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| Ambrose Finishes As The Leading Rookie In Charlotte |
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| Tuesday, 29 May 2007 | |
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Team Australia driver Marcos Ambrose battled hard in the Carquest Auto Parts 300 to finish as the leading NASCAR Busch Series Rookie driver in 20th position at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina tonight. After setting the 17th fastest time aboard the Aussie Vineyards-backed #59 Kingsford Charcoal Ford Fusion during qualifying earlier in the day, Ambrose started the 300-mile race from the inside of the ninth row in the 43-car field. With the race starting at 8:00pm local time the track conditions were significantly different to when Ambrose qualified earlier in the day at which point the track temperature was a sizzling 146 degrees Fahrenheit (63 degrees Celsius). As a consequence of the ever changing track conditions Ambrose focused on settling into a rhythm during the early running of the race. When Ambrose made his first pit stop on lap 29 the two-time Australian V8 Supercar Champion was placed just outside the top 20. While the race continued Ambrose maintained his position and was engaged in a battle with experienced NASCAR Nextel Cup campaigners Robby Gordon and Casey Mears along with rising star Aric Almirola. Despite going a lap down on the leaders courtesy of a slow pit stop under green flag conditions just prior to half race distance Ambrose maintained his composure and focused on gaining valuable experience around the 1.5-mile oval. As several drivers spun out of contention over the final 50 laps, including early race leader Kurt Busch, Juan Pablo Montoya and Kyle Krisiloff, Ambrose steered clear of trouble and recorded some good lap times to cross the line 20th. After starting from 32nd position Kasey Kahne showed superior speed to take the race victory over a Mears. The 200-lap race had 14 lead changes across 10 different drivers with the field slowed during seven caution periods for a total of 28 laps. Series leader Carl Edwards endured two spins during the race to finish 17th. After 13 races he holds a 423-point lead in the standings over Kevin Harvick. Ambrose is 13th, 17 points shy of the top ten. Ambrose’s result ensured he closed the gap to Raybestos Rookie of the Year leader David Ragan. It is the third time this year Ambrose has finished as the leading Rookie driver. Ambrose will next race at Dover International Speedway on June 2 in the 14th race of the 2007 NASCAR Busch Series. Marcos Ambrose – Aussie Vineyards-backed #59 Kingsford Charcoal Ford Fusion “I had a great time out there tonight and learnt a lot,” said Ambrose. “The drivers who are also racing in tomorrow’s Cup race had a huge advantage because they had two hours of Cup practice today and you’re not going to overcome that, but we got in the groove pretty quick. “We put a good qualifying lap down and, in general, I was pretty comfortable there in the first stint. “Unfortunately we lost a lug nut in the pit stop which slowed the stop which put us a lap down, but we fought back well. “At one stage I think we were down in 33rd after we made some bad changes to the setup in the pit stops. However, by the end of the race we turned it around to get the car going pretty damn good and were setting times equal to those in the top ten which was pleasing. “Many other drivers managed not to finish but I got to the end unscathed which was pleasing. I thought I might have been in trouble a few times, but somehow I took it off the fence and brought it home. “I’m really happy. I’m working great with the guys in the team, we ended tonight with a competitive package and we’re continually making progress.” RESULTS: Carquest Auto Parts 300 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway Race 13 of the 2007 NASCAR Busch Series 1. #9 Kasey Kahne – 200 laps 2. #24 Casey Mears 3. #2 Clint Bowyer 4. #29 Jeff Burton 5. #4 Regan Smith 6. #48 Jimmie Johnson 7. #17 Matt Kenseth 8. #5 Kyle Busch 9. #21 Scott Wimmer 10. #90 Stephen Leicht 20. #59 Marcos Ambrose RESULTS: Qualifying 1 #17 Matt Kenseth 30.090 2 #21 Scott Wimmer 30.119 3 #16 Greg Biffle 30.230 4 #29 Jeff Burton 30.247 5 #12 Kurt Busch 30.260 6 #4 Regan Smith 30.306 7 #6 David Ragan 30.307 8 #48 Jimmie Johnson 30.376 9 #2 Clint Bowyer 30.387 10 #20 Denny Hamlin 30.394 17. #59 Marcos Ambrose 30.583 2007 NASCAR Busch Series Points Standings – After Race 13 (Unofficial) 1. Carl Edwards 2075 2. Kevin Harvick 1652 3. Dave Blaney 1483 4. Matt Kenseth 1431 5. David Reutimann 1393 6. Regan Smith 1393 7. David Ragan 1358 8. Clint Bowyer 1349 9. Jeff Burton 1340 10. Greg Biffle 1320 13. Marcos Ambrose 1303 2007 NASCAR Busch Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year Standings – After Race 13 (Unofficial) 1. David Ragan 132 2. Juan Pablo Montoya 127 3. Marcos Ambrose 123 4. Kyle Krisiloff 111 5. Brad Keselowski 73 6. Brad Coleman 50 7. Justin Diercks 39 8. Sam Hornish Jr 35 9. Robert Richardson Jr 23 10. Alex Garcia 7 MARCOS AMBROSE FAST FACTS – Marcos Ambrose and the #59 Kingsford Charcoal Ford Fusion team at Wood Brothers/JTG Racing have earned US$355,880 (A$427,843) in prizemoney in 13 NASCAR Busch Series races this season – Ambrose will drive the #59 Kingsford Charcoal Ford Fusion for Wood Brothers/JTG Racing in the 2007 NASCAR Busch Series – Ambrose finished 16th in his NASCAR Busch Series debut at Daytona International Speedway on 17 February 2007, winning the Raybestos Rookie of the Race Award in what was his first race on the 2.5-mile Daytona superspeedway – The Australian scored his debut NASCAR Busch Series top 10 finish at his first NASCAR road course event with eighth place at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City on 4 March 2007 – Ambrose picked up his second Raybestos Rookie of the Race Award and second-consecutive top 10 with 10th at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on 10 March 2007, also winning the WIX Filters Lap Leader Award and the Checkers/Rally's Double Drive-Thru Challenge Award for the fastest Busch Series pit crew – The 30-year-old will also aim to qualify for two NASCAR Nextel Cup races in the #47 Aussie Vineyards Team Australia Ford Fusion for Wood Brothers/JTG Racing at Sonoma on 24 June 2007 and Watkins Glen on 12 August 2007 – Ambrose was born in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia – finished 21st in the 2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and third in the Raybestos Rookie of the Year standings, earning US$256,368 in 22 starts in the #20 Aussie Vineyards Team Australia Ford F-150 for Wood Brothers/JTG Racing – 2006 season highlighted by Budweiser Pole and WIX Lap Leader awards in Kentucky on 8 July 2006, along with third place finishes at Kansas on 1 July 2006 and Nashville 12 August 2006 – Earned nine top 10 qualifying positions and four top 10 finishes in his first season of oval racing of any description – Ambrose won two consecutive Australian V8 Supercar Championship Series titles in 2003 and 2004 for Ford |
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