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SPECIAL

Ford Territory

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

Ambrose Aims to Continue Top Form in the Top-End

Staff, Monday May 17, 2004.

Page 1 of 1

In contrast to the most recent round at Pukekohe just south of Auckland (NZ) where wet weather dominated the weekend, Hidden Valley is almost certainly guaranteed air temperatures in the mid 30s and clear sunny skies.

It?s not just the weather that Ambrose is looking forward to; Darwin is the place he scored his first V8 Supercar round win (2001). He added another victory last year giving him an enviable record from his three starts.

The only thing not on his list of Darwin achievements is pole position, despite his overall V8 career record reading 14 poles from 42 starts.

The V8 Supercar champion does come to Darwin for the first time in his career leading the title chase after victory in Adelaide and second overall in NZ.

Darwin has been good to the Tasmanian as well as to his Stone Brothers Racing team, which also scored victory with Jason Bright in 1999. Adding to the SBR strength is teammate Russell Ingall (Caltex Havoline Racing) who won the inaugural Darwin event in 1998.

?For sure Darwin has been good to the team and to me overall, it?s been an event we?ve clearly enjoyed? said Ambrose.

?The atmosphere is always good. Add the challenge of the heat, extremely tight racing and it means coming out on top is very satisfying.

?The track itself with the long front straight means we get up to very high speeds. The tight corner down at turn #1 is key; brake nice and late and you should get a good lap.

?The event features three races so it?s a pretty long weekend. It?s very important to prepare and recover well after each race, as you want to be 100 percent in that final run to the chequered flag.?

Ingall is keen to open his 2004 win account in Darwin. After starting the year with a third placing in the opening race in Adelaide, results since have not gone his way.

At Hidden Valley in 2003 he started strongly with a fifth place in qualifying, but a tangle with Greg Murphy just a few hundred metres after the start of the first race ended any chance of victory.

?Darwin is crucial, there?s no doubt about that,? said Ingall.

?I really like the track and I?m keen to add another victory up there.

?This game is very tough, and we?re only one result away from getting this thing headed in the right direction.

?The last two races have been spoiled by the weather and I?m aiming to make sure that it?s not just the sun that will be shining in Darwin!?

Crews have been busy since the round in New Zealand. The ship with all the team transporters arrived back in Brisbane lunchtime on Friday (14 May) and is expected into Darwin on Tuesday.

Cars hit the track from Friday afternoon for the first practice session. Saturday features practice, qualifying, top-10 shootout and the opening 17-lap race. Sunday features the final two V8 Supercar races of 35-laps each including a compulsory tyre pit stop.

Details for Hidden Valley
Top 10 Shootout ? Saturday 22 May ? 2.30pm
Race 1 (17 laps ? 49.3km) ? Saturday 22 May ? 4.30pm
Race 2 (35 laps ? 101.5km) ? Sunday 23 May ? 11.45am
Race 3 (35 laps ? 101.5km) ? Sunday 23 May ? 2.30pm

Circuit: Hidden Valley Raceway, Northern Territory
Length: 2.9km
Lap Records:
Qualifying ? Tander 1:08.4938 (2001)
Shootout ? Ambrose 1:08.4384 (2003)
Race ? Bright 1:09.0149 (1999)

Estimated top speed: 245km/h ? Pit Straight
Estimated average speed: 145 km/h

Top-10 championship ? after 3 of 13 rounds
1. Marcos Ambrose ? Pirtek Racing ? Ford Falcon BA 532 pts
2. Steven Richards - Castrol Perkins Motorsport - Holden Commodore 528 pts
3. Greg Murphy ? KMart Racing ? Holden Commodore 509 pts
4. Rick Kelly ? KMart Racing ? Holden Commodore 502 pts
5. Jason Bright ? PWR Racing ? Holden Commodore 457 pts
6. Craig Baird ? Team Kiwi Racing ? Holden Commodore 364 pts
7. Russell Ingall ? Caltex Havoline Racing ? Ford Falcon BA 350pts
8. Paul Weel ? PWR Racing ? Holden Commodore 347pts
9. Steven Johnson ? Shell Helix Racing ? Ford Falcon BA 341pts
10. John Bowe ? OzEmail Racing ? Ford Falcon BA 326 pts

Ford?s V8 Line-up for Hidden Valley

Further information and high-resolution images relating to Ford Racing Australia can also be found at : media.ford.com

For further information contact:
Ben Beazley
Media Coordinator
Ford Racing Australia
Phone: 03 9359 8190
Mobile: 0417 262 753
Email: benb@global-marketing.com

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