DJR/Team Penske dropping second car, will only run Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose will be the sole focus of the team's efforts in 2015.
Photo by: Edge Photographics
The newly reformed Dick Johnson Racing (DJR)/Team Penske will drop its two-car operation and will run just one V8 Supercar for 2015 driven by the returning champion, Marcos Ambrose.
As the Tasmanian Devil looks to begin his first full-time V8 Supercars season since 2005, he will be one of the few drivers behind the wheel of the all new Ford Falcon FG X.
Goodbye for Pye
DJR’s second car formally run by Scott Pye in 2014 has been swept up by Super Black Racing which has recently announced that they will be joining Prodrive Racing Australia for 2015.
Unfortunately, Pye seems to be the odd man out. Despite the fact that DJR/Team Penske tried to keep the young driver on board for 2015, a commercial deal could not be reached.
All eyes on Ambrose
With that, Ambrose will be the sole focus of the team heading into 2015.
DJR/Team Penske Managing Director, Ryan Story, said, “Car #17 for Marcos – that’s our core focus.
That’s the direction the team is heading. There are plenty of reasons for it and predominantly it’s about building on what we have. And as Tim Cindric has said, we walk before we can run.”
Ultimately, DJR/Team Penske have stated that they wish to grow their operation to two cars in the future. Right now, however, it’s all about perfecting the machine which will bear the names of two sporting legends, Ambrose and Penske.
Vital seat time
Ambrose, who is still the only driver to win a round in every V8 Supercar season he has participated in, took away invaluable experience from his wild-card entry for the rained out 2014 season finale in Sydney – which saw him finish in 20th, 21st and 16th. Additionally, the various weather conditions allowed the veteran driver to experience wet weather driving – something he never experienced during his NASCAR days.
"We had realistic expectations leading into the event and the track time for Marcos will pay dividends once we go racing next month,” said Story.
Although Ambrose ran the #66 XBOX livery in Sydney, the sponsorship announcement for the 2015 season is still forthcoming.
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