MISSISSAUGA, Ontario--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Nissan Sentra Cup’s 10th season entered it’s second half this weekend with two new races that took place as part of the fifty-fourth edition of the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières. Both were eventful; with the first race won by Valerie Limoges and the second by Éric Chaput.
Following Friday’s intense rainfall, summer weather returned on Saturday where the first race was carried out in front of packed grandstands. Qualifying in pole position the day before, 2023 champion Alexandre Fortin was joined in front row by Valérie Limoges, leader of the drivers’ championship, past winner of two GP3R races (both Nissan Sentra Cup) and 2022 champion. Frédérick Chaput, Mathieu Miron, Éric Chaput and Nicolas Barrette complete the top six.
An uneventful start saw Fortin narrowly managing to hold onto first place. However, not even five minutes later, Valérie Limoges overtook him in a spectacular turn of events, taking control of the seventh race in the season. No one was able to catch up to her as she inched towards her third win in Trois-Rivières (a record for a female driver) and in the 2024 Nissan Sentra Cup season.
Following her, the leaderboard changed every lap. Having missed a corner, Alexandre Fortin fell from second to tenth place while Mathieu Miron, having secured his first two victories in the series three weeks earlier, took second place. Third on the starting grid, Frédérick Chaput, managed to maintain his position all 40 minutes of the race, ahead of Nicolas Barrette, who fought hard throughout, exchanging positions with Éric Chaput, Frédérick’s father, seven times. Barrette managed to give himself a lead by a few tenths in the final laps, claiming fourth place, who later climbed to third place following Frédérick Chaput’s disqualification due to technical infraction. Nicolas Miron has been classified fourth, followed by Éric Chaput, Sylvain Vincent, Alexandre Fortin, Jean-François Couture, Raphaël St-Pierre et Steve Poulin.
On Sunday, still under the sun, fans have seen one of the most beautiful races in the history of the series, with the top eight swapping positions lap after lap. Alexandre Fortin, Valérie Limoges, Mathieu Miron, Nicolas Barrette and Éric Chaput took the lead, in that order. During a restart with two laps to go, Barrette seemed set to take his second victory of the season but he was the victim of contact with Éric Chaput and dropped to tenth place. Resisting pressure from Mathieu Miron until the last turn, Éric Chaput won his first victory in the series. Valérie Limoges completed the podium, ahead of Nicolas Lévesque, Simon Vincent, Frédérick Chaput, Raphaël St-Pierre, Jean Audet, Nicolas Barrette and Jean-François Couture.
This weekend also gave spectators the opportunity to see two Nissan dealership owners on the track, Steve Poulin (Nissan Thetford) who is competing the entire season, and Luc Beaudoin (Ste-Foy and Beauport Nissan), who was making his motorsport debut. There are now three Sentra’s wrapped in Beaudoin’s dealership colours, including Daniel and Alexandre Fortin. Luc Beaudoin managed to complete both races in 14th and then in 15th position, thus gaining valuable experience. For his part, Steve Poulin competed two very good races, without making any mistakes and finishing tenth and then fourteen.
In the 2024 Nissan Sentra Cup Championship standings, Valérie Limoges has increased her lead in first place, ahead of Nicolas Barrette and Alexandre Fortin. Mathieu Miron is now fourth, ahead of Simon Vincent. These five drivers can still legitimately compete for the title.
For more information on the Nissan Sentra Cup, visit coupesentra.com and the series’ social media channels. To relive the 2023 season on video, visit the Nissan Sentra Cup YouTube page.
For more information on the Nissan Sentra Cup, visit the sentracup.com website and the series' social media channels. To relive the 2023 season events in video, visit the Nissan Sentra Cup YouTube page.
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2024 CALENDAR – NISSAN SENTRA CUP
| May 17, 18, 19 | Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario |
| July 19 and 20 | Lime Rock Park, Connecticut (États-Unis) |
| August 09, 10, 11 | Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Québec |
| Aug. 30, 31 & Sept. 1st | Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Bowmanville, Ontario |
| September 27, 28, 29 | Calabogie Motorsports Park, Ontario |
