Qualifying cancelled at AMP; Dumas awarded Superbike pole
Shubenacadie, NS – Most of the scheduled afternoon qualifying sessions at Atlantic Motorsport Park won’t ensue on Friday, as persistent rain disrupted the start to the third round of the Bridgestone Canadian Superbike Championship, presented by Pro Cycle and Kawasaki.
After a dry start to the day provided clean practice sessions, the rain began to fall just moments after the conclusion of Liqui Moly Pro Sport Bike qualifying at AMP, the only timed qualifying session to get underway prior to the weather change.
The full recap of Liqui Moly Pro Sport Bike qualifying can be found here.
As is customary, CSBK officials recognized that the five remaining national classes had not been given any wet practice time to prepare for their scheduled time attacks, and elected to replace the afternoon qualifying sessions with additional practice.
Following that precedent, the grids for this weekend’s doubleheader races will be determined based on dry morning practice, a possibility that was issued to all competitors ahead of time, though no qualifying points will be awarded.
As a result, Alex Dumas will see his top time from FP1 converted into provisional pole position, earning his first BS Battery Pole Award since AMP one year ago.
The full recap of that session, which will now reflect the provisional grid for this weekend, can be found here.
The Purple Skull Brewing/Liqui Moly Suzuki rider narrowly beat rival Ben Young to the top of the timesheets, though Young will take some relief in knowing he won’t lose an extra point to Dumas in their championship battle.
Joining the duo on the front row this weekend will be 18-year-old rookie John Fraser, who went third-fastest in FP1. The home favourite bettered that in the wet afternoon practice session, topping the timesheets ahead of Dumas.
The other cancelled qualifying sessions will see Mavrick Cyr awarded pole position in both AIM Insurance Amateur Superbike and Scorpion EXO Amateur Sport Bike, having paced each of the morning practice sessions.
The Rizzin Racing Triumph star finished over a half-second clear of fellow teenager Mack Weil in both instances, as he looks to continue his perfect run of the amateur ranks on Saturday.
The final two grids of the weekend will both be led off by Vincent Lalande, as he took the top honours in the Super Sonic Race School Amateur Lightweight class and the EBC Brakes Lightweight Pro/Am category.
Lalande put a comfortable gap between himself and local favourite Vincent Wilson in both classes aboard his SpeedFactory67 Kawasaki, as he already approached lap record pace in his first official day at AMP.
Full results from the morning sessions can be found on the series’ official website at CSBK.ca, while race grids are expected to be posted Friday evening.
