Rae Croteau Jr. – Kicks Off The 2026 Season With A Day Money Run In Grande Prairie
Photo By Shellie Scott
Under sunny skies and temperatures reaching 25°C, ideal track conditions set the stage for an outstanding opening night of racing on the 2026 WPCA Pro Tour presented by GMC. The Grande Prairie fans were treated to a thrilling night of competition, highlighted by 2010 Grande Prairie Champion Rae Croteau Jr. posting the fastest time of the evening with a clean run of 1:14.55.
Driving the Catalyst Production Systems Ltd. outfit from barrel number one in Heat 8, Croteau Jr. finished first overall on the night by just three one-hundredths of a second over permit driver Gage Flad, who turned in an impressive run from the opening heat of the evening. Chance Flad finished third overall on the night, while Dale Young and Cruise Bensmiller rounded out the top five drivers.
The top driver in the aggregate following Saturday night’s performance will earn the Ralph Vigen Memorial Award along with the use of a 2026 GMC truck for one year courtesy of Summit Fleet. The top four drivers in the aggregate standings after Saturday will advance to Sunday’s $40,000 Championship Final Heat, where the winner will collect the championship title and the 2026 Grande Prairie Stompede crown.
Day 2 of the Grande Prairie Stompede can be heard live on WPCA Radio on Thursday, May 28, beginning at 7:00 p.m. Mountain Time on 96.5 The Ranch. Fans can also listen through streaming options available at the WPCA website, iHeartRadio, and Radioplayer Canada. The Grande Prairie Stompede will also be broadcast live on the WPCA livestream at watch.wpca.com.
Billy Melville
