RORY Collingbourne says he will be using what is left of this season’s Renault UK Clio Cup as practice for his assault on next year’s championship.

The Newport youngster was placed 10th and 12th in the two rounds at Croft in North Yorkshire last weekend, but Collingbourne could well have come away with a pair of top-10 finishes.

Having originally come ninth in the second contest, the 18-year-old was handed a five-second penalty for exceeding track limits.

However, Collingbourne took a lot of heart from his car’s performance, particularly after he had suffered from mechanical problems at Oulton Park, Thruxton and Brands Hatch.

Reflecting on the weekend as a whole, he said: “I started off really well and was fastest in the first free practice session.

“Everyone kept going off in qualifying, which was quite annoying, and I tried my best but my teammates both spun and left me on my own.

“In Clios it’s all about getting close to the car in front and using the slipstream.

“You and your teammates use each other in qualifying but it didn’t happen for me.”

Collingbourne qualified 13th and 10th for the two races but would have been further up the grid in both had he not exceeded track limits.

“In the first race I was hit on the last corner of the last lap and went from seventh to 10th,” added the Team Cooksport ace.

“It was bumper to bumper in the second race and everyone was doing the same lap times.

“It’s so hard to overtake when you’re in a big group and the track is not that wide.

“I was stuck at the back of the pack and everyone was so defensive.”

He continued: “It would have been nice to come seventh and ninth, but at least I proved I can get into the top 10.

“We’ve got five weeks until the next meeting and I’ve got some of my favourite circuits coming up.

“I just see the rest of this year now as practice for next season.”

While Collingbourne remains 15th in the championship standings, Ant Whorton-Eales’ lead is down to three points following a third and second for Mike Bushell.

Paul Rivett took the chequered flag in race one before Max Coates clinched his maiden Clio Cup triumph.

There are eight rounds of the championship left.