Alex Tagliani Ready to Roll in the Three Western Canada NASCAR Pinty's Oval Track Races 21.07.2019: Alex Tagliani is ready and confident as the NASCAR Pinty's Series embarks on its annual Western Swing for two full-point's races in Saskatoon, followed by a 300-lap feature event in Edmonton. Tag will have to fight hard to the finish to gain valuable poin

Alex Tagliani is ready and confident as the NASCAR Pinty's Series embarks on its annual Western Swing for two full-point's races in Saskatoon, followed by a 300-lap feature event in Edmonton. Tag will have to fight hard to the finish to gain valuable points in Rounds 5 and 6 of the Velocity Prairie Thunder Twin 125s feature races at Wyant Group Raceway on Wednesday, July 24.



He will then have to follow through with a strong performance in the LUXXUR 300 at Edmonton International Raceway on Saturday July 27, if he really wants to close the gap to current points leader Andrew Ranger.



In Saskatoon, Alex will be looking to score his first-ever win on the 0.333-mile progressive banking oval track. In seven Saskatoon NASCAR races dating back to 2014, Tagliani has three top five finishes with a best third place in last year's first 125-lap sprint.



To succeed in Saskatoon, Tag has to qualify his Team 22 Racing #18 EpiPen-RONA/St Hubert Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 up front in order to avoid the often-wild mid-pack melee green flag start and the many possible race restarts. Nine of the 12 previous winners in Saskatoon qualified in the top five.



 "As we've seen in the past, the outcome of the Western Swing can be a deciding factor in the championship race because we run three full points races in four days," said Tagliani.


"That's almost a quarter of the races of the 2019 Pinty's schedule. Right now, the title chase is wide open because the season is still very young with only four races completed. That being said, the first two races in Saskatoon are crucial because a maximum of 96 points is available to the driver winning both 125-lap races the same evening.




The important thing is to play it tight in the first race, but still go for a top finish but not at the expense of damaging the car and jeopardizing any chance of success for the second sprint which is scheduled to start about one hour after the end of the first race.



 "We hope to capitalize on our momentum because Team 22 Racing has been hard at work improving the performances of the Chevrolet EpiPen/RONA/St Hubert/Spectra Premium oval track program. The trip out west is also a chance for me to renew with an old acquaintance, Colin Livingston, the owner of tool manufacturer CanTorque of Edmonton, which also happens to be an associate sponsor of the #18 car. CanTorque has invested a lot over the last few years to develop and create high quality specialty tools.




 "And if the sweltering heat announced for the Canadian Prairies in late July lingered on, we're not worried. The number 18 car is equipped with a Spectra Premium high-performance radiator, which does a great job under these conditions," concluded the 2019 NASCAR Toronto winner.




On Saturday, Alex, along with teammate Marc-Antoine Camirand and fellow competitor Louis-Philippe Dumoulin met with Montreal Alouettes players prior to their game against the visiting Edmonton Eskimos. The participation of three of Quebec top NASCAR Pinty's racing stars prior to the game was to promote the upcoming Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières the weekend of August 11.




In the driver standings after four races, Andrew Ranger leads the pack with 174 points, two ahead of Kevin Lacroix. Alex Tagliani is third, fourteen points back with 160. Defending series champion Louis-Philippe Dumoulin is fourth with 152, followed by D.J. Kennington with 140 points.




TSN and TSN Direct subscribers can watch all NASCAR Pinty's Series races live on TSN.ca and the TSN app. The first race of the Velocity Prairie Thunder Twin 125s at Wyant Group Raceway will be streamed live on the TSN.ca and the TSN app on Wednesday, July 24 starting at 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time, 10:30 Eastern Time. Fans in the United States can watch all races live on FansChoice.tv.






Max d'Orsonnens- photos Nascar, Tagliani Autosport