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Canadian Ron Fellows will drive the No. 5 Canadian Tire Chevrolet for JR Motorsports at the NAPA Auto Parts 200 in Montreal August 17-18.
Fellows is a vastly experienced road racer, having competed for years in the Trans-Am series and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Fellows also won the rain shortened Montreal Nationwide race in 2008.
The Windsor native contested the Road America round of the Nationwide series earlier this summer.
“We had a strong car at Road America. It's the same chassis we used last year, as well. We played catch-up that day following a flat tire, then we had an issue in the pits just trying to fix some radios,” Fellow said about the race.
He will compete in the Zippo 200 race this weekend at Watkins Glen. “We've had great success at the Glen. It's a track that suits my driving style. Yeah, it's like a second home. I rally enjoy racing there,” Fellows declared.
Then, the Nationwide series' competitors will tackle the Gilles Villeneuve circuit.
“The two tracks are so different. It's kind of like comparing a mile-and-a-half speedway to Martinsville,” Fellows explained.
“Watkins Glen is long, fast corners. I think the minimum corner speed in Turn 1 is probably 90 miles an hour, is upwards of one of the fastest corners in Montreal. The Gilles Villeneuve track is heavy, heavy braking from high speed for 45 mile-an-hour chicanes, and a 35 mile-an-hour hairpin.
“It also is a very different set-up. You need to have, for Watkins Glen, a very stable platform. Aero is critical. Montreal, low speed to aero is not much of a factor, it's more about mechanical grip, and that means getting as much load into the tire. That generally requires a much softer spring package, softer roll bars, getting a lot more compliance from the shocks,” the Canadian added.
In Montreal, Fellows will face stiff competition from the local road racers, including the 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve.
“Yeah, I think typically in Montreal you got the strong French-Canadian contingent, the successful open-wheel guys, as well as Andrew Ranger, Jacques (Villeneuve), Alex Tagliani, (Patrick) Carpentier. I'm sort of the lone wolf from Ontario. I'll do my best to I guess maybe interrupt the celebrations there a little bit!” Fellows concluded.
Fellows is a vastly experienced road racer, having competed for years in the Trans-Am series and at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Fellows also won the rain shortened Montreal Nationwide race in 2008.
The Windsor native contested the Road America round of the Nationwide series earlier this summer.
“We had a strong car at Road America. It's the same chassis we used last year, as well. We played catch-up that day following a flat tire, then we had an issue in the pits just trying to fix some radios,” Fellow said about the race.
He will compete in the Zippo 200 race this weekend at Watkins Glen. “We've had great success at the Glen. It's a track that suits my driving style. Yeah, it's like a second home. I rally enjoy racing there,” Fellows declared.
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| Ron Fellows. (Photo: Getty Images/NASCAR) |
Then, the Nationwide series' competitors will tackle the Gilles Villeneuve circuit.
“The two tracks are so different. It's kind of like comparing a mile-and-a-half speedway to Martinsville,” Fellows explained.
“Watkins Glen is long, fast corners. I think the minimum corner speed in Turn 1 is probably 90 miles an hour, is upwards of one of the fastest corners in Montreal. The Gilles Villeneuve track is heavy, heavy braking from high speed for 45 mile-an-hour chicanes, and a 35 mile-an-hour hairpin.
“It also is a very different set-up. You need to have, for Watkins Glen, a very stable platform. Aero is critical. Montreal, low speed to aero is not much of a factor, it's more about mechanical grip, and that means getting as much load into the tire. That generally requires a much softer spring package, softer roll bars, getting a lot more compliance from the shocks,” the Canadian added.
In Montreal, Fellows will face stiff competition from the local road racers, including the 1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve.
“Yeah, I think typically in Montreal you got the strong French-Canadian contingent, the successful open-wheel guys, as well as Andrew Ranger, Jacques (Villeneuve), Alex Tagliani, (Patrick) Carpentier. I'm sort of the lone wolf from Ontario. I'll do my best to I guess maybe interrupt the celebrations there a little bit!” Fellows concluded.