Nearer snatching the lead, but never a victor (5)
I believe the answer is:
loser
'never a victor' is the definition.
(a loser loses to the victor)
'nearer snatching the lead' is the wordplay.
'nearer' becomes 'closer' (synonyms).
'snatching the lead' means to remove the first letter (the letter which leads the word is removed).
'closer' with its first letter taken away is 'LOSER'.
'but' is the link.
(Other definitions for loser that I've seen before include "Ineffectual person who regularly fails" , "One not winning" , "Unsuccessful person" , "One mislaying" , "Opposite of winner" .)