RMCGF Thursday: Heat Races Not So Kind to Team Canada

The wheel-to-wheel action continued today at the Circuito Internazionale di Napoli in Sarno, Italy for Team Canada. With one heat race for Canadian drivers yesterday, all competitors saw race action today, and the results set the grid for tomorrow’s prefinals. With some drivers experiencing success, and others heartbreak, we are now less than two days away from crowning the 2024 RMC Grand Final Champions.

For RMC Grand Finals Results – Click HERE

Mini MAX

Qualifying Heat #2 – A + C
It was a tough go for Canadian Christian Sanguinetti in the A vs C heat race for Mini MAX. A 31st-place finish was not what Sanguinetti needed to boost his chances of a good prefinal starting position on Friday. With one additional heat later in the afternoon, Sanguinetti would race for more experience and knowledge as he continued to learn in his first Grand Finals appearance.

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + D
In the second Mini MAX heat of the day, Alexis Baillargeon crossed the stripe in the 13th position but, following post-race penalties was advanced to the eleventh position. Similar for Jeremy St-Cyr as he was promoted to 12th from finishing 14th at the expense of others. Leo Dasilva was also a benefactor of penalties classified in the 26th position, but it was young Massimo Lorusso who gained sixteen positions to drive from 36th on the grid to P20 on the final results sheet.

Qualifying Heat #3 – A + D
Baillargeon was back for his final RMC Grand Finals heat race of 2024 and while he looked set to finish 12th when the final lap opened, he continued his charge forward and took advantage of opportunities that were presented to him. Crossing the line seventh, it was Baillargeon’s best result of the weekend. Dasilva finished 22nd, just two positions ahead of Sanguinetti in 24th. Disaster at the scales for Baillargeon as a five-second time penalty for a bumper infraction dropped him to 20th in the results as Dasilva was elevated to 19th and Sanguinetti to 21st at the expense of others.

Qualifying Heat #3 – B + C
Jeremy St-Cyr had another strong run in his final Mini MAX heat of 2024 as he was able to come home 12th, providing a decent result and a good shot for a solid result in the prefinals tomorrow. Lorusso had another spirited drive, gaining eleven positions to finish 25th and was awarded five more post-race to be classified 20th after all the penalties had been sorted.

MINI Max Rankings After the Heat Races

• 14. Jeremy St- Cyr – PreFinal B
• 40. Leo Da Silva – PreFinal B
• 46. Alexis Baillargeon – PreFinal B
• 48. Christian Sanguinetti – PreFinal B
• 52. Massimo Lorusso – PreFinal B

Leo Da Silva has moved forward in all three heats – Photo by : Cody Schindel / CKN

MAX DD2 Master

Qualifying Heat #2
The second and final MAX DD2 Master heat of the weekend was run just after the lunch break today, and with the results, the grid was set for the prefinal. David Laplante managed to maintain his starting position to cross the line 11th as all three Canadians finished in the top twenty for the second heat race in a row. Jared Freeston was 17th when the checkered flag flew, just ahead of Marc-Andre Levesque in the 18th position.

Laplante was hit with a five-second time penalty dropping him from 11th to 21st in the final classification as Freston and Levesque advanced to 15th and 16th.

DD2 Masters Rankings After the Heat Races

• 9. Marc-Andre Levesque
• 13. Jared Freeston
• 19. David Laplante

Dave Laplante (518) and Marc-Andre Levesque race at the start – Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN

Junior MAX

Qualifying Heat #2 – A + C
It was a tough first heat of the day for Ty Fisher as he was out of the race before the opening lap with a tire failure and classified in the 36th position after a brilliant drive into the top ten yesterday. On the other end of the spectrum, Antonie Lemieux had another steady drive to finish twelfth and remain consistent in heats one and two. Nathan Dupuis was able to gain nine positions to finish 24th, ahead of Pearce Wade in the 28th position.

Following post-race penalties, Lemieux was elevated to the tenth position as Dupuis moved up to 22nd and Wade to 24th.

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + D
The sole Canadian in the Junior MAX B + D heat race was the #241 of Cole Medeiros. Falling back to the 33rd position early on after starting 26th, Mederios was able to rebound and drive his way back forward, claiming the checkered flag in P25. Given a bumper penalty post-race, along with a host of other competitors, Medeiros was eventually classified where he started in the 26th position.

Qualifying Heat #3 – A + D
Antoine Lemieux earned another top-ten finish in a racy Junior MAX A vs D heat race, driving from P13 on the grid to finish ninth to earn three solid results. Moving forward to finish eighth after post-race penalties were applied will give Lemieux some momentum heading into tomorrow.

Behind him, Wade had his best race of the weekend and crossed the line 15th on track before any post-race penalties, with Dupuis following suit to finish 19th. Cole Medeiros almost put four Canadians in the top twenty-five, finishing 22nd at the checkered flag.

