Renault UK Clio Cup driver Brett Lidsey says he is feeling refreshed and reinvigorated ahead of the resumption of the 2018 season at Snetterton 300 Circuit this coming weekend, where the Northfleet sportsman will race at the Norfolk venue for the first time in four years. 
Having last competed at the 2.97-mile track back in 2014 when racing in the club-level Michelin Clio Cup Race Series, Lidsey will certainly go into rounds 11 and 12 of the Renault UK Clio Cup campaign on the back-foot compared to his rivals but has no doubts he’ll be quickly up to speed.
It was a similar story last time out at Croft Circuit before the summer break, pre-event testing at the North Yorkshire venue marked the MRM driver’s first experience of the track at the wheel of his fourth generation Clio Cup car.
Having made strong progress across all sessions, Lidsey did have the misfortune of contact from a rival in the opening race of the weekend but he hit back impressively in race two and chalked-up his second top 10 finish of the year after a highly entertaining multi-car battle.
Even though his track mileage has been limited in 2018 compared to his rivals, don’t forget Lidsey missed the fourth event of the season at Oulton Park as it clashed with his wedding, the Liftout, GHR Scaffolding Ltd, GPL Projects Ltd, Certus Security, Dornack, Taylor Made Decals and MS Motorsport backed driver is confident he can be in the thick of the action at the weekend.
“I’m really looking forward to being back racing at Snetterton, it’s been a long time since we were there in the Clio Cup Series and so there’s a bit of catching up to do compared to the other guys”, he commented, “We did a good job at Croft though, and I’d never been there in the Gen-4 car, so I’m pretty confident we’ll be able to get the lap times down and be where we need to be in qualifying.”
Lidsey’s first full season in the renowned Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship support category hasn’t been without its challenges, contact in the first race of the year at Brands Hatch pitching him into a luckless roll at the second corner and undermining his campaign from the get-go.
Hitting back brilliantly at Donington Park with a season-best top five finish in round three, at the wheel of a replacement car, he then encountered more misfortune at Thruxton with a tangle in the weekend’s second contest.
Away from competitive action for five weeks until he rejoined the championship at Croft following his wedding, Lidsey impressed on his return with no lack of commitment and is now determined to challenge for big points at Snetterton despite the limited seat-time compared to his rivals.
“It’s not exactly been a straightforward season so far, and we have been caught-up in incidents not of our making, but I’m pleased with the pace we’ve shown and I’ll be disappointed if we’re not battling in the top 10 again at Snetterton – that has to be the minimum target”, he added.
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