[media-credit name=”Perry Nelson/NASCAR” align=”alignright” width=”350″]
[/media-credit]For the second time this year, J.R. Fitzpatrick will lead the field to the green flag. The first time was earlier this year in June after qualifying was rained out at Circuit ICAR. The second time will be later tonight after he won the pole with a new track record for the Velocity Prarie Thunder presented by Bayer Crop Science at Auto Clearing Speedway.
The Cambridge, Ontario native drove the .333 mile-oval in 14.655 seconds in his No. 84 Equipment Express Chevrolet. The previous track record was 14.668 seconds, set by D.J. Kennington last year. It marks the eighth pole for Fitzpatrick in 61 starts.
Fitzpatrick had led final practice earlier in the day with a lap of 14.716 seconds. The driver who sits fourth in points is looking for his second win of the year after winning the season opener at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.
Mark Dilley was second with a lap of 14.719 seconds after leading the opening practice, followed by Martin Roy and Nathan Weenk. Points leader D.J. Kennington rounded out the top five as he looks for his fifth straight victory in a row in the series.
Ron Beauchamp Jr. qualified sixth, followed by Scott Steckly, Andrew Ranger, Jason Hathaway and Trevor Seibert.
The 250-lap Velocity Prarie Thunder is set to begin Wednesday night at 8:15 p.m. MT.
NCATS Saskatoon 7/25/12 Qualifying
| POS | CAR | DRIVER | TEAM | TIME | SPEED |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 84 | J.R. Fitzpatrick, Cambridge, Ont. | Equipment Express Chevrolet | 14.655 | 81.801 |
| 2 | 02 | Mark Dilley, Barrie, Ont. | Leland/BDI/PartSource Ford | 14.719 | 81.446 |
| 3 | 90 | Martin Roy, Napierville, Que * | Veloce/Battery Expert Dodge | 14.802 | 80.989 |
| 4 | 48 | Nathan Weenk, Lethbridge, Alta. | Mid West Combustion Chevrolet | 14.809 | 80.951 |
| 5 | 17 | D.J. Kennington, St. Thomas, Ont. | Castrol Edge/Mahindra Tractors Dodge | 14.826 | 80.858 |
| 6 | 60 | Ron Beauchamp, Jr., Windsor, Ont. | Mopar/Exide/Mobil 1 Dodge | 14.862 | 80.662 |
| 7 | 22 | Scott Steckly, Milverton, Ont. | Canadian Tire Dodge | 14.886 | 80.532 |
| 8 | 27 | Andrew Ranger, Roxton Pond, Que. | Pizza 73/GC Motorsports Dodge | 14.902 | 80.446 |
| 9 | 3 | Jason Hathaway, Dutton, Ont. | Snap-on Tools/Rockstar/Vortex Dodge | 14.946 | 80.209 |
| 10 | 69 | Trevor Seibert, Williams Lake, B.C. | Lake Excavating Dodge | 14.972 | 80.069 |
| 11 | 47 | L.P. Dumoulin, Trois-Rivieres, Que. | WeatherTech Canada/Bellemare Dodge | 14.978 | 80.037 |
| 12 | 24 | Jim White, Kamloops, B.C. | AW Millwrights/New Life Feeds Dodge | 15.017 | 79.830 |
| 13 | 46 | Dan Shirley, Saskatoon, Sask. * | Saskatoon Co-op/Turtle Wax Chevrolet | 15.075 | 79.522 |
| 14 | 51 | Nick Jewell, The Pas, Man. * | Prairie Dodge Dealers/Sikkens Dodge | 15.120 | 79.286 |
| 15 | 33 | Bob De Lorme, Calgary, Alta. * | Deerfoot Mechanical Chevrolet | 15.154 | 79.108 |
| 16 | 11 | Mike Scholz, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. * | Jiffy Car Wash/Watchfinder.ca Chevrolet | 15.157 | 79.092 |
| 17 | 09 | Ryley Seibert, Williams Lake, B.C. * | Lake Excavating Ford | 15.228 | 78.723 |
| 18 | 5 | Noel Dowler, Sherwood Park, Alta. | EMCO-Kohler/Rheem Dodge | 15.250 | 78.610 |
| 19 | 14 | James Van Domselaar, Ft. Saskatchewan, Alta. | Steel-Craft Door Products Chevrolet | 15.269 | 78.512 |
| 20 | 21 | Jason White, Sun Peaks, B.C. | A&W/Bower&Wilkins Dodge | 15.326 | 78.220 |
| 21 | 49 | Jason Hankewich, Kindersley, Sask. * | Hankewich Motorsports Dodge | 15.419 | 77.748 |
| 22 | 44 | Jarrad Whissell, Calgary, Alta. | SMS Equipment/Komatsu Ford | No Time |
