MSA Fuel Statement
Following the exclusion of six competitors from last
weekend Tour of Epynt, Colin Hilton MSA Chief Executive makes
the following statement:
"The current regulations that specify that fuel must
be 100 Octane or below have actually been in place for more
than a decade. It is the MSA's duty to enforce the rules and
to ensure a level playing field for all.
"As with all legislation, the regulations were created
by the Motor Sports Council, and the MSA merely administers
and enforces them. The fuel regulations were examined again
last year by the Motor Sports Council's 'Fuels Working Group',
which comprises fuel experts, championship representatives
and technical experts. They concluded that a 100 Octane limit
was the best choice of fuel (in relation to championship regulations
that require the use of 'pump fuel') in order to satisfy the
requirements of widespread availability and economic considerations.
The limit of 100 Octane is in widespread use throughout Europe
and indeed the rest of the world.
"The MSA last year set aside a budget to finance a random
fuel testing programme to begin in 2007. Our plans were announced
in July 2006 in order to give people plenty of notice that
fuel-testing would occur to enforce the regulations. Unfortunately,
it seems that some competitors chose to actively ignore this
warning.
"The opposition among a certain section of the rallying
community during the past week has been ill-informed and out
of all proportion. We will certainly not allow a section of
the sport to be held to ransom by a minority of vociferous
individuals who think that by threats and financial leverage
they can change the rules to satisfy their own ends.
"We have had a huge amount of support from the wider
rallying community, particularly from the vast majority of
competitors who abide by the regulations and consequently
suffer a performance disadvantage compared to some of their
rivals who may be running illegal fuel.
"The MSA, however, does have the ability to ask the
Motor Sports Council to reconsider their decision if it believes
that further consideration is in the best interests of the
sport. The MSA will therefore hold its own investigation to
examine this regulation and to decide whether the conclusion
of the Council's Fuels Working Group was correct. We will
be undertaking this investigation within the next two weeks
and hope to have concluded a report by the end of March.
"In the meantime, we would urge all competitors to adhere
to the regulations as laid down in the Blue Book
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