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Allstate 400 Report
AMBROSE
AND LITTLE DEBBIE® MAKE STERLING DEBUT AT BRICKYARD
INDIANAPOLIS, IN — Marcos
Ambrose won’t need a second chance to make a good
first impression for JTG Daugherty Racing following a
22nd-place finish Sunday in the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.
Ambrose drove the No. 47 Little Debbie® Ford Fusion
at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the team’s
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut. He raced his way into
the starting lineup, qualifying 24th, and he finished
on the lead lap.
“It was an awesome experience,” Ambrose said. “We
fought hard and we learned a lot. I got a lot of experience.
I’ve run the Brickyard, and I feel like we’ve
really achieved something special this weekend.”
As a new Sprint Cup team, JTG Daugherty Racing had to
qualify for the starting lineup during time trials.
“I’ve never been so anxious and nervous and
apprehensive in all my life,” Ambrose said after
a lap of 178.133 mph around the 2.5-mile oval. “Two
laps on the racetrack here at the Brickyard, which is
so famous and so intimidating as well, I just had to
suck it up and let her rip. This gets us off on the right
footing. We’re showing them we can do it.”
Ambrose and JTG Daugherty Racing plan to compete fulltime
in the Sprint Cup Series next season. The team will make
three more selected starts this year.
The key to the team’s success came between practice
and qualifying when crew chief Frankie Kerr found ways
to squeeze a lot more speed out of their Ford.
“This means an awful lot to everyone on his new
team,” Kerr said. “Once we made the race,
we all felt like the weekend was already a success – no
matter where we finished. To finish on the lead lap,
avoid all the tire problems and finish 22nd in our first
race was an amazing day. What a debut.”
NASCAR ordered competition cautions throughout the race
following several tire failures. Ambrose, however, avoided
trouble.
“It’s just a real shame about the tire thing,” Ambrose said. “I
think NASCAR did a great job of keeping us safe out there. They made the best
of a bad situation the way they chose to run the race.”
For Ambrose, Little Debbie® and JTG Daugherty Racing, they made the most
of a good situation. And it only gets better. Contributed
by Chip Warren, JTG Daugherty Racing
Allstate 400
at the Brickyard Results:
1. Jimmie Johnson
2. Carl Edwards
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Elliott Sadler
5. Jeff Gordon
6. Jamie McMurray
7. Kasey Kahne
8. Greg Biffle
9. Jeff Burton
10. A.J. Almendinger
22. Marcos Ambrose
Next Race — Sunoco
Red Cross Pennsylvania 500:
Where: Pocono Raceway,
Long Pond, PA
Time: Sunday, August 3, 2008
Network & Time: ESPN, 1 p.m. / MRN Radio,
1:15 p.m.
(All Times Eastern)
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Previous Reports:
2/17 Daytona
2/24 Fontana
3/2 Las
Vegas
3/9 Atlanta
3/16 Bristol
3/30 Martinsville
4/6 Fort
Worth
4/12 Phoenix
4/27 Talladega
5/3 Richmond
5/10 Darlington
5/17 Charlotte
5/25 Charlotte
6/1 Dover
6/8 Pocono
6/15 Michigan
6/22 Sonoma
6/29 Loudon
7/5 Daytona
7/12 Chicago
7/27 Indianapolis
8/3 Pocono
8/10 Watkins
Glen
8/17 Michigan
8/23 Bristol
8/30 Fontana
9/7 Richmond
9/14 Loudon
9/21 Dover
9/28 Kansas
10/5 Talladega
10/12 Charlotte
10/19 Martinsville
10/26 Atlanta
11/2 Fort
Worth
11/9 Phoenix
11/16 Miami
2008 Final
Point Standings:
1. Jimmie Johnson — 6684
2. Carl Edwards — 6615
3. Greg Biffle — 6467
4. Kevin Harvick — 6408
5. Clint Bowyer — 6381
6. Jeff Burton — 6335
7. Jeff Gordon — 6316
8. Denny Hamlin — 6214
9. Tony Stewart — 6202
10. Kyle Busch — 6186
11. Matt Kensteh — 6184
12. D. Earnhardt, Jr. — 6127
36. M. Ambrose* — 2655
*Listed by Owner Points for Michael Waltrip Racing/
JTG Daugherty Racing
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