Michelin Clio Cup Series

Champions Crowned As Jordan Dominates Clio Series Finale

3 Mins read

Luke Herbert and Luke Pinder took championship glory in the 2015 Michelin Clio Cup Series season finale at Silverstone this weekend, a meeting which Andy Jordan dominated with a pair of race victories.

Jordan’s best-ever weekend in the Clio Series him convert a pair of pole positions into a double victory around the International Circuit, results that secure him third in the final championship standings.

For Herbert, third place in Saturday’s opener crowned him outright champion with a race to spare, while Pinder bounced back from a race one DNF to wrap up the ‘Road Series’ honours with victory in the final race of the year.

Round 12:

Jordan’s best qualifying effort of 1m 14.677s gave him pole for the opener by nearly four tenths of a second, and the Finesse Motorsport ace went on to enjoy a fantastic scrap for the race one victory with Westbourne Motorsport’s James Dorlin.

16 year old Dorlin snatched the lead off the line and held the advantage for just over a lap until Jordan got back ahead. He spent the remainder of the race defending the position, with just 0.237 seconds splitting the two at the flag.

Only 0.646s separated the top four in fact in a close fought race, with Herbert’s title success coming down the final lap. With opening lap drama for chief title rival Paul Streather limiting him to just eighth place, Herbert knew he needed to finish in the final podium spot to wrap up the title.

After slipping to sixth on the opening lap, Herbert quickly assumed fourth place and ran there until the last tour, when an overtake on his Westbourne team-mate Sam Randon secured him the title, and completed a two-three-four finish for the Westbourne team.

Herbert And The Westbourne Team Celebrate Their Title - Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Herbert And The Westbourne Team Celebrate Their Title – Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Matt Allison climbed from ninth on the grid to finish fifth, while Anton Spires completed the top six on only his second weekend in the Race Series ahead of Adam Hatfield and the recovering Streather, who had suffered contact with Brett Lidsey on lap one, with Lidsey eventually retiring from the race.

In the Road class, Pinder looked set to take the class title as he led by over three seconds after the opening six laps, however an electrical problem forced him to pull off track and into retirement, taking the title battle to the final race.

Nic Harrison assumed the lead, but Tyler Lidsey passed him late on for the victory. Jake Honour had snatched second, however the title contender was excluded from the results due to a ‘non-compliant part’ on his Clio, giving Jack Fabby a debut podium ahead of John Creasey and Sarah Franklin.

Round 13:

An entertaining final race of the season saw Jordan battling championship top two Herbert and Streather and the impressive Dorlin for the victory, with Herbert snatching the early lead after storming from fourth on the grid into the lead through Abbey.

He held the advantage until lap four when Jordan made his move at Stowe, and after Streather passed him two laps later, Herbert soon lost further ground to Dorlin on lap seven, who had set the fastest lap of the race as he closed the gap to the top three.

Jordan managed the traffic well as they lapped the Road Series contenders to edge a gap out front, eventually taking the win by nearly seven seconds, while some late changes of position behind led to Streather and Herbert completing the podium.

A spin three laps from the end dropped Dorlin to fifth on the road behind Lidsey, but a penalty for exceeding track limits dropped Lidsey to sixth behind Hatfield. Allison ended up seventh, another to take a track limit penalty, with Charlie Fulk and Randon completing the class finisher – the latter having run fourth early on until an unfortunate spin led to a trip to the pitlane.

In the Road class, Pinder quickly moved into the lead from second on the grid and was never threatened en-route to a twelve second victory, his ninth of the season.

All Smiles For New Road Series Champion Pinder - Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography

All Smiles For New Road Series Champion Pinder – Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Tyler Lidsey finished second at the flag, however a post-race exclusion due to a technical infringement meant Honour took the spot, an impressive feat after he started from the pit-lane as a result of his race one penalty.

Fabby made it two podiums in two races to complete a Jade Developments one-two-three finish, with Franklin and Creasey completing the finishers. Harrison failed to finish meanwhile, but Lidsey’s dramas means he still finishes the year as class vice-champion.

Full race results can be found here.

Avatar photo
4148 posts

About author
Simon is an experienced journalist and PR officer, who has worked in the national motorsport paddocks for over a decade, primarily on the BTCC support package.
Articles
Related posts
Michelin Clio Cup Series

Pinder Set For Clio Cup Series Return With Jade Developments

1 Mins read
Former Michelin Clio Cup Series Road Class champion Luke Pinder will return to the championship this season with Jade Developments.
Michelin Clio Cup Series

Westbourne Confirm Verhulst and Geeraerts For Clio Cup Series

1 Mins read
Tony Verhulst and Darren Geeraerts will race in the 2019 Michelin Clio Cup Series with Westbourne Motorsport.
Michelin Clio Cup Series

Hamilton Leads Trio Of Clio Cup Series Returnees

1 Mins read
Three more drivers have been confirmed to be returning to the Michelin Clio Cup Series grid this year.