Australian singer Toby Rand's free ticket to rock'n'roll glory has been pulled from him at the last minute after the outright favourite failed to win the US reality TV show Rockstar: Supernova.
Canadian rocker Lukas Rossi was crowned the winner this morning and has now earned the right to front drummer Tommy Lee's band, Supernova.
Rossi, who has similar looks to Australian Idol contestant Lee Harding, is described on the Rockstar: Supernova website as a gifted singer with a "Jeff Buckley meets Freddie Mercury" style.
At a press conference after the event, Rand, who finished third, said: "Disappointment would be just the opposite of how I'm feeling. To play with Tommy Lee, he was my major drawcard."
Rand had previously told media that if he didn't win the competition, he was still likely to get a record contract.
He is set to meet with Tommy Lee's manager, Carl Stubner, to negotiate his future.
Rand and another of the show's performer, Storm, will take part in the 28-date tour, starting in Las Vegas on New Year's Eve, with the same band that backed all performers during the series.
The 28-year-old from Melbourne had been the outright favourite to win TV show.
But it will be the Canadian contestant who will front Lee's new all-star band Supernova, featuring former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted and former Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke.
The newly formed supergroup will record an album and embark on a 28-city tour of the US and Canada.
But the Rossi-fronted Supernova band may have to change its name before it even starts recording or touring after a Californian band with the same name won a preliminary injunction against the new Supernova outfit.
They are banned from "performing rock and roll music, or recording, or selling rock and roll music recordings under the same [name], pending a trial of this action on its merits, or until otherwise ordered by the court,'' MTV reported, quoting San Diego Judge John Houston.
The original Supernova group formed in 1989 and are best known for their song "Chewbacca" which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Clerks.
Rand had impressed Lee during the first 10 weeks of the show by stripping naked and also exciting female fans during live performances.
When Rand recently sang the Billy Idol anthem, Rebel Yell, the surfer from St Kilda dragged eight women from the crowd on stage to dance with him.
