Kelly takes first honours at Australian Grand Prix
22/3/2005 19:19 (Press Release) -
New father Todd Kelly hoped his six-day-old son Mason stayed awake long enough to see him open the V8 Supercar Championship Series with victory in the opening non-championship race at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne today.
Kelly converted his pole position into a win despite a low start. He led from start to finish, staying clear of what was a riveting race behind him. Reigning champion Marcos Ambrose was second with Kelly’s team-mate Mark Skaife in third.
Kelly and his partner Kristy became first-time parents last Sunday. Mason is also a nephew for Kelly’s younger brother and fellow V8 Supercar driver Rick Kelly.
“I hope he (Mason) stayed awake for the whole thing, he tends to nod off pretty easily,” Kelly said after the first of three races at Albert Park over the weekend.
“It’s a good result but I’ve already got a hundred things in my head that we can do better next time. It’s also not a great indication of what this car can do when it’s really pushed.
“It sounds like I missed a fair bit of fun with everything going on behind me which was disappointing.”
Ambrose and Skaife were part of the fun in the early stages of the race when Jason Bright had his passenger window come loose, Ambrose launched through with a great early corner, Garth Tander and Craig Lowndes both ended up in the “kitty litter.”
“It was really lively out there,” Skaife said. “It was a bloody good race at the start which is what we are all about.”
Ambrose was also in the thick of it as always.
“It was exactly what Mark said – a great race which is what we are all about,” Ambrose said.
“I really enjoyed it. It was a very good scrap up the front. Todd was too far gone and ahead of the pack to pull back but we still has a lot of fun.”
Russell Ingall finished fourth with Bright holding on for fifth despite his problems with his window.
Top Ten Placings:
1 Todd Kelly Holden Commodore VZ 20:03.3064
2 Marcos Ambrose Ford Falcon BA 20:06.6157
3 Mark Skaife Holden Commodore VZ 20:10.1400
4 Russell Ingall Ford Falcon BA 20:12.8765
5 Jason Bright Ford Falcon BA 20:15.1033
6 Cameron McConville Holden Commodore VZ 20:15.6772
7 Paul Radisich Holden Commodore VZ 20:17.0140
8 Steven Richards Holden Commodore VY 20:17.6732
9 Greg Ritter Ford Falcon BA 20:20.1688
10 Steven Johnson Ford Falcon BA 20:20.9416
Release Date: 04/03/2005
AVESCO
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