Motorsport: All for one and one for all

Todd (left) and Rick Kelly say the people behind the scenes are pivotal in winning. Photo / Supplied

Kelly Racing is one of the fastest growing outfits in the V8 Supercars paddock and are set to take on the well-established teams in the hunt for success over the next few years.

Although only in its third season, Kelly Racing is the biggest team in the V8 pit lane, being the only one to run four cars.

The organisation prepares cars for team co-owners Todd and Rick Kelly, who drive the Jack Daniel's cars, as well the Pepsi Max Commodore of Kiwi legend Greg Murphy and the Stratco entry for young gun David Reynolds.

While the limelight may shine on the four lead drivers, a team of six engineers, two team managers, two engine technicians and 16 mechanics will toil away behind the scenes in Hamilton this weekend.

Three commercial staff, a PR representative and a fitness specialist will also be on-hand. That's a crew of 35 people, a number that swells to more than 40 at the more demanding endurance races at Phillip Island, Bathurst and the Gold Coast.

The human element is the secret ingredient to any race team's success and it's also the most expensive. Kelly Racing's wages bill is well over a million dollars a season.

Todd Kelly says it's the people behind the scenes that influence the team's performance.

"The team is critical. Winning and being fast is all about the people," said Todd Kelly, who is the racing director of Kelly Racing and brother Rick is commercial director.

"You can say it's about the drivers and the equipment but you don't get the equipment without the people to design it, manufacturer it, quality control it, then tune it at the track.

"It's taken us over two years now to make the whole team click. We have 45 full-time staff and getting everyone working towards one common goal and on the same wavelength is really the reason for our improved performance at the last few events."

Rick agrees that in the dual role of driver and team owner, getting the team's organisation in order off the track is just as important as his performance behind the wheel on the track.

"There are probably 10 to 15 drivers out there that are capable of winning races at any point in time, but only one ever does and that is heavily dependent on the team behind them," said two-time Bathurst 1000 winner and 2006 V8 champion Rick.

"If you look at the results of late there is one guy [Jamie Whincup] who is streets ahead of everyone. Yes, he is doing a good job, but you put him in the slowest car on the grid and I guarantee he would not win any races," said Rick.

The Kelly brothers have no regrets in terms of leaving other teams to start their own operation.

"It's a massive balancing act and it's not like your everyday business," said Rick.

"You have to remember that Kelly Racing has its headquarters in Melbourne and has 16 individual departments. But 15 times a year we need to pack most of those departments up and ship them away to do their job from a race track for a few days, then bring all that back to home base.

"It takes a lot of management, particularly when you have events like the Grand Prix where we had two cars sustain a huge amount of damage, so our plans have to adjust to do a lot of extra work before everything is packed away in air freight containers to go to NZ.

"It's constantly challenging and there is never a dull moment, but it's also quite rewarding and enjoyable."