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Ben Winrow (Earls Barton) extended his championship lead with victory in round five of the 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup at Donington Park on Saturday, 3rd May. The Team Pyro racer qualified on ELF/Atol pole position and although he briefly lost the lead on lap one he recovered to take the win. Robertshaw Racing had probably its best day in Clio Cup racing as J&D Pierce with Robertshaw Racing’s Derek Pierce (West Kilbride) took second place and EPS UK with Robertshaw Racing’s Robert Gaffney (Waltham Abbey) was third, both men taking their maiden Clio Cup podiums.
As the red lights went out to start the race, Pierce made the better start from the outside of the front row to pass Winrow into Redgate corner. A slight mistake heading into McLeans gave Winrow enough room to re-pass for the lead, before JHR Developments’ Paul Rivett (Banstead) nipped by Pierce at Goddards chicane to end the lap in second. The leaders were immediately picked up by the Safety Car, deployed after an incident that saw JHR’s Richard Cannon (Chesterfield) and Y4HR Miracle Drywash Stancombe Vehicle Engineering’s Niki Lanik (Ashurst Wood) make contact, with Amery Motorsport’s David Shepherd (Sandbach) unfortunate to spin off while taking avoiding action. Cannon hit the concrete trackside barrier, making his participation in round six highly doubtful. When racing resumed on lap six, Mardi Gras Motorsport’s Gavin Pyper (Fleckney) immediately put pressure on fourth-placed Gaffney, allowing the top three of Winrow, Rivett and Pierce to break away. As Winrow edged away, the chasing pack began looking to pass with Pierce attacking Rivett before coming under pressure himself from Gaffney. The race for sixth place was equally close between Coastal Racing’s Carl Bradley (Morecambe), Total Control Racing’s Mike Robinson (Effingham) and P9 Race Shop/Range Storage’s Lee Pattison (Liversedge). Meanwhile, Full Speed Racing’s Phil Glew (Alford) had surged from 17th on the grid to 10th to run behind team-mate Glenn Bell (Portadown). On lap eight, Rivett out-braked himself into Goddards’ chicane suffering from a ‘spongy’ brake pedal. He rejoined the circuit still in fifth place but contact with Pyper saw Rivett drop to 10th and Pyper forced to pull off the circuit in retirement. Just behind, Robinson passed Bradley for sixth, which became fourth following the contact in front. Lap 10 saw Team Pyro’s Chris Law (Guernsey) drop to 11th after going across the grass at Goddards. On the following lap, Solutions Racing with Dewsport’s Alex Dew (Bampton) passed TCR’s Jonathan Ridley-Holloway (Barnstaple) at Goddards. Mike Robinson, now with a clear track ahead, set the fastest lap to that point as he closed in on a podium position. Rivett, attempting to salvage a strong result after his earlier incident, was running just ahead of TCR’s Ray MacDowall (Carlisle) and Law. At the head of the field, Winrow set the THB Clowes Fastest Lap at 1min 18.987s (89.20mph), a new lap record, also securing two bonus championship points. Lap 13 saw Rivett’s race end in damaging fashion when, on the run out of Coppice, Law made contact with the rear of his car spearing Rivett across the track and into the safety barrier. The incident saw Rivett’s car damaged beyond repair for the rest of the weekend, while Law was excluded from the classification by the Clerk of the Course. As the race neared its conclusion after 17 laps, extended by three laps due to the Safety Car spell, Ray MacDowall and Law swapped places twice in the final laps as Mardi Gras’ Árón Smith (Rathfarnham) defended 12th place from Ridley-Holloway. The race for the final podium place kept spectators on the edge of their seat until the final lap, Gaffney just holding on by 0.288s having defended well in the closing stages. While there was action aplenty throughout the field, Winrow cruised to a third win of the season by a comfortable 1.864s ahead of Pierce with Gaffney a further 1.5s behind. Commenting on the race, Winrow said: “I bogged down a bit at the start and Derek got by me but I was able to get back in front quickly. Once the Safety Car went in I tried to build a gap to Paul and was quite pleased to see him go from my mirrors. Having said that, it’s easy to get complacent so I concentrated on keeping a good pace and keep up the results I’ve had so far this year because there’s a long way to go.” Second-placed Pierce said: “Testing on Thursday went really well and the car’s been spot-on all weekend. It was a silly mistake to leave Ben just enough room to get through but it’s still a great result for me and I can’t thank the team enough.” Third-placed Gaffney said: “I’ve switched teams this weekend and it’s been perfect for me. Without my sponsor EPS UK I wouldn’t be here and to get my first podium in Clio Cup is fantastic. When I saw Paul and Gavin make contact and drop back I knew I had to get my head down. Mike was catching me but I knew where to defend and hold him off.” Round six of the 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup takes place on Sunday, 4th May, scheduled to start at 13.30. It is due to be broadcast live on ITV4 as part of the channel’s coverage of the British Touring Car Championship meeting. 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup provisional drivers’ standings – round 5 1 Ben Winrow GBR Team Pyro 158 pts2 Paul Rivett GBR JHR Developments 117 pts3 Phil Glew GBR Full Speed Racing 81 pts4 Derek Pierce GBR JD Pierce with Robertshaw Racing 79 pts5 Carl Bradley GBR Coastal Racing 78 pts
