Bathurst champ calls for lifetime bans for ‘awful’ act
Bathurst champion Chaz Mostert has called for lifetime bans for Supercars fans found to have engaged in on-line trolling.
The Walkinshaw Andretti United driver has come to the defence of driving standards advisor, Craig Baird, after a controversial call at last weekend’s event in Perth.
Baird issued Ford’s Cam Waters with a penalty for exceeding track limits, which cost the Tickford driver victory in race 11 of the championship.
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Waters was deemed to have gained an advantage when he ran wide during a battle with DJR’s Will Davison, and although Waters crossed the line first, he was demoted to fourth after being assessed a five second penalty.
In a lengthy social media post, Mostert backed Baird’s call to penalise Waters, and also urged Supercars to come down hard on trolls.
“In this world and in every sport there will be controversial moments where people will sit on either side of the fence. That’s just life,” Mostert wrote.
“But what gives you the right as a person to target someone and throw aggression/hate and even threats to another person, and to top it off towards someone you personally don’t even know?
“And even if you did know them it still doesn’t give you the right to do this publicly in person or on any social media platform. What kind of example are you setting for the next generation? I think a pretty awful one.”
Mostert said Baird’s role placed him in a no-win situation.
“I am disgusted that this has happened after the weekend towards someone I personally think that does the hardest job to create the hardest and fairest racing out there for everyone’s entertainment,” he wrote.
“To clarify, I’m not against people having opinions that’s always fair, but I’m against people’s opinions when it’s aggressive hatred and threatening.
“What’s next? I call on our sport to step up and make people accountable for their actions. People naming and shaming is not the go because it opens a platform for more hatred towards a hater, which I believe two wrongs don’t make a right.
“But what I do call for is make these people receive bans for periods or lifetime if it must be from attending our events and banned from following our sport’s socials, because in this world there is no room for hatred.
“I really hope other drivers feel the same and also our sport.
“I stand for Bairdo.”
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