UK ELF Clio Cup 2008 at Thruxton – ROUND 7+8
LANIK managed to reverse his odds last weekend at Thruxton, the UK’s quickest race circuit, by finishing 6th and 3rd for Round 7 & 8 of the 2008 ELF Clio Cup. Originally the Austrian racer finished 4th, but after a 30-second time penalty for the race winner, Niki got promoted to an official 3rd place. Unfortunately this was only decided after the actual podium celebration so Niki wasn’t able to spray champagne with the other podium finishers, 2nd place Stephen Hunter and race winner Paul Rivett of the JHR Developments team. This also saw the Y4HR Miracle Drywash team’s driver move from 17th back up to 12th in the 2008 championship.
QUALIFYING went well from the start. The Miracle Drywash-sponsored team was out on track the first time with their new engine, the 2.0 litre 205hp Renault engine, after the engine blow-up at Donington Park. Niki qualified the Youth For Human Rights Clio 5th for both rounds. “Qualifying went pretty well, in fact much better then at Donington Park. I’m pretty comfortable with Thruxton, but still it is hard to get two good laps in during qualifying. The track is also extremely abrasive so I had to make sure I don’t wreck my tyres during qualifying. It’s a very tricky circuit – when you have one small lift at 120mph you can easily loose one second, so being gentle with the accelerator is extremely important through the 100mph+ corners such as Goodwood and Church.” commented the 21-year old on his 5th place qualifying.
LANIK had a good race start for Round 7 securing 5th place for the entire race, until the last lap when double Clio Champion, Paul Rivett managed to find a way through. “It was a close race. The 2nd place finisher and myself finishing 6th were only two seconds apart. I was only 0.136 off fastest lap which also means the car is set-up well and I was driving well too. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s race.” said the Ashurst Wood-based race driver, Niki Lanik.
SUNDAY’s race saw Lanik start 5th of the 28 car grid. Niki had a fantastic start in front of 25,000 live spectators slotting into 4th place after the first series of tight corners. Niki then made a move at the 115mph Goodwood corner were he dived down the inside of Hunter. Lanik held onto 3rd place until lap 9 were a slight lock up in the chicane allowed Hunter and MacDowall through. Lanik then kept his head down and went for a brave overtaking manoeuvre around the outside of MacDowall at Noble, a flat-out 5th gear corner. Niki finished the race in 4th place, but after was promoted to a 3rd place podium finish. The winner was given a 30-second time penalty for making an illegal race start and was demoted to 20th place. “It was a fantastic race!” exclaimed Niki Lanik, “I had a great first lap and was able to use cold tyres to my own advantage and was soon in 3rd place. I made a slight mistake which cost me 2nd place today, but I’m still extremely happy with a 3rd place podium finish”. Niki now has had two podium finishes in the 2008 Clio Cup and the team reckons there are a lot more to come within the next few races.
The Youth For Human Rights Miracle Drywash Race Team promotes the international Youth For Human Rights campaign – www.YouthForHumanRights.org. The team sponsors include Miracle Drywash (www.MiracleDrywash.com), GridGirlz (www.GridGirlz.co.uk), G&G Vitamins (www.GandGVitamins.com), Wealden Workwear (www.WWPE.co.uk), and Luxury Sign Design (www.lsdsign.co.uk). If you would like to sponsor Niki Lanik, e-mail him on niki@lanik.info.
Niki Lanik and the Y4HR Miracle Drywash Race Team are next racing and supporting the British Touring Car Championship at Croft race circuit in the North on 31 May / 01 June. Sunday’s race will be LIVE on ITV4 at 15:15 UK time. For more information about the team or the Clio Cup visit www.Y4HR.com or www.renaultsport.co.uk.
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VIDEO OF Thruxton’s Round 8:
Part 1: http://www.renaulttv.co.uk/racecar/elfrenaultcliocup/index34.htm
Part 2: http://www.renaulttv.co.uk/racecar/elfrenaultcliocup/index35.htm
Part 3: http://www.renaulttv.co.uk/racecar/elfrenaultcliocup/index36.htm
