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[Renault Clio Cup UK] Hunter Storms To First Clio Cup Victory |
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Monday, 05 June 2006 |
HUNTER STORMS TO FIRST CLIO CUP VICTORY
Steven Hunter (Coal Aston, Dronfield) scored his maiden victory in the ELF Renault Clio Cup Championship by winning round six at Hampshire’s Thruxton circuit on Sunday, 4th June. The 32-year-old passed pole-sitter Paul Rivett (Banstead, Surrey), who recovered from a poor start to finish second ahead of Tom Onslow-Cole (New Malden, Surrey).
Hunter’s victory followed his second place finish in round five, lifting him to within four points of two-time former Champion Rivett in the driver’s standings. Also climbing a place in the standings is Mardi Gras Motorsport’s Stephen Colbert (Northampton), who finished fourth after a terrific wheel to wheel battle with team-mate Robert Lawson (Richmond, N Yorks).
After a poor start from pole position, Rivett passed JHR Racing Developments’ Michael Doyle (Gartocharn, West Dunbartonshire) at Club chicane. The young Scot then lost further places to Onslow-Cole and Colbert before clashing with Total Control Racing’s Mark Speller (Hertford) dropping the pair to the middle of the pack.
Onslow-Cole immediately set the Fastest Lap of the race to close to within 0.2s of his nearest title challenger Rivett. Meanwhile, Lawson pulled off one of the most spectacular overtaking manoeuvres of the season so far to pass Colbert at Club chicane, running on two wheels through both turns of the final chicane.
The battling behind allowed Hunter to open a five-second lead by the midway point of the 12-lap race. Further down the field, series newcomer Alan Taylor (Whitley Bay) showed no signs of nerves around the high-speed circuit and was able to hold off the more experienced Mel Healey (Cheam, Surrey) until the closing stages when a missed gear change cost the Robertshaw Racing driver two places.
During the middle stint of the race, Onslow-Cole dropped away from the rear of Rivett’s car but found more speed in the latter stages to rejoin the fight for second place. Despite pulling alongside his rival at Club chicane on successive laps, Rivett used all his experience to hold off the Championship leader’s challenge.
Rivett’s team-mate Martin Johnson (Alford, Lincs), the most experienced driver in the Championship with more than 100 Clio Cup races to his name, was also defending well to hold onto seventh place from Doyle. However, the 18-year-old was able to overtake on the penultimate lap with Speller following him through to finish eighth.
With Hunter cruising to victory, the race for second place kept the crowd on the edge of their seats until the final corner as Onslow-Cole made one final bid. The 19-year-old braked late into Club chicane and although he tapped Rivett in the middle of the corner, the Boulevard Team Racing man was able to cover the racing line to hold onto second by just 0.102s.
After claiming his first Championship victory, Hunter commented: “In truth, I felt I had the car to win yesterday’s race so that made today even sweeter. With everyone else battling I was able to get away and it was just a case of keeping my concentration. It’s nice to make it a three-horse race for the Championship now and I just hope I’m backing the right horse!”
After his race-long duel with Onslow-Cole, Rivett was delighted to hold onto second place, saying: “It was a good tussle with Tom and it was clean for the most part. A couple of times I felt he came down the inside with not much room to spare and there was contact but I was able to fend him off. It may only be one point I gained on him but they all count and with the dropped score rule it’s not that big a gap.”
Onslow-Cole was satisfied to maintain his great start to the season, commenting: “I’ve had six podiums in six races so it’s been a dream start to the campaign. Paul made a few mistakes today but none of them was big enough for me to capitalise on. I came here looking to extend my lead in the Championship and that’s what I’ve done so I’m very happy.”
Rounds seven and eight take place in two weeks’ time at the Renault Race Day at Knockhill circuit in Scotland on Sunday, 18th June.
Drivers’ Championship standings after Round Six - provisional
| Pos. | Driver | Nat. | Team | Points | | 1 | Tom Onslow-Cole | GBR | Total Control Racing | 187 pts | | 2 | Paul Rivett | GBR | Boulevard Team Racing | 136 pts | | 3 | Steven Hunter | GBR | JHR Racing Developments | 132 pts | | 4 | Stephen Colbert | GBR | Mardi Gras Motorsport | 110 pts | | 5 | Nick Adcock | GBR | Total Control Racing | 98 pts | | 6 | Robert Lawson | GBR | Mardi Gras Motorsport | 96 pts | | 7 | Michael Doyle | GBR | JHR Racing Developments | 90 pts | | 8 | Mark Speller | GBR | Total Control Racing | 73 pts | | 9 | Philip House | GBR | PH Motorsport with JHR | 71 pts | | 10 | Mel Healey | GBR | Team Pyro | 62 pts |
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