Tomas Casas celebrated his third career OPP Racing Pro Supersport championship in style on Sunday, clinching the title with a dramatic victory over Mavrick Cyr in a back-and-forth race two at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
Casas needed to only finish tenth or higher on Sunday to bring home the #1 plate, but showed no interest in playing it safe as he battled fiercely with Cyr and title rival Sebastien Tremblay in an instant classic at CTMP.
The pole-sitter immediately chopped across the front of Cyr into turn one to take the early lead, fending off a pass attempt in turn five before Cyr seized the lead off the back straightaway on lap two.
Tremblay would then immediately follow his teammate through into second with a nice pass in turn ten, forming an S.T. Motosport Suzuki one-two as Casas held off a fast-starting Brad Macrae in fourth.
The lead trio would eventually clear away with Casas in comfortable position to win the championship regardless, but the 2017 and 2018 champion simply wouldn’t settle for third on the day.
Chasing a record-tying seventh victory of the year, Casas again took the lead with six laps to go before Cyr fought back in turn eight, desperately trying to help his teammate Tremblay. The two would flip-flop once again a lap later as Cyr made a lunge into turn ten, briefly allowing Tremblay into the lead himself.
Both Casas and Cyr would move back through on Tremblay before going to war once again in turn ten, as Cyr repeatedly tried to make a move stick in the tight 90-degree left hander.
Casas would lead the final lap before Cyr made one final attempt in turn ten once again, diving up the inside of the FAST Riding School Suzuki rider before Casas cut back underneath him for a final time, winning the drag-race to the line by 0.237 seconds.
It was a surprising challenge from Casas as many expected him to protect his 18-point championship lead in the finale, but the home favourite instead put a stamp on his dominant campaign with a seventh win in eight races to celebrate a third Supersport crown.
“I don’t even know where to begin. I really wanted to win this from the top of the box, but these guys pushed me to the limit,” Casas said. “I didn’t really know where round one would lead, but I owe a massive thanks to FAST Riding School who made this all possible. Without them and all my sponsors I wouldn’t be here.”
Casas will complete a whirlwind 2026, having originally planned to only race Shannonville and CTMP before a round one sweep quickly changed his plans.
It’s a difficult end to an ultra-consistent campaign for Tremblay, having stood on the podium in every single race this season. However, the two-time champion admitted he just didn’t have the pace to match Casas at even his strongest venue, hoping instead that Cyr’s attack could open the door for him.
“That was a really good battle. I’m usually very good here, but I was just struggling with some things all weekend. I couldn’t really stay with them on the back straight so I decided to let them race and just try to hang on for a miracle,” Tremblay said. “Unfortunately I couldn’t get the job done, but congrats to Tomas.”
While Cyr’s valiant effort came up just short, the 21-year-old did exit the year with an impressive second-place finish after nearly winning race one on Saturday in just his second appearance of the year.
"It’s great to be back on a podium. That was a super fun race with Tomas, congrats to him on the championship,” Mavrick said. “I tried to get it done a few times in turn ten, but he was just a bit quicker today.”
Despite their battle for the riders title, Casas and Tremblay would come together to celebrate their joint effort in the Constructors Championship, finishing as the top two contributors to Suzuki’s third consecutive trophy.
Brad Macrae capped off his best weekend of the year with another strong finish in fourth, breaking up the chain of Suzuki’s aboard his Colron Excavating Yamaha YZF-R9 after initially pressuring the leaders in the early laps.
Cole Alexander would end his terrific rookie campaign in the Supersport class with a hard-fought fifth-place, securing third in the championship aboard his French Glass Co. Suzuki after late heartbreak for Matt Simpson.
Simpson was running in fifth and would have brought home third overall for the Blackstock Motorsports Suzuki team until a visor issue forced him into the pits with just four laps to go, relegating him to tenth after he returned to the circuit.
Mackenzie Weil would salvage a crucial seventh behind Nathan Playford for the Snow City Cycle Kawasaki team, securing “best of the rest” honours in the final championship standings as the top non-Suzuki rider despite Macrae’s late surge.
Baillie Ives would celebrate his own national championship with a victory in the EBC Brakes Amateur Supersport class, winning a third consecutive race to close out the year and leapfrog longtime points leader Alexis Beaudoin.
Beaudoin entered the weekend with a slim five-point lead but saw that evaporate at CTMP with a DNF in race one, ensuring a national title for Ives if he finished inside the top-ten.
Ives would follow Casas’ blueprint however, stamping his title with a fourth victory of the year as the Nova Scotian completed his late comeback with Beaudoin struggling to a surprising seventh.
A sensational battle would unfold behind him, with Nolan Eadie eventually pulling clear of Corey James Campbell and Lachlan Alexander in a thrilling three-rider scrap for the final two podium places.
Despite missing the podium, it was a strong “big-bike” debut for Lightweight champion Alexander in fourth, the younger brother of pro rookie standout Cole.
Lachlan would find his way onto the podium in the Super Sonic Road Race School Lightweight Sportbike class, but not on his usual front step as he settled for third behind Norbert Joo and race winner Jared Walker.
Alexander’s run of top-two finishes (including seven victories) would come to a dramatic end, with just over a half-second covering the entire trio at the finish line with Walker snatching the victory in his first Lightweight race of the season.
Joo would settle for second once again after a runner-up finish in Grand Bend, while 15-year-old sensation Stefan Tanasic followed the group in fourth - notably ahead of MiniGP Canada Series organizer Toni Sharpless, where Tanasic is currently competing for a national championship in the 190cc division.
