#12 Ryan Newman News and Information

Ryan Newman Fan's Blog Has Moved

2007-12-08T21:38:00.000-05:00

I am moving this blog.....PLEASE FOLLOW.

I decided to go and my own domain. It is http://ryannewmaninfo.info.

Actually I have had it for a while, but this past week I actually started looking into moving the blog there.

I am running the "new" one with WORDPRESS.

My RSS feed is going to remain the same - through feedburner. There is also going to be one for comments.

Please race over to http://ryannewmaninfo.info and join me there.

Blogroll - Think I got everyone over there, if not let me know and I will add you on!!

I am not completly done over there, but that is where I am doing business as of this post!!!

Mike

Ryan Newman's Birthday - Dec 8th

2007-12-08T10:01:00.000-05:00

Today, DEC 8th is Ryan Newmans Birthday!! Newman was born in 1977.

Happy Birthday Ryan!!!

Ryan Newman's 2007 Season Review

2007-12-04T10:36:00.001-05:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 Dodge Team finished up the 2007 season in 13th place.

Newman had an average start of 13.5 and an average finish of 18.1 this year. He led 287 laps, recieved 95 bonus points and finished the season with an 86.5 rating.

Compared to the 2006 season, improvements were made. Newman known for his pole positions only earned 2 in 2006 while earning 5 in 2007 (the other 4 years were higher than 5 poles). He had 7 top 5 finishes and 15 top 10 finishes this year compared to 2 and 7 last year.

Ryan Newman fans don't have to much to complain about regarding the 2007 Nascar Nextel Cup season. Sure Newman and his team finished 13th - outside the chase. Newman flirted with the 12th place position a lot this year but was never able to break into the top 12. Every time he got close, he fell back a position or 2.

Newman had some VERY bad luck during this 2007 season which really hampered his chances at making the chase.

In the 2007 season Newman was plagued with accidents and engine trouble. He was caught up in accidents in 4 different races and had engine problems in 5 races. That is 9 out of 36 races that he had fatal problems. He also had other problems like being on pit road at the wrong time (caution), having tires go down and it seems like a slew of other things. It is possible that rain even kept him from a win (Pocono). A tire definetly kept him from a win (Lowes). Newman even started the year with engine problems (Daytona 500).

These are not excuses for Newman, but it all did happen and it all did hurt his season.

But, on the brighter side of things, Newman's 2007 season was a lot better than his 2006 season. Newman really had a mulligan season in 2006 finishing in the 18th position. That was his worst year in his Nascar Nextel Cup career. In his first 4 seasons in the Nextel Cup (starting full time in 2002) his worst finishing position of the year was 7th. As long as Newman keeps going up in the points standings and overall him and his team mates keep doing a good job, Newman fans should not get to discouraged.

Ryan Newman's team mate Kurt Busch had the luxury this year of having no engine failures. So, I don't believe the engines Penske is getting are bad. In fact I think they are pretty good. I do how ever think that Newman's crew chief this year - Mike Nelson (new criew chief for the 2007 season) may not have been getting the engine right.

With 3 races left in the season, Newman was quoted as saying that they had "de-tuned" the engine a little to ensure that it lasted for the whole race. That kind of told me that it had been being "over tuned". Here is the quote from qualifying at Atlanta for the Dickies 500 -

"We're caught between a rock and a hard place. We're detuning the engine just enough so we can make the race but then we're hoping it will last for 500 miles."

They started 11th and finished 5th for that race. It is hard to judge one race or what exactly was done for other races, but this seemed to work.

For the last 10 races of the year Newman and his team did a great job. Newman had 2 engine failures and 2 accidents. After that 5 of the other last 6 were top 10 finishes with 4 of those being top 5 finishes.

Newman went win less in 2006 and 2007 making it 81 races and leading 530 laps since his last win. That win came back in 2005 on 09/18/2005 at New Hampshire - is only win of 2005.

LOOKING FORWARD -

I am looking for good things from Newman and his #12 Penske Racing team next year for the Sprint Cup (I still think that sounds wrong). Newman should be in the chase next year and I think early in the year Newman will break his win less streak.

