Excellent point. I think the answer is that one group governs all the rules. The CRB. If there was a major shift 'up' in the performance envelope for SM, I would EXPECT the rule to change. They control BOTH ends of teh issue. Not only do I not see SM's rules expanding, they are in effect getting more restrictive. If they added a performance component outside the IT ruleset, the allowance doesn't 'work'.
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Andy,

I know you're not that naive. Matt's point is spot on. They can tell the SM folks that they can't run ITA anymore, but the Regions will scream because they're counting on those entries. They'll make up the lost revenue somehow (by raising the entry fees for everyone, most likely).

Do what's best (and right) for IT and stop this thing now.