AMBROSE HUNGRY FOR FIRST WIN WITH TALLADEGA SUPERSPEEDWAY NEXT UP ON THE SCHEDULE

TALLADEGA, Ala. (October 27, 2009) – Entering Talladega Superspeedway, Marcos Ambrose has something to smile about. JTG-Daugherty Racing co-owner Tad Geshickter confirmed last weekend that his No. 47 Toyota Camry team extended its technical alliance with Michael Waltrip Racing for the 2010 and 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series seasons.

“That’s great news that we have realigned with MWR,” Ambrose said. “It just works.”

“Being a single-car team without a strong technical alliance is next to impossible,” Geschickter told Bob Pockrass with NASCAR Scene on Saturday. “This one is working, so why fix it? Toyota’s influence and the support they give us is big. The personalities of the people involved – everyone gets along. We’ve imbedded our folks into their shop, so every meeting that goes on, we’re a part of and has made it more seamless than most.”

Ambrose believes the association has proved to be beneficial to his JTG-Daugherty Racing team.

“Tad is right,” Ambrose said. “We’ve been very successful this year and we even came close to winning a time or two. We’ve been solid in the points all season long and this was just our first year working together as a full-time Cup operation. We are really looking forward to 2010 and continuing our work with MWR. I know we’ll be relying on each other at Talladega this weekend when we are trying to get to the front.”

Ambrose recorded his first top-five finish of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at Talladega Superspeedway and avoided a spectacular crash on the final lap to finish fourth.

“It was the wildest finish that I have ever seen looking at a car upside down like that,” Ambrose said. “I can’t imagine what was going through Carl’s (Edwards) mind. We were fortunate to escape the incident and capitalize on a great finish for our team.

“These past few weeks have been very extreme,” continued Ambrose. “We’ve gone from scary fast Charlotte to the slowest track on the circuit back to plate racing where your grandmother can drive in qualifying. At the same time, the race itself at Talladega is tough and it’s not for everybody.”

With the season winding down and four races remaining, Ambrose is hungry for his first win in the No. 47 Kingsford® Charcoal Toyota entering the 2.66-mile tri-oval.

“For me, I want to win the race,” Ambrose said. “It’s anyone’s race and Brad Keselowski was a surprise winner in April. This weekend, how do I do that? Generally speaking, I will let everything settle down and wait for the first crash to get out of the way. About halfway, I’ll move up through the pack to make sure my car can run up in there and be able to handle jumping in and out of lines to go to the front. Then I will sit tight and wait for the last 40 laps.”

Ambrose knows not to wait too late to make his move.

“If you wait too long, everyone else is getting desperate and crazy,” Ambrose said. “You want to already be positioned somewhat maybe a pit stop and a half to go. It’s a real challenge and you’ve got to have friends out there. When you are up against two or three Hendrick Motorsports cars in a line there’s not much you can do to stop them. My tactic is to try to get to the front with 40 laps to go and try to stay there.”

On Saturday, Marcos will be on hand for DegaQ, a BBQ competition held at the Talladega Superspeedway and sponsored by Kingsford/KC Masterpiece. Marcos will sign autographs and present the award to the winning BBQ team. If you are at the track make sure you stop by, there will be plenty of great BBQ available.

Live coverage of the Amp Energy on Sunday, November 1st begins at 12 p.m. ET on ABC. MRN Radio and Sirius XM will also carry the event.

Waltrip Finishes 30th at Martinsville Speedway

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) had a tough day at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday. Both Waltrip and David Reutimann had tires go down. For Waltrip, his setback occurred just 43 laps into the Tums Fast Relief 500. Reutimann’s day saw him leading for 15 circuits at the 300-lap mark, but was forced onto pit road with less than 50 laps to go which ended the organization’s chances for a top-10 finish.

“We just had one of those days,” said Waltrip who started the Tums Fast Relief 500 in 36th position. “Our NAPA Adaptive One Toyota just wasn’t very good today. We had one bad stop that cost us a lap. I could have been better. Everyone could have done better. We just gave a bunch of stuff away today.”

