Rory Butcher is keen to get the new British Touring Car Championship season underway, as the Scot prepares for his first outing with the Speedworks Motorsport-run Toyota Gazoo Racing UK outfit.
Butcher will race for his third different team in as many years this season, having switched from Motorbase Performance in 2020 to the Speedworks team for 2021, where he will race one of the team’s two Toyota Corollas.
The Scot was a title contender last year for much of the season, ultimately finishing fifth overall in the drivers’ standings after claiming three outright victories.
For 2021, Butcher will enjoy additional manufacturer backing as the Speedworks squad ups its campaign from one to two cars, with Toyota coming on board and being joined by new-to-the-team Butcher and Sam Smelt.
Last season, Butcher claimed a podium finish at Thruxton, the venue for this weekend’s season opener, and he admits he is targeting at least the same result again this time around.
“I’m absolutely raring to go,” said Butcher. “I feel very well-acquainted with the team now – Christian [Dick, Team Principal], Amy [Dick], my engineer Paul Ridgway and all the Speedworks guys and girls have helped me to feel totally at home – and I’m increasingly comfortable in the car.
“It’s fair to say we’ve still got a tiny bit more pace to find and we’ll discover next weekend exactly where we slot into the current pecking order, but we are chipping away and I’m pretty confident we will be in the mix.
“There’s no other circuit like Thruxton in the world – it’s old-school, bumpy and abrasive and just so, so quick, which makes it a massive challenge for drivers and teams alike.
“You really need a good, stable chassis underneath you to deal with the fast corners and I think we can take a lot of encouragement from knowing how well the Corolla went there last year.
“Significantly, one of the car’s biggest strengths is the way in which it looks after its tyres, which is hugely important at Thruxton.
“I’ve got to say, it’s going to be a really interesting qualifying session. No-one has been able to do any prior running at the track, so we’re all going in completely blind.
“For the first time in a long time at Thruxton, everybody will be on zero ballast which will make it a completely level playing field – but in the BTCC, the cream invariably rises to the top.
“Ultimately, I would love to score a podium in my first event for Toyota Gazoo Racing UK. To leave the circuit with some silverware on the Sunday night would make me a very happy man travelling back up to Scotland.”
Team Principal Christian Dick is wary of predicting the team achieving the same feat as last year, where Tom Ingram claimed a memorable double victory at the Hampshire venue.
“It’s been a long winter, but by the same token a very productive one, with a phenomenal effort from the whole team to build a second Corolla and a positive testing programme with both cars – and now finally we are ready to go racing,” added Dick.
“Thruxton as a circuit is unique, which is part of its enduring appeal. Having raced around there myself, I can certainly vouch for its daunting, take-no-prisoners nature.
“It has been kind to us in the past – particularly last year – but there’s obviously no guarantee that we’ll be able to replicate that performance.
“In a series as fiercely competitive as the BTCC, the key to success is hard work, nothing else, and we need to ensure we keep our heads down and continue to dig deep, which has always been our approach.
“I think both drivers can justifiably feel very optimistic going to Thruxton. Rory has impressed everybody with his excellent work ethic and the input he has had into the Corolla’s ongoing development from his experience with other cars and teams, while Sam has been getting faster with every test and – as I have said before – will be a dark horse this year.
“He had a difficult first season in the BTCC through no real fault of his own, but he is a very different and much more rounded competitor now.
“It was interesting to gauge ourselves against our rivals during the group test at Silverstone last week. We stuck to our plan and ran through various set-up changes, and refused to get lured into draining the fuel or bolting on fresh tyres in an effort to post a quick lap time, like some did.
“I’m very confident that where we ended up was not at all representative of our true pace, and that qualifying at Thruxton will reveal an altogether different picture. We can’t wait to get there!”