Indy Lights - Vautier Wins Three Rivers

TROIS-RIVIERES, Aug. 5, 2012: Sam Schmidt Motorsports' Tristan Vautier completed a weekend sweep of the Grand Prix of Trois Rivières with the victory on the street circuit.

Vautier was atop the time sheet in practice, started from the pole and went on to his third victory of the season.

At the drop of the green flag, Vautier was quickly swallowed up by Belardi Auto Racing's Peter Dempsey, who started fifth and made a daring move to second and took the lead all on the first lap. Dempsey maintained the point until Lap 9, when a gearbox issue forced him into the pits and out for the race.

From there, it was smooth sailing for Vautier, who maintained a fairly comfortable gap over Team Moore Racing's Gustavo Yacaman throughout the remainder of the race. Yacaman finished second after qualifying third, and Andretti Autosport's Carlos Munoz followed up his recent win in Edmonton with a third-place finish.

The win was familiar to Vautier, who also won from pole last season at the track in the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear. An obvious fan favorite because of his experience at the venue and his ability to speak fluent French, Vautier also moves back into second place in the championship battle with two races remaining.

Finishing in fourth was points leader Esteban Guerrieri, who has 383 points and a six-point lead over Vautier. Fifth was Sam Schmidt Motorsports' Oliver Webb, followed by David Ostella and Jorge Goncalvez. Victor Carbone, Sebastian Saavedra, Juan Pablo Garcia and Dempsey finished in that order after retiring from the race with mechanical issues.