The Silly Season Gets Kick-started Again

First it was the Kasey Kahne to Hendrick Motorsports announcement in April. That was followed up by the "will he, won't he" saga of Brian Vickers (ever racing again) and Elliott Sadler (staying at Petty). Lately it's been what Red Bull will do with the #82 and who Bobby Labonte is going to be driving for each week. And now, a new name has been thrown into the ring.

JTG Daugherty's announcement yesterday (as fireball posted) that, after five seasons by years end, they will part ways with Marcos Ambrose was a shock to me - although not to other people...don't you hate being out of the loop? - since I just figured he'd stay until the end of his contract next year. However, while the reasons given were simply a case of wanting to go in different directions, that means all we have is speculation.

Ambrose drove for Ford in his V8 Supercar days. Ford also unlocked the door for him to come into NASCAR in 2006 (was still up to him to open it and walk through though). As Brad Daugherty said in his interview on NASCAR Now yesterday, while we all believe the #47 is part of MWR, they aren't really. Which therefore means they're a second year team, still finding their feet in the Cup series whereas, perhaps, Marcos desires results now.

Now, the technical alliance with MWR meant they needed to switch from Ford to Toyota and while this made a lot of sense in late 2008 (after all, Kyle won a bunch of races that year), it might not be the best option now. Why? Well, it's a bit complex really. The Chevy seems to be the best car in the field (whether it's down to having the majority of top teams or it's just the 'easiest' to set up, I don't know), Ford appears to be making big strides with their new engine package and the Dodges, despite only fielding three fulltime cars, are stunningly quick when the setup is spot on.

That leaves Toyota in a bit of a bind (my thoughts only). Yes Denny and Kyle have been on fire at times this year, and yes Reutimann scored a hugely popular win at Chicago...but what about the rest? Truex has shown flashes of brilliance at times, Red Bull haven't been the same since Vickers was forced out while Ambrose has been fluctuating between having solid races, mechanical issues or crashes.

I don't think anyone can say the Marcos Ambrose of 2009 wasn't a surprise. Not only was he a rookie, but no one really thought he'd do a whole lot on the ovals...well, it took him half a dozen races to chuck that theory out the window. Had things gone his way, the Aussie could easily have wins at Bristol, Sonoma, Watkins Glen and Homestead on his resume before we started 2010. But, that didn't happen and while last year he was certainly the second best 'MWR' driver, he did, at times, prove to be better than Reutimann.

But that all changed with the signing of Truex (again, just my opinion). Here was a driver who has won Nationwide titles, won a Cup race, been in the Chase...in other words, a proven talent behind the wheel. So that meant Marcos was demoted to being third in line, and that's a situation that is rather difficult to get out of. Basically, Ambrose made the only real choice he could; fly the nest.

However, there is a problem here (and yes, I didn't really like writing this next part but they are the facts).

While most agree that the Aussie is a PR dream with his huge smile and how his sponsors adore him, what exactly has he done? He has 3 pole positions (1 Truck, 2 Nationwide) and a pair of wins in the Nationwide series, neither on an oval. He led more laps at this years Sonoma race (35 I believe) than he did all of last year and, unlike a Paul Menard, he doesn't bring any sponsors with him. That's not exactly lighting the racing world on fire when you put it like that, is it? His one saving grace is that while his statistics don't back it up, he is a very handy little driver as he proved last year and if he's given the right environment, he would probably flourish.

It's just that finding that right environment is so often the hard part...

The Ambrose Angle - 2010

Well, after my brilliant predictions last year where I said Marcos would be lucky to finish in the top 25 by the end of the season, I'm not sure exactly how accurate this will be either.

Oh well.

They say that drivers are only as good as their last race...so that means either 35th (Homestead) or a DNF (Dubai 24 hours) for the Aussie, but that doesn't really tell the whole story. Ignoring Dubai since that has no impact on NASCAR, Ambrose qualified third at Miami and made short work of the eventual champion by passing Jimmie around lap ten. That's when, first a punctured Goodyear, and then mechanical gremlins struck the #47 Camry forcing Marcos to pootle around some 15 laps off the pace despite having one of the fastest cars in the field. But it doesn't end there either as a couple weeks before that at Texas, he was looking good for a top five but asked too much of his fuel and wound up 11th.

Marcos himself has said his goals are to win races and make the Chase in 2010, something he admits in the next sentence is a tall order. Yet his performances on tracks no one really thought he'd do a whole lot on (you don't get much more diverse than Bristol, Talladega and Pocono for the ovals) says that he could have a pretty good shot at it. Having Truex join MWR will boost JTG Daugherty as well since, despite being an exceptionally good marketing man, Michael Waltrip didn't really push Marcos to produce his best on those weekends that Reutimann struggled.

Marcos will be hoping to repeat his late-2009 pace to get off on the right foot in 2010.

But enough about his teammates, exactly what do I think will Marcos Ambrose do in 2010?

Well, it would be quite easy for me to say that he'll win since he has more seat time now and those road courses are coming up in the middle of the year...but I reckon he might win before then.

Yes, that's right. I believe that Ambrose will do what Montoya has yet to do; win on an oval (possibly as early as the Las Vegas race). I'm not quite as confident as he is to predict he'll make the Chase, however if MWR and JTG Daugherty have their reliability issues sorted (and Denny Hamlin doesn't decide to play steamroller again), he would have a good shot at it.

All in all, if he can improve upon 2009 and finish in the top 15, I'll be a very happy man.

The Aussie is staying!

At least, for a little while. This is straight from the article on Yahoo! Australia:


Australian driver Marcos Ambrose has cemented his place in the competitive US NASCAR series with a new two-year deal. Ambrose, who was at the centre of a controversial and spectacular multi-car collision last weekend, is secure after an agreement between his JTG Daugherty Racing outfit and the Michael Waltrip Racing stable.

The two companies agreed that they would operate in partnership under a technical alliance for 2010-11. Ambrose said he was encouraged by the continuity that this deal brings to his racing program. He said he had already gained a lot from the relationship as part of an impressive first season in the top-flight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

JTG Daugherty Racing operates out of the Michael Waltrip Racing facility in Cornelius, North Carolina, with engineering and mechanical responsibilities all fully-integrated into the MWR operation.

"It's great news that we have realigned with MWR," Ambrose said. "We've been very successful this year and we even came close to winning a race 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."


This is great news and I hope that Marcos escapes the dreaded 'sophomore slump' next year :)