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The factory-backed Honda driver appealed a controversial decision to award no points for the opening TCR Australia race at Symmons Plains after he had crossed the line first in the shortened affair.
Initially a decision was made to award full points before it was revoked following a protest from Garry Rogers Motorsport.
The protest exposed that the rules supported there being no points awarded, which dropped D’Alberto from pole to the final race to a midfield start.
D’Alberto responded with a protest of his own, electing not to start the final race and blasting organisers on TV.
An official appeal against the decision has, however, yielded nothing with a Motorsport Australia hearing determining that the stewards made the right call.
“Motorsport Australia can provide an update regarding Race 1 of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series’ previous round at AWC Race Tasmania,” read a statement from the governing body.
“With Tony D’Alberto lodging an appeal against the allocation of no points for the race, and a hearing taking place earlier this week, the appeal has officially been dismissed and the stewards’ decision has been deemed correct.
“The Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series continues this weekend at the Ford Mustang 60 Years Race Phillip Island.”
The full outcome of the hearing explains how D’Alberto argued that he drove conservatively in the second race on the understanding that he had enough points from qualifying and the first race to start the finale from pole.
The hearing found, however, that D’Alberto made that decision while knowing that the final classification for Race 1 had not been signed off, and that the points being stripped was an ongoing possibility.
“These arguments do not touch on the correctness of the stewards’ decision on appeal,” read the hearing outcome.
“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.”
The document concludes: “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.”
The TCR Australia season continues at Phillip Island this weekend with 2022 series champion D’Alberto 10th in the standings.
