Australian stock car driver Marcos Ambrose, the driver of the No. 9 Ford Fusion of Richard Petty Motorsport sponsored by Stanley, has finally fullfil one of his dreams: to win the Montreal NASCAR Nationwide race!
The most ironic thing is that Ambrose arrived at the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit just minutes before the start of the race, arriving straight from Michigan International Speedway where he also competes in the Sprint Cup race this weekend.
His car has been qualified by fellow countryman Owen Kelly. And according to the regulations, Ambrose took the start from the back of the pack.
The green is given in perfect summer conditions. Jacques Villeneuve (Dodge Penske) keeps his pole position advantage while his teammate Alex Tagliani is passed by Jason Leffler (Chevrolet).
On lap 3, Tagliani comes into the pits from an aggressive race strategy. Two laps later, former Toro Rosso F1 driver Scott Speed is up to 3rd in his Chevrolet. Moments later, Patrick Carpentier also stops for a different race strategy.
On lap 6, leader Villeneuve stops for fuel but keeps the same tires. He rejoins the fray in 12e place.
Out in front, Leffler and Speed are battling it out with Robby Gordon (Dodge) in third place. On lap 11, Leffler pits.
On lap 14, rookie Maryeve Dufault spins her Dodge. Unfortunately, she moves her car and blocks the track. Her pursuers narrowly miss her car, but Trevor Bayne runs out of room, causing some damages. The incident brings out the first caution of the day.
As the leaders pit, Villeneuve is promoted into the lead. The green is given on lap 18. On lap 21, Watkins Glen Sprint Cup race winner Marcos Ambrose is already up to second place. On lap 23, Andrew Ranger (Dodge) blows his second engine of the weekend and retires.
On lap 30, the running order is Villeneuve, Gordon, Ron Fellows (Chevrolet), Leffler and JR Fitzpatrick (Ford). One lap later, Villeneuve pits for fuel and tires. A few laps later, when the other drivers dive into the pits, Villeneuve regains the lead in front of Ambrose.
On the lap 44 restart, Villeneuve misses his braking for the Senna corner and goes straight into the grass, only to hit Ambrose! Ron Fellows inherits the lead but is passed by Tagliani!
On lap 51, Boris Said’s car hit the guardrail at the hairpin corner and retires, bringing out another full course yellow. On lap 55, at the green, Fellows leads from Michael Annett and Michael McDowell. But a few corners after, Patrick Carpentier gets spun around and has to let the entire field go by. Then Alex Kennedy stops on the track, bringing out another full course yellow.
On lap 59, the green is waived and Tagliani passes Fellows for the lead. Fellows pits for fuel. Two laps later comes another yellow for debris on the race track.
The green is given with ten laps to go. Ambrose muscles his way past Tagliani. Moments later, Carpentier, who is contesting his last race in career, sadly retires with mechanical problems after a few contacts.
Robby Gordon hits a rival in the Senna corner and damages his oil cooling system, forcing him to retire. Another full course yellow…
The race is restarted with three laps to go. Ambrose maintains his lead until the start-finish line while Tagliani manages to keep McDowell at bay until the chequered. Steve Wallace, JR Fitzpatrick and Scott Speed complete the top six. And just then, it started to rain!
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| Marcos Ambrose (Photo: Sebastien D'Amour/Auto123) |
The most ironic thing is that Ambrose arrived at the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit just minutes before the start of the race, arriving straight from Michigan International Speedway where he also competes in the Sprint Cup race this weekend.
His car has been qualified by fellow countryman Owen Kelly. And according to the regulations, Ambrose took the start from the back of the pack.
The green is given in perfect summer conditions. Jacques Villeneuve (Dodge Penske) keeps his pole position advantage while his teammate Alex Tagliani is passed by Jason Leffler (Chevrolet).
 |
| Alex Tagliani (Photo: Sebastien D'Amour/Auto123) |
On lap 3, Tagliani comes into the pits from an aggressive race strategy. Two laps later, former Toro Rosso F1 driver Scott Speed is up to 3rd in his Chevrolet. Moments later, Patrick Carpentier also stops for a different race strategy.
On lap 6, leader Villeneuve stops for fuel but keeps the same tires. He rejoins the fray in 12e place.
Out in front, Leffler and Speed are battling it out with Robby Gordon (Dodge) in third place. On lap 11, Leffler pits.
On lap 14, rookie Maryeve Dufault spins her Dodge. Unfortunately, she moves her car and blocks the track. Her pursuers narrowly miss her car, but Trevor Bayne runs out of room, causing some damages. The incident brings out the first caution of the day.
As the leaders pit, Villeneuve is promoted into the lead. The green is given on lap 18. On lap 21, Watkins Glen Sprint Cup race winner Marcos Ambrose is already up to second place. On lap 23, Andrew Ranger (Dodge) blows his second engine of the weekend and retires.
On lap 30, the running order is Villeneuve, Gordon, Ron Fellows (Chevrolet), Leffler and JR Fitzpatrick (Ford). One lap later, Villeneuve pits for fuel and tires. A few laps later, when the other drivers dive into the pits, Villeneuve regains the lead in front of Ambrose.
On the lap 44 restart, Villeneuve misses his braking for the Senna corner and goes straight into the grass, only to hit Ambrose! Ron Fellows inherits the lead but is passed by Tagliani!
On lap 51, Boris Said’s car hit the guardrail at the hairpin corner and retires, bringing out another full course yellow. On lap 55, at the green, Fellows leads from Michael Annett and Michael McDowell. But a few corners after, Patrick Carpentier gets spun around and has to let the entire field go by. Then Alex Kennedy stops on the track, bringing out another full course yellow.
 |
| Michael McDowell (Photo: Sebastien D'Amour/Auto123) |
On lap 59, the green is waived and Tagliani passes Fellows for the lead. Fellows pits for fuel. Two laps later comes another yellow for debris on the race track.
The green is given with ten laps to go. Ambrose muscles his way past Tagliani. Moments later, Carpentier, who is contesting his last race in career, sadly retires with mechanical problems after a few contacts.
Robby Gordon hits a rival in the Senna corner and damages his oil cooling system, forcing him to retire. Another full course yellow…
The race is restarted with three laps to go. Ambrose maintains his lead until the start-finish line while Tagliani manages to keep McDowell at bay until the chequered. Steve Wallace, JR Fitzpatrick and Scott Speed complete the top six. And just then, it started to rain!
 |
| Marcos Ambrose (Photo: Sebastien D'Amour/Auto123) |