Former Owner: Ambrose Return Down-Under Is "Real Long Shot."

Marcos Ambrose says he still has no deal in place to remain in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series next season, but his former Australian V8 Supercar team owner told a Brisbane (AUS) newspaper that Ambrose is unlikely to return to his native Australia and is close to signing with another NASCAR team.

Sirius Speedway first reported on July 27 that Ambrose was close to a deal to drive the #9 Ford for Richard Petty Motorsports in 2011. Ambrose insists that no deal is imminent with RPM or anyone else, but his Australian media manager, Mark Walker, seemed to confirm the Sirius Speedway report this week. “The hot tip is that he could sign with Richard Petty Motorsports replacing Kasey Kahne or Elliott Sadler,” said Walker. “We'll be talking about it in the next couple of weeks.”

Ambrose won the 2003 and 2004 Australian V8 Supercar championships with Stone Brothers Racing, and team manager Ross Stone told the Brisbane Courier-Mail it is “highly unlikely” that his former driver will race down under next season. “I believe he's close to signing with another team (in the United States),” said Stone. “I'm going over in two weeks and I'm pretty sure the next deal is done over there. I think (Ambrose returning to Australia) is a real long shot.”