The Mopar Parts Dodge team has fought tooth and nail through the middle portion of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series season to regain their expected level of performance. Persistence by Ron Beauchamp Jr. and company was rewarded in a battle of survival at Cayuga Speedway this past Saturday.
A sense of improvement for the team began with qualifying and Beauchamp was able to post the 9th quickest time in the Mopar Parts Dodge. “The car was feeling better than it has and I knew we’d be able to run well in the evening conditions” said the driver afterwards.
There was plenty of action early in the 200 lap main event at the 5/8 mile oval with a spectacular multi vehicle collision in the first few laps. “I saw it happening and just went inside across the grass to avoid it” said Beauchamp. The Mopar Parts car would escape with only some body damage to the right front fender but it would severely impact the team’s fortunes.
When the racing resumes Ron Jr. and the Mopar Parts Dodge were clicking off one consistent lap after another and running solidly in the top-ten. All seemed on track until a ruling by NASCAR officials changed the tone of their race. “I didn’t like it” said Beauchamp, they were worried about the body work on the right front fender and black flagged us to stop and check it out, it was fine, but it changed our whole race”.
Despite the setback Team Mopar dug in and continued to compete hard for the rest of the race. Pit stops were solid and as expected the car was strong for the entire event. “At the end of the race we were running faster than most of the lead cars” said an excited Ron Beauchamp Jr. afterwards. “We finished this one and that’s a start, I think we’ve taken a big step forward”. The Mopar Parts Dodge would finish the race 14th.
A series of mechanical misfortune, racing incidents and just plain tough luck have caused the Mopar Parts team to underachieve through the last several events but being able to survive a race that was full of aggressive driving like Cayuga can give a team a boost. “We’re definitely feeling improvement” said Beauchamp afterwards. “We had a tough break with the right front fender call, but without that, we’re running up front, we’re as fast as the top cars and we’re in the mix. I’m really excited to get going next weekend”.
The NASCAR Canadian Tire Series will be back in action next weekend as teams head to Barrie Speedway on Saturday September 8th. The 12 race schedule will take the teams from coast to coast and will consist of ovals, road courses and temporary street circuits. For the complete schedule, results and other information log onto www.nascar.ca You will also be able to watch all twelve races this season on TSN.
This release prepared by TL Sports & Entertainment
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