HOME hero Rory Butcher marked the 30th anniversary of touring cars at Knockhill by reaching the podium during the weekend's final race.

The Kirkcaldy-born driver produced a defensive masterclass to hold off four-time series winner, Colin Turkington, for a hugely popular third place in round 18 of the 2022 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship (BTCC), held over the weekend of July 30-31.

He and brother-in-law Gordon Shedden, as well as fellow Scots Aiden Moffatt and Dexter Patterson, were aiming to wow the fans and the Toyota Gazoo Racing UK driver finished seventh in qualifying, with three-time winner 'Flash' in 13th.

In front of a capacity crowd, Butcher made a bright start in race one, indulging in entertaining scraps with both Shedden – who finished one place ahead – and championship leader, Tom Ingram, on his way to eighth place.

Race two also saw Butcher and Shedden separated by just one place, this time courtesy of sixth and fifth place finishes respectively, before the former saved his best for last in the partially reversed grid finale.

Lining up on the front row, the 35-year-old challenged George Gamble, who went on to take the chequred flag, for the lead as they initially pulled clear of the chasing pack.

Although he fell back into the clutches of both Turkington and Jake Hill, and being forced to concede to the latter in the closing laps, Butcher successfully fended off multiple title winners Turkington and Ash Sutton to secure his fourth rostrum of 2022 – and the fourth of his BTCC career at Knockhill – to consolidate sixth spot in the drivers' standings.

Halfords Racing with Cataclean star Shedden finished in sixth place, a result that leaves him seventh in the overall standings with 162 points, one place and eight behind Butcher, as Turkington leads the way with 227.

"The great thing about the BTCC is that even after a challenging weekend, the reversed grid gives you a chance to turn things around and come away with a decent result," Butcher said.

"I gave George [Gamble] a hard time for as long as I could in race three, but with him being strong just where he needed to be, it was difficult to make inroads and I could never get a proper look-in.

"I gave it everything, and it always tastes extra-sweet to finish on the podium in front of your home crowd, especially as it might be the only event some of my family, friends and sponsors get to attend all season. And ultimately, this trophy is for the team – they really did pull out all the stops, so it was nice to reward them with some silverware."

The series returns this weekend, August 13-14, at Snetterton in Norfolk.