MIXED WEEKEND FOR COLLINGBOURNE AT CLIO CUP SERIES OPENER
The start of the 2016 Renault Clio Cup UK season brought a mixed weekend for Newport’s Rory Collingbourne, with the MSA Academy athlete’s progress in the second, ITV4-televised race being hampered by an incident with newcomer Senna Proctor after an impressive points finish in the opening round.
Collingbourne entered the first of nine meetings having undergone extensive preparation for his second full season in one of the UK’s most competitive one-make championships, with pre-season testing dates at some of the nation’s legendary circuits such as Brands Hatch, Oulton Park and Thruxton.
His progress, and weekend to an extent, was immediately compromised with damage to his Clio Cup car in qualifying on Saturday, which meant that Rory’s quickest lap times of 52.850 seconds and 52.851s would see him start both races from 18th and 15th respectively. Collingbourne was also one of seven drivers who had lap times removed for exceeding track limits.
Rory, who is backed by Newport Auctions, Add Energy and Europa Group among others, made an impressive start to the season opener, claiming six positions on the opening lap and putting those in front under extreme pressure. His initial pace and racecraft was evident as, going three cars wide into the tight left hand corner at Graham Hill bend, the Welsh ace passed one car on the outside line and then darted up the inside of the other before the apex to relieve both of their positions.
Following a safety-car restart, Collingbourne was running in 10th and chasing down Senna Proctor, one of the stars of last season on the British Touring Car Championship support package, but a clash with the Ginetta Junior Championship runner-up at Druids hairpin allowed seasoned competitor Ant Whorton-Eales to catch the duo, and his pass on Collingbourne at Clearways left Rory on the outside line and invited others to follow Whorton-Eales lead. Despite keeping pace with his competitors, a way back past did not materialise but Rory nevertheless finished in 13th, five places above his starting slot.
A capacity crowd into tens of thousands lined the 1.2 mile Brands Hatch Indy circuit on Sunday, though it would prove to be a disappointing contest for Collingbourne. Another clash with Senna Proctor following a spin on the slippery grass left Rory at the tail end of the field, and he could only recover to finish 22nd ahead of Graham Field. Even more frustratingly, Collingbourne’s lap times compared favourably with team-mate Lee Pattison, who won the race.
The end result of a mixed weekend for Rory was a total of 8 championship points, which saw him sit 18th overall in the championship table. In the Entrants Trophy, WDE Motorsport, Team Cooksport and Team Pyro look set to stage a close fight for honours, with just 18 points separating the three race-winning squads.
The championship heads next to Donington Park in Leicestershire, where the third and fourth rounds of the Renault Clio Cup UK are set to be staged. As always, the second race on Sunday afternoon is screened live on ITV4 and in HD, where Rory’s main sponsors Newport Auctions, Add Energy and Europa Group are set to enjoy even more coverage on the national stage.
“We found out that a damper was cracked before qualifying, but in the first part of the lap I was faster than my team-mate Lee Pattison, who qualified fourth, but in the later stages of the lap because of the damage to the car I was struggling. I gave myself a lot of work to do, basically.” commented Rory.
“In the first race we overtook about seven people in the first lap, which was a positive start. Then we had a bit of contact, which is normal, and got pushed wide on the exit of Surtees, which meant three or four people were able to overtake me on the inside. It was frustrating that we couldn’t find a way back past them but it was still a good start.”
“Then in the second race I was actually held up off the start with some of the other cars being a bit slower to respond. I went round the outside of them at Druids, but as the guys on the inside came out of the corner they ran me wide. From there I had to take to the wet grass, the car went sideways and as I tried to rejoin the race it went round completely. There wasn’t much chance of saving it, to be honest, and I’ve had to save a few in the past!”
“It was frustrating, because even after that we were matching my team-mate Lee’s times, and he went on to win the race – so it’s clear we had the pace to be at the front. Regardless though, we have to take those positives from the weekend and carry it forward to Donington Park.”
“I’d like to just thank my main sponsors, Newport Auctions, Add Energy and Europa Group – without them we couldn’t go racing and their support, as with all my sponsors, is very much appreciated. I’m very much looking forward to rewarding them with some fantastic results in
