WATKINS GLEN -- It took an extra day to complete the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen, but the ending made it worth the wait.
Marcos Ambrose survived a mad scramble over the final two laps before an announced crowd of 85,000 on Monday at Watkins Glen International, claiming his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup victory.
Ambrose outdueled runner-up Brad Keselowski and third-place finisher Kyle Busch after Paul Menard set up a green-white-checkered finish by crashing into the wall in the Esses on the 86th lap. It scattered debris and fluid onto the track, bringing out the fourth caution flag of the day and bunching up the field.
Busch, the pole-sitter, held the top spot for the restart on the 91st lap, with Ambrose second and Keselowski third.
They went three wide through Turn 1. Busch got loose and got sandwiched between and then passed by Keselowski and Ambrose, with Keselowski taking the lead.
Ambrose got inside of Keselowski in Turn 5 to go ahead, and he stayed there as the 92nd and final lap closed out with a spectacular multi-car accident.
David Ragan slammed into the wall between Turns 1 and 2 after Boris Said clipped him from behind. Ragan then richocheted back into the course, slamming into David Reutimann, who flipped upside-down in Turn 2.
Miraculously, no one was seriously hurt.
Busch had been in front since the 68th lap, taking the lead when then-leader Jeff Gordon took a pit stop.
Ambrose passed Keselowski for second place in Turn 1 on the 76th lap, then dogged Busch around the 2.45-mile course right up until Menard's crash.
"I knew the laps were winding down, but he was struggling. He was fighting his car," Ambrose said of his battle with Busch late in the race. "I could see he was really loose up through the Esses. I was going to have another shot at him.
"When the caution came out, I was actually happy about it, letting everything cool down and having another shot at him. On the restart, I tried to actually blend in behind him because I knew I was never going to out-brake the 18 (Busch). He was going to just saddle up in there trying to win the race, and that's exactly what he did. I couldn't find a hole, so I just kind of got stuck into Turn 1 and just saddled off in there and tried to make a hole, which worked for me."
Busch blamed himself for not keeping the lead and said no one bumped into him.
"I just got in (Turn 1) and didn't think I got in there too fast, but the car just didn't slow down the way I needed it to, and then it didn't turn the way I needed it to," he said. "Everybody else made it fine through there. I just screwed up.
"I felt like we were right there and had a chance to win. I hated to see that last caution. I knew it was going to come down to one corner, and I messed it up."
Keselowski's take on the restart: "We got into Turn 1, it looked like Kyle had a little bit of right front lockup and slid up out of the groove, which gave me a great opportunity to get underneath him. Marcos filled the gap, and next thing you know we're three wide for the lead going into Turn 2. I don't know about you guys, but I don't think racing gets any better on a road course."
Ambrose said aggressiveness was the key to passing Keselowski for the lead.
"I got through the Bus Stop really good and just forced the issue on him," Ambrose said. "I never touched him, I don't think, but I got him aero-free and I was able to slide past."
Keselowski believed he could still get by Ambrose before the big crash ended things.
"I felt like I might have had a shot at Marcos again. I was able to close the bumper on him through the Inner Loop when that last yellow came out," he said.
The Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen was rained out Sunday and moved to Monday morning.
It sprinkled lightly in the early going, and fog started coming in about a quarter through the race. The skies eventually cleared and the track dried up, opening things up for the competitors.
A.J. Allmendinger, who started second, passed Busch on the outside through Turn 1 of the first lap for the lead. Allmendinger looked like he might have the car to beat until Kurt Busch, down a lap after an early spinout, made contact with him on the ninth lap in the Inner Loop and forced Allmendinger into the grass.
"He was a lap down. I know what he was trying to do, trying to get back on the lead lap," said Allmendinger, who finished eighth. "We just hung on all day. It's not the day we wanted, but it could have been a lot worse."
Reutimann, Ragan and Said could all say the same thing after the last-lap crash.
"This is one if the bigger hits, I would say, but it's part of the gig," Reutimann said. "As fast as we were going, you hit stuff pretty hard. I'm good and will be ready for Michigan next week. I'm thinking where I hit would probably be a good place for SAFER barriers, so maybe we should look at that next time we come back."
Ragan said, "I felt like I had Boris clear, and I think he got a little better run than we did and he just hooked us. He certainly could have given a little more of a break, and we all could have gotten through there and not tear up anything. But he was aggressive and we were all aggressive."
Said explained that he meant no harm.
"The No. 6 car (Ragan) was getting into me a lot. I didn't want to wreck him, but I had to stay on the track and he didn't give me any room," he said.
Meanwhile, Ambrose, from Launceston, Australia, becomes the second straight foreign-born driver to win the Cup race at Watkins Glen. Last year's winner, Juan Pablo Montoya, is from Bogota, Colombia. Montoya finished seventh Monday.
Ambrose drove the No. 9 Stanley Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports. The last time a Ford won a Cup race here was in 1996, when Chemung native Geoff Bodine captured the Bud at The Glen.
Ambrose won the Nationwide Series races here in 2008, 2009 and 2010. He was unable to defend his title in Saturday's Zippo 200 at The Glen because he didn't have the sponsorship.
"I would have loved to have done the Nationwide race," he said. "Next year, though, I want to do the Nationwide race. Whoever is listening out there, I want to do it and win two on the weekend."
source: http://www.theithacajournal.com/article/20110815/SPORTS/108150344/Ambrose-wins-NASCAR-race-wild-finish-Watkins-Glen?odyssey=nav|head
Marcos Ambrose survived a mad scramble over the final two laps before an announced crowd of 85,000 on Monday at Watkins Glen International, claiming his first career NASCAR Sprint Cup victory.
