Labbe Lassos The Field In Edmonton

If Alex Labbe wins the 2017 NASCAR Pinty’s Series championship, the trip to western Canada may prove to be the pivotal point in his season.

Labbe started from the pole position after winning the E3 Spark Plugs Pole Award earlier in the day and led three times for 216 laps en route to the win in the Luxxur 300 at Edmonton International Raceway. It was Labbe’s second win in three races on the series’ traditional western swing, and gave the St. Albert, Quebec, the points lead in Canada’s national stock car championship series.

Labbe’s No. 32 Can-Am/Kappa/Cyclops Gear/Lou’s BBQ Ford paced the field for 192 of the first 193 laps before Donald Theetge got by. Theetge and Lacroix swapped the lead four time before Labbe regained the top spot on Lap 278 just before the seventh and final caution flag of the race was flown on Lap 289.

Labbe, who had dropped back as far as fifth at one point, was able to get a good restart and hold on for his fourth win of his career and second in three days.

Cayden Lapcevich scored his third podium finish in as many races in third, with Alex Tagliani and L. P. Dumoulin rounding out the top five.

D.J. Kennington was sixth with Mark Dilley, Anthony Simone, Kevin Lacroix and Adam Martin completing the top 10.

Lacroix was running in the top five when he got together with Lapcevich, and was given a stop-and-go penalty on Lap 268 ending his chances for a win.

After the victory, Labbe now leads by 10 points (346-336) over Lacroix with five races remaining on the schedule. Lapcevich, the defending series champion, trails Labbe by 31 and is seven points ahead of both LP Dumoulin and DK Kennington.

The Luxxur 300 will be televised on TSN on Saturday, Aug. 12 at 1 p.m. ET.

The series will return to action on Sunday, Aug. 13 in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, for the running of the Le 50 Tours Can-Am.

Alex Labbe takes the checkered flag Saturday night to win the Luxxur 300 at Edmonton International Raceway. Matthew Murnaghan/NASCAR