Ryan Newman led the field to the green flag, but the action quickly slowed when the first caution was thrown on lap seven for an incident in Turn 4 involving Marcos Ambrose, Matt Kenseth and Robby Gordon. Waltrip’s NAPA Adaptive One Toyota was a little tight, but was competitive as the two-time Daytona 500 champion drove up to the 31st spot. Unfortunately, less than 40 laps later, Waltrip spun as a result of a flat left rear tire. It cost the NAPA team one lap on the track. When the race resumed, the No. 55 was scored in 37th position.

At the halfway mark, the NAPA Adaptive One Toyota was running extremely tight through the corners. The challenge for track position had Waltrip down three laps. The team took a gamble when the caution flew on lap 251. Instead of pitting, they opted to do the wave around which put them in 33rd place, two laps down. The strategy paid off as NASCAR threw a yellow flag on lap 275. This time, crew chief Gene Nead chose to make significant adjustments to the No. 55 Toyota. Two spring rubbers were added along with bolting on four fresh tires. Waltrip returned to the track in 33rd place when the race returned to green on lap 280. Jimmie Johnson was in the top spot.

By the time the next caution flag flew on lap 300, Waltrip felt his car was faster, but it still would not turn. The NAPA driver encouraged his team after a four tire pit stop to keep up the great attitude especially when their teammate, Reutimann, was the leader on the restart. During this green flag run, Waltrip’s Adaptive One Toyota was as fast as the front runners. Unfortunately, during the team’s next stop under green at lap 421, a problem changing the right rear tire cost them an additional lap. The NAPA Adaptive One Toyota returned to the track in 31st place.

Denny Hamlin was the leader and remained there despite challenges by Jimmie Johnson on two door-to-door restarts in the final 50 laps. Waltrip was able to pick up one more track position before the checkered flag waved to finish 30th. As for Johnson’s runner-up finish, it increased his points lead to 118 points over teammate Mark Martin.

Following closely behind Hamlin and Johnson to round out the top-10 finishers were Juan Pablo Montoya, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman, Mark Martin, Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick.

Marcos Ambrose whose team, JTG-Daugherty will continue its technical alliance with MWR next season, also had a tough race. The team never could rally back after getting tangled up with Matt Kenseth and Robby Gordon on lap seven. Ambrose had to settle for 27th place.

Next Sunday, Waltrip competes at one of his favorite tracks and site of a 2003 NASCAR Sprint Cup victory for the NAPA team – Talladega Superspeedway. Broadcast coverage gets underway at noon ET on ABC, MRN and Sirius XM Satellite Radio.

And if you are curious to know what Waltrip will be for Halloween, don’t miss SPEED’s Truck Series broadcast on Saturday starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.

AMBROSE RETURNS TO SIGHT OF NASCAR DEBUT

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (October 20, 2009) – The year was 2006 when a two-time V8 Supercar champ from Australia was trying to break into a tight-knit NASCAR community.

Little did Marcos Ambrose know that a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series start with JTG-Daugherty Racing at Martinsville Speedway would eventually thrust him into the Sprint Cup Series limelight behind the No. 47 Little Debbie® Toyota full-time.

Four seasons later, the Launceston, Tasmania-native recounts his journey to the pinnacle of the sport since his debut at the .526-mile oval.

“Well, a lot has changed since my first Truck race at Martinsville,” Ambrose said. “I was very nervous and I didn’t know what to expect. I qualified decent, but during the race I hit everything including the pit wall. We’ve come a long way since then. Martinsville is a unique track where you see fast and aggressive racing. In our first time out at Martinsville in the Cup car, we ran competitively and brought it home in one piece to finish 14^th. I’d like to think we will do even better this time around.”