Newman will be getting a new crew chief for the 2008 season. Roy McCulley will take of the duties of Mike Nelson who was promoted with in Penske. I have a good feeling about Roy and Ryan working together. During the 2006 season Newman ran in 9 Busch series races with Roy as his crew chief - he won 6 of those races. So I think these 2 have established that they can work together.

Newman and his team mate Kurt Bucsh (and their teams) seem to get along good and I think that helps. You always see (if your looking through them) pictures of Newman hanging out with Kurt Busch and Kurt's team. Penske is adding a team also in 2008. Sam Hornish JR. will be driving the #77 Mobil 1 Sprint Cup car. having an addition team mate could be an advantage for Newman. Hopefully it won't take away from any of the resorces that Newman does currently have.

Newman's contract with Penske will be over at the end of the 2008 season. There are rumors and speculations that Newman will move on to another team. I hope that this is not the case. I think Newman will have a great year in 2008 and decide to stay with Penske - and Penske will want to keep him.

A good thing about Newman is that he is a "nice guy". On and off the track. Or so he appears to be. Rarely is he in the news headlines for making someone mad or driving to aggressively. He isn't one of these arrogant guys that wants to be interviewed 15 times a day or tries to make sure he is in the news all of the time.

I think he needs to be a little more aggressive. He needs to get punt other cars out of the way sometimes like some other drivers do. Don't get me wrong. He will race hard and he won't always easily give up positions. But I feel like he needs to be a little more "in-your-face" sometimes.

Good luck to Ryan for his 7th Sprint Cup season in 2008.

Mike

Newman’s turning point?

2007-12-03T09:25:00.001-05:00

Below is a pretty good article that STEVE WAID wrote for SceneDaily.

While this is speculation, it could evolve into reality. The 2008 Sprint Cup season could be a pivotal one for Ryan Newman.

His contract with Penske Racing ends at the conclusion of the coming season, and, if things don't improve competitively, he might be tempted to move on.

Newman has been with Penske full time since 2002, and he was a winner three years. From 2002-2005, Newman won 12 races and accumulated 34 poles. He was firmly entrenched in NASCAR's upper echelon.

Funny how things can change.

Newman hasn't won a race in two years. In fact, he's had only nine finishes among the top five. He's not used to that sort of thing.

In 2006, he had only two top-five finishes and seven among the top 10. Things were better this year, with seven top-five finishes and 15 among the top 10.

Newman didn't make the Chase this season, but as it wound to a close, he had a string of good performances that helped elevate him to 13th in the final point standings.

Newman had four top-five finishes in the last seven races of the Chase, including three in the last five. He should have won the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, where he easily sped into the lead on a late restart – and was going away - but crashed due to a tire problem. He wound up 28th.

There have been some changes at Penske, notably among crew chiefs, intended to provide improvement. And while Newman did have it bit better this season than last, he still hasn't returned to winning form.

While it is simply conjecture, it's not hard to think Newman might listen to proposals from other teams should he go winless again in 2008. I think he'd be an attractive commodity.

But that might not mean anything if Newman becomes the old Newman in the new year.

'Stewie Awards' handed out

2007-12-03T09:22:00.001-05:00

Two-time NASCAR champion Tony Stewart and radio sidekick Matt Yocum decided earlier this year that the stock car sport needed some awards to rival Hollywood's Oscars and Emmies.

Thus were the Stewie Awards born.

Stewart and Yocum, who co-host a weekly show on Sirius Satellite Radio, asked listeners to vote online in 12 categories. They handed out the inaugural Stewies this week in New York as part of NASCAR's Champion's Week celebration.

