4 RORY BUTCHER
CAR: HONDA CIVIC TYPE R FK2 TEAM: AMDTUNING.COM CHAMPIONSHIP POSITION: 5TH POINTS: 266 WINS: 3
Butcher had built himself a solid reputation in the ageing MG6 in 2018, and this was a golden opportunity to step forward in more solid equipment with the FK2 Honda. He grabbed it with both hands.
Working with racer Mike Bushell on the engineering strength, Butcher proved to be fast and consistent. He is a classy racer who rarely gets himself embroiled in the point-sapping clashes that often ruin a campaign. There was only one wobble when the pressure was on at Croft and he binned it in qualifying, which consigned him to a start on the penultimate row and there was also a controversial incident with Turkington at Knockhill that put the Northern Irishman out of the points.
Those aside, the Scot was a threat everywhere and arguably had the legs over team-mate Tordoff in the opening stages of the season. He got his rewards with a narrow triumph in the Independents Trophy and he also claimed the Jack Sears Trophy – but such was his progress that his eyes were firmly focused on the overall battle. That is a mark of how far he has come.
CAR: HONDA CIVIC FK2 TEAM: AMDTUNING. COM CHAMPIONSHIP POSITION: 13TH POINTS: 147 WINS: 1
Tordoff was desperate to get his hands on a Honda Civic FK2. He knew only too well about the ability of the Team Dynamics-built Japanese machine having been beaten to the 2016 crown by Gordon Shedden’s version when he was driving a BMW.
The Yorkshire driver switched from Motorbase to the ambitious Amdtuning.com squad, but one thing he didn’t shake off was his habit of finding bad luck when there was some knocking about. There was a podium at Thruxton inbetween some mechanical problems, but it wasn’t until Oulton in June where things really started to click and he was a regular inside the top six. An accomplished win in the opener at the second Thruxton meeting was well deserved and looked like it would reignite his charge.
Sadly, Tordoff had to sit out the latter part of the season after the death of his infant son, and he was replaced in the line-up by Mike Bushell.