Todd Kelly

- Hosted by Grant Denyer with V8 Supercar stars Todd and Rick Kelly as judges

- Show features 10 contestants, all young racing drivers from Australia and around the world, competing in a series of elimination challenges

- Winning contestant to race at the 2011 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 alongside Denyer for 'Shannons-Mars Racing', prepared by Kelly Racing

- Show will also feature never before seen access behind the scenes of the Kelly Racing V8 Supercars team both at events and at the team's workshop

- 'Shannons Supercar Showdown' will be produced by Logie-awarding winning production company WTFN, creators of Bondi Vet, Coxy's Big Break and Trisha & Krishna – The Quest For Separate Lives

- 'Shannons Supercar Showdown' is a joint production between WTFN, The Media Mix and Kelly Racing, with motor enthusiast insurance company Shannons as the naming rights partner

SHANNONS SUPERCAR SHOWDOWN TO HIT SCREENS IN JULY

Launching July 23 on 7mate, a revolution in motorsport television will be born.

Rick Kelly has ensured that his championship points tally has kept ticking over on a tough weekend for Jack Daniel's Racing at the Trading Post Perth Challenge at Barbagallo Raceway in Western Australia today.

Kelly scored 16th and 12th place finishes in today's two 50-lap races, enough to sit sixth in the 2011 V8 Supercars Championship points standings after nine races.

Jack Daniel's Racing was tested by Barbagallo's low grip surface, with tyre wear an issue for the team all weekend.

Todd Kelly was able to roar up the order in the final race of the weekend today, with set-up changes finally paying dividends and producing great pace from the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore.

After starting from 26th place, Todd was able to move up the order into 16th place by the finish, making it an encouraging end to an otherwise trying weekend.

To view photos from the weekend please click here

Jack Daniel's Racing driver Rick Kelly has risen to second in the 2011 V8 Supercars Championship points standings after a sixth placed finish in the Sunday race of the ITM400 in Hamilton, New Zealand today.

Kelly now sits just 81 points behind series leader Jamie Whincup after six races following a breakout weekend for Jack Daniel's Racing at the Hamilton street circuit.

Rick and Todd Kelly qualified first and second for today's 59-lap race in their Jack Daniel's Commodores, but a series of incidents meant they were unable to repeat Saturday's result, which saw the brothers score a double podium with Rick earning Kelly Racing's first race win.

Rick Kelly was in third place in the closing stages of the race, pushing hard in his #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore to keep Garth Tander behind him.

With just six laps remaining Rick clipped the tyre bundle on the back straight chicane, damaging the front right corner of his front bar, causing it to rub on his front right tyre.

The damage saw Rick drop three positions in the closing stages, but the vital points scored from the sixth place finish were enough to rocket him up the championship order following his Saturday win.

Todd Kelly was on track for his fourth top 10 finish of the season aboard the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore, despite not enjoying the same car pace he had in Saturday's race.

After qualifying in second place Todd gradually slipped down the order, but was securely in seventh place when crashed out of contention by Tony D'Alberto with six laps remaining.

The impact to the driver's door of the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore car was severe, sending Todd into the Turn 2 wall, but amazingly, the car was able to continue and after two pit stops for repairs he was able to limp home in 15th place, lifting Todd to 14th in the championship points.

To view photos from the weekend click here

See below a transcript from today's post-race media conference featuring Jack Daniel's Racing drivers Todd and Rick Kelly.

QUESTION: Rick, you've won Bathurst before, and that is hard to do, but a dry, wet, low visibility, strategy ... talk us through your race win from go-to-whoa.

RICK KELLY: It was definitely an interesting race from our point of view. At the start, I snuck up the inside and I wasn't sure if I was going to take everyone out – they were going a little slower than expected. Thankfully, we got around there and built a five second gap, which was great.

The car was really strong in the dry, which is great for us because we had a couple of dramas yesterday and we weren't sure what our real pace was. But in both the dry and the wet, the car was fantastic.

