Ambrose last!

[GasoLane]

Well it looks like Marcus will be back here sooner rather than later. just heard from a mate in Seppoland who's a Nascar fan. Our Marcus had a race this weekend over there, started 20th and finished last!!

Not the REAL nascar racers either, this was one of their 'truck' races.

[Grechie]

hes just started there, i doubt he will come back becuase he came last for the first time

[flappist]

I seem to remember him coming last in a race in Australia too, but hang on he also won two championships and came second last year.
The only way you can come last in a NASCAR race is to actually have a start and the only way you get a start is have talent.

Go Marcos, the pride of Australia is with you.

Aussie Aussie Aussie oi oi oi

[Lukeyson]

Your friend forgot to mention he was involved in an accident, people crashed in front of him and he had no where to go, hence the result.

[Casper]

For all we know he got "welcomed" with a hit and a trip to the wall on the first lap.. To come last your almost have to have your car written off.. its not like over here where if the clutch feels funny you pull out and go home. Over there the sponsers are serious and if the car can run it does. I'd say Marcos just got "learned sum good ol southern driven skills"

[svo347]

Originally Posted by Casper

For all we know he got "welcomed" with a hit and a trip to the wall on the first lap.. To come last your almost have to have your car written off.. its not like over here where if the clutch feels funny you pull out and go home. Over there the sponsers are serious and if the car can run it does. I'd say Marcos just got "learned sum good ol southern driven skills"

Dead on.....

[Mark351]

Not quite.

Marcos was running as high as 18th when he was caught in an accident as two cars tangled in front of him. He managed to pit, and the team replaced his front nose, but had lost 58 laps. Seems a lot, but when a good lap of Martinsville is around 20secs, then you'd see why he dropped so many.

He did finish last of the runners, but he did finish the race which is a good start. He qualified 20th, not bad for a 'rookie' who has never done oval racing before. He out qualified his own team mate Bobby East (supposedly a rookie of the year candidate), and Nextel Cup rookie David Stremme who is also running in the trucks.

Nice of you to post the whole story GasOLane before putting the boot into Marcos.

[Lowndes2b1]

Came across this interview while looking for info on how Marcos went...

MARCOS AMBROSE-20-Animal Adoption/Fresh Step Ford F-150 (Qualified 20th) -

THERE WAS A LOT RIDING ON YOUR FIRST TRUCK SERIES QUALIFYING ATTEMPT. WAS THIS THE MOST PRESSURE YOU'VE FELT QUALIFYING FOR A RACE? "I've had plenty of tough qualifying. I remember back in the European days when we were fighting for every position. This was one was the most difficult for a number of a years because we just wanted to make sure we got in the show, but we still wanted to look good. There's a real balance between being too conservative and too aggressive, and I just really found the middle ground. I left a bunch out there, but I was nervous. Not nervous to try and get the pole, but I was just nervous to make the race."

WHEN DID YOU FIRST FEEL THE NERVES? "About lunchtime yesterday when I getting ready for my first practice. It's been a real white-knuckle ride the whole couple of days here. This deal here in NASCAR with short-track racing on ovals is so much different from where I've come from. This is my first time racing on an oval, the first time I've raced on a half-mile, the first time I raced on concrete, the first time I've been in NASCAR, the first time in a truck, the first time on these tires. There's just so much going on and I'm just trying to absorb it all in. I'm going to be pleased when this weekend is out of the way. We can enjoy the race now because we just want to turn over some laps and get a finish if we can. As always, it's pretty tough here at Martinsville to stay out of trouble. I feel like we've achieved about 85 percent of what we came here for."

WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS FOR THE RACE? "I just want to get experience with laps. The more laps that I can get, the better off I'm going to be. Starting this race is going to help me a bunch. Regardless of where we finish, it's about experience for this weekend, and really for this year. Every track that I'm going to go to is going to be brand new. Every corner of every track is brand new. I don't expect too much from this year, it's really a year of transition."

