OFFICIAL: NISSAN TO QUIT SUPERCARS

Nissan end their factory involvement in Supercars – Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

KELLY RACING will continue running Altima V8s without Nissan factory backing next year.

By MARK FOGARTY

Co-owner Todd Kelly confirmed the squad would stick with the Altima despite Nissan’s decision to withdraw from Supercars at the end of this season.

Nissan Australia made the long-expected announcement in Melbourne on May 15, leaving the Kellys to go it alone in 2019 after seven years of multi-million dollar support

Simultaneously, Todd Kelly committed to fielding Altimas again next year while promising to keep development going.

However, he did not specify how many Nissans the team would run, fueling speculation that it could cut back to two cars.

“It’s business as usual for us in 2019 as we continue to race the Altima next year,” Kelly said in a statement. “We’re extremely proud of the work we’ve achieved in designing the Altima race car and a road car based engine for competition in this category.

“This announcement won’t slow our development as we continue to push further up the grid.”

Kelly has since declared that the team plans to continue with the full complement of Altimas next year.

The team’s driver line-up will also be actively reviewed now that Nissan’s decision has been made.

Nissan-backed Michael Caruso is out of contract at the end of this season, while Simona de Silvestro signed an announced three-year deal with the team when she joined in 2017.

Nissan is non-committal about the future of its relationship with de Silvestro, whose drive is underwritten by significant sponsorship from retail giant Harvey Norman.

Co-owner Rick Kelly is the best-performed Nissan driver this season, but speculation persists that he might step back from full-time driving next year.

New recruit Andre Heimgartner’s status beyond this season is unknown, but he is also performing strongly.

All four Nissan drivers have shown flashes of form so far this year as the team’s intensive development program and management reshuffle entrench the Altima as a regular top 10 contender.

Nissan wouldn’t reveal when the decision not to renew was made, with a spokesman only commenting that the Kellys were informed “recently”.

He added: “They’ve been aware of it for a little while.”

The announcement comes as no surprise following Nissan Australia’s change of managing director last September.

Beyond 2019, the Kellys are leaving their options open as they search for a new manufacturer partner or contemplate a switch to either ZB Commodore or Ford Mustang.

The team has the engineering resources at its expansive Braeside base in southeast Melbourne to develop new or existing cars.

But for the time being, Todd and Rick Kelly are concentrating on building on the Altima’s recent strong performances, hoping to belatedly establish it as a consistent front-runner.

In its now official farewell season as Nissan Motorsport Australia, the squad is aiming to keep the Altima competitive for at least one more campaign in 2019 as an independent effort.

Nissan has backed the four-car Altima squad since 2012, when development of the L33 Altima and its production-based five-litre V8 began for the Car Of The Future rules, which allowed other makes from 2013.

In six seasons, Nissan has won just two races, but a podium double for Rick Kelly at Phillip Island last month suggested the team is on the verge of a breakthrough.

Todd Kelly confirmed the team would continue to run Nissan Altima’s next year – Photo: Rhys Vandersyde

“We are very grateful to Nissan for the opportunity and support over these years,” Todd Kelly added. “We’ve got an extremely capable group of people and one of the best facilities in the country in terms of design and production.

“The next phase will be an exciting one.”

Nissan Australia managing director Stephen Lester – a Canadian national – announced the end-of-season Supercars withdrawal at the company’s headquarters in South Dandenong in Melbourne’s southeast.

“Nissan has decided to exit the Supercars Championship in order to concentrate on the interests and needs of our current and future customers,” Lester said in an anodyne statement. “We have obviously been talking to the Kellys for some time and making the announcement now suits both parties.

“I’d like to thank Todd and Rick Kelly, Michael Caruso, Simona de Silvestro and everyone at Nissan Motorsport for all of their hard work in the time that Nissan Australia has been involved in Supercars.

“I’d also like to thank Nissan Motorsport fans, we truly appreciate your support and will continue to work hard to achieve the best possible results over the course of the season.”

Lester replaced Richard Emery, who supported the Supercars program and championed the two-year extension of the Kellys’ deal, which wasn’t confirmed until September 2016.

The company’s statement also noted that “During its time in the series, Nissan has enjoyed a strong relationship with Kelly Racing – in particular with team principals Todd and Rick Kelly – and invested considerably to the motorsport program both on and off the track”.

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