Forsythe withdraws Championship team.

Multiple CART owner Gerry Forsythe has scratched the entry of Bryan Herta from this years Champcar series after being refused the chance to take a third franchise in the sport.

Forsythe already has a stake in the Players and the, formerly McDonalds-backed, Championship Racing operations, but had his request to take a third stake turned down by the CART Franchise Board on Thursday. He was originally believed to be going into a joint-ownership agreement with rival boss Frank Arciero, but later decided to strike out on his own, which led to the problems.

The Board quoted Article II, Section II of the CART regulations in opting not to grant Forsythes request, which states that franchise memberships shall be limited to two per team. It had considered altering the rules before the season began but, although a separate board had approved the move to three teams, decided to retain the original limit.

The decision has prompted differing opinions amongst Forsythes rivals, with a number falling on both sides of the argument, but the team boss decided that his best course of protest was to withdraw Hertas entry. The team had been struggling to get its Swift chassis on the pace in pre-season testing, and may have missed the first race at Homestead anyway.

Herta will be retained to sort the car, and may re-appear in the championship later in the year if the situation can be resolved.