Zacharie Robichon captured the Al Craighead Can-Am Cup for BGR Team Grote at Canadian Motorsport Park.
BGR Team Grote won the prestigious Can Am Cup for the second consecutive year, in the closest finish in Toyo Tires F1600 history. It also marks the first win for the new Piper DL7/Honda in only its second event. Zacharie Robichon, in his second year of driving, became the latest winner of the newly re-dedicated Can Am Cup trophy which is now known as the Al Craighead F1600 Can Am Cup. Al was on hand to present the beautiful trophy and was the Grand Marshall for the annual event. The race saw 27 drivers lined up and it was a typical F1600 battle that came down to the line, literally! By a mere .001 of a second, Zacharie came away with the biggest win of his young career.
The BGR team had three cars running, with the addition of alumni Jesse Lazare piloting the second Piper DL7/Honda and regular driver Bruno Chapinotti aboard his Piper DF5/Honda. At the end of the promoter test day Zach paced the field, with Bruno and Jesse right there as well, things looked promising for the weekend. On Saturday, Bruno had an off in qualifying and damaged his car but the BGR squad turned it around and had him back out for the race. Bruno drove from the back to 14th overall and 10th in the A class driving a conservative race as he was focused on finishing and getting prepared for the second race of the double header. Jesse from the start had an issue with the car having less than optimal power. After qualifying during tech, a sensor that was checked was unplugged and unfortunately left that way for the race which made the motor run in a fail-safe mode.
"I am so happy for Zach and proud of what our team has accomplished with a brand new car that we are still learning. The new Piper DL7/Honda is not only a great looking car but also a winner, and we are barely scratching the surface of what we will believe will be the car to beat in 2015 and beyond. I am very disappointed that we let Jesse down with an unforced error and I take full responsibility for that, as our series tech inspectors are great to work with" states team owner Brian Graham. "Bruno had a tough day, especially after such a great test day where he set the 2nd fastest lap of the day behind Zach. He did well to get back into it even though the results were not truly indicative of his pace."
The second half of the double header would once again provide a close battle for the lead with Zach in a four car battle from his front row starting spot. Zach was in it right to the end as lapped traffic played spoiler on the final lap. He wound up with a 4th place finish, with the top four separated by 1.5 seconds. Bruno had a solid race embroiled in a heated battle for the 5th spot as a pack of five cars fought the entire race. He ended up in 7th place, to wrap up his first year in the F1600 class. Technical problems kept Jesse from taking the green flag.
"We are very excited to finally get some racing miles in with our new cars and looking forward to a very competitive 2015. Two more DL7/Honda's will be arriving later this year and we will be fully back up to speed for next year's championships. To end our season, our focus changes to Mont Tremblant where we will be running our three Pipers in the Formula Tour 1600 Series finale, as we plan a full campaign in both series next year. It will be Bruno and Zach's first time at this track, so we have lots to learn. I am confident they are up to the task." comments Brian Graham.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Al Craighead for all he has done over the years, for not only the F1600 ranks but his absolute dedication to Junior Formula Car Racing. It was an absolute honor, to have our team win the Al Craighead Can Am Cup. A big thank you to Move Motorsports and their entire staff, for providing the racers and teams with a great place to race.
Going into the fall, there is little time to rest as the team continues to be busy preparing for the Fall Classic at Mont Tremblant and some private testing. The team is proud to be also participating in the CASC/Move Motorsports initiative program Karts to Cars. To find out more about that program visit http://www.casc.on.ca/casc-or/register-now-karts-cars-driver-development-program.
As the winner of "Rookie of the Year" seven times, BGR Team Grote has put more drivers in the winner's circle than any other team in OFFC history and continues to strive to provide the perfect environment for karters to make the transition to the open wheel ranks.
To learn more about the team visit www.briangrahamracing.com or follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/144083092268782/
For private testing opportunities, please contact Brian Graham at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.