“It seems like an awful long time ago that the Geschickter’s (Tad and Jodi) and I got together,” Ambrose continued. “It’s been a great journey and it has been a huge effort for all of us to get here. Now, we are in the Cup Series full-time and we’re competitive. We’re fast and we are holding our own. We’re really proud of what we have accomplished in a short amount of time.”

Before making the jump to Cup, Ambrose raced two seasons in the NASCAR Nationwide Series and earned back-to-back top-10 finishes in the championship standings. To date, Ambrose has two wins in the division at Watkins Glen International and has accumulated five top-five and 14 top-10s along with two pole awards.

“The Nationwide Series helped prepare me mentally for the Cup Series,” Ambrose said. “I didn’t realize how much time is required of you from sponsors, media, the team and so forth at this level. It’s been a learning experience. I’ve had to learn how to balance a lot of things.”

Like many drivers, Ambrose spends days or weeks at a time away from home, working away from the track. As the season winds down, the Aussie knows a trip to the homeland is just what he needs to recharge from the hustle and bustle. Following the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Ambrose will go to Tasmania for two months.

“The idea of going back to Australia is for my kids to see family and friends,” Ambrose said. “For me, I will also use the time to get my body in shape and get my head back in the game. I will think about what I need during the year and how I am going to be better. It’s all about reinvigorating myself and doing a good soul search about who I am, what I am all about and what I need to do to be better.”

This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series prepare for the Tums Fast Relief 500. Live coverage of the event at Martinsville Speedway on ABC begins at 1 p.m. ET. MRN and Sirius XM will also broadcast the event.

AMBROSE SOLDIERS ON TO FINISH 22ND AT LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY

CONCORD, N.C. (October 19, 2009) – Saturday night Marcos Ambrose posted a 22nd-place finish in the NASCAR Banking 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway during race number 31 of the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Ambrose experienced problems under the hood early on in the 334-lap race, but the Australian driver was able to nurse home his No. 47 Clorox® Toyota for his 24th top-25 finish of the year.

“It felt like there was something wrong under the hood early on in the race,” Ambrose said. “The handling of the car was great. It was close to perfect. It was disappointing we couldn’t get the most out of the car we had Saturday night, but we were able to finish it for the points.”

Three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion and current points leader Jimmie Johnson won his sixth race of the year. Matt Kenseth finished second, Kasey Kahne was third, Jeff Gordon crossed the finish line fourth and Joey Logano was fifth.

Ambrose, who has earned four top-five and seven top-10 finishes in his first year of full-time competition, holds onto 17th in the championship standings with five races remaining.

On Thursday night, Ambrose qualified 13th and the next evening he posted the seventh fastest time in final practice.

“I told the guys it was the best car they had given me all year,” Ambrose said. “We really had something.”

When the green flag waved for the start of the NASCAR Banking 500, Ambrose held on to a top-15 spot until he radioed to crew chief Frank Kerr that something did not feel right with his Clorox® Toyota at Lap 29.
“It was like it was just laying over,” Ambrose said. “We’ve got to get the car back and figure out what went wrong.”

On Lap 34, rain fell on the 1.5-mile quad-oval forcing a caution while Ambrose was running 19th. It gave teams an opportunity to service their cars at Lap 36. Ambrose’s handling was near perfect as he entered pit road, but he did not have the power he needed to advance.

“It had only been hitting the ground a little and it was somewhat free,” Ambrose said. “We didn’t really need to make any changes.”

As Michael Waltrip led the field to green at Lap 42, Ambrose was 23rd. Even though he said he was experiencing problems, he was turning respectable lap times before he pitted under green at Lap 93 for four fresh Goodyear tires.

“It felt like the motor was about to blow up,” Ambrose said.

On Lap 121 under caution, Ambrose told the JTG-Daugherty Racing team that they may need to check the plug wires after they changed four tires and added fuel. Three laps later the green flag waved again and the No. 47 Clorox® Toyota was scored in 22nd-place.

