Nissan Micra Cup set to start second season at Calabogie

Two races are scheduled, one on Saturday and another on Sunday. This event is the first on a calendar of eight race weekends that are expected to see ambitious and passionate drivers at the wheel of the agile, affordable, and practically stock Nissan Micra race cars.

For the first time in the history of the series, the number “1” is now permitted for use by a driver and is now assigned to Olivier Bédard, the Quebec driver who joined the Albi Nissan team during the off-season.  Bédard will attempt to claim his second consecutive series championship title while competing against worthy adversaries, including: teammate Marc-Antoine Demers, who is starting his second year with the Albi team; and Xavier Coupal, the former open wheel and NASCAR driver who will be making his return to motorsports by participating in the Nissan Micra Cup. 

At the wheel of the Ici Pneu/Tireland car, Stefan Rzadzinski could very well be Bédard’s biggest rival for the title. Winner of two races last year, Rzadzinski was a front-runner all season long. The experience that a second year in the series will afford him will no doubt benefit the young driver from Edmonton, as it will Bédard and Demers.

Being a novice in the Nissan Micra Cup does not intimidate Nic Hammann, a 22-year-old Wisconsin native and the 2014 Nissan GT Academy U.S. winner. Hammann is now moving on to a new chapter in his motorsport career by participating in the Nissan Micra Cup. Regardless of being a newcomer to Canadian race tracks, Hammann is no doubt considered one of the favourites for the title.

The majority of drivers from the 2015 season will return to contest the Nissan Micra Cup this year. In addition to the drivers previously mentioned, the line-up also includes Valérie Limoges with the H.Grégoire team; Valérie Chiasson (Groupe Nissan Gabriel), whose goals will be to finish on the podium as often as possible; and Ashley Sahakian (United Autos Racing), who made her motorsport debut last year.

2016 Scoring Methodology

In total, 23 drivers are entered for the first event of the 2016 race calendar, which is a promising number given the fact that this is not one of the five mandatory events of the season. 

The mandatory events for points toward the championship are:

1. St-Eustache (June 19)
2. Canadian Tire Mosport Park (July 8-10)
3. Circuit Mont-Tremblant (July 22-24)
4. Trois-Rivières (August 12-14)
5. Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (September 2-4)

The 2016 sporting rules and regulations are as follows:

·         Those who participate in all five mandatory weekends = scores the best 12 results for their final score of the season (16 races).

·         Those who participate in four mandatory weekends = scores the best 11 results for their final score of the season.

·         Those who participate in only three mandatory weekends = scores the best 10 results for their final score of the season.

This Friday in Calabogie, drivers will be in action for four practice sessions as part of the official pre-season test day. Saturday, the qualifying session is set to start at 1:10 p.m., followed three hours later by the first of two races at 4:10 p.m. Sunday will see the drivers contest the second qualifying session at 10:25 a.m., followed by the second race at 1:15 p.m (all times EST). All track sessions for the Nissan Micra Cup last for a total of 30 minutes.

For more information on the Nissan Micra Cup, please go to: micracup.com

2016 Nissan Micra Cup Season calendar:

May 13- 15                       Calabogie Motorsports Park, Ontario

May 27-29                        Spring Classic, Circuit MOnt-Tremblant, Quebec 

June 19                           Autodrome St-Eustache, Québec

July 8 - 10                        IMSA Weekend, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario  

July 22 - 24                       Summer Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec

August 12 - 14                  Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières, Québec

September 2 - 4                NASCAR Weekend, Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario  

September 23 - 25            Fall Classic, Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Québec

About the Nissan Micra Cup: Sanctioned by Auto Sport Québec (ASQ) and presented by JD Promotion & Compétition with the support of Nissan Canada, the 2015 Nissan Micra Cup exclusively featured the stock Micra 1.6 S M/T model with minor modifications, including NISMO suspension - to render it race-ready.

Unlike most motorsport events, each competing Nissan Micra race vehicle had the exact same specifications, resulting in a competition that truly revealed the most skilled drivers. The 2015 Nissan Micra Cup race vehicles were equipped with the Nissan Micra's stock 1.6-litre DOHC 4-cylinder engine with dual fuel injection and Twin CVTC (Continuously Variable Timing Control) and stock 5-speed manual transmission. In its inaugural season, more than 25 Nissan Micras competed on each race weekend which included two hours of track time consisting of: a 30-minute trial, a 30-minute qualifying session and two 30-minute races.

Young karting drivers, the average Canadian looking for an entry point into motorsport competition, or anyone who wants to experience the rush of adrenaline inherent with racing cars are all well-suited to this series. In summary, the Nissan Micra Cup is for people who are passionate about motorsports, want to experience all the fun and thrills of racing, but without spending staggering amounts of money.

www.nissan.ca/micracup.

About Nissan North America: In North America, Nissan's operations include automotive styling, engineering, consumer and corporate financing, sales and marketing, distribution and manufacturing. Nissan is dedicated to improving the environment under the Nissan Green Program and has been recognized annually by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency as an ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year since 2010. More information on Nissan in North America and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online at www.NissanUSA.com and www.InfinitiUSA.com, or visit the U.S. media sites NissanNews.com and InfinitiNews.com.

About Nissan Motor Co.: Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan's second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 247,500 employees globally, Nissan sold 5.32 million vehicles and generated revenue of 11.38 trillion yen (USD 103.6 billion) in fiscal year 2014. Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of more than 60 models under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands. Nissan leads the world in zero-emission mobility, dominated by sales of the LEAF, the first mass-market, pure-electric vehicle. It is the best-selling EV in history with almost 50% share of the zero-emission vehicle segment. For more information on our products, services and commitment to sustainable mobility, visit our website athttp://www.nissan-global.com/EN/.

About Nissan Canada Inc.: Nissan Canada Inc. (NCI) is the Canadian sales, marketing and distribution subsidiary of Nissan Motor Limited and Nissan North America, Inc. NCI directly employs 306 full-time staff across offices in Vancouver (BC), Mississauga (ON), and Kirkland (QC). There are 191 independent Nissan dealerships, 39 Infiniti retailers and 45 Nissan Commercial Vehicle dealers across Canada. A pioneer in zero emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades including the prestigious 2011 European Car of the Year and World Car of the Year awards. More information about Nissan in Canada and the complete line of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles can be found online atwww.nissan.ca and www.infiniti.ca.

Media contacts:

Didier Marsaud/ Director, Corporate Communications- Nissan Canada // Tel: 905-629-6400 // Email: didier.marsaud@nissancanada.com

Jenn McCarthy/ Cohn & Wolfe // Tel: 647-259-3305 // Email: jennifer.mccarthy@cohnwolfe.ca