"We are very pleased to have BRP as a partner this year," said François Dumontier, president and CEO of Octane Racing Group Inc., promoter of the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada. "To have a Québec-based manufacturer and reputed company like BRP exhibit its products and have access to their high end vehicles is certainly a great help."
BRP will further host all F1 fans at its booth, and provide an opportunity for all to have their photograph taken with the 2013 F1 Grand Prix du Canada 1st place trophy. A display of many of its products will be presented to the general public, and they will have the chance to participate in a contest. BRP will also have a special karting display, including a kart simulator, to highlight the 30th anniversary of Rotax kart engines.
"All F1 pilots started their careers on racing karts," said José Boisjoli, president and CEO. "For many, it is the ideal first step into a career in motor sports. Drivers as young as 13 years old are taking part in the Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals and gaining international racing experience in the junior class. A large number of current Formula 1 drivers started with Rotax engines; Jenson Button and Kimi Räikkönen among them.
Racing goes back a long way at BRP. We started with Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobile racing, Sea-Doo PWC World Championships, and the Grand National Cross Country series for ATVs and SSVs. It is a logical–and thrilling–step for us to participate in such a premium powersports event."
Car racing and BRP are closely linked. BRP organizes the annual Rotax MAX Challenge racing series that culminates with the Grand Finals, playing host last year in Portugal to over 275 racers from among 60 countries. The winner of these Grand Finals over the past two years were racing for Canada – Ben Cooper (2012) and Pier-Luc Ouellette (2011) – and they will both be on site during a special karting event on Friday. This year's Rotax MAX Grand Finals will be in held in New Orleans, Louisiana – the first time in North America.
Forty BRP vehicles will be circulating at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve during race weekend. Three of these, Can-Am Commander side-by-side vehicles, have been on site for three months now helping to prepare the scene for the great race.