Marcos Ambrose was cheated out of a chance to win his first NASCAR race by Robby Gordon. His disappointment was lifted, though, when he was given an opportunity to race the first Nextel Cup event of his career.
His benefactor? None other than Gordon himself.
Feeling guilty because he intentionally wrecked Ambrose in the closing laps of the Busch Series race in Montreal, Gordon offered Ambrose a car to race this weekend on the road course at Watkins Glen, N.Y. He got the idea from a fan, who suggested it would be a peace offering to the Australian driver.
“We were all bitterly disappointed after last week, and I’m sure if Robby could have wound the clock back, he would have done things differently,” Ambrose said Wednesday as he and Gordon detailed their partnership. “It’s part apology and part compliment.”
Ambrose and Gordon were racing for the lead with four laps to go in Saturday’s race when a multi-car accident brought out a caution.
Both drivers said Wednesday they weren’t sure who was ahead when the yellow flag was displayed.
All they are certain of is that at some point, Gordon passed Ambrose for the lead. Seconds later, Ambrose spun Gordon as he reclaimed the lead.
By the time Gordon righted his car and pulled back into traffic, NASCAR scored him in 13th place. Gordon argued he should have been no lower than second, and refused the directive to take the 13th spot.
He was disqualified when the race resumed with two laps to go, and he immediately spun Ambrose to move into the lead. He was ordered off the track, but ignored the directive. Gordon technically crossed the finish line in first place, and celebrated as if he had won the race.
The antics earned Gordon a suspension from Sunday’s race in Pocono, Pa., as well as a $35,000 fine and probation with a twist – NASCAR gave him an explicit warning this week that any further disruptive behavior will earn him an indefinite suspension.
He said Wednesday his plan at the time was to protest the race, and felt he would have nothing to gain unless he allowed it to play out the way he believed it should have.
“In the little bit of defense I have for my side, normally if you’re speeding down pit road and you have a black flag penalty, you have three laps to respond,” Gordon said. “I’m thinking, ‘OK, there’s two laps left in the race, we’ll respond after the race and we’ll deal with this.”‘
Ambrose, meanwhile, went from what looked like a certain victory to finishing seventh.
Coincidentally, the two had made prior plans to hang out in the Charlotte, N.C., area on Wednesday to get to know each other. After the on-track incident, neither was sure the date was still a go.
So Gordon called him Monday night – Ambrose said he only answered because he didn’t recognize the number – and the voice on the other end said, “Does this mean we’re not getting together Wednesday?”
The two talked about the incident, and about three hours later, Gordon called back with the offer to let Ambrose drive one of his cars.
Formula One: It’s a good thing for McLaren that the series is in a three-week break before the next race in Turkey. The team will need that time to try to iron out problems that threaten to send a stellar season spinning out of control.
It has to deal with the aftermath of the trouble it got into for possessing technical information about Ferrari’s cars.
Then there is the penalty depriving the team of the 15 points it would have scored toward the constructors standings at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
And though its two drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, are fighting for the championship, they aren’t speaking to each other and have frosty relations with team boss Ron Dennis.
