SV Racing’s Ant Whorton-Eales claimed yet more silverware in the Renault UK Clio Cup after an exciting battle with chief title protagonist Ashley Sutton saw the local man finish on the second step of the podium, while Ben Seyfried claimed Masters’ Trophy honours (18 April).
With free practice taking place on the Thursday (16 April) prior to the event, as opposed to the regular Friday slot, Whorton-Eales carried his race-winning momentum from Brands Hatch in Kent to Donington Park in the East Midlands, heading the timesheets in FP1 ahead of Team Pyro’s Sutton.
Jack Mitchell, who tested extensively at Donington Park over the winter months in one of SVR’s title-winning fourth generation Clios, concluded the session in fifth with a slender four tenths deficit to the pacesetters, Seyfried finishing 15th despite having never raced competitively on the 1.98mile circuit in recent years.
Held under clear blue skies on Saturday (18 April), Whorton-Eales and Mitchell ran in tandem during the championship’s qualifying session for Rounds 3 and 4, locking out the front row, as Sutton and Ash Hand took the fight to the SVR duo.
The quarrelling quadruplet traded places several times throughout the 30-minute session, but Sutton and Whorton-Eales took a pole position and a second place apiece for Sunday’s (19 April) two races, annihilating the lap record around the Leicestershire venue.
Seyfried continued to acclimatise himself with both the 200bhp front-wheel-drive Clio and Donington Park’s undulating configuration to set the 13th fastest time and head Brands Hatch race winner, Paul Knapp in the Masters’ Cup category.
After the season-opening race was abandoned due to a several car incident at Brands Hatch, it was rescheduled for Saturday evening at Donington Park.
Whorton-Eales and Seyfried lined-up on the second row in third and fourth respectively, with Mitchell two rows back in eighth.
Immediately, Whorton-Eales and Sutton resumed their duel in the lead, the former disposing of Ash Hand and tucking up behind the latter as the field charged towards Redgate for the first time.
The duo bridged a gap to third placed Jordan Stilp and ran nose-to-tail for much of the 14-lap contest, trading places on several occasions as each driver tried to gain a psychological edge over the other, well aware that the fight could potentially rage on for the entire season.
With never more than three tenths of a second separating Sutton and Whorton-Eales, it was Sutton who gained the upper hand this time to level the Drivers’ standings, as the championship prepares for another two clashes tomorrow (Sunday 19 April).
“My weekend has been pretty good so far,” said Whorton-Eales. “In qualifying, Jack (Mitchell) and I let the pack get away for a while and we joined later on to tow each other around, which worked for most of the session until Ash (Sutton) went faster on his second set of tyres. P2 for the first race and pole for the second isn’t bad at all.
“We passed Ash (Hand) straight off the line and tucked in behind Sutton, but the tow here today is ridiculous and the car in the lead has no pace. You usually get a little tow from the Clios, but the headwind and the undulating circuit gives the person behind a great slingshot. We will see what tomorrow brings, as it’s a case of getting the right tow at the right time and trying to keep the cars behind in the right places while fighting out front.”
Elsewhere, Mitchell ran a solid race and carved his way past several of his experienced rivals to finish a strong fifth, while Seyfried crossed the line seventh to claim a strong handful of points en route to his first Masters’ Trophy.
An off for Ash Hand spat gravel up in the air, smashing Seyfried’s windscreen and side windows. The esteemed club racer wasn’t exactly treading on broken glass in multiple UK Clio Cup Champion Paul Rivett’s wheel tracks and demonstrated ‘shattering’ pace until a misfire allowed his competitors to chip away at his advantage and eventually demote him to seventh overall.
Seyfried gave a window into his race, saying: “If I hadn’t had the misfire for eight laps, I would have been on the back of the leaders. The pace was really good and I could use the tow to hang on. I said to Rivett that, if he passed me, I would sit close behind him, which is exactly what I did. Obviously it kicked off when Ash (Hand) got nudged into the gravel, which kicked up gravel and shattered my windows, but I am really looking forward to tomorrow’s two races.”
Round 3 of the Renault UK Clio Cup is scheduled to take place at 10.05 on Sunday (19 April), with Round 4 later that day at 15.10 and will be shown live on ITV4HD and ITV4.
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