Stewie Lifetime Achievement Award

Bill France, Jr., former Chairman and CEO of NASCAR
Benny Parsons, Hall of Fame driver/broadcaster

Golden Stewie Award - Honoring a legendary driver from the Golden Era of racing (1960-85)

A.J. Foyt

Best Duet - For outstanding teamwork by a driver and crew chief

Clint Bowyer & Gil Martin: Martin keeps Bowyer calm and team performs only one adjustment all day to get Bowyer's first career NASCAR NEXTEL Cup win in Sylvania 300 (Sept. 16)

Best Original Drama - For year's most exciting race moment

Kevin Harvick edges Mark Martin to win his first Daytona 500 (Feb. 18) –

New Kid on the Track Award - For year's most outstanding performance by a rookie

Juan Pablo Montoya: Wins first NEXTEL Cup race in Toyota Save Mart 350 (June 24)

Best Stunt Sequence (Hal Needham Award) - For year's most spectacular crash

Clint Bowyer: Crosses finish line at Daytona 500 on his roof (Feb. 18) –

Best Original Comedy - For year's most entertaining on track "incident" or occurrence

Robby Gordon performs "victory celebration" burnout despite losing Busch Series race at Circuit Gilles Villaneuve in Canada (Aug. 4)

Best Vocal Performance - For year's most memorable quote or sound bite

Actor Kevin James: Provides memorable "Start Your Engines" command before Pepsi 400 (July 7) –

Best Engineering and Special Effects (Smokey Yunick Award) - For year's most creative - and ultimately illegal - modifications to a race car

Crew Chief David Hyder & MWR VP of Competition Bobby Kennedy: Illegal fuel in #55 car at Daytona 500 (Feb. 18)

Dazed and Confused Award - For year's the most baffling move

Teresa Earnhardt and DEI allow Dale Earnhardt Jr. to leave for Hendrick Motorsports –

'I Got Dumped' Award - For year's most memorable on-track bumping

Kyle Busch: Wrecked by brother Kurt in NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge (May 19) –

Best Driver2Crew Chatter Exchange - For year's most memorable driver-to-pit crew communication

Denny Hamlin/#11 team: Discuss "plan of attack" against Dale Earnhardt Jr. and #8 car during Subway 500 (Oct. 21)

3rd Annual Ryan Newman Foundation Charity Dinner & Auction on Friday, December 7, 2007

2007-11-30T08:06:00.001-05:00

Sponsored by Alltel Wireless and Outback Steakhouse

WHEN: 6 to 8 PM, Friday, December 7, 2007 (Tickets ordered from today until December 5th will be held at the registration table to be picked up on December 7th. Tickets will not be mailed after today.)

WHERE: Mooresville, North Carolina

WHAT: Ryan and Krissie Newman invite you to enjoy a delicious Outback Steakhouse dinner, meet and mingle with NASCAR drivers and pro fisherman in the Charles Mack Citizen Center ballroom in historic downtown Mooresville, NC. Charity auction items include autographed NASCAR and fishing memorabilia, and more!

ATTIRE: Business Casual

TICKETS: $100 per person; $175 per cople; $5,000 Table Sponsorship (table of 8 at a reserved table--click here for a list of additional sponsorship benefits). Seating is limited to 175 people so we can offer our guests an intimate setting that gives everyone a chance to meet our special guests. Register today to reserve your ticket.

DETAILS: For more information or to register online, visit Ryan Newman Foundation Events Web Page.

AUCTION ITEMS: Autographed Tony Stewart Fire Suit, Autographed Ryan Newman Fire Suit, Autographed Kyle Petty Fire Suit, Autographed Ryan Newman #12 Sheet Meatl, Autographed Jimmie Johnson Championship Champagne, Autographed Martin Truex, Jr. memorabilia, Autographed Regan Smith Memorabilia, Autographed John Andretti Memorabilia, Autographed Ryan Newman Simpson Driving Gloves, Autographed Ryan Newman Simpson Driving Shoes, Autographed Ryan Newman Helmet Sheild, Autographed Ryan Newman #12 Alltel, Mobil 1, and Kodak 1:24 Limited Edition Die-Cast Cars and Ball Caps, Autographed Poster and CD, Autographed Orange County Choppers Memorabilia, Autographed Sports Memorabilia, and much, much more!!!

From - The Ryan Newman Foundation

Penske Racing Announces Organizational Changes For 2008

2007-11-29T13:29:00.001-05:00

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Nov. 28, 2007) Saying goodbye to one of its longtime leaders and fortifying itself for the future, Penske Racing announced several key organizational changes for the 2008 NASCAR season on Wednesday.

