THE Confederation of Australian Motor Sport has rescinded a ruling that would have prevented GT3 vehicles from attending events outside of the Australian GT championship.
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CAMS board members held a meeting on Tuesday night where they discussed the controversial decision.
“CAMS has determined that the document issued on June 5, 2017 dealing with the classification of GT vehicles is rescinded with immediate effect. This decision reflects the general principle that mid-season changes to sporting regulations should only occur where safety is an issue,” CEO Eugene Arocca said.
“CAMS will now further canvass and consult with all affected stakeholders, including the GT Championship organisers, drivers and vehicle owners to determine the best way to develop the GT and Sports Cars categories at all levels in Australia.”
Had the decision stayed in place, GT3 cars could not have attended Challenge Bathurst in November.
The event is viewed as an unofficial practice for the Bathurst 12 Hour and last year attracted 31 GT3 entries.
On Monday, director James O’Brien said the event would only have marginal commercial viability without those vehicles and might need to be cancelled.
He was understandably pleased on Wednesday to hear that the CAMS decision had been overturned.
“It is both satisfying and a relief to know that the vehicles that competed last year can compete this year and obviously the drivers that own those vehicles can now enter the event with some certainty knowing that their vehicles will be eligible,” Mr O’Brien said.
However, the safety of Challenge Bathurst in future years isn’t set in stone.
“I note that the statement put out by CAMS, whilst its rescinded the decision for 2017, left open the possibility for a similar decision for future years, so right now all we have is certainty for the 2017 event and we will be looking to communicate with CAMS later this year to ensure that there are no restrictions in place for any future events.”