In the final classification, Wade was pushed forward to 13th ahead of Dupuis in 21st and Medeiros in 25th.

Qualifying Heat #3 – B + C
Ty Fisher would be the only Canadian in Junior MAX heat B vs C, and he started deep on the field in the 34th position. Gaining 16 positions to finish 18th, Fisher was dropped to 24th in the final standings after a bumper penalty dropped him down the running order. Fisher will need another stellar drive in the prefinal tomorrow, without the penalties, to make it through to Saturday’s main events.

JUNIOR MAX Rankings After the Heat Races

• 16. Antoine Lemieux – PreFinal B
• 44. Pearce Wade – PreFinal B
• 50. Ty Fisher – PreFinal B
• 57. Nathan Dupuis – PreFinal A
• 61. Cole Medeiros – PreFinal A

Antoine Lemieux and Ty Fisher – Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN

Senior MAX

Qualifying Heat #2 – A + C
Mark Newson was the one and only Canadian driver in Senior MAX A vs C, and it was an up-and-down affair. Falling back from his P20 starting spot, Newson moved forward to 18th in the middle part of the race, before eventually crossing the stripe in 26th but classified 25th after post-race penalties.

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + D
Timothe Pernod had a solid second Senior MAX heat, gaining five positions to cross the line in the 13th position. Trying to earn as many positions as possible at the start, Pernod made it through the first lap, staying out of trouble, and in the end, was able to move forward, which is precisely what he needed to better his prefinal starting position. However, following race and the posting of the official classification, Pernod was dropped to 21st due to a bumper penalty.

Qualifying Heat #2 – A + D
Timothe Pernod’s third and final heat of the RMC Grand Finals was his best one driving forward eleven positions to finish his heat in seventh. Following post-race penalties, Pernod was promoted to the sixth position. The young Canadian will aim to push forward in the prefinal tomorrow as today he ran a fast lap time in the race quicker than the eventual winner.

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + C
Mark Newson looked to close his heat races with a solid result, but it was a drop from 20th to 28th in the nine-lap race, before being moved back to 26th following post-race penalties. Battling in the very tough Senior MAX field, Newson continues to gain experience that will aid in future success and will have a shot tomorrow in the prefinals to continue his RMC Grand Final weekend.

SENIOR MAX Rankings After the Heat Races

• 23. Timothe Pernod – PreFinal A
• 67. Mark Newson – PreFinal A

Mark Newson had a tough day, again – Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN

MAX DD2

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + D
It was a tough heat two for Ludovic Sabourin as contact early forced him to retire in the 35th position. However, Olivier Bedard was able to hold his own in the top fifteen, only losing one position in the nine-lap affair to finish 12th. Three Team Canada drivers finished their second MAX DD2 heat in the top twenty as Gianluca Savaglio crossed the line 17th and Griffin Dowler in 18th. Arnaud Sabourin was the best of the rest in P22, just ahead of Lucas Pernod in 23rd who lost four positions from his inside row ten starting spot.

Following post-race penalties, Savaglio was awarded a P14 result with Dowler in 15th, and Sabourin in 19th. However, all the drivers advanced forward at the expense of Bedard who fell to 20th after a bumper penalty, just ahead of Pernod in 21st.

Qualifying Heat #3 – A + D
It was Ludovic Sabourin who scored Team Canada’s best finish in the MAX DD2 A vs D heat race, finishing 13th after starting on the outside of row eight in P16. Griffin Dowler also gained two positions moving from 22nd to 20th in the nine-lap heat race. However, both drivers were victims of post-race penalties as Sabourin dropped to 17th in the final classification and Dowler would be 26th.

Qualifying Heat #2 – B + C
It was a tough go for Team Canada in the final MAX DD2 heat of the weekend, as only Bedard was able to do anything on the track. Crossing the line tenth was a bright spot for the Canadian contingent as they also occupied positions 31, 32, and 35 in the results. Arnaud Sabourin had his rear bumper break off and finished 31st, while Savaglio broke a kingpin after running off track on lap one. Pernod was spun in turn four mid-race, ultimately taking him out of contention for a good result. Bedard’s tenth-place result quickly changed to fourteenth after a post-race five-second time penalty dropped him down the order.

DD2 Rankings After the Heat Races

• 26. Olivier Bedard – PreFinal B
• 42. Gianluca Savaglio – PreFinal B
• 49. Griffin Dowler – PreFinal A
• 50. Arnaud Sabourin – PreFinal B
• 53. Lucas Pernod – PreFinal A
• 63. Ludovic Sabourin – PreFinal A

Griffin Dowler has moved forward nicely in the heats – Photo by: Cody Schindel / CKN

With all three heat races now in the books, the grids are set for Friday’s prefinals. The goal tomorrow is to perform well in your respective race to earn a shot to race Saturday and become an RMC Grand Finals Champion.

The top 36 in points after the PreFinals will advance to the Grand Finals on Saturday.