I'm really stoked for the guys. They've worked so hard in the lead-up to this with the damage from the Grand Prix. The Jack Daniel's Commodore proved to be fast, and that's fantastic for us.

QUESTION: This is a replacement chassis due to the incident you had with Craig Lowndes (second place today) at the Grand Prix. Todd has won in that chassis before – in the wet as well - it's certainly been good to you.

RICK KELLY: That's right. The race that Todd won in 2008 at Symmons Plains was wet too, so we might need to do a long-range weather forecast before each race and see if it's going to be raining. We might need to toss a coin to see who races it.

It was a good battle out there. At the end of the race, I probably stitched Todd up on the restart. My engineer didn't tell me that the Safety Car was in pit lane. You can't actually accelerate until you hear that. I waited right up until the control line. I thought 'if I don't go now, I'll end up 10th at Turn 1'.

I took off quite late and Todd got swamped. That was a bit of a bummer, but the last thing you want to hear on the radio when you have a 10 second lead is that there's a Safety Car. If it wasn't for that, we would have finished one-two.

Todd did a great job to get from 19th or 20th to second at one point. Craig was quick at the end, but it's great to win a race for Kelly Racing in trying weather conditions, differing pit strategies, dry running, wet running, and guys like Craig and Todd pushing you. It's definitely very rewarding.

QUESTION: What does it mean to you that you've finally scored the first win for your own team in its third year? What does it feel like to have finally cracked it?

RICK KELLY: It's probably a bit greedy, but we want more and more. We've cracked the first one, so we need to get plenty more.

I'm quite lucky that Todd takes more of the load off me back at the race team running the racing component of it.

It's hard out there with four competitive guys in our team. After qualifying, we had three in the 10 and Todd would have been there too if it wasn't for the red flags. It's tough to race with four fast guys in the team – you need to be on your toes to keep in front of them and push each other.

Todd and Rick Kelly are pleased with the steady improvement in form of Jack Daniel's Racing entering the ITM400 Hamilton in New Zealand this weekend.

Rick Kelly scored a second place finish at the last points race held in the 2011 V8 Supercars Championship, the Sunday race at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide. That finish followed strong pace from the #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore in the Saturday race, where Rick was unlucky to miss out on a podium finish.

Todd Kelly scored a fifth place finish in the final race of non-championship Albert Park 400 in Melbourne two weeks ago aboard the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore. Race 3 at Albert Park followed fourth and fifth place finishes for Rick Kelly in the opening two races of the event.

With both recent results and improved car pace pointing to huge potential ahead of this weekend's two 200-kilometre races at the Hamilton street circuit, the Kelly brothers will be racing hard to score more podium's for Jack Daniel's Racing in New Zealand.

Todd Kelly has earned a hard fought fifth place in the third and final race of the Albert Park 400 at the Formula 1 QANTAS Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Victoria today.

Kelly drove from 15th place on the grid to score fifth, running as high as third aboard the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore to end an otherwise tough weekend on a high.

The Jack Daniel's Racing driver was embroiled in an action-packed battle with several other cars over the course of the time-shortened race, losing third place in the closing stages as his soft tyres wore.

Rick Kelly entered today's race third in points for the event, but any chance of a podium was dashed when he and Craig Lowndes made contact on the opening lap at Turn 10, resulting in both coming to a stop against the concrete wall.

To view photos from the weekend click here

Rick Kelly has scored a fifth place finish for Jack Daniel's Racing in the opening race of the Albert Park 400 at the Formula 1 QANTAS Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Victoria today.

Kelly qualified in ninth for today's 25-lap race after a disappointing showing in this afternoon's Top 10 Shootout.

But he turned things around in the race, making two spots off the line aboard his #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore and holding ground despite using the harder compound Dunlop tyre in the first stint of the race.

