Ambrose confident time will be on his side at Dover

Sunday looks to be a big day for Marcos Ambrose.

Nextel Cup debut? No. What was planned to be a gift from Robby Gordon to Ambrose was turned down by the Aussie. Gordon went so far as to enter another car in the Cup race at Dover and put Ambrose in it, but for reasons Ambrose said was to not "rush into it" he respectfully declined.

But rush is exactly what Ambrose will do this weekend. His wife, Sonja, is due with the couple's second child any day, and if she carries full term, the delivery will be Sunday.

By the Numbers

Carl Edwards has led more laps on concrete this year than most drivers have led all season.

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"We've got a plan on standby and we'll be fairly unlucky for the baby to come at a time when I can't get back, if we have to," said Ambrose, whose wife is in Charlotte. "Otherwise, she should go full term, which is Sunday anyway, so we've got our fingers crossed."

Oh yeah, that goes for the race, too.

Ambrose's team is taking a brand-new setup to Dover for Saturday's RoadLoans.com 200 (3 p.m. ET, ESPN2). That doesn't sound odd for a team with a rookie driver. But considering that Ambrose's best finish of the season came in the June race at the Monster Mile when he wound up sixth, it is a bit of a head-turner.

"I think we know what we are trying to find and what we are trying to do," a confident Ambrose said. "Whether we actually execute it on the weekend is a big question. Last time we finished sixth and we felt that we had a solid top-10 run, but we weren't good enough to do any better than that. So we've made some changes and we're trying to improve our situation."

Since the June race at Dover, Ambrose has only improved one position in the standings, from eighth to seventh. And now he's in the middle of a heated back-and-forth battle with Stephen Leicht to maintain that spot. He leads Leicht by just four points.

More importantly, however, Ambrose has improved behind the wheel. Before the Dover race, he had just two finishes of 15th or better. Since then, he has seven.

"There's no secret to this thing, it's about experience, and it's about confidence," he said. "I feel like I'm getting more confident in knowing what I want behind the wheel ... in my abilities to stay out of trouble and make the right decision on the racetrack. I think it's just time and confidence behind the wheel."

Time and confidence may be what carry Ambrose through this weekend -- on and off the racetrack.

"I'll run the gauntlet this weekend," he said. "Sonja wants to go full term if she can, and that's her decision to make. I'll just do whatever I can to be there if at all possible."

Paying back his debts
Martin Truex Jr. is firing his engine for payback on Saturday -- for his father.

"I always have a lot of friends and family come to this race, but this weekend's gonna be extra special," said Truex, who will make just his third start of the season on Saturday. "I'm running in the Busch race with my dad's company, Sea Watch, on the car. He sponsored my cars back in the day and he got out of his car and basically retired so I could take over his seat. It'd be great to pay him back with a victory."

It'd be great for many of the locals, too.

Truex grew up in Mayetta, N.J., which, as the crow flies, is a lot closer to Dover, Del., than the two-and-a-half-hour drive all the way around the Delaware Bay. But his fans and family know how to travel, especially to see their favorite son win, which he's done twice at the Monster Mile in the Busch Series. He outlasted strong showings by Kasey Kahne and Kenny Wallace to win the 2004 fall race, and did it again in the June 2005 race. Both times he went on to win the series championship.

"Dover's a special place to me for many reasons," Truex said. "I grew up close to the track and I raced there a bunch when I was coming up through the ranks. To have won there in Busch and Cup means a lot to me. The memories come flooding back every time we go to Dover."

Searching for the broom, again
All four of Carl Edwards' victories this season have come on concrete racetracks. When the series stopped at Dover back in June, Edwards was the conqueror.

But he's hit a little wall as of late. Edwards has just one top-10 finish in the last six races, and that came two weeks ago at Richmond. And he hasn't won since backing up his Dover victory with a win at Nashville three months ago.

Saturday, however, could be the momentum shifter. It will be Edwards' 100th career start in Busch Series competition.

"It's time to get our momentum back and Dover is a great place to do just that," said Edwards' crew chief, Pierre Kuettel. "We ended up in Victory Lane our last race there, and this weekend is Carl's 100th career Busch Series start. We have a simple plan for the Monster Mile: stay out of trouble, run our race, and extend our points lead."

The fight for second
With Edwards weeks away from clinching his first Busch Series championship, the race is on for second position in the standings. Give the early edge to David Reutimann.

"Our current goal is to finish top-three in the point standings," said Reutimann, who is currently tied for second with Kevin Harvick at 733 points back of Edwards.

Harvick holds the tie-breaker with his five victories to Reutimann's zero. But this weekend, Harvick isn't scheduled to race.

"Being my first full season in the Busch Series and the first year for Michael Waltrip Racing and Toyota, to finish in the top three is outstanding," Reutimann said.