Don Miller, who has served as President of Penske Racing South Inc. since its inception in 1990, is retiring from his position after nearly two successful decades at the highest levels of stock car racing. Miller, 68, has presided over 75 victories, 95 pole positions and more than $90 million in winnings for Penske Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series as well as NASCAR Busch and ARCA series events.

Penske Racing also announced Wednesday that Mike Nelson, who just completed his first season as crew chief of the No.12 Alltel Dodge driven by Ryan Newman, has been promoted to Vice President of Operations. In his new role, Nelson will oversee Penskes entries in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series, reporting to Tim Cindric, President of Penske Performance Inc.

In addition, Roy McCauley, an experienced crew chief and engineer for Penske Racing since 2002, has been named crew chief for the No. 12 Alltel team. Reuniting a winning combination, McCauley will once again be paired with Newman. The duo produced wins in six of the nine Busch Series races they competed in during the 2005 season, with McCauley serving as crew chief.

On behalf of our 39,000 employees, I want to thank Don Miller for all hes done for Penske Racing over the years, Roger Penske said. Hes been a partner and great friend and he will definitely be missed. Were looking forward to the 2008 season and were excited about the new opportunities for both Mike and Roy as they focus on the challenges ahead.

A native of Chicago who began his motorsports career as a drag racer in the 1950s, Miller has done more than just guide one of the winningest programs in racing over the last 17 years. Hes also a top designer who has been at the forefront in developing safety measures in NASCAR.

Its been a pleasure and an honor to help lead Penske Racing, Miller said. Under Rogers direction, the organization has seen tremendous growth and Im proud of all that we accomplished.

After joining Penske Racing as a data acquisition engineer in 1998, Nelson was on hand for Newman's first test with the team in April 2000, eventually becoming the first race engineer for the Alltel squad. The 34-year-old former motorcycle and motocross racer was named crew chief for the No. 12 car in December 2006.

McCauley, 37, became chief engineer for Penske Racings NASCAR operation in December 2002. After heading up the organizations driver development team, he teamed with Newman for a successful Busch Series run in 05. McCauley became crew chief for the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge driven by Kurt Busch for the 2006 season, capturing a win at Bristol. McCauley began 07 in the same role before Pat Tryson took control of the team at mid-season after McCauley stepped aside due to his wifes illness.

Both Mike and Roy have worked hard to advance in the Penske Racing organization and they are a testament to our process of promoting from within, Cindric commented. We are looking to build on the strong performances we achieved in the second half of 2007 and we feel that both Mike and Roy are in the right positions to help us get to where we want to be.

Penske Racing is one of the most successful teams in the history of professional sports. Competing in a variety of disciplines, cars owned and prepared by Penske Racing have 295 major race wins and 21 National Championships. The team will field three entries in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, including the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge driven by 2004 NASCAR Cup Champion, Kurt Busch; the No. 12 Alltel Dodge with Ryan Newman at the wheel; and the No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge with former Indianapolis 500 and three-time IndyCar Series Champion, Sam Hornish, Jr., making his full-season stock car racing debut.

Dodge makes switch to Charger as its COT model

2007-11-29T13:22:00.001-05:00

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Dodge has confirmed that it will race the Charger in the Sprint Cup Series in 2008 and beyond, continuing to add to its rich NASCAR tradition. The Avenger had been used as the make's Car of Tomorrow model in 2007.

Dodge has elected to continue the winning tradition that legends David Pearson, Bobby Isaac and Richard Petty established in the 1970s by designating the Charger as the nameplate Dodge teams will use in the Sprint Cup Series next year.

"Racing is the core of Dodge's DNA," said Michael Accavitti, the director of Dodge Brand and SRT Global Marketing. "Dodge has a racing heritage that spans many different nameplates and models, and the Charger is the cornerstone of that heritage.

"When NASCAR originally announced the phase-in plan for the Car of Tomorrow, it made sense for Dodge to race the Charger and Avenger. When the decision was made to race only one car next year, we talked with our partners, the more than 2,500 Dodge Dealers across the country, and they expressed overwhelming support for Dodge to continue its motorsports heritage with the Charger nameplate.

