BOWMANVILLE, Ont. -- Starting at the back of the pack did not deter D.J. Kennington, as he charged to the front and dominated the Clarington 200 at the Speedway at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park on Saturday - scoring his 12th career win in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series race.

Kennington, who qualified fifth for the race earlier in the day, had to drop to the back of the field for the start of the race after making unapproved adjustments to his car.

“We didn’t let the penalty bother us. The race was 200 laps and pit strategy was going to come into play,” said Kennington. “There was plenty of time to get to the front. Everybody raced great tonight. There were some inexperienced drivers in the field and they did a super job.”

The 2010 series champion from St. Thomas, Ont., charged ahead in his No. 17 Castrol Edge/Mahindra Tractors Dodge - moving into the top five by Lap 27. He took the lead a quarter of the way through the race and only relinquished it for a short time after a round of pit stops.

“My car was great all day long. I was able to rotate it in the corners and get right back on the throttle,” he said. “And it stayed like that. My crew gave me a fast car. It was a pleasure to drive.”

Mark Dilley, who is splitting time with Kerry Micks this season behind the wheel of the No. 02 PartSource/BDI/Leland Ford, made his season debut and finished second.

“It’s a little bit of strange deal Kerry and I have going this season. It was very difficult sitting out those first two races and I’m sure Kerry was going through the same thing tonight,” said Dilley. “But it was great to jump right into it and get a great finish.”

J.R. Fitzpatrick finished third to score his third straight top-three finish to start the season.

“I think we could’ve done better, but it was another solid finish for the Equipment Express Chevrolet,” Fitzpatrick stated. “Consistency is the key in these points battles and we’ve done that so far.”

Jeff Lapcevich and Jason Hathaway were fourth and fifth, respectively, while Steve Mathews, Andrew Ranger, Ron Beauchamp Jr., Steve Cote and Noel Dowler completed the top 10.

Kennington became the fifth different winner in six series visits to the half-mile oval formerly known as Mosport Speedway.

Defending series champion Scott Steckly, who won last year's event, encountered mechanical trouble before the race started and was laps down to the leader throughout the race before a 14th-place finish.

Pete Shepherd III - who won his second career pole award in qualifying - led the early stages of the race, but experienced mechanical problems late in the event and finished 16th.

The race was slowed due to caution five times for 36 laps and the lead changed hands four times among four drivers.

This was the third race of 2012 for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series, the first of seven oval-track events on a 12-race schedule.

In the point standings, Fitzpatrick has just a single-point lead over Kennington with Ranger six points off the pace in third.

The Clarington 200 will be telecast by TSN on Sunday, June 24 at 1 p.m. ET and the RDS2 premiere is set for Wednesday, July 11 at 10 p.m. ET.

The NASCAR Canadian Tire Series is right back on the track on Saturday, June 23 at Delaware (Ont.) Speedway for the EMCO 200 presented by Niagara Plumbing Supply and McKeough Supply.

RESULTS

NASCAR CANDADIAN TIRE SERIES-Clarington 200 UNOFFICIAL Results
Saturday
At Speedway at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
Bowmanville, Ontario
Lap length: 0.5 miles
(Start position in parentheses)
1. (5) D.J. Kennington, St. Thomas, Ont., Dodge, 200 laps, 63.147 mph.
2. (7) Mark Dilley, Barrie, Ont., Ford, 200.
3. (3) J.R. Fitzpatrick, Cambridge, Ont., Chevrolet, 200.
4. (8) Jeff Lapcevich, Grimsby, Ont., Dodge, 200.
5. (6) Jason Hathaway, Dutton, Ont., Dodge, 200.
6. (2) Steve Mathews, New Liskeard, Ont., Ford, 200.
7. (9) Andrew Ranger, Roxton Pond, Que., Dodge, 200.
8. (10) Ron Beauchamp, Jr., Windsor, Ont., Dodge, 200.
9. (11) Steve Côté, Ile Bizard, Que, Chevrolet, 199.
10. (20) Noel Dowler, Sherwood Park, Alta., Dodge, 199.
11. (15) Jason White, Sun Peaks, B.C., Dodge, 199.
12. (14) L.P. Dumoulin, Trois-Rivieres, Que., Dodge, 198.
13. (16) Joey McColm, Ajax, Ont., Dodge, 196.
14. (4) Scott Steckly, Milverton, Ont., Dodge, 194.
15. (19) Ray Courtemanche Jr., Montreal, Que., Dodge, 193.
16. (1) Pete Shepherd, III, Brampton, Ont., Dodge, 158, axle.
17. (12) Larry Jackson, Oakville, Ont., Dodge, 144.
18. (18) Hugo Vannini, Repentigny, Que., Ford, 128, engine.
19. (13) Martin Roy, Napierville, Que, Dodge, 83, oil line.
20. (17) Howie Scannell Jr., Milton, Ont., Dodge, 34, overheating.
21. (21) Mike Scholz, Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., Chevrolet, 5, clutch.
Race Statistics
Time of Race: 1 hour 35 minutes 1 second
Margin of Victory: 4.491 seconds
Fastest Qualifier: P.Shepherd, III (83.655 mph, 21.517 seconds)
Caution Flags: 5 for 36 laps.
Lead Changes: 4 among 4 drivers.
Lap Leaders: P. Shepherd,III 1-41; J. Fitzpatrick 42-55; D. Kennington 56-62; L. Dumoulin
63-70; D. Kennington 71-200.
Standings: 1. J. Fitzpatrick, 132; 2. D. Kennington, 131; 3. A. Ranger, 126; 4. S.
Steckly, 113; 5. L. Dumoulin, 112; 6. J. Lapcevich, 112; 7. R. Beauchamp,Jr., 105; 8. J.
Hathaway, 98; 9. J. White, 96; 10. S. Côté, 90.