1982 Montreal - FAQ Production GT2 and GT3

A highlight for Grand Touring competitors in Quebec since 1978 was an opportunity to compete on Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend.

In 1982, the event was round two of the FAQ Production championship for GT2 and GT3 cars. However, the race attracted a large number of entries from Ontario and the Northeastern United States.

Before the championship visited Montreal, the season started with two races at Sanair during the final weekend of May. After Montreal, competitors returned to Sanair for four consecutive doubleheader events. Round seven, the penultimate contest of the year, was held on the Labour Day weekends at Trois-Rivieres. The season ended in early October at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant.

The GT2 and GT3 class cars competing in the FAQ championship were production-based sedans and sports cars. Engine displacement and performance potential were the deciding factors as to which category each make and model of vehicle would compete. GT2 was for the larger engine cars – greater than 1.3-liters but not exceeding 2.4-liters. The engine displacement for a GT3 vehicle could not exceed 1.3-liters. There were some exceptions that were addressed by carburetor restrictions or the addition of ballast.

Round two of the FAQ Production championship for GT2 and GT3 was held a Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend. Drivers would compete in a ten-lap race around the nineteen-turn 4.410-kilometer course.

Scott McColl’s racing resume includes a couple of different makes and models. In 1981, he replaced his MGB with a Datsun 710, which contributed to two victories and the FAQ GT2 Championship. In the opening round this season, at Sanair, the driver of the No. 66 Zeke’s Performance Datsun 710 collected a victory and fourth-place finish. At Montreal, McColl qualified by captured another victory after starting third.

Winning the GT3 category at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was Guy Fontaine. Fontaine, who campaigned the No. 25 Honda Civic, had a pair of fourth-place finishes in his previous trips to Montreal. He failed to start the first two races of 1982 at Sanair. It didn’t appear that his luck had changed in round two when he failed to record a qualifying time. Gridded thirty-second, Fontaine charged through the field for the victory.

Ontario region competitors were expected to challenge the Quebec drivers and contend for class victories; however, this never materialized. The best result delivered by a GT2 driver from Ontario was Brian Cullingford, who piloted the No. 11 Triumph TR7. Cullingford qualified twenty-first overall. A steady drive that included avoiding on-track incidents netted him a ninth-place finish in GT2.

Another driver from Ontario anticipated to be a threat for the GT3 class victory was Lew Mackenzie. Mackenzie drove the No. 68 Kimdora Racing MG Midget. In the qualifying session, he set the eighteenth fastest time – fourth quickest in GT3. During the race, an off-course excursion damaged the MG, but he was able to continue and finish sixteenth overall and fifth in class – the best result for an Ontario GT3 driver.

Big things were expected from the No. 82 Almost Racing Datsun 510 entered by Chris Karatzoglou. Karatzoglou was a winner of GT2 events in Ontario. He was the twentieth fastest in the qualifying session when his engine failed. Without a spare motor, Karatzoglou was unable to start the race. Other drivers from Ontario that could not participate in Sunday’s contest included Jim Best, Gary Rosewell and Drew Fesar.

The No. 94 Auto Hammer sponsored Volkswagen Rabbit of Marco Theodoli was fast but not always reliable. Theodoli ended last season with four GT2 victories, but his record also included three DNFs or DNSs. He opened 1982 with a victory and third-place finish at Sanair. Theodoli qualified fourth a Circuit Gilles Villeneuve but passes by Barry Custeau, Gerard Gervais and Andre Thibault resulted in a fifth-place finish.

POS.	START	CLASS	DRIVER	CAR	LAPS	RETIREMENTS
1	3	GT2	Scott McColl	Datsun 710	10	-
2	5	GT2	Barry Custeau	Datsun 510	10	-
3	1	GT2	Yvon Charette	Lotus Cortina	10	-
4	6	GT2	Gerard Gervais	Datsun 510	10	-
5	9	GT2	Andre Thibault	Porsche 911	10	-
6	4	GT2	Marco Theodol	VW Rabbit	10	-
7	8	GT2	Willy Lewis	Saab V4	10	-
8	16	GT2	Marco Tonci-Ottieri	VW Scirocco	10	-
9	32	GT3	Guy Fontaine	Honda Civic	10	-
10	21	GT2	Brian Cullingford	Triumph TR7	10	-
11	23	GT2	Ken Tait	MGB	10	-
12	19	GT2	Claude Giroux	MGB	10	-
13	30	GT3	Claude Houde	Mini Cooper S	10	-
14	24	GT3	Bill Brownlee	Mini Cooper S	10	-
15	28	GT3	Phil Cooper	Mini Cooper S	10	-
16	18	GT3	Lew Mackenzie	MG Midget	10	-
17	27	GT3	Andre L'Heureux	Fiat X-1/9	9	-
18	25	GT2	Lloyd Service	Fiat 124	9	-
19	36	GT3	Michael Conboy	Datsun B210	9	-
20	29	GT2	Serge Gauvin	Mercury Capri	9	-
21	2	GT2	Robert Vining	Datsun 710	9	-
22	14	GT3	Ted Phenix	Mini Cooper S	7	-
23	15	GT3	Bruce Kitchen	Datsun 1200	5	-
24	12	GT2	Daniel Pieluch	Mercury Capri	5	-
25	34	GT3	Serge Emond	Mini Cooper S	5	-
26	33	GT2	Robert Saunders	MGB	5	-
27	31	GT2	Robert Curry	BMW 2002	4	Did Not Finish
28	40	GT2	Denis Larose	Datsun 510	3	Did Not Finish
29	17	GT3	Harry Van Dinther	Datsun 1200	2	Did Not Finish
30	7	GT2	Paul Wheatley	MGB	2	Did Not Finish
31	26	GT3	Pierre Kitts	Fiat	2	Did Not Finish
32	22	GT2	Luigi Lazzari	Fiat 124	2	Did Not Finish
33	DNQ	GT2	Randy Fortey	Triumph	1	Did Not Finish
34	13	GT3	Gilles Lazure	Mini Cooper S	1	Did Not Finish
35	DNQ	GT3	Arthur H. Davis	Triumph Spitfire	1	Did Not Finish
36	11	GT2	Gilles St-Pierre	Alpine Renault	1	Did Not Finish
37	10	GT2	Wilson Southam	Ford Capri	-	Did Not Start
38	20	GT2	Chris Karatzoglou	Datsun 510	-	Did Not Start
39	35	GT2	Jim Best	Datsun 510	-	Did Not Start
40	37	GT2	Gary Rosewell	Datsun 510	-	Did Not Start
41	38	GT2	Drew Fesar	MGB	-	Did Not Start
42	39	GT3	Richard Paquette	Mini Cooper S	-	Did Not Start