Triple Eight appeal to be heard next week

Motorsport Australia has today confirmed that the appeal submission has been lodged by Triple Eight and will be heard in Melbourne next Wednesday.

The case will be heard by a three-person panel consisting of Walter Sofronoff KC, Steve Chopping and Ross Jackson.

"Motorsport Australia can confirm it has received Triple Eight Race Engineering’s full appeal submission," read a statement from the governing body.

"Stewards handed down their decision on Sunday morning of the Thrifty Newcastle 500, with cars #97 and #88 disqualified from race one for a technical breach.

"As was confirmed at the event, Triple Eight Race Engineering lodged a Notice of Appeal and has since provided its submission, requiring the Supercars Court of Appeal to proceed to a hearing of the matter.

"A three-person panel has been convened to hear the appeal. The three members are Walter Sofronoff KC, Steve Chopping and Ross Jackson.

"The hearing will be held at Motorsport Australia House in Melbourne on Wednesday, 22 March in the evening.

"The hearing is closed to the public, with a full decision paper to be published on the Motorsport Australia website when available."

The T8 Camaros were thrown out of the Newcastle opener, after finishing first and second, thanks to a driver cooling system that was incorrectly mounted.

The dry ice system, which fed to a helmet fan, was legal in itself, but illegally positioned on the driver's side of the car.

In a hearing held after the race T8 argued that it has sought and received verbal permission from Supercars Head of Motorsport Adrian Burgess.

However Burgess denied that was the case, leaving Motorsport Australia stewards with no choice but to disqualify both cars.

That left T8 managing director Jamie Whincup fuming over the perceived treatment of the team by Supercars.

As it stands Cam Waters, who finished third on the road, is the winner of the first race of the Gen3 Supercars era.