Butcher takes Carrera Cup GB double at Rockingham

Rory Butcher completes double win at RockinghamDaniel Lloyd and Jonas Gelzinis take podium finishesVictor Jimenez wins Pro-Am1 from Dan De ZilleRory Butcher made it two wins in quick succession in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Rockingham today (Sunday 15 September) in another race of ever-changing fortunes. Butcher fended off a race-long challenge from Daniel Lloyd as Jonas Gelzinis completed the podium and Victor Jimenez won Pro-Am1.The track was wet as the field started on treaded tyres, but with no more rain falling the track dried out as the race developed. However, Butcher (Celtic Speed) drove a mighty race under constant pressure from Lloyd (Team Parker Racing) as they moved clear of Gelzinis (Juta Racing). The places never changed, but Lloyd maintained a relentless pressure on Butcher as they battled against tyres that struggled more and more in the changing conditions.Gelzinis made sure of a safe third as he closed the championship points’ gap to Michael Meadows (Samsung Smart Motorsport) and it was a strange race for the championship leader. Meadows ran third initially, but was struggling with poor handling in a car that had been quickly repaired after accident damage in the first race. After a pit stop to change to change to slick tyres, Meadows claimed fourth to salvage a much reduced championship lead.In Pro-Am1, Jimenez scored a topsy-turvy win over Redline Racing team mate Dan De Zille, but only after they both made pit stops to change tyres after an early clash. Jimenez lost a lot of time in the pits, but charged back to grab the lead on the last lap as De Zille struggled with handling dramas.Butcher was confirmed as the ‘driver of the weekend’, while Celtic Speed won the ‘Drift team of the weekend’ award.Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) first overall:“There was only one racing line out there as the track was drying out. Dan put a lot of pressure on me and I just had to place the car carefully. It was good fun racing against Dan and this is a great team effort.”Dan Lloyd (Team Parker Racing) second overall:“Half way through the race the tyres really started to suffer. I had no grip left in the rear tyres and Rory’s tyres looked to be in a bit better shape than mine at the end. When Michael came through to un-lap himself, I thought he had won. It was a great race and fair play to Rory; he drove very well.”Jonas Gelzinis (Juta Racing) third overall:“I saw Meadows dropping a lot of time. The track was drying out and the tyres were going off. I could keep pace with the two leaders but I did not want to take so many risks.”Michael Meadows (Samsung Smart Motorsport) fourth overall:“We lost some points to Jonas this weekend, so it’s not been perfect like Knockhill. The aim for the second race was just to get the car on the track. But it wasn’t right, so I pitted for slicks to see if it would be any better.”Victor Jimenez (Redline Racing) first in Pro-Am1:“That was a crazy race and I had to make up a lot of ground after the pit stop. I lost a lot of time in the pits and then I had to push 100%.”Round 16 result:Pro category: 1 Rory Butcher; 2 Dan Lloyd; 3 Jonas Gelzinis.Pro-Am1 category: 1 Victor Jimenez; 2 Dan De Zille.


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