IT is no secret that Marcos Ambrose has not enjoyed the sort of return to the V8 Supercars Championship he had been hoping for this year, but he still has the chance to achieve one of his major goals.
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That goal is his first Bathurst 1000 crown.
It was just over a year ago that Ambrose announced he would return from competing on the NASCAR circuit in the United States to Australia’s premier motor sport category to drive for DJR Team Penske.
But after the opening round of the 2015 season at Clipsal, which consisted of three races, Ambrose decided to step aside as the main driver. Scott Pye took over in the #17 Ford Falcon FG X.
However, Ambrose was still keen to contest the three rounds of the Enduro Cup at Sandown, Bathurst and the Gold Coast.
The pair picked up an 11th placing at Sandown after Ambrose made a poor start and struggled to pass rival entries, but the time he spent behind the wheel was valuable.
“I’ve got a little bit to go, no doubt about it,” Ambrose said.
“We’ve made pretty huge inroads with our car. The biggest issue I had early on was just getting the brake pedal right and not getting any feeling there, but that’s gone completely away.
“My head’s been used to going round and round at 200 miles an hour and not slowing down too much and just the feel of those cars in NASCAR are very different to these, so it’s taken a lot of unwinding to be honest.”
Though Ambrose is still adjusting to the Falcon, his desire to succeed at Mount Panorama is as strong as ever.
In five previous attempts at the Bathurst 1000, Ambrose has not been able to get on the podium – not even in the two years he won drivers’ championship in 2003 and 2004.
“I’m looking forward to going to Bathurst and I feel like we’ve got a shot to win it, and I’m going to try and win it,” he told Inside Supercars.
“It certainly is one of those races that eluded me.
“I’ve only had five goes at it – people forget that – three of those years we were blowing tyres all day, so two good years we had a shot and came up short.
“So yeah, I’d love to win it. It’s certainly a trophy that’s missing from the cabinet and I’ve got a good chance this year.”
Plenty has changed at Mount Panorama since Ambrose last raced here, with new grandstands, fauna and debris
fencing, new start lights and a spectator bank along Conrod Straight.
But the 6.213 kilometre circuit will still provide Ambrose with the same challenges now as it did 10 years ago.
“I’ve had a brilliant career and I’ve raced in many parts of the world, but the tracks that stick out are few and far between. One of them, without doubt, is Bathurst,” he said.
“It’s one of the most iconic tracks in the world – it really is a gnarly, narrow, mountainous course and there aren’t many tracks like that around the world.
“I’m looking forward to going back, just to drive the track, experience one of these modern V8 Supercars around there. I haven’t been there since 2005, there’s been a lot of changes made to the place since then, so I’m just looking forward to going there and seeing it and experiencing it from behind the wheel.”
