Valade Wins Brockville- Jackson Takes Mr. DIRTcar Pro Stock Crown!

 

Valade Scores 1st In Global Warranty DIRTcar Fall Nationals At Brockville
Jackson locks up overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Championship
 
Brockville, ONT – October 16, 2010 – It was a night of firsts Saturday at Brockville Ontario Speedway as Ghislain Valade captured his first Pro Stock Series win in the headline 'Global Warranty DIRTcar Northeast Fall Nationals 50' while full-fender veteran Louie Jackson held on to secure the overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Championship for the first time in his career.
 
Both the race win and points title remained in doubt right up until the final checkered flag dropped as a restart with just two laps to go tightened the pack and the two-wide alignment left no position safe.
 
"I've been waiting for this for a long time, definitely a career accomplishment," said Jackson, who not only edged Corey Wheeler by a single marker in the closest Mr. DIRTcar points battle of all time, Joey Ladouceur finished just three back to highlight the tightest race since the Pro Stock tour inception in 1995. "We definitely had a championship car and this is a title I've wanted for quite awhile."
 
Wheeler chased Valade and runner-up Stefanski across the line in a mad scramble to the finish on the green-white-checker flag run, while Ladouceur and 19th-place starter P.J. Peters filled out the front-five.
 
Jackson now also holds the dubious distinction of becoming the first Mr. DIRTcar Pro Stock champion to earn the crown without a single victory. A winner of four tour stops from 2005-08, the Akwesasne, N.Y. pilot posted a second, two third and a fourth-place finish to cap off the nine-race series, settling for ninth-place in the Brockville finale.
 
Four-time and defending Mr. DIRTcar champ Pete Stefanski nosed ahead of fourth-place starter Ricky Thompson to lead off the 50-lap Pro Stock main event. Once Thompson sped by on the second circuit, Stefanski began to drop back as Valade charged from sixth to second with only a handful of laps complete.
 
Continuing to run straight through under green, the leaders caught traffic by lap 15 and the next time around Thompson got pinned behind back-marker Daryl Mitchell to give up the point to Valade. Mitchell then looped his machine in turn four to force out the first yellow flag, with Thompson dropping to fourth behind second-place David Papineau and Ladouceur.
 
Gilles Godard spun off the track high in turn three on lap 20 and Thompson suffered a flat tire to incur a third caution period on lap 22. Tour regular Dave Bissonnette slowed off the pace on lap 23 to bring out another yellow, and at the halfway mark Valade was able to hold back Stefanski, Ladouceur, Papineau and Wheeler.
 
A turn two tangle between Godard and Jocelyn Roy forced out another caution as did the stoppage of Marc Lalonde in the infield right opposite the starter stand. Ladouceur continued to challenge for second and third positions on each restart and with Jackson hovering around the top-10, not more than five points separated the two Mr. DIRTcar front-runners  the remainder of the way.
 
When Mitchell looped his mount I turn four to require the seventh and final slowdown on lap 48, the final sprint to the finish kept scorers reeling and the tabulation to determine Mr. DIRTcar put on the table for a second re-count.
 
"The car wasn't too great at first but really came around about midway through and started getting some really good bite," added Jackson, whose no. 18 Adams Marina-Keegan Smoke Shop/Chevrolet Monte Carlo began fifth on the 20-car starting grid before running closer to 10th-place the majority of the race. "This is a real big deal for me because where I come from, Akwesasne, there aren't any trophies like these. There aren't any Syracuse trophies either so this is the first and its one of the best."
 
Valade is now owner of his very first race day trophy, one that has eluded the full-fender chauffeur throughout his 2010 campaign.
 
"This feels real good, it's been something long overdo," remarked Valade, who earlier in the season chalked up a second-place finish to Ladouceur at Mohawk Int'l Raceway in September. I came close a few times and tonight I was finally able to do it."
 
"A lot of yellows but we had a good car. On that last restart I got shoved but was able to keep it going and pass them back again for the win. We don't have the same budget as some of the tour guys, so being able to race them is an accomplishment in itself," Valade noted.
 
Finishing a mere one point behind Jackson (1666) in the final 2010 Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Pro Stock Series Championship point standings was Corey Wheeler (1665), followed by Joey Ladouceur (1663), top division rookie Chip Smith (1597), Jocelyn Roy (1590), Dave Bissonnette (1558), P.J. Peters (1526), Ricky Thompson (1512), Buddy Hencke (1499) and Rob Yetman (1443).
 
Mr. DIRTcar Pro Stock Championship Series Race #9 – Brockville Ontario Speedway, October 16, 2010 'Global Warranty DIRTcar Northeast Fall Nationals 50' Event Summary
Feature
FIN      ST       CAR# DRIVER / HOMETOWN
1          6          99        Ghislain Valade/N.Lancaster,ONT ($1,000)
2          2          2          Pete Stefanski/Wheatfield,NY
3          1          47s      Corey Wheeler/Cornwall,ONT
4          3          92        Joey Ladouceur/Alexandria,ONT
5          19        73        P.J. Peters/Akwesasne,QUE
6          10        188     David Papineau/Akwesasne,NY
7          8          116s   Chip Smith Jr./Durham,NY
8          9          55        George Renaud/Green Valey,ONT
9          5          18        Louie Jackson/Akwesasne,NY
10        20        7          Ryan Stabler/Cornwall,ONT
11        14        48        Dion Oakes/Akwesasne,NY
12        15        6          Stephane Lebrun/Gatineau,QUE
13        11        27        Gilles Godard/Summerstown,ONT
14        4          1r         Ricky Thompson/Hogansburg,NY
15        7          05        Jocelyn Roy/St-Helene,QUE
16        17        115     Stephane Lemire/Drummondville,QUE
17        13        33        Bruno Cyr/St.Liboire,QUE
18        16        37        Daryl Mitchell/Akweasne,NY
19        12        47        Dave Bissonnette/Apple Hill,ONT
20        18        8m       Marc Lalonde/L'Orignal,ONT
LAP LEADERS:   Stefanski (1), Thompson (2-15), Valade (16-50).                
CAUTIONS:   7 (lap 16, lap 20, lap 22, lap 23, lap 27, lap 39, lap 48).             
HEAT WINNERS:   Papineau, Thompson, Wheeler.                               
HALFWAY LEADER:   Ghislain Valade.                                      
FAST TIME TRIALER:   Joey Ladouceur (16.881sec/79.972mph).                              
CARS ENTERED:   20 
 
From: Tom Skibinski- DIRTcar