Two events in and Marcos Ambrose has taken the shock decision to step out of the #17 DJR Team Penske entry until the endurance events, prematurely ending his much-hyped return to V8 Supercars.
Ambrose hands over the Falcon FG X to rising star Scott Pye and is unlikely to return until the endurance events, where he will co-drive with Pye at Sandown, Bathurst and the Gold Coast in a spell that’s likely to determine Ambrose’s racing future.
To say this decision sent shockwaves through V8 Supercars is an understatement. Ambrose wasn’t exactly uncompetitive in his return to the series after nine years in NASCAR; he qualified for the Shootout at the season-opening Clipsal 500 Adelaide and sits in 12th in the standings in a 25-car field.
Ambrose’s justification for the decision was as follows: “I need more experience in these cars to do what is required of the lead driver and to be competitive for the team and our partners.”
So why step aside when needing more experience? Especially given the limited testing and practice opportunities now he’s downgraded himself to co-driver duties.
Without further explanation, we can only speculate on the reasons for this surprising decision.
Ambrose seems to have been caught out by how the V8 Supercars game has changed over the last decade. The new cars require a different style than what he was used to and the competitiveness of the series is a lot higher.
After growing increasingly frustrated at being unable to make an impact on ovals in NASCAR, you can understand Ambrose’s frustration in returning to a series he once dominated and finding himself yet again mid-pack.
Remember, Ambrose was always competitive in his previous stint in V8 Supercars, from a pole position on debut to his back-to-back championships to his race-winning farewell.
But he and DJR Team Penske should have expected an early season readjustment. They are racing a new car with a new technical crew and ownership structure in a single-car team, crucially without a teammate to share data and provide a benchmark with punishing limits on testing and practice.
Putting Pye in the seat allows the team to make gains with a driver experienced in the new-generation cars, allowing Ambrose to observe from within the team without the pressure of curbing expectations and with an eye on Bathurst – claiming a victory there being one of the main motivators in his return to V8 Supercars.
It’s unfortunate it came to this, especially on the eve of Ambrose’s home event in Tasmania, where his homecoming was the centrepiece of the marketing around the event.
But there’s likely to be a long game at play here. DJR Team Penske is tipped to expand to two entries in 2016, so it can accommodate both Pye and the contracted Ambrose.
If Pye can get the #17 entry up to speed and Ambrose come in for the endurance and match it in terms of pace with the youngster, then the 2015 change will have paid dividends for 2016.
If Ambrose can’t get up to speed at the endurance events, then his decision to step down would have been vindicated and his focus should be co-driving duties only, allowing Pye to race on a full-time basis.
For the sake of Ambrose’s legacy, let’s hope this decision isn’t the beginning of the end but rather a necessary step to facilitate a better-prepared full-time comeback.
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