FItzpatrick edges defending champ Ranger to win NASCAR Canadian Tire event

Andrew Ranger of Roxton Pond, seen in this 2011 CP file photo, didn't quite have the oomph to overtake J.R. Fitzpatrick Saturday in Montreal.

MONTREAL - J.R. Fitzpatrick held off Andrew Ranger throughout an incident-filled NAPA Autopro 100 to win the NASCAR Canadian Tire series race Saturday at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The scheduled 23-lap event was declared over after only 22 laps due to a crash far away from the heated battle at the front of the grid.

That did not please either of the top two.

"For me, it's ridiculous to finish like that," said Ranger, the defending champion from Roxton Pond, Que. "It upset the fans in the stands."

"Even though it played in our favour, I'm disappointed in the way the race ended," said Fitzpatrick, the Ayr, Ont., native who won the event in 2009 and 2010. "I don't know what would have happened or who would have won, but it would have been exciting."

Ranger was glued to Fitzpatrick's bumper through the final laps, waiting for a chance to pass that the leader would not concede. It was Fitzpatrick's second race win of the year.