Marcos Ambrose has qualified in 26th position for the Carfax 400 at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan today.

Coming off a good weekend at Watkins Glen last weekend, Ambrose is looking to keep the momentum going at Michigan this weekend as he looks to post more top 10 finishes in the second half of his first full season at Sprint Cup level.

Ambrose was 35th in first practice at the 2.0-mile oval earlier today aboard the #47 entry of JTG Daugherty Racing.

The Australian is now just 114 points behind Michael Waltrip Racing stablemate David Reutimann in the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings, but is concentrating on outright race results and improving his team’s pace ahead of a big 2010 season, rather than points.

In the lead up to Michigan, Ambrose on Tuesday turned his hand to some dirt track driving, testing a Late Model car at Cherokee Speedway in South Carolina as further practice for the fifth annual Gillette Young Guns Prelude to the Dream on Wednesday, September 9 at Eldora Speedway (for more information and images on this test, stay tuned to MarcosAmbrose.com …).

Then on Thursday, Ambrose tested a Sprintcar at Freemont Speedway in Freemont, Ohio under the watchful eye of #47 crew chief Frank Kerr, himself a former Sprintcar champion. Kerr even had time to take Ambrose for a two-seater Sprintcar ride around the one-third mile clay speedway.

Kerr moved to Fremont, Ohio when he earned four All Star Circuit of Champion sprint car titles in the 1990s. In fact, Kerr’s last All Star feature victory came at Fremont Speedway during an Ohio Speedweek event.

What Marcos Has To Say …

“We’ve got a bit of work to do on our car at Michigan but it’s still early days,” said Ambrose.

“I’d like it to be working a little better but I’m confident we can make it happen.

“We showed some good signs today and made some good changes, so we’ll work very hard in practice tomorrow to get it right for the race.

“It’s been a busy week and all the dirt track driving is a lot of fun.

“I haven’t grown up with that background like so many other NASCAR guys, so for me it’s very new and exciting.

“Both the Sprintcars and Late Models have so much power! They’re a real handful and very exciting to drive and I’m very thankful of the opportunity to drive some new and different race cars.”

RESULTS: Sprint Cup Qualifying
1. #83 Brian Vickers 38.453
2. #5 Mark Martin 38.500
3. #42 Juan Pablo Montoya 38.540
4. #48 Jimmie Johnson 38.620
5. #1 Martin Truex Jr 38.655
6. #2 Kurt Busch 38.677
7. #39 Ryan Newman 38.728
8. #20 Joey Logano 38.741
9. #21 Bill Elliott 38.750
10. #9 Kasey Kahne 38.755
26. #47 Marcos Ambrose 39.094

RESULTS: Sprint Cup Practice 1
1. #39 Ryan Newman 38.064
2. #20 Joey Logano 38.468
3. #42 Juan Pablo Montoya 38.473
4. #1 Martin Truex Jr 38.546
5. #99 Carl Edwards 38.577
6. #5 Mark Martin 38.598
7. #24 Jeff Gordon 38.606
8. #33 Clint Bowyer 38.683
9. #48 Jimmie Johnson 38.692
10. #83 Brian Vickers 38.963
35. #47 Marcos Ambrose 39.245

2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Driver’s Standings – After Race 22 of 36
1. Tony Stewart 3383
2. Jimmie Johnson 3123
3. Jeff Gordon 3041
4. Kurt Busch 2902
5. Denny Hamlin 2847
6. Carl Edwards 2830
7. Juan Pablo Montoya 2781
8. Kasey Kahne 2754
9. Ryan Newman 2727
10. Greg Biffle 2718
11. Mark Martin 2716
12. Matt Kenseth 2685
13. Kyle Busch 2627
14. Brian Vickers 2589
15. Clint Bowyer 2586
16. David Reutimann 2530
17. Marcos Ambrose 2416

THE CAR:

THE RACE:

Carfax 400
First race staged in 1969
200 laps (400 miles/643.7 kilometres)

FORM GUIDE:

2008 August Race Winner: Carl Edwards
2008 August Polesitter: Brian Vickers
2009 June Race Winner: Mark Martin
2009 June Polesitter: Brian Vickers

THE TRACK:

Michigan International Speedway
Brooklyn, Michigan
2.00-mile oval
18 degree banking

MARCOS AT MICHIGAN:

Sprint Cup Series Starts: Two
Best Sprint Cup Qualifying: 33rd (2009)
Best Sprint Cup Finish: 31st (2009)

Overall NASCAR Starts: Five
Best Overall NASCAR Qualifying: Sixth (2007 Nationwide)
Best Overall NASCAR Finish: 12th (2008 Nationwide)

UNITED STATES TV SCHEDULE:

Sprint Cup Practice 1
Friday 14 August 2009
SPEED TV
12:00pm US Eastern

Sprint Cup Qualifying
Friday 14 August 2009
SPEED TV
3:00pm US Eastern

Sprint Cup Practice 2
Saturday 15 August 2009
SPEED TV
12:30pm US Eastern

Sprint Cup Final Practice
Saturday 15 August 2009
SPEED TV
1:30pm US Eastern

Carfax 400
Sunday 16 August 2009
ESPN
1:00pm US Eastern

AUSTRALIAN TV SCHEDULE

Sprint Cup Qualifying
Saturday 15 August 2009
ONE
12:30pm AEST

Sprint Cup Final Practice
Sunday 16 August 2009
ONE
3:30am AEST

Carfax 400
Monday 17 August 2009
FOX Sports 3
3:00am AEST

Carfax 400 (Same Day Replay)
Monday 17 August 2009
FOX Sports 1
10:30pm AEST

Marcos Ambrose – Standing Out
Tuesday August 2009
ONE
6:40pm AEST

Carfax 400 with Intro from Marcos Ambrose
Tuesday 11 August 2009
ONE
10:00pm AEST

Please check local television guides to confirm times and see scheduled replays.

ON-TRACK SCHEDULE:

Sprint Cup Practice 1
Friday 14 August 2009
12:00pm – 1:30pm US Eastern
2:00am – 3:30am AEST on Saturday

Sprint Cup Qualifying
Friday 14 August 2009
3:40pm US Eastern
5:40am AEST on Saturday

Sprint Cup Practice 2
Saturday 15 August 2009
12:30pm – 1:15pm US Eastern
2:30am – 3:15am AEST on Sunday

Sprint Cup Final Practice
Saturday 15 August 2009
1:50pm – 2:50pm US Eastern
3:50am – 4:50am AEST on Sunday

Carfax 400
Sunday 16 August 2009
2:00pm US Eastern
4:00am AEST on Monday