Marcos Ambrose Motorsport commits to two-car Formula Ford squad
Marcos Ambrose Motorsport has confirmed that it will enter two Australian-produced Spectrums into the 2025 Formula Ford Stars and Renegades Series on the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series bill.
The team makes the step up from Hyundai Excels and will enter rising star Brad James, plus a second car for a yet-to-be-announced driver.
Ambrose is no stranger to Formula Ford and has a long history in the category that can be traced back to his father Ross, who co-founded Van Diemen International alongside Ralph Firman Sr.
Ambrose came to national prominence by finishing second to Garth Tander in the 1997 Australian Formula Ford Championship before racing in Britain. There, Ambrose was fifth in his maiden season in the highly regarded British title and improved to third in 1999, which also included the Formula Ford EuroCup success.
Of course, his Formula Ford career set the foundations for two Supercars Championships and a race winning stint in NASCAR, with Ambrose eager to support the next generation of rising stars through his Formula Ford program.
The first driver confirmed is Victorian Brad James, who makes the step up from Excels and finished third in his maiden Formula Ford start at Island Magic last year. James’ family business Carac Caravan & Camping Store will be supporting his 2025 campaign.
Playing a key role alongside Ambrose will be another previous Formula Ford champion in Adam Macrow. Vastly experienced in motor racing, Macrow is heavily involved in providing a development platform for the next generation via his extensive Excel program.
The second driver for the Marcos Ambrose Motorsport program will be announced in due course.
The opening round of the Formula Ford Stars and Renegades Series will be at Winton Motor Raceway within the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series on February 28-March 2 to be broadcast live via SBS, Fox Sports and Kayo.
Marcos Ambrose - Team Owner, Marcos Ambrose Motorsport
“We decided to bring Marcos Ambrose Motorsport back to life and we’ve pulled a few extra people in to really make it a success,” said Ambrose.
“We’ve put a deal together with Mike Borland from Spectrum to run his cars and we’ve got great support from the manufacturer as well to set-up a nice Formula Ford program around this two-car attack.
“In addition to Mike, we’ve got Adam Macrow running the program for us day-to-day as lead engineer and mechanics. Adam is a previous Formula Ford champion, so we’ve got a lot of knowledge in the team.
“We’ve chosen to enter Formula Ford due to it being the most cost effective category, which is a real race car that teaches you about set-up as the suspension is pretty much open, it’s beautifully balanced at 450kg and it’s a traditional, purpose built unit that teaches you great discipline in addition to technique.
“For me, Formula Ford is still the best training tool to teach a driver how to go about the business, which means to provide good feedback, have good discipline behind the wheel and great technique. There is nowhere to hide in open-wheel cars, if you’re not driving it properly, if you can’t feel the car underneath you or set-up it up the way you want to, it shows.
“I believe in the category and in the cars provided by Mike Borland at Spectrum, which is a home grown manufacturer and a great product. It just felt like Formula Ford is the best way to teach young drivers and understand where they are at.
“We’ve bought in Brad James from Victoria, who is a great young driver from Excels and will drive one of the Spectrums.
“We’ve worked with Brad through Excels as part of Adam Macrow’s enterprise across the country and we’ve got to know him through that. He’s a great young driver, a really nice kid, who is going to represent us very, very well. Brad’s got a very nice approach to motorsport and he’s doing it for the right reasons. I felt like it was great to have him as part of the team.
“Having two-cars is important because I think it speeds up the process during a race weekend by learning from each other, working together on set-ups and feedback, while also giving confidence to the team. I think it’s just smart to have two-cars running side-by-side and I believe it’s the way it should be done.
“It doesn’t matter who is winning, I just want the best product for the two drivers every week on the racetrack, that’s my goal.
“It’s wonderful that the AASA has taken on Formula Ford and given it a platform. A national series with great television coverage and it’s a quality place to go racing, plus I really like the way the Hi-Tec Super Series runs. I’ve watched it grow during the past few years and the opportunity for Formula Ford is really important, so I do hope it is well supported.
“The need for high quality racing to progress is important and I believe the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series will allow us to do that.”
Brad James - Driver, Marcos Ambrose Motorsport
“Marcos is a big believer in Formula Ford,” said James.
“Once you’ve done Excels for a bit, the next step is either GR Cup or Formula Ford. Marcos is a supporter of Formula Ford, so he’s decided to bring us along for the ride and I’m pretty excited about that.
“Marcos is a pretty smart guy and he really knows what he’s doing. You can learn a lot from Marcos, so whenever he says Formula Ford is the way to go you follow.
“I started go karts at 10-years-old and did that for four years, then moved into Excels with Adam Macrow. I raced in Excels for six years and Marcos joined the team, so through this association the opportunity came up to do Formula Ford.
“I completed two test days last year before racing at Island Magic where I finished second, which was a big surprise. I didn’t expect to be near the front, but it just came together and I was pretty happy with the result.
“It’s great to have the sponsors onboard and the TV package for the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series, with some cool prizes to be arranged for the series as well. It’s going to be exciting, but there is going to be some tough competition and we’ll have to see how we go."