Bright rejects exclusion call

Jason Bright has rejected calls from Scott McLaughlin that he be excluded from the results of Race 23 at the Sydney Motorsport Park SuperSprint 200 this afternoon, because David Reynolds did exactly the same thing on his way to victory in Darwin earlier this year.

With less than two minutes remaining in this afternoon's time-limited wet race, the Team BOC Holden Commodore VF driver was tipped into a spin by the Team Darrell Lee Stix Commodore of Shane van Gisbergen, who was trying to outbrake him for third place at turn four.

Bright spun on to the grass and then used a link road to rejoin at turn eight, keeping him in third place ahead of van Gisbergen to the chequered flag. The New Zealander immediately apologised to Bright after the race, taking full responsibility.

Driving Standards Observer Jason Bargwannawas reviewing the incident on Sunday evening.

McLaughlin finished fifth in his Wilson Security GRM Volvo S60, but felt he should have been elevated to fourth because of Bright's short-cut.

"I don't feel hard done by, I think something should be done," said McLaughlin. "I'm happy with fifth place but at the end of the day someone's cut the track, finished third.

"If you get spun out - I can understand it sucks for Brighty and I'm not having a go at Brighty himself - but you get spun out, if it was any other corner on this track, he wouldn't be able to cut the track.

"But it just so happens there's a short-cut up there and he could cut the track ... If I'd spun out at turn one, I was screwed. I feel like it's pretty black and white but he probably should get some sort of penalty for it."

But Bright was having none of it, pointing to Reynolds' Hidden Valley short-cut in his The Bottle-O Ford Falcon FG X after he ran off unassisted and missed a section of the circuit before rejoining during the Sunday race while leading. No penalty was handed out on that occasion.

"If David Reynolds can make a mistake and make a short-cut in Darwin then what I did was no worse than that," Bright said. "I was actually pushed off and didn't gain any ground.

"I have seen plenty of other guys do it over the years and not get a penalty so I don't see why we would be any different.

"I would be very surprised if we get disqualified and I would be very disappointed."

Of the incident with van Gisbergen itself, Bright said: "Shane was coming up on us, going into turn four I left him enough room, he obviously came in a bit hot, nailed me in the door and I ended up on the grass.

"I didn't think I'd be able to get off the grass because I was just sitting there spinning for a while. I grabbed the pit lane limiter and pottered out of there and had the option of left or right at the intersection and I could see the track left, couldn't see the track right so I went left."