Tony D’Alberto loses Symmons Plains appeal

Tony D’Alberto has lost his appeal against the decision to not award points in the first TCR Australia race at Symmons Plains.

The Honda works driver won the shortened first race of the weekend which initially awarded points, a decision reversed following a protest by Garry Rogers Motorsport.

This saw D’Alberto sitting out the third and final race in protest, later appealing the decision.

Motorsport Australia has turned down the appeal, arguing that D’Alberto knew that the results of the first race had not been finalised when the second race was held.

The Honda driver, who currently sits tenth in the drivers’ standings, drove conservatively in Race 2 while assuming he would have the Race 3 reversed grid pole with the points from the first race.

The following statement was issued by the governing body:

“These arguments do not touch on the correctness of the stewards’ decision on appeal.

“However, they are not tenable in any event. First, even if he did not know of the fact of the GRM Protest, the Appellant must have known when he commenced Race 2 that Final Classifications for Race 1 had not been issued and therefore no points had yet been (finally) awarded for that race.

“It was his decision to drive conservatively in Race 2 when there was a risk that the grid for Race 3 might not take into account any points for Race 1. Secondly, the stewards’ duty is to construe and apply the rules and make decisions in accordance with them. They did so.

“In any event, as we have decided, the fact that the Appellant was aggrieved by the decision of the stewards to award no points for Race 1 (no doubt like other Competitors who lost the benefit of points they might have been awarded for Race 1 had circumstances been different) cannot be a basis to uphold his appeal. The stewards’ decision was correct.

“For these reasons we dismiss the appeal.”