Montreal Busch date confirmed

An official announcement will be made in Montreal on Tuesday, but a series spokesman confirmed to the Associated Press that a deal had been concluded for the race to take place on 4 August 2007.

"It's the next step in realignment," he said. "We've been interested in the Canadian market for a long time.

"We really wanted to have the sport throughout North America."

The Mexico City race will also be retained, giving Busch competitors two trips outside the United States.

The Montreal round is likely to be on the same weekend that the NASCAR Nextel Cup races at Pocono, which will limit the number of Cup participants. Traditionally many drivers from NASCAR's headline series run Busch programmes alongside their Cup campaigns.

NASCAR's intentions regarding Montreal have been an open secret for over a year.

Only two events can be held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve each season, with one date going to the Formula One race.

The other had been occupied by the Champ Car World Series in recent years, but an increasingly acrimonious dispute developed between former promoter Norman Legault and Champ Car's owners.

They believed that Legault was actively attempting to run down the Montreal Champ Car event so that it could be replaced by a NASCAR date.

The official announcement in Montreal next week will also reveal whether the Grand-Am sportscar championship will join the Busch Series in Canada.