Ambrose outdueled runner-up Brad Keselowski and third-place finisher Kyle Busch after Paul Menard set up a green-white-checkered finish by crashing into the wall in the Esses on the 86th lap. It scattered debris and fluid onto the track, bringing out the fourth caution flag of the day and bunching up the field.
Busch, the pole-sitter, held the top spot for the restart on the 91st lap, with Ambrose second and Keselowski third.
They went three wide through Turn 1. Busch got loose and got sandwiched between and then passed by Keselowski and Ambrose, with Keselowski taking the lead.
Ambrose got inside of Keselowski in Turn 5 to go ahead, and he stayed there as the 92nd and final lap closed out with a spectacular multi-car accident.
David Ragan slammed into the wall between Turns 1 and 2 after Boris Said clipped him from behind. Ragan then richocheted back into the course, slamming into David Reutimann, who flipped upside-down in Turn 2.
Miraculously, no one was seriously hurt.
Busch had been in front since the 68th lap, taking the lead when then-leader Jeff Gordon took a pit stop.
Ambrose passed Keselowski for second place in Turn 1 on the 76th lap, then dogged Busch around the 2.45-mile course right up until Menard's crash.
"I knew the laps were winding down, but he was struggling. He was fighting his car," Ambrose said of his battle with Busch late in the race. "I could see he was really loose up through the Esses. I was going to have another shot at him.
"When the caution came out, I was actually happy about it, letting everything cool down and having another shot at him. On the restart, I tried to actually blend in behind him because I knew I was never going to out-brake the 18 (Busch). He was going to just saddle up in there trying to win the race, and that's exactly what he did. I couldn't find a hole, so I just kind of got stuck into Turn 1 and just saddled off in there and tried to make a hole, which worked for me."
Busch blamed himself for not keeping the lead and said no one bumped into him.
"I just got in (Turn 1) and didn't think I got in there too fast, but the car just didn't slow down the way I needed it to, and then it didn't turn the way I needed it to," he said. "Everybody else made it fine through there. I just screwed up.
"I felt like we were right there and had a chance to win. I hated to see that last caution. I knew it was going to come down to one corner, and I messed it up."
Keselowski's take on the restart: "We got into Turn 1, it looked like Kyle had a little bit of right front lockup and slid up out of the groove, which gave me a great opportunity to get underneath him. Marcos filled the gap, and next thing you know we're three wide for the lead going into Turn 2. I don't know about you guys, but I don't think racing gets any better on a road course."
Ambrose said aggressiveness was the key to passing Keselowski for the lead.
"I got through the Bus Stop really good and just forced the issue on him," Ambrose said. "I never touched him, I don't think, but I got him aero-free and I was able to slide past."
Keselowski believed he could still get by Ambrose before the big crash ended things.
"I felt like I might have had a shot at Marcos again. I was able to close the bumper on him through the Inner Loop when that last yellow came out," he said.
The Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen was rained out Sunday and moved to Monday morning.
It sprinkled lightly in the early going, and fog started coming in about a quarter through the race. The skies eventually cleared and the track dried up, opening things up for the competitors.
A.J. Allmendinger, who started second, passed Busch on the outside through Turn 1 of the first lap for the lead. Allmendinger looked like he might have the car to beat until Kurt Busch, down a lap after an early spinout, made contact with him on the ninth lap in the Inner Loop and forced Allmendinger into the grass.
"He was a lap down. I know what he was trying to do, trying to get back on the lead lap," said Allmendinger, who finished eighth. "We just hung on all day. It's not the day we wanted, but it could have been a lot worse."
Reutimann, Ragan and Said could all say the same thing after the last-lap crash.
"This is one if the bigger hits, I would say, but it's part of the gig," Reutimann said. "As fast as we were going, you hit stuff pretty hard. I'm good and will be ready for Michigan next week. I'm thinking where I hit would probably be a good place for SAFER barriers, so maybe we should look at that next time we come back."
Ragan said, "I felt like I had Boris clear, and I think he got a little better run than we did and he just hooked us. He certainly could have given a little more of a break, and we all could have gotten through there and not tear up anything. But he was aggressive and we were all aggressive."
Said explained that he meant no harm.
"The No. 6 car (Ragan) was getting into me a lot. I didn't want to wreck him, but I had to stay on the track and he didn't give me any room," he said.
Meanwhile, Ambrose, from Launceston, Australia, becomes the second straight foreign-born driver to win the Cup race at Watkins Glen. Last year's winner, Juan Pablo Montoya, is from Bogota, Colombia. Montoya finished seventh Monday.
Ambrose drove the No. 9 Stanley Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports. The last time a Ford won a Cup race here was in 1996, when Chemung native Geoff Bodine captured the Bud at The Glen.
Ambrose won the Nationwide Series races here in 2008, 2009 and 2010. He was unable to defend his title in Saturday's Zippo 200 at The Glen because he didn't have the sponsorship.
"I would have loved to have done the Nationwide race," he said. "Next year, though, I want to do the Nationwide race. Whoever is listening out there, I want to do it and win two on the weekend."
source: http://www.theithacajournal.com/article/20110815/SPORTS/108150344/Ambrose-wins-NASCAR-race-wild-finish-Watkins-Glen?odyssey=nav|head
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