Victory and championship lead for Antoine L’Estage
New Richmond (QC), July 1st, 2007 — This weekend was held the 30th
edition of the Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally, in New-Richmond, the third round of the 2007 Canadian
Rally Championship, presented by Subaru and Castrol. This event proved to be custom made
for Antoine L'Estage and Nathalie Richard, from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu (QC), who won the rally
and took the lead in the championship.
Right from the first stage, victory started to take shape for L'Estage and Richard in their Hyundai
Tiburon 4WD. Making the fastest time four times out of six stages on Friday night, the pair built
an impressive 2 minutes 44 seconds leads on Martin Gauvin/Daniel Duchesneau, from New-
Richmond (QC), in their Subaru Impreza, and of 2 minutes 55 seconds on Andrew Comrie-
Picard (ON)/Marc Goldfarb (USA), in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 RS.
Throughout the second leg, on Saturday, L'Estage and Richard managed their rally at leisure. It
is the second time L'Estage has won this rally. With this win, L'Estage also takes a two points
lead in the championship over Comrie-Picard.
Second place was a hard-fought and spectacular battle between local heroes
Gauvin/Duchesneau and Comrie-Picard/Goldfarb. Bogged down with turbo problems on Friday
night, the duet went all out on the following day. As for Martin Gauvin, he showcased his keen
talent and came away with a well-deserved 3rd place and victory in Production 4 class.
Two other Quebec teams, both in Subaru Impreza WRXs, rounded out the top five. They are
Joel Levac/Fanny-Laurence L'Estage and Mathieu L'Estage/Yannick Nappert. In sixth place, in
a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 5 was Réjean Losier, co-driven by Philippe Poirier. For the Blainville
(QC) driver, it’s the best way to retourn to the sport after a two year absence.
In Group 2, victory went to Sergei Grishechkin and Dmitri Kuzmin in their VW Golf GTi. They
finished 13th in front of André and Julien Cloutier, in Ford Escort, winners of the Production 3
class. In Group 5, victory went to Martin Walter/Ken Lagarec (Nissan 240 SX), while Mathieu
Lebel/Steve Beaulieu (Subaru Justy) took the Production 1 class. Unfortunatly again, well
known team Sylvain and Chloé Erickson, in their Subaru Impreza WRX, were forced to retire
during the first leg, after a brush with a bridge and terminal engine troubles. In all, 21 teams out
of 32 finished the rally.
The next round of the Canadian Rally Championship will take place on September 7 and 8 with
Rally Défi Ste-Agathe/Duhamel. Filming for TV broadcasting is managed by ATV Productions.
More information about rallies and rallying in Canada can be found at www.carsrally.ca.
Baie-des-Chaleurs Rally final standings (complete results at www.rallyebdc.com):
1) Antoine L’Estage – Nathalie Richard (Hyundai Tiburon 4WD) – 1 hour 49 min. 56 sec.
2) Andrew Comrie-Picard – Marc Goldfarb (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo.9) – 1h51’59
3) Martin Gauvin – Daniel Duchesneau (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 1h54’25
4) Joël Levac – Laurence-Fanny L’Estage (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 1h58’30
5) Mathieu L’Estage – Yannick Napert (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 1h59’20
6) Réjean Losier – Philippe Poirier (Mitsubishi Lancer Evo.5) – 2h03’40
7) Mathieu Dubé – Éric Losier (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 2h05’03
8) Martin Donnelly – Jeff Hagan (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 2h05’56
9) Ted Mendham – Lise Mendham (Subaru Impreza WRX) – 2h06’22
10) Emilio Arce – Sarah Gardescu (Subaru Impreza RS) – 2h09’19
...
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For more information:
Canadian Association of Rally Sport, (905) 640-6444.
For Press Photos:
Low-res photos of the top three finishers are included with this release. High-res photos for
press use only are available at rally@poleposition.ca. Mandatory mention of the photographer: Vincent Fortin.
L’Estage VS Comrie-Picard: Major stake in Gaspesia!
Stouffville (Ontario), June 26, 2007.- This weekend will be presented the Rallye Auto Baie-des-Chaleurs, third of the six rounds of the Canadian Rally Championship. Always a very spectacular event, this year’s Baie-des-Chaleurs rally turns a most important cornerstone, the event celebrating its thirtieth birthday.
Already the battle between Antoine L’Estage, actual champion and winner of the event in 2005, and Andrew Comrie-Picard, actual leader in this year’s championship, promises to be very intense. Antoine L’Estage and codriver Nathalie Richard, both from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu (QC) are the only competitors among the participants of this edition, to have won this rally. In their Hyundai Tiburon 4WD prepared by legendary driver John Buffum, they are favorite and should they win the event, they would automatically take the lead of the championship. Presently, there is a three-point difference between Andrew Comrie-Picard and Antoine L’Estage, and the difference between victory and second position is five points.
