Rory Butcher delighted by Vallelunga recovery

Rory Butcher admitted he was delighted to fight back from the disappointment of race one with a strong finish to the FIA Motorsport Games event at Vallelunga.

The BTCC Independents’ champion was given the honour of representing Team Great Britain in the Touring Car Cup element of the event at the wheel of an all-new MG6 Xpower TCR being run by the Spanish QEV Technologies team.

Butcher’s car was only completed in the week prior to the event, but the Scot produced a strong performance in a wet opening qualifying session to secure a top six place on the grid.

Turbo issues would force Butcher out of race one, although he remained optimistic of a stronger showing in Sunday’s second race.

With a new turbo on the car, Butcher made the most of light rain during the mid-part of the race to fight his way forwards from just outside the top ten to fifth, and then made an opportunistic move around the outside of Mat’o Homola’s Hyundai at the final corner after a late safety car to take fourth place.

It meant Butcher ended up seventh in the standings and he was quick to praise the team for the work it had to done to get the car up to speed.

“We replaced the turbo overnight and it got rid of the lag,” he said. “It was like a different car and to come from tenth on the grid to finish fourth is fantastic; it felt like a victory for the new MG

“This amazing team has worked solid for four weeks to prepare for this event and we only rolled the car out on Tuesday. Every session we have made steps forward and it all came good in that second race. The conditions worked in our favour and when there was a chance right at the end to push further forwards, I had to take it. A podium would have been fantastic, but we can’t be disappointed with where we ended up.

“I owe a huge thanks to everyone involved in making this happen and I’m really proud to have represented Team Great Britain in the event.”