"Since 2001 when Dodge returned to NASCAR," he added, "the goal has been to win races and ultimately the championship. Those goals have been accomplished with the Charger previously and we are committed to make it happen again."

The 2008 Dodge Charger lineup will feature five teams with 12 drivers that are a mixture of seasoned veterans, experienced young talent and champions from other racing series that are newcomers to NASCAR.

nascar.com

2nd Annual Ryan Newman Foundation Charity Fishing Tournament on Saturday, December 8, 2007

2007-11-29T08:18:00.001-05:00

THIS IS FROM THE RYAN NEWMAN FOUNDATION -

Due to the large amount of interest in our 2nd Annual Charity Fishing Tourney, we have extended the online registration until midnight on Friday, November 30th! Registration has been expanded to 250 teams this year. Guarantee your spot today by registering online. To register online with a credit card, click here.

Note: FLW Outdoors will take walk-in registrations at the mandatory team check-in, which will be held at the Charles Mack Citzien Center in Mooresville, NC from 2 to 4:30 PM on Friday, December 7 at the late registration fee rates. However, registration is first-come, first-serve, and if the tournament sells out before December 7th, fisherman will be turned away. To guarantee your spot, register online today.

Ryan Newman, driver of Penske Racing's #12 Alltel Dodge, is inviting NASCAR fans and fisherman to join him and fellow NASCAR drivers Martin Truex, Jr. and Regan Smith, professional bass angler Kevin Van Dam, and Two Foot Fred from the Musik Mafia at the second annual Ryan Newman Foundation Charity Fishing Tournament sponsored by Ranger Boats on Saturday, December 8, 2007at Queen's Landing on Lake Norman in Mooresville , NC .

Ryan Newman Foundation Charity Bass Tournament Sponsored by Ranger Boats

WHEN: 7:30 AM - 3:00 PM, Saturday, December 8, 2007

WHERE: Queen's Landing on Lake Norman in Mooresville, North Carolina

TICKETS: Late Registration (after November 8) $200 per team; Big Fish Contest ($40 per team); Raffle Ticket ($5 per ticket)

To register online with a credit card, click here.

To register by mail with a check, visit Ryan Newman Foundation Events Web Page to download the registration form.

Bass Tournament (total weight - 5 fish per team); only largemouth and spotted bass may be weighed; minimum 14" length; only artificial lures are permitted. Complete rules will be mailed after pre-registration is processed. The tournament will be facilitated by FLW Outdoors.

Grand Prize is a 198VX Ranger Boat with a 200 HP Evinrude engine, Minn-Kota Maxxum 80 trolling motor, Humminbird 767 depth finder and single axle trailer (valued at $38,000)! Other prizes include cash, trolling motors, GPS systems, depth finders, rods/reels, Alltel Wireless phones, Solar Batsunglasses, digital cameras & more!

Raffle Prizes includes items from Evinrude, Ranger Boats, FLW Outdoors, Mobil 1, Alltel, Dick's Sporting Goods, NASCAR Memorabilia, Bill Dance Memorabilia, #12 Ryan Newman tee-shirts, die-cast cars, and more! Buy your raffle tickets today online with a credit card or bring cash to the tournament team-check in.

Great Season for the Alltel Pit Crew

2007-11-27T22:29:00.001-05:00

New Ryan Newman Crew Chief Update

2007-11-27T11:44:00.001-05:00

The Following is an update from Jayski.com. McCaulley will be taking over the crew chief position for the #12 Alltel Dodge.

McCually was Kurt Busch's Crew Chief for the 2006 season and the beginning of the 2007 season. He had to take a leave of abscence in April of 2007 to care for his wife who is battling leukemia. I don't know what his wife's status is.

Ryan Newman and Roy McCaulley have worked together before. McCaulley was Newman's Busch series Crew Chief in 2006 when Newman won 6 out of nine of the Busch Series races that he competed in.

That alone gives me a little better feeling about the 2008 season with a new crew chief. Forget the wins, just the fact that they have worked together before. Then fact that they had great success is a huge plus.

