Australian driver Marcos Ambrose has cemented his place in the competitive US NASCAR series with a new two-year deal.

Ambrose, who was at the centre of a controversial and spectacular multi-car collision last weekend, is secure after an agreement between his JTG Daugherty Racing outfit and the Michael Waltrip Racing stable.

The two companies agreed that they would operate in partnership under a technical alliance for 2010-11.

Ambrose said he was encouraged by the continuity that this deal brings to his racing program.

He said he had already gained a lot from the relationship as part of an impressive first season in the top-flight NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

JTG Daugherty Racing operates out of the Michael Waltrip Racing facility in Cornelius, North Carolina, with engineering and mechanical responsibilities all fully-integrated into the MWR operation.

"It's great news that we have realigned with MWR," Ambrose said.

"We've been very successful this year and we even came close to winning a race or two.

"We've been solid in the points all season long and this was just our first year working together as a full-time Cup operation.

"We are really looking forward to 2010 and continuing our work with MWR."

For the second race meeting in succession, the Tasmanian was involved in a massive pile-up at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama.

At the weekend he was running in the pack with three laps remaining when he was bumped into Ryan Newman whose car somersaulted end-over-end.

No-one was hurt and Ambrose was classified 34th, denying him the chance to get a fourth top 20 finish on a superspeedway this season.

He now drops one place to sit 18th in the NASCAR standings with three races remaining.