RED BULL WHITEWASH IN SYMMONS CRASHFEST

Meetings being held in Tasmania on Saturday night may determine the outcome of the third Supercars race, held on Saturday at Symmons Plains.

Following a Lap Two pile-up that involved 11 cars, the race was red-flagged while officials dealt with damaged cars and one injured driver. Will Davison was removed from his Tekno Commodore and has been transferred to a local hospital for observation.

The incident occurred when Rick Kelly and Fabian Coulthard were racing side-by-side for position, and when one of the cars baulked, it triggered a multi-car collision. The remaining cars were stopped on the grid – with the exception of Scott McLaughlin, who inadvertently parked his car in the pitlane, necessitating a rear of grid start for the restart.

But when the restart came, behind the Safety Car, broadcasting constraints meant that the remaining cars could complete only 2 laps. Shane van Gisbergen won ahead of his Red Bull HRT teammate Jamie Whincup, with Craig Lowndes third.

AA understands that Supercars officials are in discussions with CAMS Stewards, to investigate whether the race can be declared null and void. We further understand that the Supercars Operations Manual provides no opportunity to have the race rerun on Sunday, even if the competitors deem that desirable.

The race will not be on for teams to prepare their cars for Sunday or, in some cases, prepare spares for the next round of the Championship, at Phillip Island in two weeks’ time.