MARCOS AMBROSE-20-Animal Adoption/Fresh Step Ford F-150 (Finished 33rd) - TALK ABOUT YOUR ON-TRACK INCIDENT AND YOUR NASCAR DEBUT TODAY. "We're here for experience and we got a lot of that today. I told myself at the start of the race to be super conservative and try to learn as much as I could. I dived to the bottom as fast as I could and we ended up getting into trouble because we were trying to stay out of trouble. I guess that's just learning the ropes. We had a good truck. I made some mistakes on pit lane and let the engine stall and things like that. We got a lot of junk out of the way and I'm looking forward to the next one. I think we did OK. If you look at the whole weekend, I wanted to make the race and everything else was a bonus. It's not exactly the prettiest truck out there, but we'll rebuild it at home."

HOW TOUGH WAS IT TO MAKE YOUR NASCAR DEBUT AT MARTINSVILLE? "It's tough because there's just so much going on a half-mile oval. There's no time to rest and let the trucks spread out. It's just bumper to bumper the whole way."

WITH THIS BEING THE FOURTH RACE OF THE SEASON, AND THE FACT THE NEXT RACE USES CURRENT OWNER POINTS TO DETERMINE PROVIOSIONALS, CAN YOU TAKE A SIGH OF RELIEF? "It definitely a good thing, but the NASCAR license is still looming over my head there a little bit. We've got make sure we take our time to make sure we do the right thing by NASCAR to get our license up to scratch. I'm looking forward to the next one. I think we're going to make a big step forward. For me personally, I feel like I've overcome a lot of hurdles this weekend and I feel more comfortable already."

www.backstretchmotorsports.com

Marcos is definitely not a quitter. He didn't pack up everything to move to the other side of the world to give up after 1 race.

Just a couple of things to clear up also, GasOLane, it is spelt MarcOs and flappist, Marcos came 3rd in last years championship(My boy Lowndes came second )

[4.9 EF Futura]

Well put casper. If these things have 4 wheels an engine and a gearbox then they'll be out there turning laps.

Stock cars not just about finishing place. Points are awarded for overtaking, gaining places, leading a lap etc. Sponsors like points. Ambrose came home with a small bagful of them. Quite a lot of emphasis is put on lower placed drivers because thats where a lot of championship contentions come from. Unlike V8SC where anyone not on the podium rarely gets a mention....

Ambrose actually got to 18th before crashing out.

[Casper]

Last of the runners is hugely different to LAST overall too. Quite often 10 or 15 cars are outed over the course of a race. With points going all the way done he has actually done pretty well for his first race.

[flappist]

Originally Posted by Lowndes2b1

and flappist, Marcos came 3rd in last years championship(My boy Lowndes came second )

Yep absolutely right, I was a bit wound up at the sledging and had a brain fade.

Still it does not change my position, Go Marcos...........

[max^power]

i think the initial post was unfair, we may see him back one day, but i doubt it will be before 2008.

[Magical_ED]

I reckon in due time marcos will be back for the enduros. I just have that feeling he will want to get the bathurst crown.
But yeah i reckon he did an excellent job, i just wish foxtel would open up their ears, get off their fat *****, and broadcast it for the millions of aussi fans that want to follow marcos' career in the states on TV.

[Brute6]

A couple of friends went over for the race, and managed to catch up with Marcos. Apparently, he is a totally different person nowadays, his personality has changed for the better being more relaxed.
In Marcos's introductions, photos are taken of the drivers and their cars, there is an Aussie flag in the background. That is them and the flag they took over. When Marcos was leaving, he recognised the Aussie flag and yelled out to them for a chat. :

Go Marcos!!

[galaxy xr8]

This thread is a lot like the other one about James Courtney in our V8 series, some people must think that he will win the 1st race and blitz the feild in doing so, god help the children off these people when they bring their school exam result's home,lol.