THE first signs of tensions boiling over in a hard-headed National Trans Am Series field have emerged, with veteran Brett Holdsworth warning 2022 runner-up Owen Kelly.
Holdsworth and Kelly collided while battling for fourth on the last lap of racing action at the Symmons Plains season-opener in February.
It’s something Holdsworth, the brother of 2021 Bathurst 1000 winner Lee, has clearly not forgotten about.
“He just gets away with too much,” Holdsworth said on Friday at Phillip Island, where Round 2 is taking place, via the Wide World of Sports.
“He can’t pass cleanly, can’t pass his teammates cleanly, certainly can’t pass me cleanly, so I’m jack of it.”
Holdsworth indicated he is preparing to return serve: “I won’t give him an inch.
“I’m hoping we can qualify further up the road than him anyway and he can go and punt someone else while he’s out there. I won’t be giving him any track room, that’s for sure.
“People are getting jack of it.
“Most people race cleanly out there and you’ve got one guy that just can’t seem to do it. That’s the issue.”
Speaking with the same publication, Kelly’s response was short but sharp: “He’s got to catch me first.”
Trans Am qualifying begins at 10:40am AEST this morning.
Series leader James Moffat topped both practice sessions yesterday.