Karting sensation Callum Bradshaw has impressed immediately in his first run in the new Renault UK Clio Cup Junior race car – his prize from Renault Sport UK for winning the recent Henry Surtees Karting Challenge event.
The 15-year-old sampled the car at the Snetterton circuit in Norfolk with instruction from former Renault UK Clio Cup Champion Phil Glew.
And said Glew: “He did a superb job – he responded in the right way to the feedback I was giving him and it was nice to work with a young driver who listened so well.
“His pace was very obvious and that’s impressive considering it was effectively out of rear-wheel-drive karts to a front-wheel-drive racing car.”
Bradshaw is the son of successful former British Superbike team owner Pete Bradshaw. He is twice a runner-up at World Championship level in the Junior X30 category and in 2016 has also become the first Briton to win the prestigious overseas CIK Academy title.
He commented: “The UK Clio Cup Junior test was a really good experience – the car was just brilliant. It took a short while to get used to the extra height and width compared to a kart but I felt I started to adapt quite quickly. A move to cars is on my radar and this is definitely a category I’m now looking at.”
The Renault UK Clio Cup Junior championship launches in 2017 and is for drivers aged 14 to 17. It will use cars identical to those in the long-established Renault UK Clio Cup which features at the British Touring Car Championship’s high-profile race events with the exception of a minor modification to the ECU – limiting cars to 100mph and five gears – and a switch to road tyres, Michelin’s high performance Pilot Sport 3.
He said: “Phil Glew’s words say it all – Callum’s star quality was there for all to see when he drove the UK Clio Cup Junior car for the first time and I am sure he would be of great interest to any of our teams.
“Certainly we were very impressed by the way he quickly adapted and got up to speed and it was the same of the many youngsters who also recently tested the car in Junior spec at a recent ‘sampler day’. There are some sensational young talents out there and we look forward to working them in our inaugural UK Clio Cup Junior season in 2017.”
