My thoughts on the Zmarzlik situation. I think everyone reasonable would agree that the rules should apply to all equally. All concerned should be responsible for their responsibilities and actions, whether they be failings or not. And this must include those responsible for ensuring the rules are being adhered to, namely Zmarzlik, Morris, Olsson, Ackroyd, & Hanne Thomsen. This did not happen, but only Zmarzlik has been penalized. The FIM jury fell short of their responsibilities as well, and apologised, but have not been held accountable for their failure to ensure the regulations were being complied with.
In today's Speedway Star it says "Under section 12.3 of the SGP regulations, riders CAN be fined and disqualified.....................". The critical point is that the regulation is quoted as "CAN", which infers discretion, as it does not say "MUST". Morris states that the only sanction listed for the offence in the rulebook is disqualification, plus fine. Both of those interpretations are diametrically opposed, and cannot both be correct. Everyone has accepted that the rules have been broken, so the only debate is whether the punishment of disqualification was non negotiable by any of the persons involved, or not. "CAN" and "MUST" mean different things. Which was it?
Just to muddy the waters further, the regulations further state "The sanction must be proportionate to the offence, and to circumstances................." That again is at loggerheads with Morris's saying there was no option but to disqualify & fine, meaning that being able to be "proportionate" in any way was not an option.