Morgan Wins On Debut Weekend

Alex Morgan has kickstarted his 2013 Clio Cup campaign in emphatic style at Brands Hatch in rounds 1 and 2 of the championship. The Clio Cup newcomer wasted no time in getting back up to speed after a long break from racing, and qualified in 4th and 2nd place for the first two rounds of the championship. Despite not having had the opportunity to practice race starts, Morgan got a great getaway in race 1 and maintained his 4th place position off the line before the race was interrupted by a safety car period early on. Shortly after the restart Morgan unfortunately slipped to 5th place behind former Clio Cup race winner, Stefan Hodgetts, who made the pass into the final turn at clearways. Morgan persisted however and kept with Hodgetts throughout the race whilst holding off challenges from three time Clio Cup Champion Paul Rivett. On the penultimate lap, Morgan managed to slip through back into 4th place to cement a brilliant first result of the season. Speaking about his first race experience, Morgan said:

I really enjoyed my return race. I was a little tense beforehand as I was unsure how clean I could get away at the start but I soon settled into a good rhythm. Unfortunately after the safety car I lost a place to Stefan but pushed hard to stay with him. I had to hold off Rivett and Giddings for most of the race as well which meant making a challenge for 4th was extremely difficult. I managed to get back into 4th however on the penultimate lap at paddock hill bend and was really happy to have secured some good points early on in the championship.

For round 2 Morgan started on the front row alongside race 1 winner Colburn, but it was the newcomer that had the better start and took the lead into turn 1. Again the race was interupted with a safety car period after the first lap but this time on the restart,  Morgan made no mistake in getting away quickly. As the race unfolded, Colburn and Rivett switched places and the former champion mounted pressure on Morgan throughout. The front quartet of Morgan, Rivett, Colburn and Files pulled clear of the field and were held in deadlock with all four lapping at the same speed. Despite his inexperience with these cars, Morgan drove faultlessly and managed to maintain the gap to Rivett on his way to taking a fantastic race win on his championship debut and what was his first weekend of racing since 2008. Morgan commented:

I really could not have predicted this result when heading to the circuit for testing on Friday. Despite not have the best test sessions I was confident we could pull it back in qualifying and I knew this front row start could set me up for a brilliant result. The key for me was getting off the line and once I got in the lead at turn 1 I really focussed on being consistent as I could see Rivett, Colburn and Files in my mirrors waiting for me to make a mistake. It was hard to keep them at bay but as the race unfolded I was confident I had the pace to lead and maintain the gap. I couldn't have asked for much more from the first two rounds and I really want to thank Pyro, Phil Glew, Infinity Sports Management and MDA Renewables for all the help they have given me over the winter to get me into this position. I'm already looking forward to the next race but I will savour this moment for a long time!

Alex's next outing will be at the official test at Thruxton on 9th April followed by rounds 3 and 4 at Donington Park on 20/21 April so stay tuned for more news on his progress........