After Nogaro and Dijon, the Clio Cup Series headed to Spa-Francorchamps for its first meeting of 2025 outside of France. Gabriele Torelli set the initial benchmark in Friday morning’s free practice, only to see his time beaten by Alex Finkelstein in the afternoon.

Race 1 : Torelli back on the podium’s top step

On Saturday, Gabriele Torelli ended GPA Racing’s unbeaten run in qualifying. The reigning Clio Cup Series and Clio Cup France champion claimed his first pole position of the season ahead of Alex Finkelstein and Nicky Taylor (GPA Racing).

At the start, the pole-sitter held the lead and resisted the slipstream effect on the Kemmel straight. Ben Colburn (Westbourne Motorsport), who started fourth on the grid, lost a lot of ground when he collided with Aurélien Renet (JSB Compétition). After a brief safety car period, Alex Finkelstein attacked Gabriele Torelli at the entrance to Les Combes, while David Pouget took advantage of the situation to slip between the two in the following corners. Further back, Nicolas Milan (Milan Compétition) retired after being hit by Anthony Jurado (Rangoni Corse), which led to a second safety car period.

In the final lap, Gabriele Torelli held on to take his maiden victory of the year. Alex Finkelstein edged David Pouget for second place by 0.015s. Mauro Polderman (AST Compétition) finished fourth, taking the best Junior position from Nicky Taylor. Filip Kunčer (Milan Compétition) finished sixth and best Challenger ahead of Guillaume Maio (GM Sport) and Sam Gornall (Westbourne Motorsport). After Ben Colburn was penalised for his role in the collision with Aurélien Renet, Andreas Stucki (Stucki Motorsport) and Axel Bengtsson (GPA Racing) rounded out the top ten, whilst Mickaël Carrée (T2CM) came through to finish first in the Gentlemen category.

Race 2 : Torelli first to the flag, Pouget gets the win

On Sunday, Gabriele Torelli again outpaced Alex Finkelstein in qualifying. David Pouget and Ben Colburn also confirmed their places at the sharp end of the grid, sharing the second row. Fifth on the timing screen, Anthony Jurado ultimately started ninth after receiving a penalty for his Race 1 collision with Nicolas Milan.

Gabriele Torelli got off to an excellent start and took advantage of the relentless battles between his pursuers to open up a small gap. Behind him, Ben Colburn climbed from fourth to second place, but Alex Finkelstein and David Pouget quickly regained the upper hand. Aurélien Renet joined them before a safety car period following the retirement of Gaël Rostant (GPA Racing) and the rollover of Harry McGovern (AST Compétition). Gabriele Torelli controlled the restart despite increasing pressure from David Pouget, who found an opening on lap seven, but the Italian held his ground as their battle allowed Alex Finkelstein to join the fray.

On the final lap, Gabriele Torelli overtook David Pouget at the entrance to Les Combes. The three-way battle continued until the chequered flag, with the three drivers finishing within less than four-tenths of a second. However, the winner’s joy was short-lived as he was penalised one place after the finish for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. David Pouget inherited the victory ahead of Gabriele Torelli and Alex Finkelstein. Anthony Jurado finished fourth ahead of Damiano Puccetti (Rangoni Corse) and Ben Colburn, who were first in the Juniors and Challengers categories. Sam Gornall was seventh in a lively field, followed by Gaël Castelli (Milan Compétition), Nicky Taylor and Filip Kunčer. Further back, Mickaël Carrée was once again the best among the Gentlemen.

Clio Cup Series

Third on Saturday and winner on Sunday, David Pouget still leads by more than 100 points after round three of the Clio Cup Series. Gabriele Torelli, who finished first and second this weekend, is now his closest rival. After two podiums, Alex Finkelstein is up to sixth place overall. Ben Colburn still leads the Challengers category, where he shared the honours with Filip Kunčer. Mauro Polderman and Damiano Puccetti leave Belgium with one win each in the Juniors, still led by the Dutchman. Meanwhile, Mickaël Carrée got back on track with a double win to reduce the gap to Gentlemen category leader Laurent Dziadus (Team Lucas). GPA Racing extends its lead in the team classification.

Clio Cup España

With two wins in Clio Cup España, Gabriele Torelli takes sole command of the regional group ahead of Loïc Labeda (GM Sport), who finished runner-up on Saturday and third on Sunday. However, the Frenchman retains the lead in the Challengers category, where he remains unbeaten so far this season. Stefan Stojkov (Rangoni Corse) and Nicolas Milan also enjoyed overall podium finishes.

Clio Cup France

Spa-Francorchamps also hosted round two of the Clio Cup France, where David Pouget scored another double victory. Unbeaten this season, the GPA Racing leader extended his advantage over Laurent Dziadus, who tops the Gentlemen category despite Mickaël Carrée’s double podium finish and double class win. Anthony Jurado finished second on Sunday and now lies third overall while Ronan Deslandes (T2CM) still leads the Juniors.

Clio Cup Mid-Europe

Double winner for the start of the season in Belgium, Alex Finkelstein logically takes the lead in Clio Cup Mid-Europe with 100 points, 28 ahead of Nicky Taylor, who finished third twice this weekend. After sharing the class victories with Mauro Polderman, Juniors leader Sam Gornall is third overall ahead of Filip Kunčer, who takes the lead in the Challengers thanks to his two victories in the category.

Round four of the Clio Cup Series will see several competitors meet again at Imola (4-6 July). The event will also host round three of Clio Cup España and round two of Clio Cup Italia. Clio Cup France returns to action at Misano (18-20 July) and Clio Cup Mid-Europe at Magny-Cours (1-3 August).

Results - Clio Cup Series - Clio Cup España - Clio Cup France - Clio Cup Mid-Europe