By: Raphaël Lessard Racing
June 16 2019 

Newton, Iowa – Raphael Lessard, driving the #17 Réseau dynamique | FRL Express truck, was on track today at the Iowa Speedway oval for the "M&M's 200 Presented by Casey's General Store" race. This 200-lap event was scheduled to take place yesterday (Saturday, June 15), but rain caused the cancellation of the qualifying session. As a result, the race grid was established according to the owner's points standings so far this season in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Series, and the race was rescheduled to start at noon on Sunday. After setting the 3rd and 2nd best times in the practice sessions, this situation did not help Raphael Lessard and the DGR-Crosley team. With a great performance - Thirteenth at the start and ninth at the finish - the young driver once again made the truck look better, showcased his incredible talent and growing maturity as a driver.

“I got along very well with the team members; communication was easy. In the race, I gave it all!” says the driver of the #17 Réseau dynamique | FRL Express truck. "Tires wear quickly on this track, and the truck was very quick on new tires, but the understeer came back after 15 to 20 laps. The team tried all kinds of adjustments to correct it and it cost us precious seconds during pit stops. I was very patient at each restart and it paid off. At the end, the truck performed a little better in the last few laps of the race. In fact, we had some great battles with the other drivers, and it was fun," explained Raphael Lessard, happy with his flawless performance.

Saturday, June 15

Team #17 Réseau dynamique | FRL Express made several changes to the suspension settings, especially to correct the understeer that was present right from the start. The times achieved during the two practice sessions kept on improving, hinting at a top-5 grid position until the rains came and messed things up.

“I have learned a lot since the beginning of the season, and it continues with each race. Thanks to my partners, to Réseau Dynamique and all the people who have supported us since the beginning. All this is thanks to you," said Raphael Lessard.

Upcoming events: June 29 - Autodrome Chaudière - NASCAR Pinty's and NASCAR Late Model Series

Results: https://www.nascar.com/results/race_center/2019/gander-outdoors-truck-series/mms-200-presented-by-caseys-general-store

2019 SEASON

ABOUT RAPHAEL LESSARD

Born on July 5, 2001, in Saint-Joseph-de-Beauce, Quebec, Canada, Raphael Lessard is one of the most promising prospects in North American oval racing. Raphael made his debut in stock-cars in 2013, on local tracks in the Quebec City area. His exceptional talent quickly allowed him to climb the ladder and attract the attention of David Gilliland, a former NASCAR Monster Energy Series driver and now a team owner, in 2015. An agreement then allowed Lessard to participate in the last four races of the season in the PASS North Tour Series; a Late Model series on paved ovals, at the wheel of a David Gilliland Racing team car.

In 2016, his first full-time season with Gilliland Racing, Lessard won the CARS Super Late Model Tour title with four wins, 8 top five and 9 top ten in his No. 99 Toyota Camry, and thus becoming the youngest Canadian driver to win a major stock car series title in the United States. Since 2016, Lessard has been part of the Toyota Racing Development (TRD) prestigious driver development program. To date, he is the only Canadian to have been recruited into this program.

2018 - 16 races - Super Late Model with Kyle Busch Motorsports

· Two wins, seven top-5s and 13 top-10s

· Wins the U.S. Short Track Nationals race at Bristol Motor Speedway

· Wins the Red Bull 400 at Anderson Speedway

· Leads 60 laps at the famous Snowball Derby in December, before a mechanical problem puts him out of the race with only six (6) laps to go.

2017 - Competed in 20 Super Late Model races and two ARCA series races

· Two wins and eight top-5 finishes in the Super Late Model category

· A top-10 from two races in the ARCA series

· Voted the most popular driver in North America by Speed51.com

· Voted as one of the top 10 drivers to watch in 2017 by Speed51.com

· Named by Speed51.com Short Track Power Ranking as 7th best driver in the United States

2016 - Participated in 10 races

· CARS Super Late Model Series Champion

· Youngest Canadian driver to win a prestigious stock-car series in the United States

· Four wins, eight top-5s and nine top-10s in 10 races

ABOUT RÉSEAU DYNAMIQUE

Working in the industry for more than 50 years, the Réseau Dynamique is a consortium of dealers and associates for the sale of International and Isuzu heavy trucks brand. We also offer after-sales service and the sale of parts related to these brands. We are proud of all our employees, because without them we would not be where we are today.

ABOUT FRL EXPRESS Inc.

F.R.L. Express Inc. is a general transportation company founded in 2004 by François Lessard. Its main field of activity over the last 15 years is general transport in closed trailers over short and long distances in Canada and the United States. FRL currently have about 50 employees in addition to about ten tow carriers. FRL owners are proud of the progress made in recent years thanks to the FRL team members and wishes to continue on this positive note. “Our employees, customer service and satisfaction are our priorities. We are all proud to be partners in the success and achievements of our son Raphael Lessard,” state the proud parents.

ABOUT DGR-CROSLEY

DGR-Crosley is a race team owned by NASCAR veteran David Gilliland and Crosley Brands CEO, Bo LeMastus. The team specializes in driver development, competing full-time in the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series, NASCAR K&N Pro Series and CARS Tour, as well running select ARCA Menards Series and late model races with factory support from Toyota. In its first year of operation, DGR-Crosley won 7 of 14 K&N East races, securing a Driver and Owner Championship. The team operates out of two buildings totaling 55,000 square feet in Mooresville, N.C.

ABOUT TOYOTA

Toyota (NYSE:TM), creator of the Prius hybrid and the Mirai fuel cell vehicle, is committed to building vehicles for the way people live through our Toyota and Lexus brands. Over the past 60 years, we've built more than 30 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the U.S.) and directly employ more than 44,000 people (more than 34,000 in the U.S.). Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold nearly 2.6 million cars and trucks (2.45 million in the U.S.) in 2016 - and about 85 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 15 years are still on the road today.