Carroll emotional after home win

The 24-year-old only returned to the series one week before in France having raced in the DTM so far this year, but he was on the pace all weekend at Silverstone.

Carroll won three GP2 races in 2005 with Super Nova, but he endured a tough year with Racing Engineering in 2006, and his DTM exploits with Audi have yielded little success so far.

"It's fantastic to win again, it's been so long and I've had such a hard time that I'm just so thankful to the people that never lost faith in me," he said. "I'm nearly crying to tell the truth.

"This win means so much to me. Last season and this season, up until now, has been very difficult but this makes everything worthwhile."

The Ulsterman added that he now hopes to use his first win of the season as a springboard for more success with FMS for the rest of the year.

"Hopefully this is just the start of things," he said. "We've shown what we can do together as a team, and with the right opportunity, I can run with the best."

FMS team boss Paolo Coloni added that he was pleased for Carroll, after he had pushed hard to get him in the car once the seat became available.

"This is the reason that I'm in motor racing," he said. "It makes me very happy to see a great driver performing in this way. I hope we can continue with these results."