In a Facebook update on Tuesday evening, Raphaël Lessard issued a joint statement from SQR Development’s team owner JC Stout and himself, that he will not be competing for SQR Development in the NASCAR Xfinity Series during the 2022 season.
The statement, which was translated from French, reads:
“Hey everyone! Due to a unfortunate personal matter SQR Development Racing’s owner JC Stout will have to cancel his plans for racing in the Xfinity Series this season. Mr. Stout wishes the best for driver Raphaël Lessard in the other driving opportunities he has ahead of him and appreciates all of Raphael’s fans support over the last couple of months! On my side I’m ready to take on my busy season that is starting very soon.”
TobyChristie.com reached out to Stout on Tuesday evening, and Stout replied with the same statement that Lessard posted in his Facebook post and would not reveal any other details on the record.
Stout first revealed the plans for SQR Development to go NASCAR Xfinity Series racing part-time back in January and that the team had hired Lessard as a driver. Days after the announcement, the team developed a logo, which incorporated the American and Canadian flags below the SQR brand logo, a sign that they were all-in with Lessard. Now, just a few months later, the SQR Development debut appears to be on hold indefinitely.
In an interview with Le Journal De Montréal, Lessard is quoted as saying, “I wasn’t really convinced of the seriousness of this company when I was approached. But I had nothing to lose. It was to be a turnkey wheel and I had no financial contribution to make.”
As of now, it appears that Lessard, who is a winner in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, is relegated to running the oval events in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series as well as a bevy of dirt races in Canada for the 2022 season.
