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[/media-credit]INDIANAPOLIS (Tuesday, April 24, 2012) –Â INDYCAR, the sanctioning body for the IZOD IndyCar Series, has scheduled a hearing for a protest filed by General Motors (GM) regarding INDYCAR’s April 18 decision to approve use of a 0.74 A/R compressor cover for the single turbocharger.
The hearing will take place April 26 in Indianapolis.
Honda and Lotus have been invited to participate in the hearing pursuant to rule 12.4.5.
In his role as Race Director and pursuant to Rule 12.5, INDYCAR president of competition Beaux Barfield has elected to utilize a three-person panel to resolve the protest. The panel will consist of:
· One individual selected by Honda, which is currently the only manufacturer utilizing the single turbocharger
· One individual selected by GM
· One individual mutually agreed upon by Honda and GM.
Pending the decision of the panel, the April 18 decision of INDYCAR shall not be stayed pursuant to Rule 12.5.
Randy Bernard, CEO of INDYCAR, said: “It is INDYCAR’s job to review, enforce and uphold the current rules. It must be our position to make the best decision possible from the rules that we all established.”
Per Section 12 of the IZOD IndyCar Series rulebook:
12.4.5. Affected Member –Â Any Member who is entitled to protest an issue being protested by another Member is an interested party who has the right to be heard but whose own interest will not be controlled by the protest or appeal decision unless INDYCAR chooses to provide relief. Likewise, a Member whose interest may be affected by a protest by another Member has a right to be heard at a protest hearing.
12.5. Jurisdiction –Â The Race Director shall have the exclusive jurisdiction to resolve all protests. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Race Director shall have the right to select an individual or individuals to resolve a protest with all of the powers and responsibilities of the Race Director set forth in this Rule 12. The jurisdiction of Race Director is limited to those matters and issues submitted in the written protest to the Race Director by the protestant. The decision which is the subject of the protest shall not be stayed pending the protest unless otherwise determined by the Race Director and upon such terms as the Race Director deems appropriate.
12.7. Hearing of the Protest –Â The Race Director may cause an investigation to be made into the matters surrounding the protest and shall convene a hearing within 14 days of receipt of the protest unless the hearing date is extended by the mutual agreement of the Race Director and the protestant. The protestant and any Member requesting an opportunity to participate and who the Race Director determines has a material interest in the proceeding shall be given notice of the hearing and shall be entitled to be heard and given an opportunity to call witnesses. The effect on championship point standings does not constitute a “material interest”. It is the Race Director’s decision as to whether to permit a Member to be represented by counsel at the hearing.
