At the advent of the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 in 2007, Ron Beauchamp Jr. was regarded as a title contender, but it never quite materialized until this year.
The first two seasons under the NASCAR banner for Beauchamp (No. 60 Mopar/Mobil 1/Exide Batteries) turned out to be an epidemic of bad luck and mechanical failures of several varieties. Factor that in with the departure of crew chief Chris Couvillion and the result was two seasons to forget.
Now, with Couvillion back in the fold, the Beauchamp camp is near the top of the points standings right where many thought they would be from the start. He sits in third place, just 45 points behind leader Andrew Ranger.
"When (Couvillion) came back last season, we hit on some things from a set-up standpoint and closed the year pretty strong," said Beauchamp. "The most important thing, I think, is our communication as a team. Everybody is on the same page and we're really gelling and that means better results."
Better results breeds higher confidence.
"I'm really confident in the car now. The last two seasons are in the past and I don't worry about that stuff," he stated. "I just run my race and I know we'll be there at the end."
In his first two NASCAR Canadian Tire Series seasons, Beauchamp had a total of five top-five finishes. He already has four this season with eight races yet to go. Another promising sign was winning his first series career pole position last week at SunValley Speedway.
Three—Edmonton, Trois-Rivieres and Montreal—of the next five events for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series come on road courses. Many short-track racers are not particularly fond of those events, but Beauchamp isn't among that group.
"I like the road courses," he said. "It's a different kind of challenge. You have to race the track more than the other cars. If your car is working right, then it's all about the driver's ability. It's a nice change of pace from the ovals."
This week, the series heads to Edmonton for the challenging 14-turn, 1.973-mile temporary road course of Rexall Speedway—a track that Beauchamp enjoys.
"The car has to turn well there or you have no chance," he said. "It's flat and it's fast. The first part is more narrow and where the car has to turn, but the back is wide open and all about horsepower and speed. It's a fun, but very challenging track."
After meeting the challenge of stepping up his game in 2009, Rexall Speedway should be a little easier to conquer for Beauchamp.
