Louis-Philippe Dumoulin 2018 NASCAR Pinty's Series CHAMPION. First In-house Championship for the Dumoulin Compétition Team
The #47 WeatherTech Canada | Groupe Bellemare team came to Jukasa Motor Speedway oval with a four-point lead going into the deciding race of the 2018 driver championship, held last Saturday evening. Louis-Philippe Dumoulin played his hand perfectly, taking the lead on the lap 138 (Of 200) caution period after clawing his way through the field from his last row starting position. At the restart, the veteran driver decided to let the other leaders sort out the race winner as he focused on the driver championship by protecting his four-point lead. The veteran driver did go on to win the title by finishing in the Top-10, ahead of the other main contender for the title, Alex Tagliani. Louis-Philippe Dumoulin made history again by winning his second NASCAR Pinty's Series driver title, this time with the Quebec-based Dumoulin Compétition in-house team.
Louis-Philippe Dumoulin and the #47 WeatherTech Canada | Groupe Bellemare team devised an overall race strategy and in-race tactics that worked out perfectly over the 200-lap race that was interrupted by six caution periods. After qualifying on race tire pressures rather than higher qualifying pressures, NASCAR dropped the #47 car to the back of the grid for the start. The driver's objective then became to get ahead of Alex Tagliani as quickly as possible, which he did by lap 30 and finding himself just ahead of his brother Jean-Francois Dumoulin. Louis-Philippe Dumoulin and his Crew Chief Robin McCluskey ran a faultless race, with the entire #47 WeatherTech Canada | Groupe Bellemare crew executing brilliant pit stops along the way. Starting from the back row and running up to 10th place in 30 green laps was a demonstration of the efficiency of the car preparation and of Louis-Philippe Dumoulin's intelligent driving. Robin McCluskey's smart decisions at every pit stop brought Louis-Philippe to the lead on lap 138 with a car optimized for the remaining 62 race laps was nothing less than brilliant. It was now up to the driver to finish the work, which he did to perfection with a tactical 10th place and his second driver title.
"Thanks to my team, to WeatherTech Canada and to Groupe Bellemare and all our other partners who believed in us and in our endeavour in building up our own team and facility. We would not have accomplished this without their considerable assistance. This second title is very special for all of us as we won it with through the hard work and dedication of every team members. It has been a long time since we took the lead in the championship at the Edmonton round and lived with the intense pressure since then. Thanks also to my brother Jean-François who managed our team to ensure that we won together. Thanks also to my family, my friends and the fans who come to see us every race weekend. The car was so good today that I could keep a little bit of speed in hand in case I needed to push later on in the race, but the team was emphatic -"Keep to the pace you need and focus on your title, not the win." - I listened, it worked and now we can go on to preparing for 2019." explained the newly minted two-time winner of the NASCAR Pinty's Series.
Second Title Win for a Quebec-based Team
Louis-Philippe Dumoulin and Crew Chief Mario Gosselin won the 2014 title, ahead of quick-man J.R. Fitzpatrick, running with King Autosport, a Quebec-based team owned and managed by Martin Roy. After only three years of preparing our cars at the Dumoulin Compétition facility, the #47 WeatherTech Canada | Groupe Bellemare team has won the NASCAR Pinty's Series and written a new page of racing history.
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
After a highly competitive 2018 season, with Louis-Philippe Dumoulin leading in points for the better part of the season, and running for a win at every round, the driver wishes to thank everyone who contributed to a memorable season with title-winning results: three victories, two pole positions, eight Top-5 and 12 Top-10 finishes.
Great results are achieved with the hard work and dedication of everyone who touches the team on a daily or less frequent basis. This includes our technical team worked hard and effectively at the shop and trackside, our key partners, such as WeatherTech Canada and le Groupe Bellemare, members of the media who believe in our sport, and all the fans who followed us at the tracks and on social media.
Thank you also to the drivers who make our series the most prestigious one in Canada. Finally, thanks to everyone who contributed to our "Race against Cancer" fund-raising drive in the name of the "Fondation québécoise du cancer," a project very close to our hearts and minds.
