Back to the Newfoundland race in NASCAR Pinty’s: LPDumoulin at the forefront but a chaotic end of the race forced him to finish 8th

The fourth round of the 2023 NASCAR Pinty’s Series season, the race on Saturday at Eastbound International Speedway in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador blew hot and cold for three-time series champion Louis-Philippe From the mill. Eighth in qualifying, eighth in the race, the statistics are certainly below the driver’s ambitions. But Dumoulin’s race at the controls of car #47 WeatherTech Canada | Bellemare Group | Omnifab is not limited to these two figures as it evolved in the Top 3 during three quarters of the event.

Very comfortable on this track and with a car displaying a higher level of competitiveness than ever on an oval track this season, Louis-Philippe sums up his career as follows: « I fought at the front for the majority of the race. But during a restart in the last quarter, I spun my wheels a little too much and I lost third place. A priori, it should not have had a big impact on my end of race but a neutralization occurred immediately after and I therefore found myself fourth, on the outside trajectory, which is a clear disadvantage on this oval. To make matters worse, at all the following reminders I found myself on this line, which was also very dirty at the end because of absorbent products which had been deposited there by the officials following the oil left by Brandon’s car. Watson who had broken his engine.

However, Louis-Philippe Dumoulin did not give up, trying by all means to keep his position and hoping for a slightly longer sequence under the green flag to regain his place among the top three, which never happened, the incidents following one another in the last laps. « I must also add that during one of the restarts, a driver hit me several times, which again pushed me back in the standings and ultimately explains this final ninth place on the track, » he explains. According to the television images it seems that it was Alex Tagliani’s car No.18 which hit Dumoulin’s.

A ninth place which would become eighth in the official race classification, following a penalty to Dexter Stacey ahead of Louis-Philippe Dumoulin. But what the driver remembers above all is his competitiveness throughout this race. “I fought several laps with Treyten Lapcevich, the eventual winner, and with others. With the Dumoulin Compétition team, we managed to find the small details to correct on the car, which have so far prevented me from aiming for the podium in the first oval races of the season. Knowing that we’ve found the solution and having shown it during this race in Newfoundland is very, very promising for the rest of the championship” confides Louis-Philippe.

Next meeting: Toronto on July 14!

The fifth event will take place on the Toronto Indy’s temporary street circuit on Friday, July 14. A track on which Louis-Philippe Dumoulin has always finished in the Top 5 since 2016. There is also a victory during his career in single-seaters (F1600 in 2002) and podiums in NASCAR Pinty’s during his last two participations. “I would really like to win this race, especially since Toronto and area is the headquarters of my sponsor WeatherTech Canada. Besides this aspect, I like the track. It’s a bit like Trois-Rivières but a little bigger and faster. With the walls all around, there is no room for error,” emphasizes Louis-Philippe Dumoulin.

“I will work very hard with the team to have the right settings as soon as the tests start because the track time is very limited for our series there. I also find it unfortunate that our presence is limited to one of the three days of activities of the Toronto Indy. For my part, I know the track and its pitfalls perfectly and I am convinced that with the level we have shown since the start of the season, a good result is within our reach,” he concludes. In the drivers’ championship, Dumoulin is currently 5th, two points behind third place.