The Elf Renault Clio Cup is Britain’s premier one-make motor racing championship and this year’s series has attracted a field of 36 drivers.
The series was first established in 2001 and has evolved in to a popular proving ground for drivers that want to progress up the UK motor racing ladder. Last year’s champion, Tom Onslow-Cole, has now graduated to the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) at the wheel of a Team RAC BMW.
This year’s Elf Renault Clio cup calendar consists of ten rounds, nine of which are on the support package for the BTCC and drivers will perform in front of crowds that regularly exceed the 30,000 mark this season. The flagship event of the year is undoubtedly the World Series by Renault weekend that will take place on June 7/8 at Silverstone in Northamptonshire.
This event is a celebration of all things Renault and attracted a crowd of more than 100,000 people in 2007. The Elf Renault Clio Cup will once again be one of the central attractions at the event.
Each Elf Renault Clio Cup race meeting consists of two free practice sessions on the Saturday, followed by a couple of qualifying races later the same day. The results of these races form the grid for Sunday’s main championship race.
The cars that are being used this season are race-prepared versions of the brand-new Renault Clio 197 model. The four-cylinder 2.0-litre engine produces 205bhp at 7300rpm and the car features a number of aerodynamic aids that have contributed to make it one of the most stable racing cars in the world.
ELF Renault Clio Cup 2008:
March 29/30 Brands Hatch (Kent) circuit map
April 12/13 Rockingham Motor Speedway (Northants) circuit map [coming soon]
May 3/4 Donington Park (Leicestershire) * circuit map
May 17/18 Thruxton (Hampshire) circuit map
May 31/1 June Croft (Darlington) circuit map
June 7/8 *Silverstone GP(Northamptonshire) circuit map
July 12/13 Snetterton (Norfolk) circuit map
July 26/27 Oulton Park (Cheshire) circuit map
August 30/31 Silverstone National(Northamptonshire) circuit map
September 20/21 Brands Hatch GP (Kent) circuit map
* World Series by Renault weekend
