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Ambrose and Team Australia A Fine Seventh in Las Vegas

Staff, Monday September 25, 2006.

Page 1 of 1

Marcos Ambrose has earned the third top 10 finish of his rookie NASCAR season by finishing seventh in the Smith?s Las Vegas 350 in Nevada today.

The result made the Australian the highest finishing Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate in today's race, the second highest lap leader with 12 laps led and one of only six drivers to lead a lap.

The Australian was in form all weekend in the #20 Team Australia/Aussie Vineyards Ford F-150 at the revamped Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Ambrose qualified sixth on the 1.5-mile speedway and ran in the top 10 in the opening stages of the race.

At the first round of pit stops on lap 26 Ambrose and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series leader Todd Bodine dragged for position out of the pit lane, only for both to be sent to the back of the pack for speeding in pit lane.

Coming through the pack Ambrose clearly had fantastic speed on board the Aussie Vineyards F-150, back into the top 20 by lap 53. On lap 74 when Michel Jourdain Jr spun to bring out the fourth caution of the day, Ambrose stayed out on-track and elected not to pit.

The move brought Ambrose back to the front and led to the #20 Team Australia/Aussie Vineyards Ford F-150 leading 12 laps and gaining five bonus points for leading a lap.

The former two-time Australian V8 Supercar champion lost the lead when he eventually did pit. Ambrose sat in 10th after his stop and worked his way forward to be eighth at the final restart of the day on lap 129 of the 146-lap race.

In the closing stages Ambrose continued to ascend the order, but was unable to move any higher when he caught David Reutimann and the Australian settled for a seventh, his third top 10 finish of the season and another Raybestos Rookie of the Race Award. Ambrose's fellow pit lane speeder Bodine climbed to 12th position by the end of the race.

Today's event was won by Mike Skinner ahead of defending series champion Ted Musgrave and Mike Bliss.

WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY ?

Marcos Ambrose ? Team Australia/Aussie Vineyards Ford F-150

?When we got out front we were fast and we were wide open there,? said Ambrose.

?I got in clean air early and we were good, but I feel bad for the boys because we sped on pit lane there. We had a kind of arm wrestle there with Todd Bodine trying to beat each other out of the last box. He was trying to beat me and I thought, 'I better get going to beat him,' and we both got caught for pit-lane speeding.

?I learned my lesson there and that's a bit of humble pie. We came from dead last back through the pack and it was a strong day.

?I led some laps again and showed our worth. I'm real proud of our guys. We've got a good understanding on these one-and-a-half-mile ovals and we're making the most of it.?

?The tyres are so hard that it's really hard to race people because you get aero-tight behind them. You really have no mechanical grip here and it's all about aero.

?The second groove wasn't quite in. You get tucked underneath someone and you get aero-tight and there's not much you can do.

?We tried. We passed a lot of trucks out there, but when you get to those last few and they're running pretty good, it's really hard to make a move."

Smith?s Las Vegas 350 Results ? Round 19 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
1: Mike Skinner, 2. Ted Musgrave, 3:Mike Bliss, 4: Johnny Benson, 5: Ron Hornaday, 6: David Reutimann, 7: Marcos Ambrose,8: Dennis Setzer, 9: Kraig Kinser, 10: Aric Almirola.

2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Raybestos Rookie of the Year Contenders
1. (7th): Marcos Ambrose
2. (9th) Kraig Kinser
3. (10th) Aric Almirola
4. (11th) Kerry Earnhardt
5. (17th) Erik Darnell
6. (22nd) Bobby East
7. (24th) Erin Crocker
8. (28th) Robert Richarrdson
9. (33rd) Boston Reid
10. (34th) Chad McCumbee

2006 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Points ? After Round 19
? Marcos Ambrose did not compete in the first three rounds of the championship.

1: Todd Bodine 2911, 2: Johnny Benson 2820, 3: David Reutimann 2671, 4: Ted Musgrave 2625, 5: Rick Crawford 2590, 6: David Starr 2553, 7: Ron Hornaday Jr 2531, 8: Mike Bliss 2486, 9: Jack Sprague 2479, 10: Terry Cook 2460, 24: Marcos Ambrose 1579.

MARCOS AMBROSE FAST FACTS
? Ambrose has earned US$186,943 in 16 starts this year
? Born in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia
? Ambrose won two consecutive V8 Supercar Series Championships in Australia in 2003 and 2004 for Ford
? Drives the No. 20 Ford F-150 for Wood Brothers/JTG Racing in 2006
? Achieved his best result when he finished third at Kansas Speedway on July 1 in only his ninth NASCAR event. Also finished third in Round 16 in Nashville, his 13th NASCAR event
? Ambrose is one of only two NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Raybestos Rookie of the Year contenders to score a top three finish this season
? Ambrose is the first Raybestos Rookie of the Year candidate to earn two top five finishes
? Ambrose is the only Raybestos Rookie to capture WIX Filters Lap Leader of the Race honours in the Craftsman Truck Series this season. Ambrose led twice for 49 laps to claim the honor in the Built Ford Tough 225 in Kentucky
? Became the first Australian to lead laps in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
? Is the first non-American driver to finish in the top five of a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series event since Canadian Ron Fellows won on the Watkins Glen road course on 26 June 1999
? Ambrose won his first Budweiser Pole in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Kentucky Speedway on July 8
? Ambrose is the first non-Amercian driver to win a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series pole since 26 June 1999 when Ron Fellows of Canada qualified first at Watkins Glen International
? This was the first pole for the Wood Brothers/JTG Racing team and the first pole for crew chief Gary Cogswell
? Ambrose has now qualified in the top 10 for seven of his 16 NASCAR starts to date
? scored his third top 10 finish of his rookie season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

ABOUT LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAY
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Race Distance: 146 laps = 219 miles (350 km)
Track Length: 1.5 miles
Degree of Banking in Turns: 20 degrees*
Degree of Banking in Straights: 9 degrees*
Las Vegas Motor Speedway has been redeveloped since last season, with the banking increased from 12 to 20 degrees in the turns and back straight banking increased to 9 degrees, same as front straight

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