BTCC Silverstone – Butcher cruises to win despite compromised start

Rory Butcher allayed pre-race fears to convert pole to victory in race one at Silverstone.

A liquid spill from the earlier British F4 race on the start/finish straight meant Butcher’s start would be compromised. However despite losing the lead to Tom Ingram, he soon reclaimed his lead on lap three at Brooklands with an audacious and well executed move.

The opening lap saw five retirements, with Andy Neate suffering a puncture and causing damage. Gordon Shedden and Sam Smelt had a coming together, Jack Mitchell retired early on with a mechanical issue and Adam Morgan also never returned from the pits after pitting on lap one.

Once Butcher took his lead back, Ingram was reeled in by Dan Lloyd in his Vauxhall Astra. Of the five title protagonists Ingram finished highest, with Josh Cook, Colin Turkington and leader Ash Sutton finishing fifth, sixth and seventh respectively.

Jake Hill however struggled with 66kg of ballast in his Ford Focus, and was embroiled in a race-long fight with Tom Chilton and Jack Butel. He eventually finished 21st, and out of the points.

Butcher cruised to a win, with a winning margin of just over three seconds. Ingram held off Lloyd for second with Aiden Moffat’s second half renaissance to the season continued with fourth place.

History was made as the BTCC’s Hybrid car competed in its first race, driven by former champion Andrew Jordan. While it finished last, this wasn’t due to lack of performance. The Hybrid programme was simply to run the car in racing conditions, and so stayed near the back to avoid any incidents or affecting the championship.

Ash Sutton remains in the lead of the championship with only a handful of races left to go.

Pos Driver Car Team +/-
1 Rory Butcher Toyota Corolla Toyota Gazoo 21:21:142
2 Tom Ingram Hyundai i30N Excelr8 +3.262
3 Dan Lloyd Vauxhall Astra Power Maxed +3.666
4 Aiden Moffat Infiniti Q50 Laser Tools +4.263
5 Josh Cook Honda Civic Type R BTC Racing +6.674
6 Colin Turkington BMW 330i M Sport Team WSR +6.929
7 Ash Sutton Infiniti Q50 Laser Tools +7.379
8 Dan Rowbottom Honda Civic Type R Team Dynamics +8.113
9 Stephen Jelley BMW 330i M Sport Team WSR +10.154
10 Jason Plato Vauxhall Astra Power Maxed +10.564
11 Tom Oliphant BMW 330i M Sport Team WSR +10.757
12 Ollie Jackson Ford Focus ST MB Motorsport +16.981
13 Chris Smiley Hyundai i30N Excelr8 +17.270
14 Senna Proctor Honda Civic Type R BTC Racing +17.621
15 Carl Boardley Infiniti Q50 Laser Tools +18.009
16 Sam Osborne Ford Focus ST Motorbase +18.763
17 Aron Taylor-Smith Cupra Leon Team HARD +19.410
18 Jack Butel Hyundai i30N Excelr8 +19.886
19 Jack Goff Cupra Leon Team HARD +23.460
20 Tom Chilton BMW 330i M Sport Ciceley +23.822
21 Jake Hill Ford Focus ST MB Motorsport +24.904
22 Jade Edwards Honda Civic Type R BTC Racing +25.239
23 Rick Parfitt Jr Hyundai i30N Excelr8 +26.015
24 Nicholas Hamilton Cupra Leon Team HARD +28.099
25 Andrew Jordan Toyota Corolla Hybrid +30.593
Retirements
DNF Andy Neate Ford Focus ST Motorbase Wheel
DNF Adam Morgan BMW 330i M Sport Ciceley Damage
DNF Sam Smelt Toyota Corolla Toyota Gazoo Crash
DNF Gordon Shedden Honda Civic Type R Team Dynamics Crash
DNF Jack Mitchell Cupra Leon Team HARD Mechanical

 

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