Ambrose maintained his speed and communicated to Kerr that he was too tight up top and may need a little wedge taken out on his next stop under caution at Lap 165. As the pit crew changed four tires and made a chassis adjustment, they noticed a hole in the nose of the Clorox® Toyota and had to quickly repair the damage. Denny Hamlin led the field to green as Ambrose peeled off in 24th-place.

On lap 190 under caution, the JTG-Daugherty Racing team changed right side tires and made another wedge adjustment. Ambrose also pitted for four tires and fuel under green at Lap 245.
“We were too tight,” Ambrose said.

The No. 47 Clorox® Toyota was back on pit road at Lap 293 for four tires, an air pressure change and a wedge adjustment as he mentioned he was still having problems.

“It was popping and banging,” Ambrose said. “Something was wrong.”

After coming back in on Lap 301 for a track bar adjustment and four tires, Ambrose told his crew chief again that he thought his car was blowing up. Ambrose was able to hold on to finish in the top-25 one lap down.

This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series journey to Martinsville, Va. for the Tums Fast Relief 500. Live coverage of the event at Martinsville Speedway on ABC begins at 1 p.m. ET. MRN and Sirius XM will also broadcast the event.

AMBROSE TO SERVE TIME FOR A GREAT CAUSE BEFORE RACING AT LOWE’S MOTOR SPEEDWAY

CORNELIUS, N.C. (October 14, 2008) – Following fan appreciation day today at Raceworld U.S.A. from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. ET, Marcos Ambrose is being sentenced and locked up in a jail cell at Brickhouse in Davidson (N.C.) during the second annual Official Jail & Bail charity event to benefit the Brienne Davis Scholarship Fund.

The event will feature NASCAR celebrities being "locked up" and having to raise their bail in an effort to raise money for the scholarship fund that helps encourage women to seek a career in the automotive industry. Donations can be made in Ambrose’s name by visiting www.jtgdaughertyracing.com or http://foundation.nascar.com. The event will also feature a headline performance by country music star Rodney Atkins.

“I have to ring up to people to get bailed out, but I don’t know if I have enough friends to make bail,” Ambrose said. “I hope I get out. It’s just really great that the NASCAR community comes together to give their time, effort and money to charities like this. Brienne was a friend to all of us and we miss her dearly and we hope the scholarship can help people.”

Ambrose will have a full day of activities as he greets fans in Cornelius, N.C. prior to being shackled and sent to the slammer in good fun for the fundraiser. Ambrose along with Michael Waltrip, David Reutimann, Trevor Bayne and Ryan Truex will sign autographs beginning at 11 a.m. ET for two hours in Cornelius (N.C.) at the Raceworld U.S.A during fan appreciation day. There have been 200 fans randomly selected from signing up online (www.michaelwaltrip.com) for an exclusive autograph session with the drivers.

“It’s free admission to the fans and they are giving away prizes and food so it should be a fun event,” Ambrose said. “Michael did a fan appreciation day in May and so many people showed up. We’re expecting a bigger turnout on Wednesday.”

On Thursday, it’s back to business as usual as the Australian driver practices and qualifies the No. 47 Clorox® Toyota Camry for the NASCAR Banking 500 that takes place on Saturday at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Ambrose finished 26th at the 1.5-mile quad oval in May. He also has two top-15 finishes in four Nationwide Series starts at the venue.

“We’ve come a long way with our setups since the last time we raced at Lowe’s Motor Speedway and we are optimistic we are going to do better than last time,” Ambrose said. “It’s just a great event and you get to sleep in your own bed. We’re looking forward to running well. We are disappointed with our finish last weekend at Auto Club Speedway. We had a top-10 car and we got caught up in a wreck there at the end that ruined our day.”

Even thought Ambrose was not happy with his result in Fontana (Calif.) last weekend, he’s still pleased with the season overall.

