Rally Chile stewards have rejected Oliver Solberg’s protest into the notional time that helped Yohan Rossel to WRC2 victory.
After Solberg stopped to change a puncture on SS11, he pulled back out onto the stage in front of Rossel which caused the Frenchman to check his pace.
Rossel later received a notional time from the organizer after lodging a request, and was awarded 40s back from his original time.
Solberg felt this was too much and filed a protest asking the stewards to reopen the case and make a new decision.
However this protest has been deemed “inadmissible” because “under the FIA International Sporting Code, it is not permissible for the Stewards to review/re-hear their decisions through a protest.
“Moreover, the Protester has given notice of an intention to appeal against Stewards Decision No. 5. As such that decision is now subject to a review and determination by a higher court (namely the International Court of Appeal) and thus the subject (i.e. matters relating to Stewards Decision No. 5) no longer fall within the remit of this current panel’s judicial jurisdiction.
“The Stewards conclude that the protest is inadmissible and likely the incorrect judicial process that the Competitor should undertake.”
There was also an investigation held into Solberg, along with his co-driver Elliott Edmondson, for allegedly not having his seatbelt correctly fastened while the car was in motion following their puncture change.
However the event stewards determined that no further action was needed, with Solberg and Edmondson’s accounts that this was not the case correlating with the onboard footage.
