Clifford Thames made a first foray into the high-octane world of motor sport in 2013 when the company name achieved global coverage adorning cars of the Formula 1 Marussia racing team.


Building on that high profile introduction, Clifford Thames is now sponsoring a car in the 2014 British Touring Car Championship, an event that attracts UK television coverage second only to Formula 1.


In a move certain to raise CT’s profile, the company name is emblazoned across the works prepared MG6 driven by former Formula 3 champion Marc Hynes for the Triple Eight Engineering team.


Calvin Barnett, CT’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “This sponsorship represents an opportunity to raise CT’s profile in the industry outside our traditional OEM base. In Triple Eight Engineering and Marc Hynes we are sponsoring not only one of the top teams but also a proven class driver with every prospect of victory. The Clifford Thames name will be highly visible at top racing circuits around the country throughout the championship series.   
“In what is sure to be a hard fought championship we will be following Marc’s progress closely. He is definitely not racing just to make up the numbers!
Mr Barnett added: “Sponsorship takes our business further and is an excellent way of marketing ourselves to new and existing clients. It will make a real difference to our industry profile, creating an exciting association for Clifford Thames with a sport that is popular not only with our clients but also our own employees. It is a new venture for Clifford Thames and one that I believe the time is right for us to make.”


The Driver

A highly experienced competitor, Marc Hynes, 35, won the British Formula 3 title in 1999 beating Jenson Button on the way. His other career honours include the 1995 Formula Vauxhall Junior Championship, 1997 British Formula Renault Championship and theMarlboro Master of F3 at Zandvoort in Holland.
Marc’s last race outing was in 2008 driving for Triple Eight Australia in V8 Super Car Series endurance races at Philip Island and Bathurst.

He will dovetail the BTCC programme with his management role as Head of Driver Development at the Marussia Formula 1 Team.

Marc said: ‘"To say I'm excited about the season ahead would be an understatement. It's great to be in such a famous series, racing on some of the best circuits in the world and in front of the best race fans on the planet. Thirty-two cars with over 300BHP at their disposal over 30 races; it's just mega isn't it? I always knew I had unfinished business in a race-suit, and feel very privileged to have been presented with the opportunity to go racing with Triple Eight. Their record in the BTCC is remarkable.
"It's going to be really very exciting. I've got a strong team behind me and it's great to have support from partners such as Clifford Thames who have a real opportunity to become more of a household name with the extensive live coverage offered by ITV."

The Team

Founded in 1996, Triple Eight Engineering was the official Vauxhall BTCC works team from 1997 to 2009. Triple Eight has won over 100 races since its formation and lifted over 22 championships including 5 driver and 6 manufacturer titles. Triple Eight has also competed in several other championships including GT Sports Car and the British Rally Championship.

CT’s logo on the MG6 bodywork runs alongside that of ‘Business is Great,’ a government campaign designed to build confidence amongst businesses with the aim of helping employers with their plans to grow, hire, export and find funding.


A series of ‘Business is Great’ networking events are taking place at races throughout the season.  

   
CT has joined forces with a number of partners in sponsoring the car which is racing under the team name Quantel-Bifold Racing.