Mitsubishi leads Manufacturers Championship with Convincing Win at Perce-Neige
The 47th running of Rallye Perce-Neige, the first round of the 2012 Canadian Rally Championship, was won by Antoine L’Estage of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec and co-driver Nathalie Richard of Halifax, in their new Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.
Reigning Canadian and North American champion, L’Estage becomes the all-time record winner at Perce-Neige with a fifth win. L’Estage and Richard clinched best time in seven of the first ten stages and motored to an outright 8-minute victory in a demanding event that saw only 18 of the 42 cars reach the finish. The Production Sport class was won by defending champion Yavor Klostranec with Emily Dowell in the co-driver seat in their two-wheel drive Mitsubishi Lancer.
Two other teams of the Mitsubishi Brigade were among the finishers. Synchro Racing saw Simon Losier partnered with veteran co-driver Brian Maxwell in his EVO VIII clinch a rewarding fifth place. Alvin Fong and Billy Machin of Danbury, Connecticut were second among the novice crews in their new Lancer Evolution IX.
“The Mitsubishi Brigade teams dominated Rallye Perce-Neige to earn a record-winning victory. It is also exciting to see a base Lancer finish such a difficult event and win its class”, said Mr. Kenji Toh, VP Sales/Marketing & Corporate Planning for Mitsubishi Motor Sales of Canada. “We look forward to continuing the momentum in Calgary.”
Rocky Mountain Rally preview
The next Canadian Rally Championship stop for the teams will be in Calgary, Alberta in the last week of May. The challenging Rocky Mountain event is always unpredictable, as roads can be dry and windy as well as snowy and slippery, which makes it a real challenge. Last year winners were Antoine L’Estage and Nathalie Richard in their Lancer Evolution. More information is available at www.rockymountainrally.com.
Antoine L’Estage and co-driver Nathalie Richard (left) started their season on a high note with an outright victory in their new Lancer Evolution X at Rallye Perce-Neige. Right is defending Production Sport champion Yavor Klostranec with co-driver Emily Dowell taking Production Sport in their stock Lancer.
Credit : Philip Ericksen
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