Tagliani on pole at Trois-Rivières

Alex Tagliani

Alex Tagliani set a series track record and won the pole position in NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 qualifying for Sunday afternoon's GP3R 100 at the Grand Prix de Trois-Rivières.

Tagliani, a native of Lachenaie, Que., posted a series-record lap time of 68.374 seconds in group qualifying on the 10-turn, 1.53-mile Circuit de Trois-Rivières for an average speed of 80.557 mph as he and DJ Kennington exchanged the top spot on consecutive laps at one point during their 10-minute qualifying session. Kennington's fastest lap was timed at 68.712 seconds (80.161 mph).

It was Tagliani's first series career pole as he bettered JR Fitzpatrick's record of 68.446 seconds (80.472 mph) set a year ago.

“It's really a tribute to my crew," said Tagliani. “They have not had a lot of time with the car, but they certainly gave me a fast one that turns pretty good."

The second row will consist of current point standings leader Andrew Ranger, who posted a time of 69.012 seconds (79.812 mph) and Anthony Simone with a time of 69.074 seconds (79.741 mph).

Jacques Villeneuve, former Formula One and Indy 500 champion, will start from the fifth position after posting a time of 69.142 seconds (79.662 mph).

Don Thomson Jr., Scott Steckly, Ron Beauchamp Jr., Trevor Seibert and Mark Dilley rounded out the top-10 qualifiers.

The GP3R 100 is set to get underway on Sunday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. ET.