NWES Points leader ready for a busy campaign in unique Europe-Canada exchange
It will be a busy Canadian campaign for NASCAR Whelen Euro Series points leader Frederic Gabillon. With the lead in the Euro NASCAR standings at the end of the regular season, the Frenchman, who landed in Quebec on August 1st, won the great prize to cross the ocean and race in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series at the upcoming Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières in Canada.
Gabillon’s overseas program will represent the first half of a unique exchange between Europe and Canada built by the NWES organization with Dumoulin Competition and sponsored by Spectra Premium. The second half of the exchange will happen in October, when Jean-François Dumoulin will compete in Euro NASCAR’s Zolder Finals.
“It is going to be a fantastic, busy trip! Racing at the GP3R is a great opportunity and I am really grateful to the entire NASCAR Whelen Euro Series organization, to Spectra Premium and to the Dumoulin Competition team for this amazing chance,” said Gabillon, who will drive a Spectra Premium sponsored car for Dumoulin Competition. “I definitely want to enjoy the experience while representing the Euro NASCAR series at my best. It will be really hard to compete at the highest level in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series in Canada, but it will be a new experience and I’m really looking forward to it.”
“We keep pushing hard to offer our drivers unique career opportunities and are really happy to offer this race at GP3R to our points leader just few week after offering a invitation to the Goodwood festival of Speed to our teams championship leader !” said NWES President CEO Jerome Galpin. “We want to thank Spectra Premium and Dumoulin Competition for this great partnership and look forward to fly to Quebec to attend the amazing event !”
To prepare for Trois-Rivières, Gabillon will rely on simulators and his vast experience to compensate for the lack of direct knowledge of the popular Canadian street circuit.
“I watched as many races as possible to prepare and I worked on the simulator to get to know the track. I know it is a pretty technical street circuit and I’m sure all the informations I got before landing in Canada, together with the pre-race program the team has built, will surely help,” said the Uzés, France native.
The Euro NASCAR regular season proved to be grueling for all the contenders and come September 15-16, Gabillon will enter the playoffs strong of a 26 points lead on Alon Day, thanks to two wins, two poles and 7 top-5s in 8 races, but with double points on the line there will be no rest for him and the RDV Competition team. Good placements will not be enough for the current points leader, who finished second in points twice in his career, to finally earn the crown he’s chasing since 2013.
Gabillon’s Canadian campaign will include a series of appearances and media availabilities on the way towards the August 11-12 GP3R weekend. Updates will be available on the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series Facebook page, @EuroNASCAR on Twitter and the EuroNASCAR Instagram profile. The Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières Le 50 Tours Can-Am will be streamed live on Fanschoice.tv on Sunday, August 12 from 8 pm CET.
Credits: NASCAR Whelen Euro Series / Stephane Azemard