Kellys racing the clock to repair Mustang after crash
Mason Kelly crashed at the end of first Dunlop Series practice
Kelly crashed Super2 Ford across the top of the Mountain
Todd Kelly said steering was "jamming" before crash
Kelly Racing is racing the clock to repair Mason Kelly’s damaged #22 Ford Mustang after an accident at the end of opening Dunlop Series practice in Bathurst.
On Friday morning, teenager Kelly hit the wall at Sulman Park in the dying moments of Practice 1 at the Thrifty Bathurst 500.
The incident, which occurred outside the broadcast window, left the #22 SCRAMM Group-backed Ford with heavy right-side and front-end damage.
The car has since been returned to the Dunlop Series paddock, where Kelly Racing staff — as well as Mason himself — have stripped the car and commenced repairs.
Todd Kelly, who is managing the team, said the steering was “jamming” in the Mustang before Mason struck trouble.
The Dunlop Series grid was set to return to the circuit for Practice 2 at 3:25pm local time, approximately four hours from the time of publication.
"The steering was kind of jamming through there, which sometimes happens in these things,” Todd Kelly told Supercars.com.
“It just put him wide and onto the marbles and he went straight in the wall, unfortunately.
"But yeah, the amount of effort put in to get here, getting all the sponsors on board to get him here and then having that happen is pretty hard to deal with.
“So, we'll have as big a crack as we can to get the car back on track. It's pretty bad, but it's something that has been done at the track before.”
Kelly Racing is fielding two Fords in the 2024 Dunlop Series, with Aaron Cameron racing the #27 entry.
Cameron and Kelly ended seventh and 15th overall after 50 minutes of practice, with reigning champion Kai Allen beating Eggleston Motorsport teammate Cooper Murray by 0.003s.
The session also featured incidents for Zane Morse and Reuben Goodall, with the Morse and Goodall incidents triggering red flags.
Morse’s AIM Motorsport Ford sustained front-left damage in an incident just before McPhillamy, before Goodall hit the wall in the Cutting in his Gomersall Commodore.
