Raphael Lessard: On An Accelerated Learning Curve
Martinsville, Virginia, USA, March 24th, 2019 - Raphael Lessard demonstrated his exceptional talent during his first NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck series race in his Toyota Tundra No. 46 FRL Express | Spectra Premium truck during his first visit to Martinsville Speedway yesterday (Saturday, March 23th).
Practice sessions (March 22nd)
Raphael Lessard adapted quickly on first time on the track on Friday morning's practice sessions for rookies. We could hear the exchanges between Raphael Lessard, his spotter who analyzed his driving and the truck's behaviour, and his Crew Chief who also analyzed and looked for solutions to improve the truck's handling issues, as described by the pilot. The trio was able to improve the truck and help the young driver find the correct groove enough for Raphael Lessard to set the second (2nd) quickest time of the session, and still on old tires.
"The three of us managed to greatly improve the truck during this first session, to adapt it to the cold tires and dusty track. We worked as a team from the start as we tried different shock and spring settings. I am now able to judge the effectiveness of a change in two or three laps instead of taking ten laps and wasting track time. I am now looking forward to getting into the action with the 31 other drivers at the first official test session this afternoon," said Raphael Lessard.
During the two 50-minute long practice sessions, Raphael Lessard once again demonstrated his ability to quickly learn how to manage the key variables: power, tire compound, sliding on corner exit , braking intensity and the quickest cornering trajectories, and found himself among some of the top-level drivers who unintentionally showed him how to go quicker still.
Raphael Lessard made the most of the almost two hours of testing, finishing 9th in both sessions, a result that caught everyone's attention, including Kyle Busch, the owner of his team, who is generous with his knowledge in helping the promising young driver.
Qualifying sessions (March 23rd)
Raphael Lessard's quickest lap in the first qualifying session (Q1) moved him up into the second qualifying session (Q2). His speed in Q2 was quick enough to move him up to the third qualifying session (Q3) where the starting grid for the top 12 drivers is set. "In qualifying, I went from 19th out of 32 drivers in the first session (called Q1) to 10th in Q2 out of 24 drivers, to 7th in Q3 out of 12, and therefore my position on the starting grid."
Race - March 23rd
Starting from 7th place on the grid for 250 laps on the 0.5 miles flat turnstile, in the middle of the 31 other aggressive drivers - the order is considerable for the young Canadian driver. After only 10 laps in the race, the truck's behaviour became mixed, moving from understeer on corner entrance and in the transition, to excessive oversteer on exit. Working with his spotter and crew chief, Mike Shelton, Raphael Lessard minimized the damage and kept the truck on the lead lap, finishing 14th overall.
Raphael Lessard's morale after the race is intact. "I learned a lesson from fighting with the truck: I now understand much better how to set up a truck for a race, for longer runs here and at similar short, tight or flatter tracks. We did our best during the practice, but I now have a better understanding of what I will need for any race."
Next event
Raphael Lessard will be back on track on April 6th at Bristol Motor Speedway (Tennessee, USA) for a K&N Pro Series East race.
Read the complete press release here
Photo credits: Mario Lachance RLR
