Nissan: Double victory for Olivier Bédard at this weekend’s Nissan Micra Cup

Two spectacular races on different tracks highlighted an action-packed weekend at Calabogie Motorsports Park


Pole position, victory and championship leader for two-time champion Olivier Bédard.

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – This past weekend, the Nissan Micra Cup presented the third and fourth rounds of its 2018 series at Calabogie Motorsports Park, southwest of Ottawa. Under clear skies and sunny conditions, the drivers experienced 2 series firsts: Saturday and Sunday’s races were each on a different track for 40-minutes in length. Saturday’s event was held on the 2.8km short track, while Sunday’s race was held on the 5.5km long track – the longest in Canada. Much to the drivers and spectators’ pleasure, the Micra Cup races were increased from 30-minutes for the first time since the series’ inception in 2015. At the end of two action-packed days, 2015 and 2017 series champion Olivier Bédard drove away with two more victories.


Frédéric Bernier clinched his first victory in the Senior class during Saturday’s race. Marc Héroux finished second and Peter Dyck third.

On Saturday’s short track, Bédard – who went into the weekend as the championship leader – earned the pole position by finishing more than four-tenths of a second lead ahead of his closest rival, Kevin King. A perfect lap by Bédard created a significant gap in a series that normally produces finishes within less than a thousandth of a second, with drivers all at the wheel of identical and nearly stock Micra S cars. 

Normand Boyer, Valérie Limoges, Jake Exton and Austin Riley rounded out Saturday’s top six. Within the group, Riley delivered the best qualifying session of his career, finishing ahead of four other drivers, grouped less than four-tenths of a second behind him. This put the 19-year-old – who has autism and races under his organization’s team Racing with Autism – in a great position for the weekend.


For the first time in the series’ history, the Nissan Micra Cup drivers competed in two 40-minute races, increased from the 30-minute format.

In Saturday’s race, Bédard dominated for the 40-minute duration, claiming his third victory in four races. Kevin King and Valérie Limoges rounded out the podium after Jake Exton, the 2017 Novice champion, was disqualified despite finishing third, for his vehicle being under the minimum weight requirement. Grouped in a tight peloton for most of the race, top rookie Fadi Mourad secured fourth place followed by, Senior Class winner Frédéric Bernier, Austin Riley and American Mike Ogren. In his series debut, Marc Héroux finished eighth, ahead of Peter Dyck and Carl Wener.

On Sunday, the drivers moved to the long 5.5km track but the hierarchy remained relatively consistent after qualifying. Bédard grabbed first place ahead of King, Limoges, Boyer, Exton, Ogren, Mario Berthiaume and Riley.


Overall podium of the second race, with Olivier Bédard (1st), Normand Boyer (2nd) and Valérie Limoges (3rd).

Bédard once again won the second race, chased by Boyer, Limoges and King. Not far behind, Austin Riley finished another error-free race to finish in fifth place – the best finish in his Micra Cup career.

Jake Exton completed the top six, ahead of Mourad and Ogren. Frédéric Bernier and Sylvain Ouellet followed to take second and third in the Senior Class. 

In the driver’s championship, Olivier Bédard retains the top spot with Kevin King in second and Normand Boyer third while also leading the Senior Class. Fadi Mourad tops the Novice drivers.


For the first time ever, the Nissan Qashqai crossover was the official pace-car.

For more information on the Nissan Micra Cup and its drivers, please visit the site www.micracup.com. Don’t miss series news on the Nissan Micra Cup Facebook page, as well as live information and results during practice sessions, qualifying and races on Twitter @micracup. All official videos will be available on the Micra Cup TV YouTube channel.

NEXT EVENT:
The fifth and sixth rounds of the 2018 season will be contested on Saturday, July 27th and Sunday, July 28th at the Circuit Mont-Tremblant, in the Laurentian region of Quebec. 

Race 1 results: https://www.micracup.com/2018-Results_Race?RID=403
Race 2 results: https://www.micracup.com/2018-Results_Race?RID=404

Overall championship standings after four races: https://www.micracup.com/2018-Results_ClassGen


Impressive performances from Austin Riley this weekend as he finished 6th on Saturday and 5th on Sunday.

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