By John Hopkins
BOWMANVILLE, Ont. – Rookie Pro Sebastien Tremblay was the sensation of qualifying for the final two rounds of the Mopar Canadian Superbike Championship at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Friday.
The 24-year-old from Longueuil, Que. grabbed the final spot on the front row with a time of 1:22.683 in Pirelli SuperPole on his MotoNation BMW S1000RR.
It was by far the best effort this year for Tremblay, who has produced consistent performances in this, his first full Pro season on the national tour.
“I didn’t think I would get on the front row,” said a beaming Tremblay shortly after his achievement. “But this has always been my favourite track and I always seem to shine here.”
Tremblay burst onto the national scene in 2009 when he finished second in the Amateur Sport Bike class and was one of the few racers able to consistently challenge eventual champion Cody Matechuk. But his Pro career has been a frustrating one. In 2010 he broke his ankle only two races into the season. Last year he made it to four of the seven races, scoring a best finish of seventh at CTMP on a Honda CBR1000RR.
Thanks to support from track day bike rental organization MotoNation, however, Tremblay has been able to mount a full campaign this season and has proven to be consistently quick. He has finished in the top 10 in all four races so far, with a best of eighth two weeks ago at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant.
“Definitely being with MotoNation has made a big difference for me,” Tremblay admitted. “They have put a lot of effort in for me this season.”
His performance on Friday at CTMP could signal a new level of competitiveness for Tremblay heading into this weekend’s doubleheader.
“I want to be up front,” he said. “I think we can definitely have the pace, maybe not to win, but to be battling for fifth place or around there.
“We will try a couple of things for tomorrow, because you are always trying to go faster. But the bike feels great.”
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