Marcos Ambrose will try for his third consecutive top-10 finish of the season this Sunday in NASCAR’s longest and most grueling race of the season. Ambrose will make his third start in the Coca-Cola 600 and his seventh career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway on Sunday.
The 600-mile race is a true test of man and machine, and after a stellar seventh-place showing in the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race on Saturday, Ambrose and his DEWALT crew are focused and ready to tackle this weekend’s prestigious event.
The driver of the No. 9 machine would like nothing more than to add a Coca-Cola 600 victory to his win category, and his stats at Charlotte, as of late, show him knocking on the door. Ambrose had two top-10 finishes at the 1.5-mile track in 2011, his best (fifth) coming in last year’s 600-mile race.
In addition to his on-track activities this weekend, Ambrose will also participate in Richard Petty Motorsports’ third annual Fan Appreciation Day on Thursday from 7 a.m. to noon at the RPM shop in Concord, N.C. The first 200 fans in line who donate a nonperishable food item to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina will receive a commemorative ticket allowing them access to the shop and an autograph session with Richard Petty, the Australian native and his teammates, Aric Almirola and Michael Annett. Other activities include a Q-and-A session with the RPM drivers and Richard Petty hosted by Miss Sprint Cup, raffles, give-a-ways and free food.
Marcos Ambrose’s Thoughts on the Coca-Cola 600:
“I love racing at Charlotte. It’s a track that has been good to me lately, and I definitely have some momentum going into this weekend, after having such a good DEWALT Ford in the All-Star Race. Our intermediate track program is really solid, and I have been excelling at tracks like Charlotte, Texas and Vegas the past year, so that’s definitely an encouragement going into this weekend.
“The Coca-Cola 600 is such a prestigious event, and it ranks right up there with a Daytona 500 or Indy win. It’s a race win every driver would like to add to their resume and it’s definitely one I’d like to check off my list. It’s such a unique race being the longest event of the season and starting during the day and finishing under the lights. There is always a lot of extra excitement surrounding Charlotte race weeks because it’s the home of NASCAR. It’s one of the few times I get to bring out all of our family and friends to watch me race, and I’d like nothing more than to get a win on Sunday in front of NASCAR’s hometown crowd.”
Comments from Crew Chief Todd Parrott on the Coca-Cola 600:
“Charlotte is my home track and it’s always awesome to be at home and be able to race in front of all of my family and friends. Charlotte is a quick, 1.5-mile track and the 600 is an extra-long race. It starts in daylight and runs into darkness, so the track conditions are going to change throughout the race. I’m going to rely on Marcos to let me know how the DEWALT Ford is reacting to those changes, so the crew and I can make the right adjustments to the car as the night wears on. It’s a fast place and the No. 9 needs to have good downforce and be able to turn in the center without getting too loose driving off of the corners. It’s going to be a long night, so we’ll all just have to stay focused and keep our eye on taking the checkered flag first.”
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