“It’s been a great year for us and I’m excited about our future,” Ambrose said. “We’ve just got to qualify better because I’m not qualifying well right now and we are starting the races on Sunday the hard way. If we can qualify in the top-10, we’ll be fine. Our races have been going well and we are moving to the front each week. We’ve been having a good handling race car and the pit crew is getting better and so have our choices. We gave away a top-10 at California, but we hope to rebound at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. We’re focused on getting some momentum for 2010.”

Live coverage of the NASCAR Banking 500 on Saturday, October 17th begins at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and PRN Radio.

NASCAR CELEBRITIES TO BE “LOCKED UP” FOR SECOND OFFICIAL JAIL AND BAIL

Country Music Star Rodney Atkins To Headline Oct 14 Event

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Sept. 24, 2009) – The Second Official Jail & Bail charity event supported by Best Buy and Insignia to benefit the Brienne Davis Scholarship Fund at The NASCAR Foundation, is set for Oct. 14 at Brickhouse Tavern in Davidson, N.C.

NASCAR celebrities Marcos Ambrose, Kurt Busch, Kevin Harvick, Juan Pablo Montoya, David Stremme, Wendy Venturini, John Darby, Casey Mears, Scott Speed, Brian Vickers, Jamie McMurray, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Trevor Bayne, Denny Hamlin, Paul Menard, Reed Sorenson and many more will all have their day in court when they get “locked up” and have to raise their bail in an effort to raise funds for the scholarship fund.

Davis, a Universal Technical Institute (UTI) graduate and NASCAR Sprint Cup Series official, died tragically last year at age 28, and is honored by this scholarship created to encourage women to seek a career in the automotive industry. The Brienne Davis Scholarship Fund is intended to provide an opportunity for a qualified female student who wishes to attend one of 12 Universal Technical Institute campuses across the U.S. including UTI’s NASCAR Technical Institute in Mooresville, N.C.

The event will feature the Jail and Bail portion with NASCAR celebrities, food, beverage, and performances by local artists From A Seed and country music star, Curb Records artist Rodney Atkins.

Last year, the NASCAR industry and its fans helped raise nearly $100,000 during the event to support the Brienne Davis Scholarship Fund.

Tickets for the event are on sale now for $10 and at the gate the night of the event. To register for tickets or to learn more visit WWW.NASCAR.COM/foundation.

An online charity auction featuring the jail shirts worn and signed by each participating driver along with autographed NASCAR memorabilia will go live Oct. 15 at 12 p.m. ET and run through Oct. 22.

Schedule of events for Jail and Bail beneifiting the Brienne Davis Scholarship Fund/NASCAR Foundation.

5 to 6:15 p.m. Band - - From A Seed

6 p.m. Marcos Ambrose to arrive

6:20 Opening Remarks from Matt Yocum

6:25 Comments from the Judge - Intro of staff/Bailiffs and Wardens

6:30 Inmate #1 Marcos Ambrose (sentenced)

6:40 Inmate #2 Trevor Bayne

6:45 Inmate #3 Brian Vickers

6:55 Inmate #4 Kevin Harvick

7:05 Inmate #5 Rutledge Wood (SPEED Talent)

7:20 Inmate #6 David Stremme

7:30 Inmate #7 Juan Pablo Montoya

7:40 Inmate #8 Paul Menard

7:45 Inmate #9 Jason Leffler

7:50 Inmate #10 Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.

8:00 Inmate #11 Reed Sorenson

8:10 Inmate #12 Aric Almirola

8:15 Inmate #13 Scott Speed

8:25 Inmate #14 AJ Allmendinger

8:35 Inmate #15 Kurt Busch

9 p.m. Band - - Rodney Atkins

Ambrose Finishes 23rd After Being Involved in Late Race Accident at Auto Club Speedway

FONTANA, Calif. (October 12, 2008) – Marcos Ambrose’s chance for a top-15 finish was ruined when he was collected in an accident inside ten laps remaining in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Auto Club Speedway. The JTG-Daugherty Racing team persevered to quickly make repairs to the right front of the No. 47 Little Debbie® Toyota for Ambrose to get back on track. The Australian driver finished in 23^rd-place after NASCAR lifted the red flag for cleanup following the multi-car accident.

