Dereham racer Zelos finishes a promising campaign on a high note

Dan Zelos cast the monkey well and truly off his back in the fiercely-disputed Renault UK Clio Cup by producing a stunning performance in the 2017 finale at Brands Hatch to reach the rostrum for the first time — not just once, but twice.

Bouncing back from a torrid rookie campaign in the single-make, ITV4-televised British Touring Car Championship feeder series last year, Zelos has enjoyed a much stronger season after switching camps to WDE Motorsport.

At Brands' legendary GP circuit the talented Dereham ace finished second in the opener, with a podium well-deserved for a flawless and ultra-composed performance.

With his tail up, the 19-year-old Norwich University of Arts Graphic Design undergraduate and former Dereham Sixth Form College student then produced another fine drive to grab another second placed finish.

It was a superb effort that yielded what was easily his best weekend score to date and cemented eighth spot out of 33 in the final drivers' standings.

'I'm over-the-moon,' he said. 'We've shown strong speed pretty much everywhere this year, but for a variety of reasons, the podium has always escaped us — until now. I love Brands' GP lay-out — it's one of my favourite tracks on the calendar, and it's an amazing challenge in qualifying and so rewarding when you successfully nail a lap.

'It was brilliant to be on the podium again — what is it they say about waiting for ages and then two come along at once? To take away two trophies was an absolute dream end to the season, and to have earned them both on merit proved we really deserve to be up there. I just wish there were more races still to go this year, but it's a fantastic way to head into the winter.'

Anyone interested in sponsoring Dan can contact him at dan@danzelos.com