6 Árón Smith IRL Mardi Gras Motorsport 75
Ben Winrow (Earls Barton) scored his fourth win from six races in round six of the 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup at Donington Park on Sunday, 4th May. The Team Pyro racer, who also has two second place finishes to his name, finished almost 3.5s clear of Total Control Racing’s Mike Robinson (Effingham), making his first appearance on the Clio Cup podium. Mardi Gras Motorsport’s Gavin Pyper (Fleckney) made up for a disappointing non-finish in round five with a fine third place. After a dead-heat in qualifying put Winrow and J&D Pierce with Robertshaw Racing’s Derek Pierce (West Kilbride) on the front row, the lead duo and Pyper made a clean start to break clear of TCR’s Alex MacDowall (Carlisle) in the early stages. Two incidents, at Old Hairpin and Goddards’ chicane, saw Mark Hazell (Llanhennock) and Jonathan Ridley-Holloway (Barnstaple) retire from the race. Lying in second place, Pierce locked his brakes on lap two at Redgate as he came under pressure from Pyper. Just behind, Gaffney, who celebrated his first Clio Cup podium on Saturday, had to defend from the determined Lee Pattison (Liversedge) in his P9 Race Shop/Range Storage car, while Mardi Gras’ David Dickenson (Keatingstown) passed Y4HR Miracle Drywash Stancombe Vehicle Engineering’s Austrian driver Niki Lanik (Ashurst Wood).  As Winrow’s lead reached 2.2s on lap three, the Safety Car was deployed to recover the stricken car of Ridley-Holloway. Pierce suffered an engine-related problem that ended his race on the back straight, while Valtra with FSR’s Peter Felix (Allestree) clipped the rear of Jonathan Shepherd (Sandbach), earning him a three-point endorsement on his racing licence. At the restart on lap six, Winrow edged away from Pyper as MacDowall ran wide in third place. Gaffney was immediately on the pace setting the fastest lap to that point of the race, while Pyro’s Chris Law (Guernsey) spun after a tap from Coastal Racing’s Stephen Tyldsley (Guiseley) that allowed TCR’s Ray MacDowall (Carlisle) to close up. In the chasing pack behind the impressive Winrow, Robinson and Coastal’s Carl Bradley (Morecambe) were racing hard for fourth place, while Alex MacDowall passed Pyper on lap nine for second to head a train of nine cars running nose-to-tail. Pyper lost a further place to Robinson at Redgate, while Full Speed Racing’s Glenn Bell (Portadown) failed in a similar passing move on EPS UK with Robertshaw Racing’s Robert Gaffney (Waltham Abbey). At the end of the lap, Ray MacDowall and Tyldsley both pitted after an incident at Redgate that saw Tyldsley penalised three points by the Clerk of the Course. Having risen to second place, MacDowall’s time at the head of that group was short-lived as he out-braked himself at Goddards’ chicane on lap 12, gifting the place to Robinson with Pyper following through in third. In midfield, Mardi Gras Motorsport’s Árón Smith (Rathfarnham) made the most of a clear track to catch ninth-placed Pattison and pass him through the Craner Curves before also slipping past MacDowall at McLeans. On the following lap it was Full Speed’s Phil Glew (Alford) who misjudged the chicane, allowing Gaffney up into fifth. Glew then had a close finish with team-mate Bell, but was just able to hold on in sixth with the Irishman taking seventh. The penultimate lap saw Pyper set the THB Clowes fastest lap of the race at 1min 19.641s (88.47mph) to close on Robinson but it was not enough to steal second place. Out in front, Winrow was peerless and showed great consistency to complete 10 of the 11 racing laps within half a second of each other, the exception being his personal best on lap 15. Commenting on the race, Winrow said: “Being on pole I got a clean start and managed to edge in front of Derek going into Redgate, gaining a good few lengths before the Safety Car bunched us all up again. At the restart, I was able to put the pressure on again and after that it was just a case of keeping my head down and trying not to make any mistakes.” Second-placed Robinson said: “I was gutted yesterday that I just missed the podium so to get up here today is fantastic. It’s taken a while to adapt from rear-wheel drive Caterham racing to the front-wheel drive Clio Cup car but I set a target of a top-five this weekend and did it in both races. It gives me confidence now that I can go on to get good results in the future.” Third-placed Pyper said: “I had a reasonable start and was pushing Derek hard for second place before engine trouble forced him to retire. After the Safety Car went into the pits, Winrow and I began playing cat and mouse but I made a slight mistake at the Old Hairpin which cost me. Towards the end of the race I did try to make a move on Robinson for second and I reckon I was quicker than him but I just couldn’t quite catch him before the chequered flag.” Rounds seven and eight of the 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup take place at Thruxton circuit on 17th/18th May. 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup provisional drivers’ standings – round 6 1 Ben Winrow GBR Team Pyro 190 pts2 Paul Rivett GBR JHR Developments 117 pts3 Carl Bradley GBR Coastal Racing 100 pts4 Phil Glew GBR Full Speed Racing 99 pts5 Mike Robinson GBR Total Control Racing 91 pts6 Árón Smith IRL Mardi Gras Motorsport 90 pts7 Derek Pierce GBR JD Pierce with Robertshaw Racing 79 pts8 Robert Gaffney GBR EPS UK with Robertshaw Racing 78 pts9 Gavin Pyper GBR Mardi Gras Motorsport 72 pts10 Glenn Bell GBR Full Speed Racing 66 pts
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