But Andrew Comrie-Picard (Toronto, ON), codriven by American Marc Goldfarb in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9 RS showed in the season opener to have what it takes to claim the title. Winner of the Rallye Perce-Neige-Maniwaki, this team came in second in Calgary, at the Rocky Mountain Rally, at the end of May.
These two teams will not be alone in their quest for the highest walk of the podium in Gaspesia. Unlucky since the beginning of season, Sylvain and Chloé Érickson, of Gatineau (QC), are counting on Rallye Baie-des-Chaleurs to get back in the heat for the championship. With their Subaru Impreza WRX, the Érickson are quite capable of turning the tables.
However one of the local crews could cause a surprise. This rally always draw many very talented drivers who know these roads very well. Thus Martin Gauvin and Daniel Duchesneau, of New Richmond, often stole the show with 2WD cars. Now in a Subaru Impreza WRX, the pair will be one to watch. A podium is undoubtedly within their range.
Two other teams in a Subaru Impreza WRX could also finish on the podium: Joel Levac, Rivière-Beaudet (QC), codriven by Laurence-Fanny L’Estage (St-Jacques-le-Mineur, QC), and Mathieu L’Estage, brother of Antoine and Laurence-Fanny, codriven by Yannick Napert. Last year, Mathieu L’Estage did finish on the podium at this rally.
Baie-des-Chaleurs also marks the return to competition of Peter Thomson (Toronto, ON) and Rod Hendricksen (New Jersey), the 2005 champions, in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8. Not to be forgotten are also Yohan Tessier and François Morin (Montreal, QC), standing Quebec champions in a Volkswagen Golf GTI 2WD, as well as Canadian Group 5 champions Zbigniew Szewczyk and Tomasz Karzynski (Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart), of Calgary (AB).
The rally will start on Friday June 29 at 6:00 p.m., in New Richmond. The first leg will take competitors to stages which made the reputation of the event, like the famous «Camp Brûlé», in St-Edgar. The following day, the rally will unfold on the gravel roads around New Richmond. The finish is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.
For more information on the event, visit its official website at www.rallyebdc.com. The official guide of the event can be found in Pole-Position magazine presently in newsstands throughout Quebec. The TV production of the show is ensured by ATV Productions. Information on the Canadian Rally Championship and the various rally competitions is available at www.carsrally.ca.
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For more information, please contact:
Canadian Association of Rallysport, (905) 640-6444.
1957-2007 : Celebrating 50 years of history!
Toronto (ON), January 16, 2007. - The Canadian Rally Championship celebrated this past weekend
its 50th birthday. This unique moment in the Canadian world of motorsports brought together more
than 200 people around 32 of the champions who brought visibility to this discipline often considered
the most spectacular of all motorsports.
Champion overall driver 2006 Quebecker Antoine L’Estage, from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, received
his award from John Bird, who has won this very same trophy in 1963, 1964 and 1965, the oldest
champion presenting the trophy to the youngest. The other winners 2006 are: Ole Holter, overall codriver,
Nathalie Richard (Ladies Cup), Maxime Labrie (rookie of the year and Group 2 driver), Jean-
François Guité (Group 2 co-driver), Zbigniew Szewczyk (Group 5 driver), Tomasz Karzynski (Group
5 co-driver), Norm LeBlanc (Production 4 driver), Keith Morison (Production 4 co-driver), Frank
Sprongl (Production 2 driver), Nancy Beaulieu (Production 2 co-driver), Christian Gagné (Production
1 driver), and Jérôme Sanfaçon (Production 1 co-driver). On the manufacturers’ side, winners are:
Hyundai (Marques’ title and Open Class), Subaru (Production 4 and 1), Suzuki (Production 2),
Honda (Group 2) and Mitsubishi (Group 5).
During this weekend of celebrations, movies were shown and symposiums were held in order for the
public to re-live rally events and ambiance from the ‘50s to today. More good news came from two of
the partners of the Canadian Rally Championship. TV producer ATV has confirmed agreement
renewal for the broadcasting of CRC events until 2008. Pole-Position Magazine, media partner in
the series, also gave two special awards. The first one was given to legendary driver John Buffum,
from Vermont, for his record 43 wins in the Canadian championship. The second Pole-Position
Magazine Special award was given to Baie-des-Chaleurs North-American Rally for the excellence of
its organization.
This celebration weekend put an end to the 50th season of the CRC. The 2007 season starts on
February 3, 2007, when it will present the Rallye Perce-Neige Maniwaki, in western Québec. For
more information on rallying and rally events, please visit the Canadian Association of Rallysport’s
website, at www.carsrally.ca.
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Available Photos :
A low-res photo of the 32 champions present is added to this press release. A high-res photo is
available for media purpose only by contacting rally@poleposition.ca. Mandatory mention of the
photographer: MARIE-LYSE TREMBLAY.
For more information :
Canadian Association of Rallysport, (905) 640-6444.