- Results:https://hometracks.nascar.com/international/pintys-series/race-central-live-2018-nascar-pintys-series/
- The race will be broadcast on TSN on Saturday October 6th at 1:00 pm and on RDS on Tuesday October 30th at 10:30 pm.
THE RACE AGAINST CANCER
"The race against cancer" always continues! Rendezvous in May 2019 to sign the trunks of the cars! In the meantime, you can keep on supporting the Quebec Cancer Foundation. To date, since the beginning of the 2018 season, we have raised $ 10,242.15. To make a donation online: lacoursecontrelecancer.ca
The Dumoulin Corner: 49 years of history for you to relive. You can also visit the Dumoulin corner at the Musée Gilles-Villeneuve...Where you can check out item #8, an original picture of Louis-Philippe Dumoulin on track at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, his very first GP3R. Visit the team Facebook page to find out more about the photo : facebook.com/dumoulincompetition/
"Passion - Performance - Partnerships"
Photo : Dany Massicotte
ABOUT PARTNERS
WeatherTech designs, develops and produces high quality, digitally custom fit automotive accessories; including FloorLiners, All-Weather Floor Mats, Cargo Liners, TechLiners and No-Drill Mudflaps. Engineers use the newest technology available to measure the geometric complexity of the vehicle ensuring a constantly perfect fit. WeatherTech… Where Technology and All Weather Protection meet! weathertech.ca
Groupe Bellemare: Competitive and dynamic, Thomas Bellemare's innovative and growing family team is ready to take on any challenge. With support from senior members and a qualified team of managers, the third-generation Bellemares are reaching new heights. Built upon a solid past, the company moves forward with an exceptional team of experts and seeks a select group of clients. Our clients continue to benefit from our wide variety of services that target a large number of sectors. As a result, our visibility is constantly on the rise. Working with the Bellemare team has become a measure of success. Start off right by choosing a winning team! groupebellemare.com
Summary - Highlights in Louis-Philippe Dumoulin's career
- In 2017, he finishes the NASCAR Pinty's championship in fourth place (3 podiums and ninth top-5s in thirtheen events.);
- In 2016, he finishes the NASCAR Pinty's championship exequo with the fourth position (top-5 six times in 12 events);
- In 2015, he finishes the NASCAR Pinty's championship in fourth place (2 podiums and six top-5s in eleven events);
- 2014 champion of the NASCAR Pinty's series: 5 podiums and 2 victories, as well as 9 top-5s in eleven events. It is the first time that a team made up entirely of Quebecers wins this championship. (Prep. team: King Autosport, managed by Martin Roy);
- Won the Gilles Villeneuve Trophy in 2014 and 2001. This trophy symbolizes the fighting spirit and on-track excellence of a Quebec-native driver throughout the season that just ended. It is the first time that a recipient of the Trophy wins it twice throughout their career;
- Won, in 2013, the only Ontarian event to this day made up of an all-Quebecer podium (Canadian Tire Motorsport Park - NCATS series);
- The only Canadian who climbed on the podium in 2012 during the prestigious event of the 12 hours of Sebring (2nd place - American Le Mans Series - GT3 Cup - WeatherTech Racing Team);
- Won the title of rookie of the year in 2011 in the NASCAR Canadian Tire series despite having only participated in 8 races out of 13 (scoring four top-10s and two top-5s);
- Crowned Canadian champion in Formula Ford 1600 in 2002;
- He still owns the record in Formule Ford 1600 for the highest amount of victories and pole positions in one season (2002).
WEBSITES / ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
- Meet Louis-Philippe Dumoulin at ca
- WeatherTech Canada: ca/behindtech
- Groupe Bellemare: groupebellemare.com
- Quebec Cancer Foundation: fqc.qc.ca
- Gilles-Villeneuve Museum: museegillesvilleneuve.com
- New Hampshire Motor Speedway: nhms.com
- Jukasa Motor Speedway: jukasamotorspeedway.com
- Dumoulin Compétition: com
- Série NASCAR Pinty's: nascar.com/series/pintys-series
- Facebook: com/dumoulincompetition
- Twitter: @DumoulinDC / @DumoulinLP / @jf_dumoulin
- Youtube: com/user/dumoulincompetition
- Instagram: @dumoulincompetition