Fifer Rory Butcher gave the 30,000 spectators at Knockhill a huge reason to cheer about when he powered his Celtic Speed racer to victory in the Porsche Carrera Cup Pro-Am1 race at the weekend.
The 24-year-old from Kirkcaldy, who faced a race against time to get on the grid after his Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car was damaged when he was hit in the opening round at the Fife circuit, was delighted to make the top step of the podium.
"I've won races in the Porsche Carrera Cup already this year, but winning on my home track in front of so many fans, sponsors, family and friends was something really very special," the Celtic Speed team leader admitted.
"It was pretty awesome. There were so many fans round the track that when I overtook cars I could hear their roar inside the car. It was brilliant."
Butcher had been fighting for the lead in the opening race when his car was involved in an incident at the Hairpin. After nursing the car to the end of the race, he then endured a nervous wait to see whether he could return for the second race.
"I have to thank all the guys in the Celtic Speed team," he said.
"There was a fair bit of damage to the door and the wheel alignment of the car. As well as handicapping me through the remained of the first race, it gave the guys a big job to repair for the second race.
"Thankfully though they managed to get the work done and it was great to be able to go out and win the race for them; it was the least I could do to repay all their hard work."
Butcher though wasn't the only Celtic Speed driver to enjoy a successful 'home' outing. Edinburgh's George Brewster won both Porsche Carrera Cup Pro-Am2 races, while Aberdeen's Tommy Dreelan bagged a podium finish.
"It was pretty much the perfect weekend for me," Brewster explained. "Two pole positions, two race wins, two fastest laps and the 'Driver of the Weekend' award. It doesn't really get any better than that."
And team boss Dreelan was delighted with the performances not just of his drivers and his crew, but also everyone at Knockhill.
"To be honest, I've never seen the team work as smoothly, professionally and swiftly as they did throughout what was a very demanding, but ultimately successful weekend," Dreelan said.
"The team was fantastic, and they did a brilliant job. But I also have to pay tribute to the staff and management at Knockhill. The track looked superb and the organisation was second to none.
"Overall it wasn''t just a great weekend for Celtic Speed and Knockhill, but with the whole event broadcast live over seven hours on ITV, it was fantastic for Scottish motorsport as a whole."
