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Ambrose redeems Wood Brothers Racing
Jun
23
Marcos Ambrose clearly was excited with his run at Infineon Raceway, though certainly not with the finish. The Australian wound up 42nd after his transmission was ruined in a crash - but he was elated about the chance to run up front with the NASCAR Sprint Cup regulars.
Ambrose breathed new life into the Wood Brothers Racing team Sunday. Making his Cup debut, he qualified seventh and stayed at the front for most of the race. He showed the potential of the single-car team and once more had it in contention for a top finish.
His lone incident was a run-in with Juan Pablo Montoya, who he tagged and spun while trying to complete a pass of Jamie McMurray. Still, while Montoya was angered, it would be harsh to write the incident off completely to a rookie mistake. After all, some of NASCAR's most established Cup drivers found themselves skidding off the course or tapping the bumpers of veteran competitors.
Overall, Ambrose captured the imagination of fans with his debut performance. He entered with race with little fanfare or expectations and needed to make it on qualifying speed. As an added level of difficulty, he pulled one of the toughest double-duty weekends by traveling back and forth between the Sonoma, Calif., road course and The Milwaukee Mile for the Saturday night Nationwide Series race, the circuit he competes on full time.
He pulled it off, showing his talent and the Wood Brothers' potential at Infineon Raceway.
History may only record that Ambrose finished 42nd in his debut Cup race, but the driver himself knows what he did - and what might have been. That should boost the team's morale and confidence this week as they prepare to race together once more this weekend.
Ambrose breathed new life into the Wood Brothers Racing team Sunday. Making his Cup debut, he qualified seventh and stayed at the front for most of the race. He showed the potential of the single-car team and once more had it in contention for a top finish.
His lone incident was a run-in with Juan Pablo Montoya, who he tagged and spun while trying to complete a pass of Jamie McMurray. Still, while Montoya was angered, it would be harsh to write the incident off completely to a rookie mistake. After all, some of NASCAR's most established Cup drivers found themselves skidding off the course or tapping the bumpers of veteran competitors.
Overall, Ambrose captured the imagination of fans with his debut performance. He entered with race with little fanfare or expectations and needed to make it on qualifying speed. As an added level of difficulty, he pulled one of the toughest double-duty weekends by traveling back and forth between the Sonoma, Calif., road course and The Milwaukee Mile for the Saturday night Nationwide Series race, the circuit he competes on full time.
He pulled it off, showing his talent and the Wood Brothers' potential at Infineon Raceway.
History may only record that Ambrose finished 42nd in his debut Cup race, but the driver himself knows what he did - and what might have been. That should boost the team's morale and confidence this week as they prepare to race together once more this weekend.
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Comments
2 responses to "Ambrose redeems Wood Brothers Racing"
Gregory Howe said:
Jun 23, 2008 at 1:11 PMWhile it's true that Marcos entered the race with unfortunately little fanfare, expectations of his fans and the fans of Wood Brothers Racing were high. As I'm sure you know this guy is a champion and will be remembered with Gurney, Foyt and Jones as a road course specialist who drove for the Wood Brothers. It's my fervent hope that Marcos will continue to drive the legendary 21 and bring Wood Brothers Racing the wins and respect it truly deserves.
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» Confirm Abuse ReportAnonymous said:
Jun 24, 2008 at 6:26 AMIt came as no surprise to ambrose fans in Australia that he would run at the front. Whilst there have been little fanfare in the States his fans in Oz were pretty excited in the days leading up to the race. The Man is repeating what he did here in Australia in 2001, arriving on the scene "under the radar" and creating a new benchmark in tintop driving. Long may it continue.
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