July was a busy month for the #3 Raybestos/Choko Authentics NASCAR Pinty’s Series team. Hitting Circuit ICAR and Trois-Rivieres in Quebec early in the month, followed by the Honda Indy in Toronto, a jaunt out west in Wetaskiwin and Saskatoon, and then back east to Riverside in Nova Scotia, the race team has been go-go-go for weeks. Unfortunately, the hard work that has been put in to the car hasn’t been paying off on the podium. Hathaway has been putting in some amazing performances, but car issues and the odd run in with other drivers has really held him back this season.
At Circuit ICAR, Hathaway qualified in 11th place, and managed to move up and hold onto the 6th position for most of the race. However, a broken axle lost Hathaway a number of positions, and with very few cautions it just wasn’t possible to regain the lost ground. Starting out in 10th place at the Honda Indy, Hathaway again managed to move up the ranks, gaining 5th by the midpoint of the race. When he tried to overtake the 4th place car, he spun out in the corner, losing a number of places. The team went on to Wetaskiwin Speedway on the 23rd, hoping for some redemption, but a brutal hit from behind sent Hathaway into the wall and the car was sidelined on lap 103. This was a huge disappointment for the hardworking pit crew, who gave Hathaway a great car to run with for the night. At Wyant Group Speedway, Hathaway led nearly 50 of 250 laps and settled into second for the remainder, but near the end of the night his car was diagnosed with a broken axle and he was done for the night.
With just a handful of races left for the season, August and September will hopefully see some better results for the team; some payoff for the incredible work they’ve been doing all season is certainly due. You can catch all the Pinty’s Series racing action all summer long on TSN; be sure to cheer Jason on! Here’s the full race schedule for the 2016 season.Check out Jason’s full Pinty Series stats here and check out his NASCAR Home Tracks video here.
