Marcos Ambrose: We’re here to win at Watkins Glen

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Marcos Ambrose is 49 points behind 16th-place Greg Biffle in the Chase standings and recognizes that even if he doesn’t win Sunday’s Cheez-It 355 at Watkins Glen International, a strong finish could mean closing the gap with four regular season races to go.

But the Richard Petty Motorsports driver, who has won two of the last three Sprint Cup races at the Glen, acknowledges that he and his No. 9 team are going for the checkered flag.

“We’ve gotta be careful because we’re 17th in [overall] points and if we can get away with a Top-5 and get closer – I think you’ve gotta be about 13th in points to feel like you’ve got a shot to make the Chase – then we can say, ‘It’s been a solid day.’ But really, we’ve come here to try and win,” Ambrose said this morning before the first Cup practice session got underway at WGI.

“At the same time, winning is very, very difficult in this series so you have to be proud of putting [good] effort in. So, for me, if I have a good day, drive the very best I can, and get out of here with a Top-5, I’ll take it as a decent day. But we’ve really come here to win.”

As one of the top road racers in the series, Ambrose is receiving extra attention this weekend as he seeks to win and join teammate Aric Almirola in NASCAR’s post-season.

But in regards to dealing with additional pressure, Ambrose said all he can worry about is driving the car.

“You know that it’s not going to be easy,” he said. “You know that there’s gonna be 10-12 guys out there that have got a serious shot to win the race. You just know going in that it’s not gonna be a cakewalk. It’s just gonna have to be a big grind to get the victory.”

In addition to testing at the Glen last month, Ambrose will be getting extra track time this weekend by competing in Saturday’s Nationwide Series race.

However, considering Ambrose’s successful Cup record at the Glen, one could argue his appearance in Saturday’s Zippo 200 is more about gathering confidence going into what will be a critical Cup race for him on Sunday.

As Ambrose himself noted, he can’t carry over a lot from the Nationwide car to his Cup car anyway.

“[The Nationwide car has] got a different set of rules – they carry the same tire, so tire pressure maybe,” he said. “[But] even the brakes are different on a Nationwide car because you’re just not going as fast and don’t need to slow it down as much.

“There’s very little you can cross over. It’s just fun to have a second race here; I’ve won three Nationwide races in a row [at Watkins Glen] and I’m gonna try to make it four.”

IndyCar disappointed by delay of video game but aiming to launch at start of 2024

IndyCar video game 2024
IndyCar
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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”