Marcos Ambrose is currently in 18th position in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series points race. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
Marcos Ambrose isn’t the kind of guy who’s loud, flashy or prone to drawing a lot of attention to himself. Instead, the two-time Australian V-8 Supercar Series champion lets his driving do his talking. And so far this season, Ambrose’s driving has been very impressive.
In his first full season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, Ambrose has been efficient and workmanlike, progressing to 18th in points with three races to go.
Technically, Ambrose is not a rookie — he made 11 Sprint Cup starts in 2008 — but this is his first full season in NASCAR’s top division. No rookie or first-year driver has had a better season in terms of points, nor is any first-year team higher in the owner points standings than Ambrose’s JTG-Daugherty Racing squad, which operates out of the Michael Waltrip Racing stables in Cornelius, N.C.
And although he doesn’t talk a lot, Ambrose has accomplished a lot this season, scoring top-five finishes this season on road courses (Watkins Glen International and Infineon Raceway), as well as at a short-track (Bristol Motor Speedway) and a restrictor-plate track (Daytona International Speedway).
Add it all up, and it’s a strong first-year effort, even if it has been somewhat under the radar.
“It is an amazing story and I think Tad and Jodi Geschickter (team co-owners) are probably the ones I have to thank for the most because they gave me the time to grow into the sport,” said Ambrose Friday at Texas Motor Speedway. “You see guys that come in too hot, too heavy, too hard, too early at the top level and they just don’t make it. You’ve got to grow into the sport and I think being given the chance is something that you can’t forget and I think it’s the major ingredient to this being successful, me sitting in here today talking about 2010 in the Cup Series is primarily because of that – I was given time to grow.”
Despite his success in Australia, Ambrose knew coming to America was a challenge. And as a first-year driver with a first-year team, Ambrose didn’t really know exactly what to expect when 2009 began.
“The first half of the season was a blur,” said Ambrose. “I was really worried about just keeping my job, just worried about making the top-35 in points. We got through the summer and we’re top-20 in points and came close to winning a couple races and all of a sudden maybe it’s going to work out for me. From that point on, I’ve been a little frustrated because I guess I’ve become a little greedy because I want to run top-10 every week.”
And Ambrose is already looking forward to 2010. Friday morning at Texas Motor Speedway, the team announced that sponsor Little Debbie will return next season, meaning the car is fully funded.
