Owen Kelly: From V8 Supercars to NASCAR is Easily a Driver the World Forgot

With SVG dominating the road courses, there’s been a lot of talk not only about him but also about his compatriot. The king of the Glen, Marcos Ambros, who won there twice and has 2 V8 Supercar titles, but nobody remembers Owen Kelly? He was another driver who went from V8 Supercars to NASCAR, too.

A Look Into Owen Kelly’s Globe-Trotting Career

Starting in the land down under, he began his career in the same place many of Australia’s best drivers ever have started theirs! Such as the aforementioned Ambrose or F1 drivers like Alan Jones, former F1 world champion, Daniel Riccardo, Mark Webber, or New Zealand’s very own SVG in Australian Formula Ford!

What was first shown through was his passion as he began his career as an owner/driver. Willing to go through the biggest struggle anyone in racing can go through to start their career. He had good but not great results, finishing top 10 in the final standings twice, but a start is a start.

V8 Supercars Development and the Move to the Main Series

Unlike SVG or Ambrose, he again went his path. Owen Kelly found a full-time ride. He made his debut in 2000 in a one-off with Paul Morris, his car owner, in the developmental series, marking the first of many part-time stints in the V8 Supercar series. The most starts he ever did in a season were 5 in 2010, making 48 starts in total. 48 starts that came with a handful of personal highs for the Australian.

The most notable of which was his only career podium in Melbourne, his nation’s capital, a gritty drive from 6th to finish 3rd in 2007. Other notable moments were ones like that 2010 season at Phillip Island, where he had a career day. Starting 2nd on the front row and leading the only laps of his career, 21 in total, finishing 4th in an incredible drive. And of course his only top 10 in the Bathurst 100o, the Indy 500 of Australia, with a 6th in 2005.

 Owen Kelly’s Major Career Shift in 2008

As someone with such a massive passion for racing, it’s no surprise he’s a fan of a few forms of racing, especially NASCAR. In 2008, he began racing late models for none other than Dale Jr. in Virginia and began racing weekly. This quickly transitioned into a Nationwide Series debut with Baker Curb in 2010 at Road America. So what do you get when you combine minor late-model experience with a career mostly spent on road courses when making the debut on a road course? A 5th place finish in what was the perfect preview of what’s to come!

Owen Kelly’s Short Road Course Ringer

In 2011 and 2012, he replaced both Marcos Ambrose with RPM and Kyle Busch with KBM in Montreal for qualifying due to both of them bushwhacking. In 2011, he qualified 9th and improved on that in 2012, qualifying 5th for Rowdy, and his great work would not go unnoticed. 2013 was Owen Kelly’s breakout year!

Where he’d make his only Cup Series start, a 24th-place finish with Phoenix Racing in its dying years, was a good performance. He also did two races with Joe Gibbs Racing, a huge honor for any driver. Where, in his return to Road America, he did one better, finishing 4th this time.

Three-Year Hiatus Before Returning to Joe Gibbs

He sadly went out with a whimper. Doing two starts with 18th and 17th places and finishes in that order. Overall, he didn’t light up the record books, but for years, he got to dabble in multiple forms of what he’s most passionate about, racing, and got to live in a different country where he drove for historic teams like RPM, JGR, and KBM. A pretty awesome life if you ask me. Thanks a bunch for reading!