McCaulley's bio is below in the Penske write up.

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THE FOLLOWING IS FROM PENSKE RACING.COM ON OCTOBER 2ND.

Roy McCauley is making a comeback as a crew chief, heading up Sam Hornish Jr.'s effort in the No. 06 Penske Truck Rental Dodge.

McCauley, who was previously the Miller Lite team¿s crew chief, became chief engineer of Penske Racing's NASCAR operation in December 2002. He also served as the crew chief for the organization's driver development team. In 2004, he oversaw the team that fielded a NEXTEL Cup car in four races one for Chad Blount and three for Travis Kvapil. In 2005, McCauley directed the Busch Series team that won six of the nine races in which it competed with driver Ryan Newman. He also was the crew chief for Kvapil's ARCA victory at Pocono.

McCauley says it was competition that attracted him to racing.

We could race shopping carts and I would still be a part of it, says McCauley, who was born March 10, 1970.

Even though McCauley didn't work in racing until he was an adult, his family was involved in the sport from the time he was an infant. McCauley¿s father, Kirk, raced in Late Model Sportsman and Late Model Stock events at short tracks in Maryland and Virginia in the late 1960s and early 70s. He then leased and operated the speedway in Beltsville, Md., from the mid to late 1970s.

McCauley graduated from the University of Maryland in 1992 with a degree in mechanical engineering. He entered racing in 1993 in the open-wheel ranks as a design engineer with Pat Patrick Racing. McCauley remained with the Indianapolis-based team for four years before moving to PacWest in 1998.

McCauley left PacWest and moved to PPI Motorsports as the race engineer in 2000 when PPI owner Cal Wells began fielding a team in NASCAR's Cup division.

Two years later McCauley joined Penske Racing's NASCAR operation as its head engineer. While serving in that capacity, McCauley oversaw a 17-person department that included 11 engineers, and was responsible for all of the operation's design work, aerodynamic and chassis development, component design, and simulation development.

McCauley and wife Amy reside in Sherrills Ford, N.C.

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THE FOLLOWING IS FROM JAYSKI.COM ON 11/17/07

UPDATE: been told that Mike Nelson will be in the front office overseeing the Cup side of the business and Roy McCaulley will be Ryan Newman's crew chief, and Matt Gimbel will be the interim crew chief for #77 Sam Horish Jr. until a permanent crew chief is chosen, then he will be the race engineer for #77 team. Also, been told that Penske Racing's Don Miller will retire.(11-27-2007)

2007-11-23T11:21:00.001-05:00

Jayski.com is reporting that Penske may be shifting things around a bit. They are reporting that Ryan Newman and the #12 Alltel Dodge team may have a new crew chief for the 2008 season.

Under current Crew Chief Mike Nelson, Ryan Newman and the #12 team had 5 DNF's due to engine related problems this year. I also just kept getting the sense that Newman was never really happy with the way his car was set up - if any driver is ever really happy with it.

But I am not sure a crew chief change should be the answer. In the last 16 races of the year the lowest RUNNING finish (no accidents or engine problems) was 16th. He also only had 4 finishes outside the top 10 and 4 top 5 finishes. In that same time frame he had 3 races end with engine problems and 3 ending with accidents.

All in all not bad. I think swapping out crew chiefs could lead to another struggling year for Newman in 2008. Even if it he is the best crew chief in the world, Newman and his crew chief are going to have to learn how to get along, how to talk and how to understand what the other one is saying. It can take a little time to get adjusted to each other.

But this currently a rumor - I believe. Here is the posting that Jayski.com has -

Crew Chief change at the #12? #77 needs one? hearing Roy McCauley take over as the crew chief for the #12 alltel Penske Racing team for driver Ryan Newman. McCauley started the 2007 season as Kurt Busch's crew chief in the #2 Dodge. Supposedly current #12 crew chief, Mike Nelson, will move over to a management position at Penske Racing. The crew chief job for the #77 team and driver Sam Hornish Jr. is supposedly open.(11-17-2007)

Back to normal

2007-11-22T21:30:00.000-05:00

Thank you to everyone for the comments and congradulations -- we are VERY happy.

