RAPHAEL LESSARD TO PARTICIPATE IN THE LAST RACE AT ST-EUSTACHE IN LMS SERIES

Thanks to the contribution of new partners, Raphaël Lessard will once again be behind the wheel of the Toyota #46 Services GMP / Transport BGT / FRL Express on Sunday, September 22 at Autodrome Saint-Eustache. Race fans from across Quebec have raised the money for him to take part in the 200-lap LMS race in the car prepared by the Bilodeau Brothers in which Raphael Lessard drove earlier this season and added to his list of victories and also won the Triple Couronne Crown Kennebec title at the Autodrome Chaudière.

"I ran only once at Autodrome St-Eustache, in a Revstar [small Sprint Car with narrow wheels at the front and wide wheels at the rear]. I enjoyed the experience, especially running on a flat track. We will have the opportunity to test on Saturday and ensure that we have the best car on the track for the Sunday race. With several drivers who know the track very well, we will have to work very hard to achieve victory or even a podium," said Raphael Lessard.

Schedule:

• Practice: 11:15 am | 2:15 pm | 2:50 pm
• Qualifying: 3:20 pm
• Race time: 4:00 pm (200 laps)

Photo Credit: Sylvain Fournier

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.

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 drivers 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.

Highlights

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 - Competes 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 - Participates 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 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 BILODEAU BROTHERS

Founded in 2003 in the family garage in Sainte-Marie de Beauce, the Bilodeau Brothers Racing Team competed in various categories on all paved ovals in Quebec since then. The team can count on Crew Chief Germain Gosselin, who has worked for ARCA and NASCAR teams in the United States. Since 2015, the team has focused on a development program of its NASCAR Late Model cars, having achieved several podiums finishes along the way, as well as winning the ACT 2016 Rookie Championship and a first victory in 2017.

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.