After several months of development and first appearances at the Scottish Rally, the Cosmo Rallye Wartburg and the ADAC Rallye Deutschland, the Renault Clio R3T will hit the road for the first time in France during the Mont-Blanc Morzine Rally. Quentin Gilbert and Renaud Jamoul were chosen to defend the colours of Renault Sport Technologies during this French Championship race.

"We are delighted to be able to rely on Quentin and Renaud for the first official outing of the Renault Clio R3T", declares Jean-Pascal Dauce, Renault Sport Technologies Competition Director. "This crew has demonstrated the extent of its talents in a wide range of categories. Their experience and versatility are therefore highly important and we believe that they are the ideal team to prove the competitiveness of the Renault Clio R3T. We want to show that the latest addition to our Customer Competition range has everything it takes to stand out in the ’2-wheel drive’ category."

After competing in his first rallies on Renault cars, Quentin Gilbert was one of the challengers during the first French R1 Twingo Trophy and the Junior French Rally Championship in 2011. Following excellent results this season in the World Championship and the French Championship, the driver from the Vosges will put his experience to good use during the first outing of the Clio R3T in France.

"I am honoured and proud to have been chosen by Renault Sport Technologies as official driver", states Quentin Gilbert. "After having driven several seasons previously with Renault, I am pleased to be back in the fold again. Above all, this is a fantastic opportunity. I want to prove myself worthy by achieving an excellent performance."

Quentin Gilbert will take the start of the rally after an intense series of test drives on the Monday before the race. "My knowledge of category R3 and this test series will help me to be fully operational right from the first special stage. The Mont-Blanc Rally is a race I enjoy, I know it well. We are going to demonstrate that, despite its youth, the Clio R3T is the new gold nugget in its category."

Completing the Renault Sport Technologies Customer Competition range, the Renault Clio R3T will also be driven by other crews. Already seduced by its outstanding performance, Emmanuel Guigou, Jérémie Sérieys, Eric Mauffrey and Fabiano Lo Fiego will also want to achieve good early results behind the wheel of the Clio R3T. Loyal Renault drivers, they did not miss the opportunity of being amongst the first beneficiaries. After a shakedown on Thursday, the battle for the Mont-Blanc Morzine Rally will be fought next Friday 5 and Saturday 6 September.