Dan Rowbottom has become the latest driver to step down from the 2020 BTCC season before it begins its belated start this weekend at Donington Park with Jack Butel the newest addition to the grid at Ciceley Motorsport.
Rowbottom has joined Andrew Jordan and Mike Bushell in doing so and this left a vacancy alongside Adam Morgan in the Mercedes A-Class. Step in Butel who has driven for Ciceley before in the Dubai 24 Hours earlier this year.
He has also taken in a two-year stint in British F4 so is used to the BTCC package albeit at a support level. As well as that, he has raced in the LMP3 Cup Championship where he claimed three wins for Speedworks and was involved in the British GT Championship and Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe in 2019.
Due to Rowbottom’s departure, the Ciceley car will now run under Carlube Triple R Racing. Ahead of his debut in the championship, Butel is under no illusion of how tough it will be but cannot wait to begin.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for me, joining the British Touring Car Championship grid is a dream come true,” said Butel.
“I have so many people to thank… firstly my parents for their unwavering support, Carlube Triple R Racing and Lucas Batteries for their financial backing and Ciceley Motorsport for their belief in me as a driver.
“I will be taking the first part of the year as a learning curve preparing for 2021, but with help from Adam Morgan and the engineering team, hope to be able to secure some impressive results towards the latter part of the campaign.
“The opportunity has come at literally the eleventh hour, I just can’t wait to get cracking.”
Ciceley Motorsport Commercial Director, Norman Burgess believes Butel is a natural fit due to previous ties and him and Russell Morgan have belief in his ability to succeed.
“We are delighted to welcome Jack back to the team,” said Burgess. “I have worked with him before with our GT4 team in Dubai and his enthusiasm is infectious, he just wouldn’t leave the team’s engineer alone, his thirst for data interpretation and improvement held no bounds.
“This is a part-funded drive and Russell [Morgan, Team Principal] was insistent that the team signed Jack, he like us all at Ciceley Motorsport, believe that he has the natural ability to deliver the results we require.
“Adam and Jack enjoy a great relationship and have been racing together on their simulators during the lockdown period. Jack, his sponsor and family fit our team dynamic perfectly.”