Three-time champion Jimmie Johnson won race number 30 and assumed the points lead. His Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon finished second, Juan Pablo Montoya finished third, his other colleague Mark Martin was fourth and Tony Stewart rounded out the top-five.

When the green flag fell on an overcast afternoon at the two-mile D-shaped oval, Ambrose started 27^th and his Little Debbie Toyota was loose in the middle. That didn’t slow him down as he immediately jumped inside the top 20 on Lap 2. However, his car continued to loosen up and by Lap 20, he had fallen back to 28^th place.

On his first green flag pit stop of the day, crew chief Frank Kerr called for four tires and a wedge adjustment. Ambrose needed forward bite and was fighting to stay ahead of the leader Juan Pablo Montoya. As the 42 car closed in on Ambrose within four car lengths, a caution occurred on Lap 59.

“We caught a break there and kept from going a lap down to the leader,” Ambrose said. “We really needed forward drive and it was really loose in when I would hit the brakes.”

On pit road two laps later, Kerr told the JTG-Daugherty Racing team to make an air pressure adjustment, put a half of round of wedge in, pull the left front packer out and change four tires. Ambrose restarted 25^th on Lap 64 and immediately, he communicated to Kerr that his Little Debbie® Toyota was out of control.

“It was crazy loose,” Ambrose said. “It was really out of control. I’m not sure what happened there. It was just all over the track. We completely lost the handling.”

Under caution at Lap 82, Ambrose was back on pit road for tires, a spring rubber in the left rear and the pit crew put the packer back in the left front.

“The handling had just totally gone away,” Ambrose said. “I was spinning out.”

Going back to work from the 25^th spot, Kerr told Ambrose to be patient because he was in dirty air. It was going to be a long day, but Ambrose fought hard and by Lap 109, he was among the top-20.

On Lap 118 under caution, the Little Debbie® crew had another chance to take a stab at it. They changed four tires and went up a half round on the track bar. The sun was out and it changed the track conditions.

When the field got the green again, Ambrose was 18^th on Lap 121. Even though he was now too tight in the middle and the right rear was giving up forward bite, he was moving forward. On Lap 134, he positioned his Toyota in the top 15 while Jimmie Johnson showed the way.

“The attitude of the car was somewhat better than it had been earlier in the race, but the right rear had lost grip,” Ambrose said. “It was also pushy loose off and tight in the middle.”

While green flag stops commenced, Ambrose was shown in 10^th on Lap 160. He headed to pit road the following lap for tires and more adjustments. Just 10 laps later, Ambrose was running lap times as fast as the eventual winner, Johnson.

“I was still too loose,” Ambrose said.

With no right rear tire grip and the left rear spinning as well, Ambrose pitted under a debris caution at Lap 184 for four fresh tires and an air pressure adjustment. Fortunately, the caution came at the right time because the team discovered after his stop that he had a left front tire going down.

“We were lucky,” Ambrose said.

Ambrose restarted 16^th on Lap 189 as another caution immediately occurred involving the leader Denny Hamlin who had just cut across the nose of Montoya’s machine. The contact resulted in Hamlin hitting the pit wall taking himself out of contention. The 42 car assumed the lead as Ambrose was 14^th when the green flag flew in the air at Lap 194. Ambrose made a great move five laps later to pass Jeff Burton, Martin Truex Jr. and Greg Biffle for 11^th. On Lap 205, he made the move to pass Matt Kenseth for 10^th place. As he maintained 10^th, he was losing forward bite.

Ambrose continued to make a couple more pit stops in hopes of getting a better handle on the Little Debbie® Toyota Camry. As he was running just outside the top 15 and with a car capable of finishing in the top 10, Ambrose’s day was disrupted. His No. 47 Little Debbie® Toyota was collected in a multi-car crash involving Elliott Sadler, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Reed Sorenson, Brian Vickers, AJ Allmendinger and Jeff Burton.

