Alex Labbé, the defending champion of the NASCAR Pinty’s Series in Canada, will compete full-time in the Xfinity Series this season.
The native of St. Albert, Quebec, will drive a Can-Am sponsored car owned by DGM Racing, which is operated by fellow Canadian Mario Gosselin.
The news was first reported by Le Journal de Montreal.
Can-Am sponsored Labbé in NASCAR’s Canadian series, where he drove for GoFas Racing and won six races the last two seasons, including five in his championship campaign. He earned 11 top fives and 12 top 10s last season.
Labbé, 24, has three Xfinity starts since 2016, all coming in a car owned by Gosselin. His best finish was 23rd in the fall 2016 race at Phoenix.
He will race at Daytona International Speedway for the first time when the series opens there on Feb. 17.
Labbé took part in an ARCA Racing Series test at Daytona in January to gain experience on the track.
The team’s cars will be built by Richard Childress Racing and prepared by Gosselin at a shop in Lake Wales, Florida.
It’s finally official, I will be running the entire 2018 @NASCAR_Xfinity Championship!! 😃🏁 https://t.co/V1kUFHYYFj
— Alex Labbe (@AlexLabbe36) February 8, 2018