Marcos Ambrose started the 82-lap, non-points NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Daytona International Speedway from the 21st position. Ambrose finished the annual event as follows:

 

 

· Saturday’s race marked Ambrose’s first career start in the Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway.

 

· The 205-mile event ended under green-white-checkered flag conditions, due to a late race caution for a multi-car accident that Ambrose narrowly avoided.

 

· Kyle Busch claimed the victory Saturday night in the pre-season opener. The margin of victory was .031 seconds, the closest in Budweiser Shootout history.

 

· Ambrose was the highest finishing Ford in Saturday night’s race and he was credited for leading Lap 81 in the 82-lap event.

 

Ambrose’s Thoughts After the Race: “It was a crazy race, that’s for sure. I saw pretty much every spin and crash. I was either in it, around it or just dodged it. I’m just really proud of my Stanley team for all the hard work they did tonight and for giving me a fast car. We’ve got a lot of steam under the hood this week, which is great. Ford has done a wonderful job with the engines, and what an incredible job NASCAR has done to get back to this style of racing. I think all the drivers appreciate it, and it’s definitely a lot more fun. It’s more entertaining for the fans and I feel more in control as a driver.  Even though we crashed more tonight, you just feel like you’re in control of your own destiny a little more out there. It’s just a good night for my whole Stanley team. I’ve got to thank The King for giving me the chance to drive and for getting me back up to the front. It is just a lot of fun.

 

“Tonight was a blur, to be honest. I’m out there driving the Stanley car with one lap to go thinking I’m going to win the race and I get freight trained. There’s a lot to learn out there. There are people you like to run with and you try to find them before the end, but it had thinned out a lot by the end of the race. I looked around and there were probably about 10 cars left that could run, so we missed a lot out there – a lot of incidents and accidents and I’m just pleased we made it to the end, really.”

 

Next up in NASCAR Sprint Cup Series action is Daytona 500 qualifying Sunday, Feb. 19, at 1:05 p.m. ET.
Qualifying will be broadcast live on FOX.

 

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