2004 Trois-Rivieres - GTU or GTO

Three of the closed wheel categories the Federation Auto Quebec was responsible for administering during the 2004 Quebec road racing season were Touring, Sedan GTU and Sedan GTO.

Touring – This category is for production-based vehicles manufactured within the last twelve years. The cars are powered by four or six-cylinder engines with a maximum displacement of 2.8-liters. Motors can be modified turbochargers or superchargers are not allowed. Engines are used to determine the weight of a vehicle. Brakes must retain their original location and the anti-lock must be disconnected. No alterations to the bodywork are permitted. Original bumpers and dashboard cannot be replaced, but a rear wing may be added. For safety reasons, all vehicles must be equipped with a roll cage, five-point seatbelts, window net, fire extinguishing system and fuel cell. The series is sponsored by Hankook tires and all competitors are required to use the brand.
Sedan – This group is split into two classes as determined by the vehicle’s engine displacement.
- Sedan GTU – under three-liter engines which must be normally aspirated
- Sedan GTO – over three-liter engines which are permitted to use a turbocharger or supercharger
Unlike the Touring category, there are very few restrictions. There is no weight limit; modifications are allowed to the engine, transmission, suspension and bodywork. However, like the Touring class, there are similar safety requirements.

The GT Championship of Quebec’s season kicks off at Autodrome St-Eustache in early May. This is followed by a race weekend in June at Sanair. Then it is back to Autodrome St-Eustache for round three. Next is the highlight of the season, a stop at Le Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres. Then teams make their second visit Sanair. The final weekend is a doubleheader held at Le Circuit Mont-Tremblant at the end of September.

Round four of the 2004 GT Championship of Quebec was held at the eleven-turn 1.5-mile temporary street circuit at Trois-Rivieres, Quebec.

Open-wheel racer, Marc-Antoine Camirand, was quickly becoming a legend on the temporary street circuit at Trois-Rivieres. It appeared that Camirand could win driving almost any make of car in any class. He added to that belief in the GT race. During the dry qualifying session, he was third fastest in the No. 196 BMW Z3 Coupe SC. It rained on race day and Camirand moved into the lead early for the victory.

Keeping Marc-Antoine Camirand honest was GTU competitor Fernando Scattolin. This was Scattolin’s first event of the 2004 season, but he was fast and qualified sixth overall and first in his class. The driver of the No. 9 Carlosport Porsche 911 demonstrated his talent in the rain. At the checkered flag, Scattolin won his category and finished second overall – 1.308-seconds behind the overall winner, Camirand.

Ontario’s Normand Guindon drove the No. 07 Powell Motorsports prepared Chevrolet Corvette Z06. The GTO competitor had only entered one event this season, round two at Sanair, but was victorious by a one-lap margin. A Trois-Rivieres, Guindon was fifth fastest in the qualifying session. During the race, the damp conditions appeared to agree with him as he finished fourth overall and second in class.

GT Championship of Quebec rules are written so that cars prepared for the Hankook Touring series can participate in the GTU category. However, the Touring drivers would be at a disadvantage. But, in racing, ‘rain can be the great equalizer’ and Claude Rheault proved the case. Rheault started thirteenth overall, but his front-wheel-drive Honda Del Sol worked well in the rain and he finished third.

Qualifying on the overall and GTO pole for round four of the GT Championship of Quebec at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivieres was Jacques Guenette. Guenette was piloting the very powerful No. 7 XEMIS prepared Porsche 935. Unfortunately, Guenette and the Porsche only lasted eight laps before he retired with a gearbox issue. He was classified thirtieth overall in a field of thirty-four starters.

Louis-Charles Cadieux’s season was not off to a good start. Cadieux’s first race of the season was round two at Sanair, where he failed to start the event. Next up was race three at Autodrome St-Eustache; he started the contest but retired before the half-way point. At Trois-Rivieres, Cadieux redeemed himself. He qualified eleventh overall in the No. 11 Technocraft Volkswagen Rabbit GTi and finished third in the GTU category.

FINISH	CLASS	DRIVER	CAR	LAPS	RETIREMENTS
1	GTO	Marc-Antoine Camirand	BMW Z3 Coupe SC	19	-
2	GTU	Fernando Scattolin	Porsche 911	19	-
3	GTU	Claude Rheault	Honda Del Sol	19	-
4	GTO	Normand Guindon	Chevrolet Corvette Z06	19	-
5	GTU	Louis-Charles Cadieux	Volkswagen Rabbit GTi	19	-
6	GTO	Rejean Vincent	Chevrolet Camaro SS	19	-
7	GTU	Jocelyn Hebert	Acura Integra Type R	19	-
8	GTO	Bertrand Plouffe	BMW	18	-
9	GTU	Alexandre Brosseau	BMW 323i	18	-
10	GTO	Fernand Leblanc	Porsche 911 Turbo	18	-
11	GTU	Serge Lapointe	Volkswagen Jetta GTX	18	-
12	GTU	Jean-Marc Alcaraz	BMW M3	18	-
13	GTO	Paul Bissonnette	Ford Mustang GT	18	-
14	GTU	Jacques Dehaie	Hyundai Accent	18	-
15	GTU	Pascal Bastien	Honda Prelude	18	-
16	GTU	Jean-Francois Marchand	Volkswagen Corrado	18	-
17	GTU	Eric St-Gelais	Ford Focus ZX3	18	-
18	GTU	Roberto Guerra	Honda Civic	18	-
19	GTU	Pascal Haman	Dodge Omni	18	-
20	GTU	Hugo Vadeboncoeur	Honda Civic	18	-
21	GTU	Vincent Consentino	Volkswagen Scirocco	18	-
22	GTU	Louis-Sebastien Dubord	Volkswagen Golf GTi VR6	18	-
23	GTU	Stephane Vachon	Honda CRX	18	-
24	GTU	Yves Levesque	Honda Civic	17	-
25	GTU	Emmanuel Boivin-Moreau	Honda Civic	17	-
26	GTU	George Moutafis	BMW 330i	17	-
27	GTU	Pascal Bellemare	Volkswagen Rabbit	17	-
28	GTU	Carl Nadeau	Toyota Echo	16	-
29	GTO	Jimmy Briere	Ford Mustang	14	Did Not Finish
30	GTO	Jacques Guenette	Porsche 935	8	Did Not Finish
31	GTU	Benoit Martin	Hyundai Tiburon	7	Did Not Finish
32	GTU	Jean-Philippe Papineau	VW Beetle	3	Did Not Finish
33	GTU	Etienne Borgeat	Honda CRX	1	Did Not Finish
34	GTU	Steven Leblanc	Honda Civic	1	Did Not Finish
-	GTO	Jacques Villeneuve	Porsche 935	-	Did Not Start
-	GTO	Jean-Sebastien Lafleur	Ford Mustang	-	Did Not Start
-	GTU	Michel Fournie	Porsche 944	-	Did Not Start

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