“I’m not sure what exactly happened,” Ambrose said. “I just saw the 88 come down into us and we had major damage to the right front. We were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

All things considered, Ambrose was still able to nurse his car home to a top-25 finish and stay 17^th in the championship standings.

This week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series takes on Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Live coverage of the NASCAR Banking 500 on Saturday, October 17^th begins at 7 p.m. ET on ABC and PRN Radio.

Marcos Ambrose, No.47 Little Debbie (r) Toyota, Auto Club Speedway Preview

FONTANA, Calif. (October 7, 2009) – Before racing the No. 47 Little Debbie® Toyota at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, Marcos Ambrose and his team owner Tad Geschickter will take a detour to Costa Mesa, California to tour TRD, U.S.A. (Toyota Racing Development), which powers all of Toyota’s American racing programs, including three NASCAR series, as well NHRA, Grand Am and USAC programs.

“I am going with Tad (Geschickter), David (Reutimann), Cal (Wells) and a few others out to Costa Mesa to TRD’s facility as guests of Toyota to see where they build our engines,” Ambrose said. “We are going to thank all of the employees for their hard work and also see how the engines are built. We are thanking the guys for given us great horsepower and reliability all season because we are running these things flat out -- 10,000 RPM every lap.”

Ambrose has experienced a solid season and is planted firmly in the top-20 in points (17^th) entering Auto Club Speedway. Last week he recorded his 13^th top-15 finish by finishing 14^th at Kansas Speedway. Now, he is ready to improve upon a 22^nd-place finish he posted at Auto Club Speedway in February.

“I’m looking forward to racing at the two-mile D-shaped Auto Club Speedway because I think it has a similar feel to Kansas and whatever we were doing at Kansas will carry across reasonably in Fontana,” Ambrose said. “I know it’s another half-mile bigger, but the style of track for me is similar. The corners are a little flat and the entries have smooth transition in and off.

“I think at Kansas, guys with clean air on their nose ran well and you will see the same thing at California,” Ambrose continued. “If you can get clean air on your nose and the car is set up to run clean air with loads spread the right way, you are going to pull away. It’s the same with all forms of racing. Although, aero is less important with the Cup Series than say Formula One or Indy Car. The guys out front with clean air all run fast. The guys running 25^th and 35^th, they have no air on their nose at all and they quickly fall back and it spreads the field out.”

The Australian driver also mentions some of the many differences between Kansas and Auto Club Speedway.

“There is less grip at Auto Club Speedway that you have to take into account and a different tire as well,” Marcos said. “So, there’s a lot of things that will change. I think what we’ve struggled with our team is that we haven’t known what direction to head. We didn’t know what we were looking for to make the car run fast. Now, we are starting to get there. We are going to apply the same principles to the setup that we used at California earlier this season.”

Following his stop at TRD on Thursday, Ambrose will be sign autographs near the Little Debbie® and Kingsford displays at Auto Club Speedway from 6:10 p.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific at the Stater Bros. Racefest. Driver introductions for fans will take place on the main stage from 6:00pm – 6:25pm.

Live coverage of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, October 11^th begins at 2:30 p.m. EDT on ABC. Sirius XM Satellite and MRN Radio will also carry flag-to-flag coverage.

AMBROSE COLLECTS ANOTHER SOLID TOP-15 FINISH THIS TIME AT KANSAS SPEEDWAY

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (October 5, 2009) – Marcos Ambrose had a strong showing in race number 28 of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season at Kansas Speedway. The Australian driver brought home a 14th-place finish in his No. 47 Little Debbie® Toyota to maintain 17th in the championship standings. Two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Tony Stewart won the 400-mile event, Jeff Gordon finished second, Greg Biffle was third, Juan Pablo Montoya crossed the finish line fourth and Denny Hamilton rounded out the top-five. Mark Martin continues to lead the championship standings by 18 points over Jimmie Johnson.