After pitting for soft tyres, Kelly was able to race up through the order. Despite a spirited effort over the last four laps he was unable to pass Alex Davison, leaving him to finish in fifth place.

Following qualifying and the first of three races this weekend, Kelly is in third place overall on points behind Shane Van Gisbergen and today's race winner Jamie Whincup.

Todd Kelly again had a day to forget, crashed out of the opening race on the second lap today. After the windscreen of his #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore was covered with oil, Todd Kelly's vision was heavily compromised and as he tried to bring his car to pit lane to have it cleaned he was hit from behind by James Moffat and sent into the Turn 5 tyre wall.

Todd Kelly soldiered on to finish one lap down in 25th place and now turns his attention to the two remaining 25 lap races on Saturday and Sunday.

Jack Daniel's Racing drivers Todd and Rick Kelly have promised to go all out in pursuit of victory at the Albert Park 400 at the Formula 1 QANTAS Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, Victoria this weekend.

While no points are on the line at the non-championship event, the A$500,000 prizemoney on offer has spurred the Kelly brothers to go on the attack in pursuit of the cash.

Rick Kelly, who finished second at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide last weekend, says that he will 'wring the neck' of his #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore around the Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit this weekend.

The two-time Bathurst winner will be a busy driver, also competing in the Red Bull Race Off against former F1 race winner David Coulthard, young Aussie F1 test driver Daniel Ricciardo and motocross star Robbie Maddison.

Meanwhile, the Jack Daniel's Racing crew have been hard at work repairing damage to Todd Kelly's #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore ahead of this weekend's three V8 Supercars races.

Todd Kelly rates the Albert Park layout as one of his favourite circuits on the V8 calendar. He is a two-time race winner and two-time polesitter at the venue and qualified fourth for last year's event, one spot ahead of brother Rick, only for mechanical failure to set him back.

Kelly, who was fifth fastest overall in practice yesterday, suffered a lacklustre qualifying session earlier today and started the race from 16th place on the grid.

During a race that was slowed by several lengthy Safety Car periods, Todd Kelly gradually moved through the pack in his #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore, eventually finishing in seventh place.

To view photos from today click here

Telstra launches M8 IT CAN W8 to put a stop to texting while driving

An alarming 45 per cent of Australians have admitted to texting while driving with 30 per cent of drivers believing they are capable of doing both, according to the latest Telstra 'Drive Safe, Phone Safe' research1 released today.

The study finds that the message that is not getting through to Australian drivers, and the situation is worsening with research revealing a 12 per cent increase in drivers sending text messages compared to January 20102.

The research results have prompted Telstra to launch a new national driver safety education program, M8 IT CAN W8, to discourage drivers from the dangerous practice of texting behind the wheel.

Telstra spokesperson, Craig Middleton said the campaign's first goal was to encourage at least 50,000 Australians to commit to break their dangerous texting and driving habits by Fatality Free Friday, May 27.

Jack Daniel's Racing driver Todd Kelly will start his 150th V8 Supercars Championship event at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, South Australia this weekend.

The 2005 Bathurst 1000 winner becomes the 16th driver to reach the milestone, coming at the venue where he won the Saturday race in 2007 and finished runner-up to brother Rick Kelly the following day.

Todd Kelly was the fastest of Kelly Racing's four Commodores in both qualifying sessions at the season's opening event in Abu Dhabi last month, but the 31-year-old was unable to build on his 10th place finish in Race 1 after becoming an innocent victim of a lap one crash in Race 2.

Rick Kelly was pleased with improvements to his #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore at the team's second test day of the season at Winton Motor Raceway last Monday.

The younger of the Kelly brothers is determined to revisit the podium at the Adelaide parklands street circuit this weekend at what he describes at the most prestigious single-driver event on the V8 Supercars calendar.

Jack Daniel's Racing has endured a disappointing second race at the Yas V8 400 at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates today.

