You’re not really supposed to have favourites in this job. But, between 2015 and 2019, the Renault UK Clio Cup was regularly my favourite British Touring Car support series to report on. After all, there was always something happening.
The racing was invariably close and exciting, the grid was usually packed with rising stars (including the likes of Ash Sutton), and there was always at least a hint of controversy. On top of that came a variety of off-track shenanigans.
I was therefore intrigued when a new Clio Cup GB series for the latest fifth-generation racer was announced last year. Now, we’d been here before.
After Renault UK revealed it was ending its support of the old championship for 2020, French-based Renault Sport Racing said that it would step in and ensure a UK Clio Cup would continue. But this proposed series was facing challenging times even before the coronavirus pandemic struck and it was scrapped amid the global turmoil, leaving no Clio Cup in Britain.
That meant that the latest Gen 5 Clio had still yet to race in the UK prior to this year. But MotorSport Vision Trackdays – organiser of popular series such as the Trackday Championship and EnduroKa – wanted to change that and bring the latest French hatchback to these shores, sitting as the top level of its portfolio of categories.
Rumours of such a development circulated for months last year, but a 2024 championship was only officially confirmed in November. That relatively late announcement meant the series already faced an uphill struggle to attract drivers, who had more established alternatives on offer.
Further trouble was in store, with demands on the French factories meaning the first car ordered from the UK was not delivered until March. Amid such substantial delays, organisers faced a tricky decision about when the rescheduled opening round should be held.
“Delaying the start of the championship until 2025 was a consideration and, rightly or wrongly, we decided against that approach,” admits championship manager Stuart Garland. “Everything has to start somewhere, and the decision to start the championship and grow it, in favour of delaying and potentially eroding the belief or support, was not an easy one to make.”
At this point in time, it’s impossible to say whether that was the correct decision. Essentially, it boils down to which is the lesser of two evils: is having a tiny grid for the opening rounds worse PR than waiting a year and handling the inevitable questions about whether it would then happen at all?
"They’re really nice to drive. It was always going to be tough this year because they had the late start with the cars – every new series is going to be a bit tight"
Lawrence Davey
The sight of just three Gen 5 Clios, bolstered by a trio of older models, when the series finally got going in June was a little depressing. Yet those core, traditional aspects of the Clio Cup were still able to shine through.
The racing was incredibly close, as it was again at Anglesey last month, when five Gen 5s took part. The car is clearly a hit with those running it.
“The cars are fantastic and a pleasure to run – we’ve not had any failures,” says Richard Colburn, boss of Westbourne Motorsport, which was a stalwart of the old manufacturer-backed championship. “Even if there’s only three cars, it’s never easy to win a Clio Cup race! We just need some more cars.”
LDR Performance Tuning chief Lawrence Davey concurs: “I’ve done a couple of laps in one to try it and see what it’s like. They’re really nice to drive. It was always going to be tough this year because they had the late start with the cars – every new series is going to be a bit tight.”
Both Colburn and Davey highlight Alpine’s assistance as a positive and are optimistic for the future.
“Alpine sent their technical manager to Anglesey for the whole weekend; he was advising people on set-up changes,” says Colburn. “It shows the level of support from them. We’re excited about next year.”
For MSVT, the task now is to grow numbers. But that is not going to be easy, particularly with a car in a club-level championship that represents a substantial £40,000 investment.
“We remain motivated to put the Clio in front of as many people as possible,” Garland says. “Part of this will include working with our current teams, as well as on a scholarship ahead of 2025. This year has been a difficult season for a lot of high-end club championships and, while we were aware of the huge time and effort that bringing Clio Cup back into the UK would require, the task of making it successful is not yet complete.”
He’s absolutely right about other series. Numbers in the Mini Challenge JCW series that replaced the Clio Cup on the BTCC bill have noticeably dipped in the past two years. TCR UK has also been in the doldrums, barely scraping into double figures at some events. The BTCC itself has suffered a downturn too.
For Clio Cup GB to succeed, it needs to stand out from the crowd. Its factory-built cars and close racing must be celebrated, while links with successful series in Europe should be established. If that can be done, more fascinating chapters could be added to the UK’s Clio Cup story. And that would be a treat for us all: drivers, teams, enthusiasts – and journalists!
