The NASCAR Canada Series’ annual stop in the Maritimes officially got underway today at Riverside International Speedway as drivers hit the track for practice ahead of the Pinty’s 300.
Donald Theetge led the way, topping both initial and final practice sessions aboard the No. 80 Vulcain / Max Leclerc Construction Chevrolet. The Quebec driver set the fastest time in the opening session and remained atop the speed charts when teams returned to the track.
Theetge also topped practice during last year’s visit to Riverside International Speedway, continuing his strong run at the high-banked oval.
“I think the car was better in the second practice session,” said Theetge. “We made a few adjustments, and I’m really happy with it now. I like this track, and I think we have a good car for the race. It’s going to be a long day, so if we can qualify in the top three, stay patient through the first 200 laps, make the right adjustments and put ourselves in position at the end, we’ll have a shot. Patience will be key.”
The Quebec driver topped the time sheets ahead of Marc-Antoine Camirand in the No. 96 GM Paillé / Chevrolet Canada while Andrew Ranger posted the third-fastest time in the No. 27 GM Paillé / Chevrolet Canada.
L.P. Dumoulin in the No. 47 WeatherTech / Omnifab / Bellemere Dodge and Alex Guenette in the No. 39 DLGL /GL Électricité-Automatisations Chevrolet completed the top five, finishing fourth and fifth respectively.
Qualifying order has been determined by combining lap times from both practice sessions.
Action on-track resumes at 4:50 p.m. ET (5:50 p.m. AT) for Qualifying. Follow live timing on the Race Monitor app.