Ambrose Has $1 Million Reasons to Win at Sonoma This Week

Ambrose has finished sixth or better in past three Sonoma starts (Getty)

CONCORD, N.C. (June 19, 2012) - Marcos Ambrose and his Stanley team will be “Racing for a Miracle” this weekend at the 1.99-mile road course in Sonoma, Calif. Should Ambrose bring home his second NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career victory this weekend, Stanley will donate $1 million to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals through The Ace Hardware Foundation as part of the “Racing for a Miracle” program. This multi-faceted program benefits sick and injured children by raising funds for the hospitals that provide their care. In addition to the possible $1 million donation, Stanley has already pledged $100,000 to the program this year and has donated over $500,000 since the inception of the partnership.

As part of the special “Racing for a Miracle” initiative, Ambrose, Crew Chief Todd Parrott and members of the No. 9 Stanley pit crew will visit the UC Davis Children’s Hospital in Sacramento, Calif., this Thursday. While at the hospital, Ambrose and crew will spend time with the patients and their family members. In addition, the No. 9 pit crew will perform pit stop demonstrations, participate in remote control car races, go “tape measure fishing” and other fun kid-friendly activities.

In addition, Ambrose’s car will have a different look this weekend. Stanley will run a special paint scheme on the No. 9 Ford Fusion. The car will feature the names of one child from each U.S. state and Washington D.C. who is a current or former Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals patient who has met their unique medical challenge with courage.

The Australian native heads to Sonoma with some impressive stats. He has four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at the 1.99-mile road course and his best starting and finishing positions (third) came in 2009. Ambrose’s average starting position on the California track is 6.0 and his average finishing position is 14. In his last three races at Sonoma, Ambrose has finished sixth or higher. He sits in 17th position in the Sprint Cup Series driver point standings heading into the 110-lap event.

Marcos Ambrose’s Thoughts on the “Racing for a Miracle” Program:
“I’m really looking forward to going to Sonoma and racing for $1 Million to help benefit sick and injured children through ‘The Racing for a Miracle’ program. I’m very fortunate to have such a great sponsor in Stanley, who partnered with the Ace Hardware Foundation and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals to make this special program a reality. It’s going to be an extraordinary week for my whole Stanley Crew and I and I can’t wait to get it started.

“I’m going to have four good luck charms to help me end up in Victory Lane on Sunday as four very special kids from UC Davis Children’s Hospital will be my ‘Honorary Pit Crew’ for the entire weekend. My team and I are honored to be able to host these children and show them what racing is all about. It’s just great to be a part of such a special program and it means the world to my crew and I to see the smiles that will be on these kid’s faces throughout the weekend.”

Ambrose on Racing at Sonoma:
“Sonoma is a great track and I love it. It is one of the smallest, most technical, race tracks that a driver can go to, and we are going there with one of the biggest, laziest, dinosaurs you could ever imagine. A stock car around that place is unreal. I never imagined we could run so fast at that kind of place with as little throttle as we do. It’s really just all about momentum and looking after your tires and that’s what makes Sonoma so great. It’s also what makes the racing fantastic, because it is all in the drivers hands and I like that type of racing. Sonoma is one of my favorite races of all time.”

Comments from Crew Chief Todd Parrott on Going to Sonoma:
PACSUN“Sonoma owes Marcos a win and the Stanley team has extra incentive to end up in Victory Lane this weekend with $1 million on the line for charity though the ‘Racing for a Miracle’ program. We are really looking forward to going to Sonoma because we know it’s a track where we can win. We’ve got one of the best road course racers behind the wheel of the Stanley Ford this weekend and that will definitely play to our advantage. At Sonoma we’ll have to have a car that has good forward bite. The Stanley Ford will have to get off of Turn 11 well and we’ll need to make sure the transmission ratios are set because you can make up a lot of time though Turn 11 if they are spot on. Brakes are very important. We need a car that is good through the breaking zones, Turns 11, 5 and 7, and has good drive off of the corners. Fuel mileage will also come into play at Sonoma, so it’s very important we keep a close eye on that and have good strategy.”

Chassis History:
The No. 9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 772 for this weekend’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Sonoma. This Stanley Ford was previously tested this season at Virginia International Raceway.

About Richard Petty Motorsports
A performance and marketing driven company, Richard Petty Motorsports, co-owned by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty and successful business entrepreneurs Andrew Murstein and Douglas Bergeron, is one of the most recognized brands in all of motorsports. With a history of over 200 wins and business partnerships with national and global leaders, today the race operation fields two teams in competition in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Aric Almirola pilots the famous No. 43 Ford Fusion with primary partners Smithfield Foods, U.S. Air Force and STP and Marcos Ambrose drives the No. 9 machine with primary partners Stanley and DEWALT. In addition, Michael Annett wheels the No. 43 Pilot Flying J Ford Mustang full-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. The team is headquartered in Concord, N.C.

- Richard Petty Motorsports