The potential was there for good results from both Todd and Rick Kelly, but for both drivers circumstances prevented them from finishing with a strong result.

Todd Kelly qualified in 12th place in his #7 Commodore, but was taken out of the race on the first lap in a crash that claimed several cars on the opening lap at The Corkscrew.

The damage to the left rear suspension of Kelly's car was too great and he was forced to retire after three laps.

To view photos from today's race click here

Jack Daniel's Racing driver Todd Kelly had made a solid start to the 2011 V8 Supercars Championship with a 10th place finish in the first race of the Yas V8 400 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates today.

Kelly posted a top 10 finish in the 43-lap race aboard his #7 Commodore, which is carrying Queensland signage this weekend at the Yas Marina Circuit to raise awareness for the plight of flood and cyclone victims back in Australia.

Todd Kelly started from 17th position on the grid but made steady progress up the order all race long, reaching a top 10 position with 14 laps remaining.

To view photos from toda's race click here

Hi All,

Following on from the imrovements we made through the 2010 season along with all the new components manufactured over the Christmas break, the car was extremely good at Eastern Creek.

Other than our tyre quality we were extremely happy overall with the day and now look forward to seeing where we end up at Abu Dhabi.

Todd Kelly

To view photos from test day click here 

Todd and Rick Kelly have taken influence from Mr Jack Daniel for the livery of their Jack Daniel's Commodores for the 2011 V8 Supercars Championship.

The striking black and white machines are themed on the famous Jack Daniel's filigree for the first time this year, the sixth consecutive season for Jack Daniel's in V8 Supercars.

Filigree has featured on the famous black and white Jack Daniel's label right back to the first batch of Old No 7 in 1866.

Driver and team co-owner Todd Kelly said that linking some of the history of the Jack Daniel's brand with the car livery made sense following he and brother Rick's trip to the Jack Daniel's distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee last August.

"Every year we add a new element to our Jack Daniel's Racing livery while staying true to what is an awesome colour scheme – black and white," said Todd Kelly.

To view photos click here

The result is Kelly's 17th top 10 finish for the season and his fourth consecutive top 10 finish aboard the #15 Jack Daniel's Commodore.

Kelly finishes the season in eighth place in the Driver's Championship points standings, equalling his points finish of last season.

It was Todd Kelly who led the way earlier today by qualifying in seventh place to give him four top 10 qualifying performances from the last five races.

The driver of the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore was well inside the top 10 and on his best set of tyres entering the final stint of today's 74-lap race, but a bent steering arm ended his chances.

To view photos from the weekend click here

Kelly fitted his one set of softer Dunlop tyres under Safety Car shortly before the lengthy red flag that effectively split today's race in two.

The move was the right one in terms of strategy, but unfortunately for Kelly he lost several spots in pit lane as the Jack Daniel's Racing crew was forced to pit both its Commodores on the same lap when the Safety Car was first brought out, with Todd Kelly first in the order, and therefore, first to pit.

Todd Kelly started on the soft tyres and roared up the order from 15th to third. But when the red flag was brought out it allowed other teams to work on their cars during the stoppage, effectively dissolving the advantage the elder of the Kelly brothers had gained in the first part of the race.

It was a day of great pace for both Jack Daniel's Commodores, with Rick Kelly third fastest in qualifying earlier today and brother Todd Kelly just behind in sixth place.

But in the Top 10 Shootout both Jack Daniel's Racing drivers made minor errors, putting them on ninth and 10th place on the grid.

Starting from 10th, Todd Kelly was pushed wide at the start of the race, his off-track excursion slightly damaging his steering.

At the red flag stoppage the Jack Daniel's Racing crew was able to replace Kelly's punctured left rear tyre, damaged in the Turn 1 scuffle, allowing Kelly to power on.

Suffering from understeer with his realigned front-end geometry, Kelly finished in 11th position aboard the #7 Jack Daniel's Commodore.