Young New Zealand star Shane van Gisbergen’s plan to return to full-time driving in V8 Supercars has his former team contemplating legal action.

Stone Brothers Racing (SBR) released van Gisbergen from the final three years of his contract in December after the 23-year-old revealed he’d lost his passion for motor sport.

But last month, just eight weeks after his final race for SBR, van Gisbergen announced plans to race in this year’s championship with Holden team Tekno Autosports.

SBR owner Ross Stone said the decision to release one of the best young drivers in the championship hadn’t been taken lightly but they had taken his personal reasons into account.

“SVG (van Gisbergen) informed the race crew that he wasn’t enjoying his racing and he was going to take a year off and might race quad bikes for fun,” Stone said in a statement.

“SVG’s statement that he was not enjoying his racing was no surprise.

“This was clear enough at the previous race meets at Bathurst and the Gold Coast 600 where it was almost impossible to get SVG to attend autograph sessions and sometimes even communicate with his engineer and crew.”

The statement claims the termination agreement between SBR and van Gisbergen includes a clause barring him from testing, practising or racing with a V8 Supercars team in 2013.

For that reason, SBR say they are contemplating legal action to stop van Gisbergen driving with Tekno.

“SBR took steps it considered were in the best interests of SVG’s health and well-being to the detriment of SBR and stakeholders by releasing SVG from his three-year driving contract.

“Less than two months later SVG now proposes, through the media, to race a V8 Supercar for another team in 2013 contrary to the termination agreement.

“To say that SBR is displeased with the conduct of SVG is to say the least.”