Daniel Lloyd arrived spectacularly on the car racing scene in 2008, quickly becoming a race winner during his first season of competition and marking himself out as one of the country’s most exciting young prospects in four-wheeled motorsport.Graduating from karts, where he won the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Stars of Tomorrow Scholarship, the 16-year-old seamlessly moved into cars by stepping up to the Ginetta Junior Championship at the beginning of the year and rapidly established himself as a true talent.Claiming a maiden podium result at Donington Park during round eight, Daniel soon made his way onto the coveted top step of the podium with a double race victory at his ‘home’ venue, Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire, at the wheel of his Tockwith Motorsport entered car.Competing in Ginetta Junior as part of the incredibly high profile British Touring Car Championship package, Daniel’s maiden success instantly put his name up in lights as a driver with terrific potential as he bids to carve out a professional career in saloon car competition.Before the end of the campaign, the West Yorkshire racer achieved a further win at Knockhill in Scotland and went on to conclude his first season in cars a highly creditable fifth in the Ginetta Junior Championship standings. Overall, he achieved a fantastic record of three race wins, two podiums and 13 other finishes inside the top six. “We had a great season in Ginettas this year, I really enjoyed the racing and to win three rounds in my debut campaign was fantastic”, commented Daniel, “At one stage the top three in the title race looked on the cards but we had some bad luck which meant that wasn’t to be. I was still very happy to end the year fifth in the championship though. “I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Carolynn Hoy and the Stars of Tomorrow karting series for giving me the chance to step-up to Ginetta in the scholarship car. It goes without saying I owe an unbelievable amount to my dad Neil, without his support I would never have started racing in the first place.”Since the conclusion of his first year of car racing, Daniel has confirmed he will make the step-up to the ELF Renault Clio Cup championship in 2009, another BTCC support class which has a huge reputation for producing the touring car stars of the future.Marking an increase in competitiveness and a rise in professionalism, the Clio Cup has produced some of Britain’s most successful saloon car and sportscar racers. In recent years, Robert Huff (Chevrolet World Touring Car Championship race winner), Tom Onslow-Cole (Vauxhall BTCC race winner) and Jonathan Adam (double SEAT Cupra Champion) have all gone on to greater things.Having already put pen to paper on a deal with Team Pyro – the team which steered Ben Winrow to the 2008 ELF Renault Clio Cup title – Daniel has a great opportunity to do well in his first year in the championship and has already impressed category insiders with his pace during his maiden test sessions. By no means, though, is he underestimating the challenge.“The Clio is a great car and I can’t wait for the 2009 championship to start”, added Daniel, “My first few tests have all gone really well and I’ve learned a massive amount already from the guys at Team Pyro. We’re working really well together and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can achieve next year.“Clios is one of the biggest championships in the country so we know it’s going to be incredibly hard to repeat what we managed to do in Ginetta Juniors this year. We’re going to give it our all though. If I can end my first season inside the top 10 in the standings, I’ll be really happy.”Competing in front of up to 35,000 spectators at every circuit next year in the ELF Renault Clio Cup, Daniel’s race outings are expected to be screened on ITV4 during live Sunday afternoon broadcasts and through ITV’s Motorsport UK magazine programme. While Daniel has now concluded his track activity for this year, he is planning to be back at the wheel of his Clio in early February for pre-season testing.