For Immediate Release
FONTANA, Calif.
(February 17, 2009) –
Marcos Ambrose prepares
for this weekend’s Auto
Club 500 at Auto Club
Speedway looking to
build upon his momentum
after a solid 17th-place
finish behind the wheel
of his No. 47 Little
Debbie Toyota Camry. The
result was impressive
considering it was his
first-ever Daytona 500
at Daytona International
Speedway.
“It’s a nice way to kick
off the 2009 NASCAR
Sprint Cup Series
season,” Ambrose said.
“Now, we turn our focus
to Auto Club Speedway
and even better results.
We’re setting the bar
even higher.”
Unlike Daytona, the
Australian driver has
raced a NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series car at Auto
Club Speedway. After
starting 40th
in the August race, he
completed 249 laps to
finish 32nd
in the No. 21 Little
Debbie® entry fielded by
the Wood Brothers.
“I did finish a Cup race
out there last year, so
I have some experience
at that track,” Ambrose
said. “Auto Club
Speedway is a track with
great character. We had
a solid weekend at
Daytona and hope for a
smooth race this
weekend.”
The Daytona 500 weekend
went smoothly for
Ambrose, but there were
three very important
things missing that
continue to be absent --
Marcos’s wife Sonja and
their two children,
Tabitha and Adelaide.
They’ve stayed behind in
Australia when Ambrose
returned to the States
in January. They will
return to America in
March, but in the mean
time, the family has
found different ways to
keep up with Ambrose’s
progress.
“They’ve been watching
me on television back
home in Australia,”
Ambrose said. “During
the race, Sonja is able
to listen into the radio
communication between me
and my Little Debbie®
JTG-Daugherty Racing
team on the computer
thanks to NASCAR.com. I
can wish them well and
say hi before the start
of a race and that’s
incredible. Also, we
have a web cam set up so
I can see the children
and talk to my wife
Sonja on a daily basis.
I miss them, but we’ve
found unique ways to
stay in touch
constantly. I am really
looking forward to them
coming back in a couple
weeks.”
As Ambrose’s family
supports him from Down
Under, the Australian
driver and crew chief
Frank Kerr are looking
to deliver stronger
results at Auto Club
Speedway.
“We finished in the top
20 and now we will aim
for a top-15 finish,”
Kerr said. “Then we’ll
go after a top-10, a
top-five and ultimately,
a win. Obviously, you
aim to win every week,
but you have to crawl
before you walk. This
weekend, the biggest
thing we will focus on
is shock combinations
because the track is
getting rougher. We’ll
do a lot with shock
combos and bump stops.
That’s really important
this weekend.”
“Frankie’s right,”
Ambrose agreed. “Shock
packages are essential.
I’m grateful I have some
laps there in a Cup car
as well as four
Nationwide races under
my belt. At least I know
what the place looks
like and the character
of the track. We hope to
leave there with a
strong finish.”
Live coverage of the
Auto Club 500 on Sunday,
February 22 will air at
5 p.m. ET on FOX, MRN
Radio and Sirius XM
Satellite Radio.