Ok, life is settling down now. I do have some stories about the last weekends race posted. They are posted late, but are mainly for my records.

Life is going good with the new addition to the family. Faith is VERY healthy and mom has recovered amazingly well.

And big brother is awesome. He is really great with his sissy. He has helped a lot to make the addition to the family a very smooth transition. Being almost 20 months old, and previously the only child, we expected some jelously and stuff. But there is none and he cares and worries about sissy alot.

So, now we can get back to normal. I will be working on the page and some stories over the next week.

Newman Takes 13th In Standings

2007-11-22T21:26:00.000-05:00

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (Nov. 18, 2007) ¿ Kurt Busch's second-place finish in Sunday's Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway allowed the Las Vegas native to gain three positions in the standings to place seventh, his best performance in the points since he won the series title in 2004.

Ryan Newman finished 18th in the season finale on the 1.5-mile track to come home 13th in the standings, the highest finishing non-Chase competitor, while Sam Hornish Jr. took 37th in his second NASCAR NEXTEL Cup event.

Busch's Miller Lite Dodge was the only Dodge in this year's title Chase and the 29-year-old driver said he was pleased with his car's performance Sunday evening.

"We feel like we went out with a bang with this good car," said Busch, who led twice for 17 laps in the 267-lap event. "We came up just a bit shy, but, overall, just a great season for us to win a couple races and be in contention at a lot of race tracks. We finished seventh overall. That¿s a nice feather in the cap. This team deserves it. We worked really hard and hopefully, we will carry this right on into Daytona.
¿We felt like this was a successful season for us at Penske Racing in the Miller Lite Dodge. We definitely had what we need at some of the races, then, at some of the race tracks where we led laps we just didn¿t seal the deal to finish off the race. Tonight, it was a great feather in the cap for our team. The great teamwork that it took to put together a very successful summer stretch to get into the Chase was fantastic. Everybody at Miller is ecstatic.

"We put together a good effort during the Chase. We could be stronger. We need to work on our COT program if we want to compete for next year¿s championship. That¿s the bottom line. We got a little taste of it this year, and the teams that ran well with the COT finished up front in the points. Next season that is what Penske Racing is all about.¿

Busch's Miller Lite Dodge was strong from the race's beginning, but he lost a lap at the 100-lap mark when he had to pit with a loose left-rear wheel. The unscheduled green-flag stop dropped Busch outside the top 30.

Busch regained his lost lap when the next round of green-flag stops began. However, only a handful of laps separated Busch from running third and on the lead lap to having to pit and going down a lap to the front-runners. It was then that Newman spun, bringing out the fourth caution flag and insuring Busch his position on the lead lap.

During Busch's final stop, his Miller Lite Dodge received four fresh tires. His final opportunity to catch and pass leader Matt Kenseth occurred when the last yellow flag appeared on lap 254. When the race restarted on lap 257, Busch was third. He immediately passed Martin Truex Jr. for second and set sail for Kenseth. Busch, however, could never catch Kenseth and he had to settle for second.

"I felt like we had a legitimate shot at chasing Matt down," Busch said when asked if he thought he had a chance to catch Kenseth on the final restart. "I had to pass the one car [Martin Truex Jr.] first of all. Once we cleared him it just seemed like Matt and I had a beam mounted with his rear bumper and my front bumper. I couldn¿t break that 10-car length advantage that he had. Not due to aero, just due to the fact that he was fast. The way that the race went all day he was the car to beat. We were a challenger and we came up a bit short. I thought we were going to give it our all and we came up in second place. The bump up in points was the bigger objective today and we were able to do that.¿

Newman led three times for seven laps before a loose race car resulted in his second-turn spin on lap 149. Newman's Alltel Dodge was too tight in the race's first 100 laps, so when he pitted on lap 132, crew chief Mike Nelson ordered a track bar adjustment, along with four fresh tires and fuel.

The Alltel Dodge was now too loose and Newman brought out the fourth caution flag when he lost control of his car and spun into the second turn's grass. The car's valance and right-rear quarter panel were damaged in the incident. Even though Newman didn't lose a lap while repairs were made to his car, he dropped to 19th and was never able to recover.

