MOTORSPORT: Where to for Ambrose?

COMMENT

The tipping point for Marcos Ambrose came at the Australian Grand Prix. Having failed to find qualifying speed in his DJR Team Penske Ford Falcon FG X and struggled in the races, he realised something had to change… And quickly.

Instead of heading home to Tasmania to be with his family, Ambrose flew to Queensland’s DJR Team Penske workshop last Sunday to thrash out just what the next step in his comeback to V8 Supercars racing should be. After consultations with team owner Roger Penske and his chief lieutenant Tim Cindric, we found out via that shock press release issued yesterday (Tuesday, March 17).

Ambrose would step down from the #17 indefinitely and young gun Scotty Pye would take over. The only commitment given by the two-time V8s champ to return to the cockpit was in the two-driver Pirtek Enduro Cup that begins with the Sandown 500 in September.

It’s a statement that raises as many questions as it does answers. With Ambrose himself not providing any clues the vacuum is being filled by speculation.

The positive interpretation given by the likes of his former arch-rival Mark Skaife is that Ambrose is being “brave” in making this decision. It’s a view backed up others in the sport such as Russell Ingall and John Bowe.

But there is also a consistent theme among current and former racers -- that Ambrose has taken this action too soon. Especially considering he displayed promising form at the Clipsal 500 and the circus next visits his home track, Symmons Plains.  

The negative interpretation? That Ambrose has been stunned by the ferociousness of the competition; that he has discovered he has no taste for running around at the back of the pack; and that he has no interest in the heavy load of media and PR commitments shovelled upon him by V8 Supercars.

If you adopt the latter the this announcement becomes a thinly disguised retirement announcement, despite his declaration of full commitment to the team.

There was even early speculation in the News Ltd papers that Ambrose was headed back to NASCAR – that’s off the mark. Later, chief V8 writer James Phelps, wrote a piece saying it was unlikely Ambrose would ever be a full-time V8 driver again. That has more chance of becoming reality.

Ambrose is an interesting and challenging individual. He is highly intelligent, motivated and talented. He is also aggressive and arrogant – typical race driver there. The Tasmanian can also be emotional and intolerant of those he regards as fools.

There is no doubt he understands completely the significance of the decision he has made. But if he is stepping away permanently then it’s not easy to reconcile with his track record and past statements.

For a start, a bloke who has spent 10 years in the NASCAR system is unlikely to be intimidated by any racing anywhere. As for being at the back, he has consistently stated from the moment this whole exercise began that he expected to make slow progress. The whole team from Penske down has been consistent on that point.

And the PR and media commitments? Ambrose was well known for his distaste for such things when he was dominating the sport here in the early noughties. The NASCAR system has probably taught him to cope with it better, but he’s never going to like it. Again, he would have known what was coming when he announced he was coming home.

On the flipside, his NASCAR experience has made him a rich man and he is also devoted to his family. Maybe at 38, the fire doesn’t burn quite as strongly for racing as it once did.

Just maybe the romance of returning home to race and bringing US billionaire Roger Penske with him into the category blurred his usually clear vision.

Much has been made of the fact that the official statement talks of Ambrose stepping out of racing to aid his “transition” back into the V8 Supercars competition better. The logical question is ‘how can you get better at something if you don’t do it?’

The problems for DJR Team Penske in this regard are many.

It’s racing a new car with a driver who is effectively a rookie – remember the technical rules are significantly different from when Ambrose won back-to-back championship for Stone Brothers Racing in 2003-04.

It’s a single car team, so Ambrose has no-one to bounce off and compare data with – originally the plan was to put an experienced driver in a second car for 2015, but that fell over pretty early because of budget issues. There is a data sharing deal with Prodrive Racing Australia (PRA) but that just isn’t enough.

Testing and tyre allocations are stranglingly limited in V8 Supercars. Ambrose just can’t go off to a track somewhere and lap it for days.

The technical crew backing up Ambrose led by the talented Nick Hughes is recently formed. It too needs time to find its feet in a category where hundredths of seconds gains are celebrated.

So the thinking, driven by Ambrose after he qualified down the back at Albert Park and the three Prodrive Racing Australia cars set first, second and fourth fastest times (and went on to record four consecutive 1-2s in the races) is that if he and the team are unsure if he or the car is the problem, then someone else better race it to find out. And better to do it now than later.

So steps up Scotty Pye, former full-time DJR driver and already signed on to be Ambrose’s co-driver in the enduros.

Pye is a talent, albeit relatively inexperienced after two full-time years in the category in mediocre cars. At the very least, this opportunity serves as a great audition for a full-time drive for him. And no doubt, in a paddock where many driver contracts are due up this year, the prospect of driving for Roger Penske in a team probably expanded to two cars in 2016 will have been noted.

But before all that gets rolling, the question is what happens to Ambrose’s driving career if Pye flies? What happens if he is slow?

The next chapter in what is becoming a typically twisted motor racing tale will unfold at Symmons Plains in two weeks...

Ed's note: Bruce Newton has been reporting on Australian touring car racing since the 1980s, contributing to and editing various motorsport and motoring outlets. He covered Ambrose’s championship winning seasons in 2003 and 2004.