SONOMA, Calif.: After more than a decade’s absence of top-tier stock car racing in Canada, is NASCAR planning a return to Montreal?
The Sports Business Journal reported last week that NASCAR is in discussions to bring the Cup Series to Circuit Gilles Villeneuve — possibly as early as next season.
In 75 years of Cup competition, only one race was held north of the border. In 1958, Lee Petty won at Canadian National Exposition Speedway in Toronto. His son and seven-time Cup champion Richard Petty made his debut at the track and finished 17th.
NASCAR’s Xfinity Series raced at the 2.709-mile track from 2007 until 2012. Kevin Harvick, the 2014 Cup, 2001 and 2006 Xfinity Series champion, won the inaugural event on August 4, 2007.
“We should have never left and it should always have been a Cup race,” Harvick said at Sonoma Raceway. “It’s a great atmosphere. It’s a great racetrack.
“And I think for us, we have a lot of Canadian race fans. It’s just a place we need to be.”
Brad Moran, NASCAR Cup Series managing director, agrees. Of course, Moran is a bit biased. He grew up in Ontario where he owned and operated Barrie Speedway for seven seasons and oversaw Canada’s NASCAR Pinty’s Series for four years.
“It’s exciting,” Moran said of the potential of NASCAR Cup date in Canada. “We have great Canadian race fans. Obviously, I’ve been to Montreal many times. It’s a great facility. People in Quebec love their NASCAR—all of Canada, not just Quebec. But they love NASCAR.
“If that was to ever happen, especially with the Cup Series, obviously it’s been a long time since they were at the CNE, but it would be special. I know they would embrace it. If it ever happens, it would be a great thing.”
NASCAR’s front office has been extremely innovative of late when it comes to refreshing the current calendar. Certainly, taking the sport international is within the grand scheme of expanding NASCAR. Given Moran’s experience from a competition and administrative side of racing, he understands the challenges of transporting the series outside of the U.S. borders.
“There’s a big department that manages all that above me,” Moran said. “I’m sure they’re looking at many different availabilities, what would work and what wouldn’t. It would certainly be great for the sport and the country but there are a lot of logistical issues.
“It’s a bit of a challenge when you go international with any type of racing. When you go across those borders there’s a lot of work and a lot of preparation that the teams need to do. So we’ll see where it lands. There’s talk, but it’s exciting.”
Driver and Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing team owner Brad Keselowski had a solid average finish of seventh at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. He competed in three races from 2008 to 2009 with JR Motorsports and in 2010 when he won the Xfinity Series championship with Roger Penske.
“I think an international race is not a bad thing for us,” Keselowski said. “And if we’re going to do an international race, Canada makes perfect sense. We have so many terrific fans up there. I remember going to Montreal, one or two years–it might have been three years–and the embrace that we got from the fans there was really, really strong. A great community. I hope we can put it together.
“I’m concerned that we keep adding road courses. I would hope that if we do it, that it’s in exchange for another road course. I guess time will tell, but overall, getting a race in Canada for the Cup Series should be, in my mind, a high priority solely because of our fans and their passion for NASCAR in Canada.”
Justin Allgaier won the final Xfinity race at the picturesque track nestled along the banks of the St. Lawrence River in Parc Jean-Drapeau. The veteran racer would love to see NASCAR return to the iconic circuit.
“If they do that, I would be the first driver in line with my hand up asking, ‘Is there an opportunity to drive?’” Allgaier said with a smile. It’s one of my favorite race tracks of all time. Everything about that race weekend was so much fun. The effort that was put in, the culture up there, the city life. I would be 100-percent all for that.
“I know there are a lot of logistics involved, a lot of challenges that come with it. But honestly, I think it would be a great addition to the calendar for any of the three series at the top. I think it’s an amazing facility.”
