V8: Justin Wilson Completes Kelly Racing's Gold Coast 600 Roster

IndyCar

V8: Justin Wilson Completes Kelly Racing’s Gold Coast 600 Roster

With Wilson joining Graham Rahal, Marco Andretti and former Andretti driver Franck Montagny For the GC600, Kelly Racing is stacked with IndyCar talent.

Marshall Pruett | Posted July 26, 2012

Justin Wilson currently sits 12th in IndyCar points, and hopes to crack the top 10 before the season closes in September. (Photo: Marshall Pruett)

Dale Coyne Racing's Justin Wilson will join fellow IZOD IndyCar Series drivers Marco Andretti, former Newman/Haas Racing teammate Graham Rahal and ex-Andretti IndyCar and ALMS driver Franck Montagny as part of Kelly Racing's four-car Gold Coast 600 roster.

Wilson, who earn his first oval victory in June at the Texas 550, will share the Holden Commodore driven by Kiwi V8 legend Greg Murphy during the October 19-21 event held on the streets of Surfers Paradise.

"I'm very grateful to have the chance to drive the Pepsi Max Crew V8 Supercar at the Gold Coast," said the Englishman. "I've raced at the Gold Coast [Indy car] event four times before and I'm really looking forward to being part of it again. Surfers Paradise is a cool venue - there's such a fun atmosphere, loads of on-track action and the fans really love their racing. The track is also lot of fun for the drivers. It's high commitment, especially through the blind corners, and it's physically demanding too."

Murphy was joined Wilson's countryman Oliver Gavin for last year's Gold Coast 600, but with Gavin--and many other sports car stars--tied up with a date conflict at Petit Le Mans, many opportunities have opened up for IndyCar drivers to partake in in the high-profile V8 Supercars race.

Wilson, (2nd from right), opened the season with an overall win at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, and hopes to close the year with a win at the Gold Coast 600. (Photo: Marshall Pruett)

In addition to his distinguished open-wheel career, Wilson had competed in more than a dozen sports car races under ACO, ALMS and GRAND-AM sanction, with a win at the 2012 Rolex 24 At Daytona serving as his most memorable achievement in the category.

Despite his closed-top experience, having a driver of Murphy's caliber to learn teach Wilson the art of driving a 600 HP GT car is just what Wilson will need to get up to speed.

"I'm really looking forward to driving alongside Greg Murphy," Wilson said of the four-time Bathurst 1000 winner. "I know he's fast and has a never-give-up attitude. Just from watching on TV you know he's getting everything possible from the car. It will be fun joining Greg in the Pepsi Max Crew V8 Supercar and seeing what we can achieve.

"It will be a tough challenge driving a V8 for the first time and I know the level of talent already racing in the series is extremely high, so my goals are to listen to Greg and the team and help them get the best finish possible."

Wilson, Rahal and Andretti will be joined by a number of IndyCar regulars including Simon Pagenaud and others that have yet to be formally announced.

Marshall Pruett is SPEED.com's Auto Racing Editor, and covers the IndyCar Series. He also contributes to RACER, Road & Track and Racecar Engineering. Follow him @MarshallPruett.