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Magnificent Marcos: The Sydney Motorsport Park master

03 Oct 2021
Marcos Ambrose’s record at Eastern Creek is unrivalled
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The beginning of a Peter Brock had Bathurst. Mark Skaife had Oran Park. Craig Lowndes had Barbagallo. Jamie Whincup had Townsville.

Some drivers just managed to wave their magic wands over a circuit, and it became their own.

Skaife may have the all-time wins record at Sydney Motorsport Park, but the place belonged to Marcos Ambrose.

Between 2001 and 2005, the Tasmanian-born driver clicked with the Sydney circuit at a level few could match.

14 race starts. 13 top 10 finishes. Seven wins, at a win rate of 50 per cent.

That’s right - Ambrose won half of all races he started at Sydney Motorsport Park, which will host the 2021 season resumption under lights this month.

Incredibly, his first win in Sydney came at his third appearance - he went winless in the five races across the two rounds in 2001 and 2002.

Still, he recorded two second-place finishes at the 2002 event, and arrived in 2003 off the back of a win in Adelaide.

Ambrose leads the start of the 2003 race

Between the first 2003 event in Sydney and the 2005 event - a span of five events - he won seven of nine races.

His first came in the third round of 2003; Skaife had claimed overall Adelaide honours, while Lowndes won a rain-affected race at Phillip Island, which was also the first for Ford Performance Racing.

Come Eastern Creek, and Ambrose led a stunning Ford trifecta from pole, with Lowndes second and Stone Brothers Racing teammate Russell Ingall third.

Such was Ambrose’s dominance in the 300km-long race, that nearest rival Lowndes was 26 seconds behind.

Ambrose salutes the crowd

Skaife had a shocker, only managing 19th place and slipping from second to seventh in the standings.

Jason Bright was the best of the Holden drivers in fourth, although Ambrose looked likely to win from the start.

"It was just a very special day,” he said after the race.

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"I got off the line very well and we just controlled it from there.

King of the Creek

"The Stone Brothers Racing crew have given me the best weapon I've ever had.

"The BA is coming on well, and the pit crew had it all well under control. This weekend there really wasn't a weak link anywhere.”

Ambrose returned for the November season finale, won both races and clinched his maiden title.

The water-logged Eastern Creek race in April 2004 saw Ambrose clamber his way to seventh, but normal service resumed when he won all three races at the season finale.

Fords swept the podium in the first 2003 race

His seventh Sydney win in eight races came in the first 2005 race.

Lowndes won on the Sunday to claim weekend honours and Triple Eight’s first ever race win.

Little did everyone know that it would be Ambrose’s final start at Sydney Motorsport Park, Ambrose leaving Stateside to pursue a NASCAR dream.

To this day, Ambrose still holds the record for most Supercars laps led in Sydney with 249.

Ambrose returned to clinch the title later in 2003

In fact, Ambrose led nearly 45 per cent of all race laps he completed at the western Sydney venue.

The closest active drivers with regards to Sydney laps led are points leader Shane van Gisbergen (140) and Jamie Whincup (131).

Van Gisbergen and Whincup have won four races each at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Only Skaife (10), Ambrose, Glenn Seton (six) and Lowndes (five) have won more races at the circuit than the Red Bull Ampol Racing duo.

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