A BELATED series of disqualifications handed down to Garry Rogers Motorsport have turned the National Trans Am season on its head.
Motorsport Australia has confirmed an Investigatory Tribunal assessing frontrunning GRM cars has determined a breach of rules T2.1 and T2.3 at Round 3 at Winton in June.
The verdict is disqualification for James Moffat (#34) and Lochie Dalton (#45) from all three Winton races.
GRM has already lodged a notice of intention to appeal, per Motorsport Australia.
Moffat and Dalton had held a one-two in the standings with two rounds remaining, but are now set to tumble down the order.
Dalton took a cleansweep of Round 3 worth 260 points, while Moffat netted 239 points from the round.
If the team’s appeal is unsuccessful, Dalton and Moffat will lose those points.
An updated points table will be released in due course, but prior to the DSQs, the top five had read: Moffat (921), Dalton (894), Elliot Barbour (791), Josh Webster (770) and Brett Holdsworth (766).
At the crux of the tribunal was the use of modifications relating to pedal set-up.
Rules T2.1 and T2.3 read as follows:
T2.1 Modification
2.1.1 Each Automobile must remain unmodified, in compliance with all aspects of these Technical Regulations and identical in all respects to the production make/model as supplied by the original vehicle manufacturer.
2.1.2 Any aspect relating to the construction, modification and/or preparation of the Automobile including the location, fitment/mounting of any ancillary component that is not specifically authorized in the present regulations is prohibited.
T2.3 Automobile Component Requirements
2.3.1 In all cases, when interpreting the present regulations, any component on an Automobile eligible to compete must be original equipment supplied by the manufacturer or Controlled Component supplier unless otherwise specified in these regulations.
Tribunal papers reveal Paul Morris, whose son Nash often competes in Trans Am, to be a key player in the matter.
“After concerns were raised by Mr Paul Morris, Motorsport Australia, on 1 August 2023, referred the questions of the Modifications to this Investigative Tribunal,” a section of the decision document reads.
Morris was listed as an interested party in the tribunal procedure.
The full decision document can be viewed here.
Sydney Motorsport Park will host the penultimate round of the National Trans Am season on November 3-4.
