Wild card refusal revs up GRM for legal row

THE battle for a Bathurst 1000 wildcard has turned messy with Garry Rogers Motorsport taking the sport’s governing body to an appeals court amid claims of a “hiddenagenda”.

Backing down from a plan to take the issue to the Supreme Court of Victoria, Garry Rogers Motor sport will fight Motorsport Australia in the Australian Motorsport Appeals Court over its rejec-

tion of a special licence for teenager Nathan Herne to race at Mt Panorama.

The GRM camp is awaiting a hearing date, but hope it can be heard this week.

Her new as refused dispensation for a Motor sport Australia super licence last month before a planned wildcard entry in the great race.

The 18-year-old was slated to team with Super2 series driver Tyler Everingham in a return to the Supercars series for GRM, which gave a start

big names including Scott McLaughlin, Jamie Whincup and Garth Tander early in their careers.

Motorsport Australia denied Herne’s application for dispensation because he did not meet the formal criteria to obtain a super licence, which is required to race in Supercars. The governing body said Supercars and the Supercars Commission were consulted on — and were “aligned with” — the decision.

But GRM argued other drivers had been granted dispensation with less super licence points and racing experience and Herne had been denied as he raced in rival V8 Trans-Am Muscle Car series and not in the feeder Super 2 or Super 3 series for Super cars.

GRM director Barry Rogers said his racing experience stacked up and he was a victim of“politics” in the sport.

“We knew Nathan would need a dispensation. We did

the homework, this super licence was only introduced in 2017 and there has only been four dispensations given in that period ,” Rogers said.

“From a super licence level point, Nathan is the highest rated driver of any of the ones who have applied for it.

“Behind the facade of safety is a hidden agenda of the sport that they want those younger drivers to come through their avenues of racing, not other avenues of racing.”