Tremblay, Weil look to continue dominance as Bergeron and Macrae take slim leads into doubleheader at CTMP

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Category: CSBK News

Published on Monday, August 9, 2021 18:00 EDT

The Pro Superbike feature class won’t be the only category under extra pressure this weekend, as the four Canadian Superbike Championship support classes enter a pivotal round two doubleheader at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, August 13-15. 

The four National classes will enter “Old Mosport” in drastically different circumstances, with two categories following up a one-sided season opener while two others remain wide open at the front. 

The most dominant showing came from the Liqui Moly Pro Sport Bike class, where fan favourite Sebastian Tremblay held off a brief challenge en route to a comfortable victory at Calabogie aboard his Turcotte Performance Kawasaki ZX-6R Ninja. Tremblay entered as the preseason favourite for his first National title and should be a safe bet to continue that trend at CTMP, where he has won the last three races dating back to the 2019 season.

The battle behind him remains a close one, however, with a number of Quebec-born riders making their mark on the middleweight class. Leading the group is Phillippe Masse, who claimed an emotional second place as part of an all-Kawasaki podium in round one, with rookie Christian Allard settling for third on his Turcotte Performance machine after challenging Tremblay early on. 

Behind the Francophone contingent, another top name to watch will be former Guyanese racing champion Elliott Vieira, who’s podium charge at Calabogie was derailed by an early crash. Vieira was ultimately able to remount his Snow City Cycle Yamaha YZF-R6 and salvage seventh, though he will hope for a better outcome as he returns to the circuit where he scored an impressive fourth-place finish in Superbike a year ago. 

Hometown favourite and fellow rookie Jake Leclair also figures to be in the podium fight, as the Blackstock, ON native looks to build upon a strong Pro debut in fourth aboard his Yamaha Canada machine, while another Kawasaki rider in David MacKay will aim to better his fifth-place finish as he returns to one of his personal best tracks in CTMP. 

The other dominant outing from round one was teenager Mackenzie Weil in the Super Sonic Lightweight Sport Bike category, who swept both races of his doubleheader to take a comfortable 39-point advantage into round two. 

The Kawasaki Ninja 400 rider will again be one of the frontrunners at his home track, though slipstream will be far more important down the long Andretti straight, a feature that has played a huge role in numerous thrilling battles over the years. 

Leading the challenge will likely be fellow Kawasaki rider Jacob Black, who narrowly settled for second in race one and was aiming for a similar result in race two before being taken out in an incident-filled weekend. Championship runner-up Jean-Francois Croteau also figures to be in the lead group once again, though the standings remain tight-knit after a wild second race in Calabogie. 

The closest of all championship battles entering CTMP is in the MotorcycleCourse.com Amateur Superbike class, where Anthony Bergeron will take a slim ten-point lead into the pivotal doubleheader aboard his BMW S1000RR. 

Bergeron entered as the odds-on title favourite and looked the part early in round one, but a poor qualifying and a four-rider battle at the front nearly derailed his weekend before he was ultimately able to hold on for a thrilling one-second victory over Guillaume Lavallee. 

Lavallee will be looking for a measure of revenge in round two aboard his Yamaha, while round one pole-sitter Julien Lafortune will be eager to make up for a difficult showing of his own for Kawasaki, though all three Quebec-born riders will lose their home-track advantage to fourth-place finisher Brad Macrae. 

Macrae will aim to “do the double” and champion both Amateur classes in 2021, but he will have his work cut out for him down the Andretti straight as he brings his lesser-powered Yamaha sport bike into the fight once more. 

That won’t be an issue for him in the Brooklin Cycle Racing Amateur Sport Bike category, however, where he will aim to hold off hometown teenager Matthew Simpson and build upon his eleven-point gap atop the standings.

Macrae was dominant at Calabogie and should be the frontrunner again in round two, especially after a harrowing crash in regional racing for Simpson, though the Bowmanville, ON native escaped major injuries and will look to continue the hot start to his Amateur career at his home circuit. 

Joining the support classes at CTMP will be the Pro Superbike feature class, who will embark on the series’ first ever tripleheader this weekend. Tickets are still available for the event, which will take place just an hour east of Toronto, ON.