Coupe du Quebec: Pier-Luc Ouellette Unstoppable in Rotax Senior

The second round of the 2013 Coupe du Québec hit the track this past weekend at SRA Karting International as drivers and teams entered the beautiful facility north east of Montreal. The second race of the fifth race championship sets the tone for title contenders and pretenders and this weekends action was exciting. The weekend started out with bright sunny skies for Satuday’s official practice, and the sun resumed Sunday morning but for a short time. Clouds rolled in as the first round of heat races hit the track and just as round two was on grid the skies opened up and the rain came pouring down for the remainder of the day. The conditions at SRA are very challenging to begin with, but the heavy rain made for some tense moments as drivers navigated the 1.2km track.

A familiar face was back in the karting paddock this past weekend as two-time Rotax Grand Finals DD2 Champion Pier-Luc Ouellette was back on track for the first time in 2013.

Utilizing the event to prepare for the upcoming Eastern Canadian Karting Championship round, PLO and his PSL Karting CRG machine were very fast all day long. In the heat races he held off Steven Szigeti (SH Karting/Zanardi) in both inverted heats, with him pressuring in both. In the Pre Final Szigeti once again was Ouellette’s main rival until a late race spin allowed Olivier Bedard (KMS North America/Birel) to move into second.

With the rain letting up for the Final, Bedard pushed Ouellette in the early stages while Szigeti sat just behind in third. Up front Ouellette didn’t crack under pressure and would go on to win with Bedard in tow. Szigeti held on for third while Didier Carre (Birel) and Tommy Lemaire-Ouellet (SH Karting/Zanardi) rounded out the top-five.

Round three of the Coupe du Québec happens July 13 and 14 at Karting Grand-Mere and will be the final event at the facility. A special ceremony will be held in part to celebrate the many years at Karting Grand Mere.

CKN will have a full photo gallery from the event online on Tuesday.

Final Results: