Without fail, every single time the NASCAR Canada Series competes at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (CTMP), it comes down to the closing seconds of the event.
Sunday’s ASSA ABLOY 200 followed that pattern to a tee, as Marc-Antoine Camirand delivered every last millisecond of lap time to defend against polesitter Gary Klutt, as they, along with LP Dumoulin, battled it out in NASCAR Overtime.
The 2022 NASCAR Canada Series champion worked the art of defense perfectly over the final two laps, pulling just far enough away from Gary Klutt to avoid a last-corner lunge, getting to the start-finish line with the lead, and the victory.
It’s the 10th victory in the NASCAR Canada Series for the 45-year-old driver, who has been a mainstay in the Canadian-based series since 2018. The victory on Sunday makes him just the ninth driver to enter a double-digit win total in the series.
Gary Klutt, a part-time competitor, returned to Canadian Tire Motorsports Park on Sunday and recorded a runner-up finish, his best result in the NASCAR Canada Series since the Halton Hills, Ontario native earned his only victory, at this very racetrack, in 2015.
A three-time NASCAR Canada Series champion, LP Dumoulin had a quiet afternoon at CTMP, picking up a third-place result, finishing just ahead of youngster Sam Fellows, who recorded his first-ever top-five finish, in fourth.
Alex Labbé, piloting the No. 36 Chevrolet for the newly formed LL Motorsports, managed to earn a top-five finish in the NASCAR Canada Series season-opener. The long-time Xfinity Series driver will run an eight-race schedule in 2024.
DJ Kennington finished in sixth place, with JP Bergeron, Andrew Ranger, LP Montour, and Alex Tagliani rounding out the top-10 finishers.
After showing incredible pace throughout the weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Kevin Lacroix came within 10 laps of winning Sunday’s ASSA ABLOY 200, before a mechanical issue forced him to stop on the racetrack, finishing 28th.
To the surprise of nobody, the NASCAR Canada Series delivered once again at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, and will not take the weekend off, before tackling the first oval race of the season at Autodrome Chaudiere on Saturday, June 1.
Race Results – ASSA ABLOY 200:
| Rank | # | Driver | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 96 | Marc-Antoine Camirand | Running |
| 2 | 59 | Gary Klutt | Running |
| 3 | 47 | LP Dumoulin | Running |
| 4 | 87 | Sam Fellows | Running |
| 5 | 36 | Alex Labbe | Running |
| 6 | 17 | DJ Kennington | Running |
| 7 | 1 | JP Bergeron | Running |
| 8 | 27 | Andrew Ranger | Running |
| 9 | 13 | LP Montour | Running |
| 10 | 80 | Alex Tagliani | Running |
| 11 | 42 | Ryan Klutt | Running |
| 12 | 3 | Jason Hathaway | Running |
| 13 | 29 | Steve Cote | Running |
| 14 | 6 | Peter Klutt | Running |
| 15 | 53 | Herby Drescher | Running |
| 16 | 98 | Malcolm Strachan | Running |
| 17 | 84 | Larry Jackson | Running |
| 18 | 69 | Domenic Scrivo | Running |
| 19 | 0 | Glen Styres | Running |
| 20 | 67 | David Thorndyke | Running |
| 21 | 19 | Danny Chisholm | Running |
| 22 | 31 | Daniel Bois | Running |
| 23 | 88 | Simon Charbonneau | Running |
| 24 | 75 | Benoit Couture | Running |
| 25 | 92 | Dexter Stacey | Running |
| 26 | 99 | Matthew Scannell | Running |
| 27 | 24 | Thomas Nepveu | Retired |
| 28 | 74 | Kevin Lacroix | Retired |
| 29 | 66 | Wallace Stacey | Retired |
| 30 | 38 | Michael Goudie | Retired |