On Sunday afternoon, Ambrose started 27th as the 43-car field was led to the flag stand by pole-sitter Mark Martin for the start of the 267-lap event.

“The Little Debbie® Toyota was a little loose in the beginning, but it still was really good,” Ambrose said.

On the very first lap, NASCAR threw the caution flag when Joey Logano spun around. Ambrose was scored in 21st place as the field returned to green flag racing at Lap 5. The very next lap the No. 98 entry of Paul Menard lost control and several cars were collected on the backstretch including Michael Waltrip, David Ragan, Max Papis, and Bobby Labonte.

As NASCAR safety workers cleared the track of debris from the melee, crew chief Frank Kerr keyed up the microphone.

“Some of the drivers are saying that grip all the sudden goes away so be careful out there Marcos,” Kerr said.

Martin led the field back to the start-finish line for the restart on Lap 11 while Ambrose was in 18th place. By Lap 15, Ambrose broke into the top 15 while Dale Earnhardt Junior was the new leader. Kerr told Ambrose he was catching the drivers ahead of him and was running lap times as fast as Earnhardt.

Ambrose was hitting his Little Debbie Toyota’s right front on the 1.5-mile D-shaped oval and he was loose off. After running 15th for several laps, he was able to pass Clint Bowyer on Lap 39 for 14th and set his sights on the top 10.

“At that time, the car was so close to being awesome,” Ambrose said.

“He was as fast as Dale,” Kerr said.

On Lap 50, Ambrose drove by Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. for 12th place before he headed to pit road for his green flag pit stop four laps later. Ambrose drove on to pit road while shown in seventh place for four tires and an air pressure adjustment.

As the 32-year-old returned to the track he thought he might have a vibration and he was way too loose.

During the next caution at Lap 69, Ambrose told Kerr that the balance of the Little Debbie® Toyota was hurt and it was jumping loose on him. Kerr communicated to his JTG-Daugherty Racing crew to put the air pressure back to where it was and to change four tires.

“It was jumping loose on me,” Ambrose said. “The car had also been tighter in Turns 3 and 4.”

Ambrose was back to green flag racing on Lap 74 in 15th place, but he reported right away that his Toyota was really free and that it may need a wedge adjustment to tighten it up.

“It was loose in and off,” Ambrose said. “All in all, it was just really free.”

Handling was Ambrose’s nemesis causing him to slip outside the top-15. Around Lap 100, he had fallen to 23rd. Nearly 25 laps later, Brian Vickers spun around bringing out a caution that allowed the pit crew to make an air pressure adjustment, change four tires and go a half of a round up on the track bar. There was also damage sustained to the left rear quarter panel that Kerr called Ambrose back in on the next lap for repair.

“I’m not sure who got into me, but we had some damage to the rear,” Ambrose said.

Ambrose restarted 18th on Lap 130 after the dent was hammered out of the left rear and the rear corner was taped up. Ambrose was glad to see another caution at Lap 147 because he was tight in the center and loose off. The crew opted to put on only right side tires for track position. When the green flag waved at Lap 151, Ambrose was shown in seventh place. Still battling looseness, he slid out of the top 10 at lap 154.

“It was loose off,” Ambrose said.

Ambrose still needed more security and on Lap 238 under caution, Kerr was able to have the team change four tires again and make another track bar adjustment. As the 14 car of Tony Stewart showed the way on Lap 241, Ambrose was 16th. He returned to the top 15 the next lap.

“At that point it really didn’t matter what was going to happen because the changes they made, did make an impact and we were running better,” Ambrose said. “We made some gains.”

The gains were good enough to keep Ambrose in the top 15 and he crossed the finish line 14th.

Next week the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series travels west. Live coverage of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Auto Club Speedway on Sunday, October 11th begins at 2:30 p.m. EDT on ABC. Sirius XM Satellite and MRN Radio will also carry flag-to-flag coverage.