The momentum atop the Bridgestone Canadian Superbike Championship turned dramatically on Friday, as Sam Guerin blitzed his way to a spectacular BS Battery Pole Position Award in qualifying at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
Guerin sat atop the provisional timesheets for majority of the final top-ten Q2 shootout, but by fine margins over Alex Dumas on a wet but drying track. Any doubt was erased in the last seconds of the session, however, as Guerin smashed his previous best with a time of 1:31.368 to earn his first career GP Bikes Pro Superbike pole position.
That would move the EFC Group BMW rider a whopping 1.655 seconds clear of Dumas, the largest recorded margin-of-pole in the modern CSBK era.
It would be especially crucial given where his title rival wound up, as points leader Ben Young crashed on his out lap and was unable to post a time in Q2, relegating him to ninth on the grid for the weekend’s doubleheader.
The incident ended Young’s run of four consecutive pole positions, though it’s entirely possible he may not have been able to beat Guerin’s blistering time anyways, as the Quebec City native looked to be on another level in the damp conditions.
“It’s amazing, it feels incredible. I love riding on a wet track, and it’s easier when I have all this amazing support,” Guerin said. “The championship is far from over, and I’m going to fight until the very last day.”
The result is a pivotal one for the title battle for multiple reasons, as Guerin will take four points out of Young to cut his deficit to 36 points and will also start eight positions ahead of him on Saturday and Sunday.
A win is anything but certain, however, as Dumas continued to look strong aboard the Economy Lube Ducati on Friday. The 2021 champion was just 0.3 seconds behind Guerin until his late flyer, and was unofficially clocked as the rider to beat in dry running on Thursday – similar conditions to the clear weather on Saturday’s forecast.
Completing the front row will be Trevor Daley, who enjoyed an excellent day of qualifying after snatching a maiden pole of his own in Economy Lube Pro Sport Bike earlier in the day.
Daley put in a handful of late improvements aboard his OneSpeed Suzuki to leapfrog Jordan Szoke but couldn’t quite displace Dumas, though he will still have an excellent shot at a second career Superbike win from the end of row one this weekend.
Szoke would take fourth as he leads off row two for CKM Kawasaki, a strong effort but one that could have been far better after he reportedly ran out of fuel during his best flying lap late in the session.
Centering the second row will be David MacKay, who nearly missed out on Q2 before saving himself with a late improvement and ultimately carrying that momentum into the final session aboard his Snow City Cycle Honda.
The same was true for Tomas Casas in sixth, who needed a late flyer to lift himself out of Q1 but then turned in a strong Q2 performance to complete the second row, with the top six positions each representing a different manufacturer.
Torin Collins’ return to the series will see him start seventh, a solid result as he comes to grips with his new Economy Lube/CKM Kawasaki at an unfamiliar venue.
Former Amateur champion Julien Lafortune turned heads in his return to the paddock, earning a career best eighth on the grid for SpeedFactory67 Kawasaki in his first national action since CTMP one year ago.
Young will complete the third row for Van Dolder’s Home Team BMW by virtue of topping Q1, as Brian Worsdall also crashed on his out lap of Q2 which means both riders will revert to their Q1 times to determine who starts ninth and tenth.
Worsdall made the most of his final lap in Q1, though, jumping four spots as he took the chequered flag aboard his Mot’s Machining Honda to dislodge Connor Campbell.
Campbell will thus start eleventh for B&T MacFarlane/Kubota Kawasaki, a disappointing result for the Brooklin Cycle Racing Pro Rookie of the Year leader after he gambled that his time would hold up in the final minutes.
Notably absent from the front five rows will be wildcard Charles Aubrie, who qualified 16th out of 30 entries for Turcotte Performance Kawasaki. The European Moto2 rider didn’t look entirely comfortable in his first day at CTMP, but will hope dryer conditions on Saturday can help him climb the order in his CSBK debut.
Guerin’s qualifying success will also see him leapfrog Szoke for second in the season-long BS Battery Pole Position Award standings, though Young already clinched the award last time out at AMP.
The feature class is expected to kick off their doubleheader on Saturday at roughly 3 pm ET, just an hour east of Toronto at CTMP.
Full results can be found on the series’ official website.
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