Clio Trophy Galicia

Diego Félix and Ían Quintana scored their first win at round two of the inaugural Clio Trophy Galicia season. Transferring from the Clio Trophy Spain Asfalto, the Ourense native overcame a minor off to win by more than a minute ahead of José Joaquín Rasilla - Borja Rasilla and newcomers Jorge Coca - Diego Vázquez. With this victory and the retirement of the Gabriel Gándara - Julio Bouza duo in the lead halfway through the rally, Diego Félix takes command of the general classification ahead of the next round on Rallye Ferrol (18-20 August).

More information here.

Clio Trophy France Asphalte

Benjamin Stirling, who finished twice on the podium at the start of the season, claimed his maiden Clio Trophy France Asphalte victory by overcoming the challenges of Rallye Aveyron Rouergue Occitanie. Co-driven by wife Florence, the Sébastien Loeb Racing driver avoided the hazards and resisted the attacks of Arthur Pelamourgues - Bastien Pouget and Yoan Corberand - Amélie Pierron to win by less than 20 seconds after more than 200 kilometres of action. With the win, Benjamin Stirling now leads the general classification ahead of Rallye Mont-Blanc Morzine (31 August-2 September).

More information here.

French Rally Championship

Clio Rally3 and Clio Rally4 were also victorious in their respective categories on Rallye Aveyron Rouergue Occitanie. The local crew of Gaël and Marion Alquier led Clio Rally3 to victory by more than two minutes, while Styve Juif and Maxime Biegalke triumphed in Rally4 and the Michelin Trophy after a committed and top-drawer performance. Lastly, Charlotte Olea and Cécile Pages placed their Clio Rally5 finished runner-up in the French Women’s Rally Championship.

More information here.

Dutch Rally Championship

Clio Rally3 debuted in the national championship with two entries in the GTC Rally. On the tarmac roads around Achtmaal, the duos of Jim van den Heuvel - Jouri Dockx and Mitchel van den Brink - Lisette Bakker excelled, mixing it up with the country’s best Rally2s to finish third and fifth overall. Meanwhile, Willem Wouter Overbeek and Christiaan van der Rijsen claimed their second victory of 2023 in the Clio Rally4 and Clio Rally5 trophy.

French Junior Rallycross Championship

Race officials stopped the Rallycross de Touraine after the qualifying heats, as the Pont-de-Ruan track deteriorated over the weekend. Nevertheless, full championship points were awarded at the end of the intermediate classification, resulting in a maximum score for Andréa Bénézet ahead of Alizée Pottier and Gautier Sarhy. In the French Junior Rallycross Championship, Valentin Lumet now has a two-point lead over Marceau Launay and 11 points to the good over Andréa Bénézet heading to the next Clio RX event at Kerlabo (29-30 July).

And elsewhere

In the European Rally Championship, Ola Nore Jr and Rune Eilertsen finished sixth in the FIA ERC4 and Junior ERC with Clio Rally4 on the inaugural edition of the Royal Rally of Scandinavia. The Norwegian retains command of the overall Junior ERC classification while remaining in title contention in ERC4. On home soil, Simon Andersson and Jörgen Jönsson finished seventh in both classes with the same model.

In Bulgaria, Petar Yordanov and Lyubka Yordanova put in a superb performance to place Clio Rally5 in the overall top five of the Rally Sprint Besapara, leading a RC5 one-two for the model. Clio Rally5 also won round five of the Czech Republic Rally Championship, with a one-two finish led by Marek Lacika and Tomáš Šmíd on Rally Bohemia. Ulises Avella Santana and José Gabriel Espino Guedes were also category winners in Rally Comarca Norte de Gran Canaria (Spain).

In the French Cup, Clio Rally5 scored another one-two finish thanks to Jérémy Lafarge and Adélie Terrier on the Rallye Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise. Meanwhile, Stijn Naert and Mattice De Boeverie also impressed in the TBR Shortrally in Belgium, dominating proceedings in the 2D class with Clio Rally5.

In Italy, two Clio Rally4s and 17 Clio Rally5s took part in the Rally Internazionale del Casentino. Christian Buccino and Elia De Guio won Rally5, while Slovenia’s Martin Čendak and Jakob Markežič claimed a podium result in the Under 25 category. Paolo Moricci and Paolo Garavaldi placed their Clio Rally4 finished third in RC4 among the competitors in the International Rally Cup. Alessandro D’Avelli and Fabiano Cipriani won Rally5 and finished second in the U25 category on Rally del Matese e del Medio Volturno.

Abroad, the Uruguayan duo of Ignacio Gardiol and Sebastián González continued their perfect record in the Chilean Rally Championship, winning for the fourth consecutive time in 2023 with their Clio Rally5 on the Rally de Bio Guardiola Santa Juana.

Coming up

This weekend the Clio Cup Series returns to action for round six of the calendar at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. Twenty-eight competitors are set to battle, including David Pouget, looking to extend his lead in the general classification. Meanwhile, 13 drivers can take the Clio Cup Italia lead before the season’s midway point.