MOTOR racing vicar Reverend Simon Butler hit top gear on the track when he came eighth out of 40 drivers at Donnington Park in his lightweight E-Type Jaguar on his first outing in the car this year after a re-fit.

Rev Butler was taking part in the Jaguar Classic Challenge for 2018 and by the end of the season, which will include races at Silverstone, Le Mans in France, Oulton Park and Belgium, he hopes will be in the top five and in line for track silverware.

Known as the ‘Racing Revered’, Simon is rector of St Mary’s Church at Upton Grey and in charge of 11 parishes, including South Warnborough near Alton, and began his love affair with motor racing in his teens, and by his early 20s was racing Formula 1 cars.

“But I realised it was very difficult to reach the top without sponsorship and you don’t earn a great deal at first,” said the 38-year-old reverend.

So he made his historic classic car racing debut in 2012 in a 1953 C-Type Jaguar and quickly established himself as a front runner in the Motor Racing Legends RAC Woodcote Trophy series, picking up numerous wins.

For the 2015 season, a lightweight E-Type Jaguar, in blue with two white stripes, was added to the team’s collection. Having seen very little competitive action for several years the car was rebuilt and developed by the Racing Reverend’s in-house team and over the coming seasons took to the track at several events, including the Le Mans Classic and Silverstone Classic.

But despite his passion for racing he had always had a calling for the church and, deciding it was the way forward for him, was ordained in 2005.

He is now rector of the North Hampshire Downs benefice and in charge of a group of clergy who help him manage his huge parish.

Married to Hannah and with three young daughters, Rev Butler has managed to keep his racing Jag despite the fact clergy don’t receive large salaries.

“We’ve run the E-Type in several Jaguar Classic events over the last few years and we’re usually competitive and at the sharp end of the grid,” he said.

“We’re hoping that doing a full season in 2018 will give us a chance to challenge for podium positions on a regular basis.”

Born at Oakley, near Basingstoke, Rev Butler is proud being both a clergyman and a racing driver in his home county but keeps both in separate compartments. His priority is his parishes and he uses his holidays to carry out his racing engagements.

Asked if any of his children were going to follow in his footsteps, he said: “My youngest, who is three, loves motor racing so who knows, but all the girls are getting a chance to learn how to drive on a toy Mini I bought them.”

It could be some time before his three-year-old daughter overtakes him on the track but meanwhile he says he still gets the same thrill as he did when he sat behind the wheel of his first racing car.

Also, the Racing Reverend can also proudly boast to this day he remains the only ordained clergyman to have driven V10 and V8 Formula 1 cars!