Marcos Ambrose will end his eight year association with Ford to drive a Toyota in the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup series. The Tasmanian driver will move to the Japanese marque after his team JTG Daugherty Racing announced a new technical alliance with current Sprint Cup operation Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) and Toyota Racing Development (TRD) for its first full-time Sprint Cup campaign next season. 

JTG Daugherty Racing, co-owned by Tad and Jodi Geschickter and former NBA All-Star and ESPN broadcaster Brad Daugherty, will enter the #47 Toyota Camry driven by Ambrose and backed by primary sponsors, Kingsford Charcoal, Clorox Laundry and Household Products and Little Debbie’s Snack Cakes in the 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

JTG Daugherty Racing will move its Sprint Cup operation into MWR’s 140,000-square foot facility in Cornelius, North Carolina and receive cars, engineering, mechanical and other technical support from MWR’s existing infrastructure.

TRD will support the JTG Daugherty team with engines from its Costa Mesa, California facility and vehicle engineering support from its Salisbury, N.C. facility.

Ambrose, who scored his first NASCAR victory earlier this season at Watkins Glen is currently 10th in points in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.

“I’m really excited about my first full season in the Sprint Cup Series,” said Ambrose.  “For me it’s the realisation of a dream and the culmination of a lot of hard work from a lot of people… I know that I have a lot of hard work ahead of me, but I can’t wait. he said.

Ambrose will leave Ford for a full time Sprint Cup drive with Toyota

Ambrose, a two tome Australian V8 Supercar Champion moved to the United States in 2006 to pursue a career in NASCAR with the support of Ford but the opportunity to compete full time in the main series has brought that relationship to an end. “For sure, we are closing a really great chapter of my career with Ford,” said Ambrose. “We have achieved a lot together and every single race in a car with a blue oval on the front has been an absolute privilege. But at the end of the day even the best endeavors from me, the team and Ford Racing North America could not make something work for us at the premier level of NASCAR for 2009.” 

The move by Ambrose into the main series will be a big boost to the growing profile of the sport down under. Already the TEN network televises the Nationwide series on it’s HD channel with regular highlights packages of the Sprint Cup and a limited run of live Sprint Cup races. Sprint Cup races are also seen live on the pay TV network Foxsport.