in the cumulative standings ahead of Hendrick Motorsports rising star Landon Cassill, who had entered 19 Nationwide Series races in 2008.
"We responded to the proposal from Stock-Car Montreal, and decided to sponsor Patrick Laperle because we believe in his ability, and because he is a fan favourite across Quebec," said David Dumont, President of the Quebec Dodge Dealers Coop. "The Dodge dealers of Quebec and their employees are also stock-car fans, and you can rest assured that they will follow with enthusiasm the performances of Patrick in the Dodge Avenger at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve."
Aware of the fact that he has limited race experience on a road course, Patrick Laperle is working hard on getting ready for his first race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
"The car has been delivered already, and it is a road course design with no modifications to make," said Laperle. "With my brother Éric, who is also my chief mechanic, we have plenty of time to set the car correctly to my driving style and I will have a lot of track time on a road course. The right preparation, the support of the crowd and the inspiration of running for the first time on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve will serve me well. I am well aware that there are traps specific to Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, but I intend to avoid them, give the fans a great performance, and be up to the level that the Dodge dealers of Quebec and Stock-Car Montreal have showed by choosing me."
Tickets for the NAPA Auto Part 200, Presented by Dodge at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on August 29-30, 2009 are currently on sale. To order tickets, call 514 397-0007 or order online anytime at
www.circuitgillesvilleneuve.ca/en/.
The Quebec Chrysler Jeep Dodge Dealers Advertising Coop represents its 93 dealers across the province.
Stock-Car Montreal, the event promoter is a wholly owned subsidiary of International Speedway Corporation (ISC) based in Daytona Beach, Florida. ISC is the leading promoter of motorsports in North America, hosting over 100 major racing events each year.
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Media Inquiries:
Normand Prieur
Press Officer, Stock-Car Montreal
514 794-8900 mobile
450 492-6963
nprieur@videotron.ca
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