Renault UK Clio Cup driver Dan Zelos is to make a guest appearance in the MINI Challenge this weekend at Brands Hatch as he aims to gain more knowledge of other racing series.
The twenty year old is set to drive a MINI sponsored by tyre supplier Dunlop in the main JCW class and prepared accordingly with a test session at Brands Hatch at the end of last week.
Dan will take part in the championship’s eagerly anticipated MINI Festival which is the penultimate round of the 2018 MINI Challenge calendar. Three “no holds barred” races with a reverse grid finale gives Dan the opportunity to test his mettle.
Credit: Gary Hawkins Photography
So far in the 2018 Clio Cup, Dan has had five top five finishes and with no racing for the one-make category at Knockhill this weekend, Dan will join a long list of notable drivers to have competed in the MINI Challenge.
Names such as most recent Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race winner Chris Smiley and WIX Racing with Eurotech driver Brett Smith. Both former champions in the MINI Challenge.
Speaking ahead of his MINI foray, Dan said,
“As the UK Clio Cup isn’t at Knockhill this year, I had a free weekend and it’s always good to broaden your experience by trying out different series and different cars,
“I want to thank MINI UK for their help and support at the test and obviously Dunlop for giving me this opportunity in the first place – I’m really looking forward to showing off the company’s colours and to soaking up the whole MINI Festival atmosphere in celebration of such an iconic British brand.
“The test last week went well, and it didn’t take me long to get to grips with the car and get onto the pace. Jordan Collard was there too; he’s sitting second in the championship so he was an excellent benchmark, and we pretty much matched him for speed all day.
“My aim is to finish somewhere inside the top five. I’ve kept a close eye on the championship to get a feel for the opposition, and it’s certainly not going to be a walk in the park. Like me, these are up-and-coming drivers with very solid BTCC ambitions – and some, like Whorton-Eales, even have BTCC experience.
“Collard is a proven race-winner, my team-mate Rob Smith is now a MINI veteran and has one of the best track records of anybody around Brands Hatch and I raced against Nathan Harrison last season in Clios, so I know just how tough a competitor he is, too. It’ll be fun to cross swords with some of them again…”
