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Toronto's Peter Thomson finishes 4th
Antoine L'Estage wins the Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally
New Richmond (Quebec), July 3, 2005. - Quebec rally driver Antoine L'Estage - who has
been fairly unlucky so far this season - took a sweet revenge this past weekend by winning the
North American Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally, Round 3 of the Canadian Rally Championship held in
Gaspesia, Quebec.
Co-driven by Ontarian Brian Maxwell, L'Estage set a blazing pace from the word go. Driving a
Hyundai Tiburon 4WD, L'Estage took the lead of the rally on Friday night, setting the fastest
times on the dusty gravel roads. At the end of the first day of competition, he enjoyed an
impressive one-minute gap over their pursuers!
On day two, Antoine L'Estage continued to push hard to maintain a comfortable lead over his
rivals, mainly American Matthew Iorio and Quebecer Sylvain Erickson. At the finish, L'Estage of
St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, PQ, finished first with a 57-second lead ahead of Iorio. This victory puts
L'Estage back in hunt for the 2005 title.
By finishing in second place aboard his Subaru Impreza WRX, Iorio greatly impressed
everyone, as this was his first participation to the Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally, an event known as
one of the most competitive on the schedule. Iorio followed by Erickson (who was co-driven by
his daughter Chloe) fought hard all event long. Finishing in third place may decide Erickson to
compete in the next event, the Défi Ste-Agathe/Duhamel Rally.
Toronto, Ontario's Peter Thomson, the winner of the opening two rounds of the season and
point standings' leader before the event started, drove his Group N Subaru Impreza to fourth
place ahead of a trio of American competitors. Thomson is still first in the championship
standings, 23 points ahead of John Cassidy.
Frederick Labrie finished 8th and the Sprongl brothers 10th, scoring a class victory and bringing
home their "skowroom stock" Suzuki Swift + in first place in the two-wheel drive division. In
Group 2, Eric Lapointe (Honda Civic) and Alberta's Gord Olsen (VW Golf) were both classified
in first place.
The next round of the Canadian Rally Championship will be the Défi Ste-Agathe/Duhamel Rally
held September 9 and 10. Information about this rally can be found at www.rallyedefi.com. The
Canadian Rally Championship is now in its 49th year of running and information about the series
and other rallies in Canada can be found at www.carsrally.ca.
Final standings (for complete results, please visit www.rallyebdc.com):
1) Antoine L'Estage - Brian Maxwell (Hyundai Tiburon 4WD) - 1h47'36"
2) Matthew Iorio - Olte Holter (Subaru Impreza WRX) - 1h48'33"
3) Sylvain Érickson - Chloé Érickson (Mitsubishi Lancer Évo.4) - 1h48'42"
4) Peter Thomson - Rod Hendricksen (Subaru Impreza WRX) - 1h52'14"
5) John Cassidy - Dave Getchell (Subaru Impreza WRX) - 1h56'06"
6) Patrick Lilly - Bernard Farrell (Mitsubishi Lancer Évo.4) - 1h57'03"
7) Randy Zimmer - Dave Shindle (Subaru Impreza RS) - 1h59'16"
8) Frédéric Labrie - Robert Labrie (Subaru Impreza WRX) - 1h59'43"
9) Tim Penasak - Marc Goldfarb (Subaru Impreza WRX) - 2h00'25"
10) Frank Sprongl - Dan Sprongl (Suzuki Swift +) - 2h01'07"
...
Photos:
Low-res photos of the first three teams are attached to this document. Hi-res photos, available
to the press only, by contacting:
.
Photo credit: VINCENT FORTIN.
For more information:
Canadian Association of RallySport, (905) 640-6444
Érickson - Surprise guest to the Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally!
Stouffville (Ontario), June 29, 2005.- The 28th running of the Baie-des-Chaleurs rally - Round
3 of the 2005 Canadian Rally Championship - will begin this Friday in Gaspesia, Quebec.
Some forty teams are entered in this event that is recognized as one of the most spectacular
and most popular rally on the schedule. Through the years, the Baie-des-Chaleurs rally has
been the scene of many of the most amazing feats seen in Canadian performance rallying.
Peter Thomson of Toronto and his co-driver Rod Hendricksen of New Jersey have claimed two
victories in a row so far this season aboard their Subaru Impreza WRX. They look forward to
scoring a third consecutive win this weekend and if they would do so, they would practically be
crowned champions.
However, the impressive crowd will be cheering for Sylvain Érickson of Gatineau, Quebec who
will be making a welcomed return to competition. Érickson will be co-driven by his daughter
Chloé and will be driving his mighty Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 4. There's no doubt that Érickson -
an extremely spectacular driver to watch - will be aiming for overall victory.
Antoine L'Estage of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec - who drove his Hyundai Tiburon 4WD to
victory in the Tall Pines Rally last November - looks forward to repeat his winning performance
this weekend. A victory would be a perfect remedy for L'Estage who encountered several
problems in the opening two rounds of the season. He will be co-driven by veteran Brian
Maxwell of Port Hope, Ontario.
Several other teams will be in the hunt for victory and they include Americans John Cassidy and
Matthew Iorio, both behind the wheels of Subaru Imprezas and who are currently classified
amongst the top drivers in the standings. Expect to see a titanic battle for supremacy in the
Group 2 class (two-wheel drive modified rally cars) between Quebec's Jon Nichols and Alberta's
Gord Olsen, both driving VW Golfs GTi.
The 28th running of the Baie-des-Chaleurs rally will be held around of the city of New Richmond
on 400 kilometres of road that includes 170 km of special stages. The arrival is scheduled for 5
p.m., Saturday July 2. Timing and scoring will be available on www.rallyebdc.com
For more information:
Canadian Association of RallySport
(905) 640-6444
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