Marcos Ambrose Motorsport will compete in the Formula Ford Stars & Renegades Series in 2025 as part of the AASA-sanctioned Hi-Tec Oils Super Series.
The Stars Series is for Duratec-powered cars while the Renegades Series is for Kent-powered cars.
Ambrose will field a pair of Australian-built Spectrum open-wheelers, with one of those cars to be driven by Hyundai Excel graduate Brad James.
A driver for the second car will be named in due course.
“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.”
Ambrose will be aided by single-seater racing veteran Adam Macrow, who will run the team day-to-day.
Before stepping up to Supercars, Ambrose made his name in Formula Ford – finishing second to Garth Tander in the 1997 Australian Formula Ford Championship.
He spent two years racing in the UK equivalent, finishing fifth and third.
“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,” said Ambrose.
“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 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 homegrown 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.
“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.”
Ambrose has a long history with Formula Ford. His father Ross Ambrose co-founded Van Diemen International alongside Ralph Firman Sr.
The opening round of the Formula Ford Stars & Renegades Series takes place at Winton Motor Raceway on February 28-March 2.
Coverage will be broadcast live via free-to-air partner SBS as well as subscription services Fox Sports and Kayo.
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