CASCAR: Toronto Indy Preview

LONDON, ON – This weekend, the CASCAR Super Series will make its seventh consecutive appearance as part of the Molson Indy Toronto race weekend. And for the first time ever, Canada’s top homegrown racing series will be part of the Sunday feature program at the temporary Exhibition Place street circuit.

All of CASCAR’s drivers and teams are looking forward to participating in the Toronto Indy; one of Canada’s top motorsports extravaganzas. But none is more keen to get the race underway than Jeff Lapcevich, who is looking to Sunday afternoon’s ATTO 100 Super Series race to provide an opportunity for redemption.

The Caistor Centre, ON racer won the 2003 and 2004 CASCAR Indy races on the streets of Toronto and was – until June 27 at Mosport Int’l Raceway – CASCAR’s unquestioned ‘king of the road racers’. But that changed when four-time National champ and current points leader Don Thomson (Home Hardware Chevy) edged Lapcevich en route to Mosport’s victory lane. The Fastline / Tim Hortons/ EMCEA Transport Chevrolet Monte Carlo driver is not taking the defeat lightly, to say the least.

“After being beaten at Mosport, we’ve been thinking about what we can do to prevent that from happening again,” said Lapcevich, as he prepared for the Toronto race. “We certainly haven’t taken that loss sitting down. We’re making considerable changes and we hope to pick up again right where we left off last year in Vancouver.”

In terms of specific changes his team has made in preparation for Toronto, Lapcevich doesn’t want to show his whole hand, but he said that his Fastline Motorsports team has acted to address some of the shortcomings that befell them at Mosport. “We worked on the horsepower because we were a little out-gunned at Mosport. We’re also doing some other things based on what we learned there. And I don’t think the big horsepower is as much of an advantage at the Toronto Indy as it is at Mosport. Toronto does have the big long straight, but it also has a lot more twisty sections, too. You need to be a little more graceful in Toronto and that suits our package a little better… I hope. Second is just no fun anymore.”

And if he needed any more incentive to do well in Toronto, Jeff Lapcevich is still smarting from last weekend’s Super Series race at Barrie where he led briefly before being caught up in an incident with a lapped car. “I was working pretty hard for an oval victory last weekend at Barrie, but it didn’t happen for us. That was a pretty big disappointment, so we’re looking to get that win back in Toronto.”

CASCAR has a half-hour practice session on Friday afternoon (starting at 4:45 p.m.), in advance Saturday’s lone qualifying session (6:00 p.m. – 6:45 p.m.) to set the starting grid for the 36-lap, 100 km chase. The ATTO 100 CASCAR race is scheduled to take the green flag at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday afternoon, following the ChampCar race.


CASCAR NOTEBOOK: Reigning CASCAR Western Series champ Kevin Dowler, driver of the EMCO Ford, swept both ends of the British Columbia doubleheader race weekend. On Saturday night, the Edmonton, AB racer won at Sun Valley Motor Speedway in Vernon. The next day, he completed the dream weekend by winning at Penticton Speedway (in Penticton, BC) after leading all but 14 laps of the 200-lap affair. Derek Polack came home in second place in both races… Three drivers are tied atop the leader board in terms of career CASCAR wins at the Molson Indy Toronto. Robin Buck, Kevin Dowler and Jeff Lapcevich each have two. Only Lapcevich is scheduled to compete in CASCAR’s seventh annual visit to the streets of Toronto.

CASCAR ON TV: The Dodge Charger 300 from Barrie Speedway airs Saturday, July 9 at 3:00 p.m. on SPORTSNET. For information regarding initial airings and replays of Super Series races on SPORTSNET, please check your local listings or visit http://www.cascar.ca/schedule/tv_schedule.html.


SCHEDULE:
ATTO 100 CASCAR SUPER SERIES RACE at the MOLSON INDY TORONTO

FRIDAY, JULY 8, 2005
4:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. CASCAR Super Series Practice

SATURDAY, JULY 9, 2005
1:00 p.m. CASCAR Driver Autograph Session (Top 20 by Points)
6:00 p.m. – 6:45 p.m. CASCAR Qualifying Session

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2005
4:25 p.m. GREEN FLAG: ATTO 100 CASCAR SUPER SERIES FEATURE RACE


POINT STANDINGS:

CASCAR SUPER SERIES POINTS AFTER 4 EVENTS: (TOP 20): 1. #4 Don Thomson Jr. (Chevrolet / 643 points); 2. #9 Mark Dilley (Dodge / 609); 3. #39 Dave Whitlock (Dodge / 577); 4. #1 Peter Gibbons (Chevrolet / 574); 5. #02 Kerry Micks (Ford / 573); 6. #60 Ron Beauchamp Jr. (Dodge / 570); 7. #23 Jeff Lapcevich (Chevrolet / 541); 8. #17 DJ Kennington (Dodge / 540); 9. #14 John Fitzpatrick (Chevrolet / 534); 9. #84 J.R. Fitzpatrick (Chevrolet / 529); 11. #25 Jim Lapcevich (Chevrolet / 520); 12. #19 Brad Graham (Pontiac / 518); 13. #88 Dave Jacombs (Ford / 496); 14. #71 Bryan Cathcart (Chevrolet / 492); 15. #37 R Tara MacLeod (Ford / 478); 16. #22 Scott Steckly (Pontiac / 476); 17. #42 Sean Stafford (Chevrolet / 464); 18. #3 Stu Robinson (Dodge / 454); 19. #10 Doug Brown (Chevrolet / 444); 20. #18 R Chad McGlynn (Ford / 440)

CASCAR POWERWATER SPORTSMAN SERIES POINTS AFTER 2 EVENTS: (TOP 20): 1. #28 Steve Robblee (Ford / 172); 2. #32 Mike Alguire (Pontiac / 159); 3. #00 Steve Munro (Chevrolet / 152); 4. #6 Brad Graham (Dodge / 148); 5. #66 R Josh Wood (Pontiac / 144); 6. #95 R Ron Lethbridge (Dodge / 144); 7. #38 Ken Grubb (Ford / 140); 8. #80 Mike Hryniuk (Pontiac / 139); 9. #77 Dion Verhoeven (Pontiac / 139); 10. #97 R Michael Gold (Dodge / 134); 11. #91 Dean Fantin (Dodge / 132); 12. #11 R Cole Weber (Chevrolet / 128); 13. #09 R Kent Nuhn (Pontiac / 126); 14. #12 Mark Patrick (Chevrolet / 124); 15. #02 R Scott O’Connor (Olds / 122); 16. #39 Kevin D'Amore (Dodge / 120); 17. #45 Bob Merrifield (Dodge / 118); 18. #36 R Alan Lebert (Pontiac / 116); 19. #67 Scott Mitchell (Chevrolet / 114); 20. #53 R Todd Musker (Ford / 112)

CASCAR WESTERN SERIES POINTS AFTER 4 EVENTS: (TOP 20): To be released shortly.


Contact CASCAR at (519) 641-1214 or visit www.cascar.ca
Prepared by Inside Track Communications. // Contact: Greg MacPherson (416) 561-2320 (cell).
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