01/07/2009
JELD-WEN RACE PREVIEW - Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway
- Ambrose amped for Daytona night race
- Daytona night race the toughest plate race of them all
- Coke Zero 400 also shown live on ONE
AMBROSE AMPED FOR DAYTONA NIGHT RACE …
Marcos Ambrose is excited about his return to Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero 400 in Florida this weekend.
Ambrose finished 17th in his Daytona 500 debut earlier this year in the #47 entry of JTG Daugherty Racing and now gets his second crack at the 2.5-mile superspeedway at the venue’s 400-mile night race.
The Australian is currently 18th in points and with a new Michael Waltrip Racing-built car at his disposal, is keen for yet another solid result in his first full season in Sprint Cup competition.
DAYTONA NIGHT RACE THE TOUGHEST PLATE RACE OF THEM ALL …
Ambrose has admitted carrying some apprehension into Daytona this weekend, stating that the Coke Zero 400 is the toughest superspeedway restrictor plate race of the NASCAR season.
Daytona International Speedway is widely considered a tougher venue than Talladega, where cars can more easily run flat out and side-by-side for a full lap.
At this second Daytona race of the year, a combination of summer heat and humidity and night air means that cars run faster, but with less grip, during this weekend’s 160-lap affair than they do in February for the season-opening Daytona 500.
COKE ZERO 400 ALSO SHOWN LIVE ON ONE …
This weekend’s Coke Zero 400 is the second Sprint Cup race of the season that will be shown live on both ONE and Fox Sports in Australia.
Check local guides for further schedule information, especially those in regional areas, many of whom may now have access to ONE via Southern Cross networks that switched on ONE on July 2.
Also note that this race is a Saturday night event in the United States (Sunday morning Australian time).
WHAT MARCOS HAD TO SAY …
“Really, Daytona is a bit of a lottery,” said Ambrose.
“We all enjoy leaving Daytona, but we're all apprehensive heading down there.
“It could be an awesome night for us or it could be a short night, you just never know. It's a drafting race. There is guaranteed to be a lot of crashes, you just want to try and make sure that you're not in one of them.
“This is actually a tougher race (than the Dyaonta 500). It's 100 miles shorter and it's run at night in the high humidity weather that Florida gets during the summer.
“The grip levels are lower because of the humidity in the air and the cars go faster because you are racing at night and the air is denser.
“You go faster but the car handles worse. You've really got your hands full there so it's a difficult race to finish. Cars move around a lot and there is always a lot of bumping and cars crashing because cars can't quite hang on around the corners.”
2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver’s Standings - After Race 17 of 36
1. Tony Stewart 2524
2. Jeff Gordon 2455
3. Jimmie Johnson 2355
4. Kurt Busch 2254
5. Carl Edwards 2157
6. Denny Hamlin 2132
7. Ryan Newman 2127
8. Kyle Busch 2108
9. Greg Biffle 2106
10. Matt Kenseth 2054
11. Mark Martin 2052
12. Juan Pablo Montoya 2049
18. Marcos Ambrose 1798
THE CAR:
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Marcos Ambrose will drive the #47 Kingsford Toyota Camry in the Coke Zero 400.
THE RACE:
Coke Zero 400
First staged in 1959
160 laps (400 miles/643.7 kilometres)
FORM GUIDE:
2008 July Race Winner: Kyle Busch
2008 July Polesitter: Paul Menard
2009 February Race Winner: Matt Kenseth
2009 February Polesitter: Martin Truex Jr
THE TRACK:
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona Beach, Florida
2.5-mile superspeedway
31-degree banking
MARCOS AT DAYTONA:
Sprint Cup Series Starts: One (2009)
Best Sprint Cup Qualifying: 17th
Best Sprint Cup Finish: 23rd
Overall NASCAR Starts: Five (One Cup, Four Nationwide)
Best Overall NASCAR Qualifying: 18th (2007 NNS)
Best Overall NASCAR Finish: 14th (2008 NNS)
UNITED STATES TV SCHEDULE:
Sprint Cup Practice 1
Thursday 2 July 2009
SPEED TV
4:00pm US Eastern
Sprint Cup Final Practice
Thursday 2 July 2009
SPEED TV
6:30pm US Eastern
Sprint Cup Qualifying
Friday 3 July 2009
SPEED TV
4:00pm US Eastern
Coke Zero 400
Saturday 4 July 2009
TNT
7:30pm US Eastern
AUSTRALIAN TV SCHEDULE
Sprint Cup Final Practice
Friday 3 July 2009
ONE
8:30am AEST
Sprint Cup Qualifying
Sunday 5 July 2009
ONE
1:30am AEST
Coke Zero 400
Sunday 5 July 2009
ONE and FOX Sports 3
8:30am AEST
(Replay at 8:00pm AEST on Fox Sports 1)
Coke Zero 400 with Intro from Marcos Ambrose
Tuesday 78 July 2009
ONE
2:30pm AEST
Please check local television guides to confirm times and see scheduled replays.
ON-TRACK SCHEDULE:
Sprint Cup Practice 1
Thursday 2 July 2009
4:00pm – 5:20pm US Eastern
6:00am – 7:20am AEST on Friday
Sprint Cup Final Practice
Thursday 2 July 2009
6:35pm – 8:00pm US Eastern
8:35am – 10:00am AEST on Friday
Sprint Cup Qualifying
Friday 3 June 2009
4:10pm US Eastern
6:10am AEST on Saturday
Race – Coke Zero 400
Saturday 4 July 2009
8:00pm US Eastern
10:00am AEST on Monday
Archived News
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Marcos Ambrose pilots the #47 Little Debbie entry of JTG Daugherty Racing
Marcos Ambrose in the Sprint Cup garage area at Daytona International Speedway
The #47 JTG Daugherty Racing entry of Marcos Ambrose at Daytona
Australian NASCAR driver Marcos Ambrose
Ambrose speaks with crew chief Frankie Kerr before getting into the #47 Little Debbie machine at Daytona
AUDIO GRAB: Daytona - Marcos Ambrose says that the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway is even tougher than the Daytona 500 in February
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