In a wild Grand Prix De Trois-Rivières, Frederic Gabillon completed his Canadian debut with a splendid 8th place at the wheel of the #07 Spectra Premium Dodge fielded by Dumoulin Competition. The Frenchman, who earned the chance to compete in the 8th round of the NASCAR Pinty’s Series by leading the NWES points standings at the end of the regular season, showed a very strong pace and survived a mid-race collision to come from the back of the pack to a place in the top-10.
Gabillon was impressive in quickly finding a good pace in a completely new environment and started from the 8th position on the grid for the 50-lap race around the popular street circuit. He was able to move up to 7th in the first part of the race, but a contact from behind sent him spinning and down to 16th. The Uzes-native used the second half of the Le 50 Tours Can-Am to complete several passes and climb back to eighth under the checkered flag.
“It was a crazy, aggressive race and a pretty long one too, so it was hard on the car and on the drivers, but it was great!” said a satisfied Gabillon, who had the pace to contend for a place in the top-5. “The track is especially tricky, there are walls very close and little places you can gain time, so there’s a lot of improvement on my side to do, but the Spectra Premium Dodge was great and the Dumoulin Competition team gave the best car and team. I’m really happy about the whole experience.”
The first leg of the unique driver exchange between two International NASCAR Series, made possible by a joint effort between the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, Spectra Premium and Dumoulin Competition was a huge success. The program will reach its completion on October 20-21, when Spectra Premium driver and ambassador Jean-Francois Dumoulin, who finished 4th at Trois-Rivières, will join the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series for the Zolder Finals in Belgium.
“We are very happy and proud of this first International exchange and we want thank all the partners involved in it: Spectra Premium, Dumoulin Competition and the GP3R organization,” said NWES President/CEO Jerome Galpin. “Frederic Gabillon showed great speed and the ability to adapt quickly to a new car. The potential was there, but contacts are part of racing. I’m really happy about this entire operation, it couldn’t have been better and I’m really optimistic about continuing with this kind of programs in the future.”
“It was fantastic since day one. J-F Dumoulin and the Dumoulin Competition team gave a great welcome and did everything to make me feel at home. I was involved in many events before the race and I met so many people. It just felt great and I’m really grateful to the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series, Spectra Premium and Dumoulin Competition for this opportunity,” concluded Gabillon.
Frederic Gabillon will now head back to Europe to prepare for the crucial part of the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series season, beginning on September 15-16 in Germany with the Semi Finals at the legendary Hockenheimring. With double points on the line and a long list of title contenders, the Frenchman will enter the playoffs on top of the standings to race for European NASCAR crown.
NASCAR Euro Series PR
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