The Clio Cup Series competitors returned to action in Spain after more than a month of summer break. Gabriele Torelli (Rangoni Corse) dominated both Friday free practice sessions, but speeding in the pit lane earned him his third reprimand of the season and a four-place grid drop.

Race 1: Jurado picks up where he left off

Gabriele Torelli, who set the fastest time in qualifying on Saturday, lost pole position to teammate Anthony Jurado. The Frenchman made a perfect start and withstood attacks from Alexandre Finkelstein (GPA Racing) and Damiano Puccetti. Behind them, David Pouget held on to fourth place, while Gabriele Torelli and Nicolas Milan dropped down the order after colliding.

A five-car incident on lap three led to a safety car period. Anthony Jurado held off Alexandre Finkelstein at the restart, with Damiano Puccetti hot on his heels. David Pouget, Gaël Castelli (Milan Compétition) and Nikola Tošić were also in the thick of the action. Further back, Aurélien Renet led a lively group while Gabriele Torelli retired after another collision.

Already a race winner at Magny-Cours, Anthony Jurado triumphed for the third time this season and for the second time in a row. Penalised for incorrect grid positioning and then for exceeding track limits, Alexandre Finkelstein dropped from second to ninth place. David Pouget and Gaël Castelli completed the podium. Fourth-placed Nikola Tošić was the top Junior ahead of Damiano Puccetti, Thomas Compain (Power Racing) and Aurélien Renet, who finished first Challenger ahead of Ben Colburn (Westbourne Motorsport). Mauro Polderman (AST Competition) rounded out the top ten, while Laurent Dziadus (Team Lucas) won among the Gentlemen.

Race 2: Puccetti breaks his duck

Gabriele Torelli was again the fastest in Sunday’s qualifying session before starting from fifth place after receiving a penalty for his tangle with Sam Gornall (Westbourne Motorsport) in Race 1.

Gaël Castelli inherited pole position and held off Damiano Puccetti at the start, but the Italian moved into the lead on lap three. Meanwhile, Anthony Jurado snatched third place from Alexandre Finkelstein before Gabriele Torelli and Aurélien Renet followed suit in a frenzied pack where positions changed at every corner. The incident between Anthony Jurado and Alexandre Finkelstein resulted in a safety car period, followed by a second one when Loïc Labeda went off.

Damiano Puccetti was imperious in the final laps to seal his maiden Clio Cup Series win. Filip Kunčer got on top of the chase group before being penalised for passing Gaël Castelli before the start/finish line on the second restart. Starting from row six, Nicolas Milan inherited second place ahead of Gaël Castelli after a final sprint marked by contact between David Pouget and Gabriele Torelli. Aurélien Renet navigated the pitfalls to claim another Challenger win, finishing fourth ahead of Sam Gornall, Guillaume Maio (GM Sport) and Nikola Tošić. Simracing convert Jaroslav Honzik (GM Sport) confirmed his progress by finishing eighth overall. Andreas Stucki (Stucki Motorsport) and Ben Colburn followed him in the top ten, while Laurent Dziadus doubled his tally among the Gentlemen.

Clio Cup Series

Rangoni Corse, buoyed by its double victory with Anthony Jurado and Damiano Puccetti, has now won seven of the last eight races and taken the lead in the team classification from GPA Racing. However, the French team’s David Pouget increased his lead over Gabriele Torelli, who came away from Spain empty-handed. Mauro Polderman retains first place in the Junior class despite the successes of Nikola Tošić and Damiano Puccetti. Ben Colburn has extended his lead in the Challenger category after sharing the honours with Guillaume Maio, whilst Laurent Dziadus (Team Lucas) continues to pull away after his double victory among the Gentlemen.

Clio Cup España

The title race remains wide open in the Clio Cup España ahead of the final round at Monza (17-19 October). Loïc Labeda and Nicolas Milan shared the honours, each winning ahead of Stefan Stefan Stojkov (Rangoni Corse). Gabriele Torelli retains the lead, but the Frenchmen are now less than 40 points behind with the two lowest results discarded. In the Challenger category, Loïc Labeda took the laurels in race one before seeing his streak snapped by Yokeshwaran Krishnavelu (GPA Racing). Buoyed by his maiden podium finish in the Clio Cup España on Saturday and his first class success on Sunday, the Indian driver keeps the suspense alive for this title.

Clio Cup Mid-Europe

It’s all still to play for in Clio Cup Mid-Europe, which reached its mid-season point in Valencia. Nikola Tošić shone on Saturday, winning ahead of Thomas Compain and Aurélien Renet, who was victorious the following day ahead of Sam Gornall and Guillaume Maio. Missing the podium for the first time this year, Alexandre Finkelstein now has only an 18-point lead over Sam Gornall, who remains the leader in the Junior class after sharing the wins with Nikola Tošić. With another double victory in the Challenger category, Aurélien Renet overtakes Filip Kunčer at the top of the standings.

The Clio Cup Series returns to action at Circuit Paul Ricard (3-5 October) for the second-to-last round of the calendar, where the Clio Cup France will conclude, while it will be round four of Clio Cup Italia and Clio Cup Mid-Europe.

Results - Clio Cup Series - Clio Cup España - Clio Cup Mid-Europe