The highest Newman would climb after the accident was 15th, but his car was still too loose and he fell to 18th in a few short laps.

Hornish, who qualified 29th, had to start in the rear of the field due to an engine change in his Mobil 1 Dodge after Saturday's final practice. He had issues with his car throughout the race, but he was still grateful for the experience he received in preparation for the 2008 season.

¿Well, I have twice as much Cup experience as I had last week. Every time I go out that is that much more," said Hornish, who brought out the sixth of seven caution flags when he scraped the third-turn wall on lap 193. "I¿m really happy that the team gave me the opportunity to do this, this year and get started. It¿s going to be a long, uphill process, but we¿ve got a goal in mind and hopefully, we get there.

¿I¿m real excited. I¿m excited to see what happens; how we can learn throughout the year and how we progress.¿

NEWMAN STARTS ON FRONT ROW FOR SUNDAY'S SEASON FINALE AT HOMESTEAD

2007-11-22T21:21:00.000-05:00

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, qualified second Friday for the season finale Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Sunday.

Newman, who was 12th among the 49 drivers attempting to make this year's final race, recorded a lap of 30.583 seconds – 176.569 mph – just 0.038 of a second behind pole sitter Jimmie Johnson's time of 30.545 seconds.

"Honestly, I didn't think it [my lap] was near as good as it was speed-wise," Newman said during his post-qualifying press conference. "When they said it was a 58 (seconds) I was like, 'Man that is really good.' Knowing that the track was a little bit hotter, we tuned on the car and made it over a 10th quicker, so I really didn't expect Jimmie (Johnson) to come and bust out that lap.

"I really thought that after practice Kasey (Kahne) was going to be the guy to beat and he was…he just wasn't the only guy to beat. It was a good, smooth lap. I just didn't feel like I slipped the car enough to make it go any faster. In saying that, if I did, it might have gone slower."

Newman's front-row start gives him four top-five starts at the 1.5-mile track and ties his career-best start. He started second in 2005 and finished seventh. Newman now has a 7.0 starting average at the South Florida track.

Coverage of Sunday's Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway will be televised live by ABC and broadcast by MRN Radio beginning at 3 p.m. EST.

Line-up for the Ford 400:
1. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet
2. Ryan Newman, No. 12 Alltel Dodge
3. Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Dodge Dealers Lifetime Powertrain Warranty/UAW Dodge
4. Matt Kenseth, No. 17 DeWalt NANO Technology Ford
5. Kurt Busch, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge
29. Sam Hornish Jr., No. 06 Mobil 1 Dodge

Newman Earns Front Row Starting Position

2007-11-22T21:20:00.000-05:00

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (Nov. 16, 2007) ¿ Ryan Newman snatched a front row starting position in qualifying Friday for this weekend's Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway, while Kurt Busch collected a top five and Sam Hornish Jr. nailed down a starting spot in a NASCAR Cup race for the second straight week.

Newman's 30.583-second lap ¿ 176.569 mph ¿ in his Alltel Dodge Charger initially provided the Indiana native with the provisional pole. However, he eventually had to settle for second due to points leader Jimmie Johnson's lap that was only 0.038 second quicker than Newman.

"I really didn't expect Jimmie (Johnson) to come and bust out that lap. I really thought that after practice Kasey (Kahne) was going to be the guy to beat ¿ he just wasn¿t the only guy to beat," said Newman, who was the top qualifying Dodge on the 1.5-mile track.

Newman, who now possesses four top-five starts at Homestead, said he didn't think his qualifying lap was as good as it was speed-wise.

"When they said it was a 58 (seconds) I was like, 'Man, that is really good,'" continued Newman, who tied his best qualifying effort. "Knowing that the track was a little bit hotter, we tuned on the car and made it over a 10th quicker."
Busch and his Miller Lite team experienced quite an interesting day when compared to that of his teammates. First, there was an encounter with the wall. Next, the Miller Lite Dodge had a leaking radiator.

Friday's morning practice was only five laps old when the No. 2 Dodge Charger broke loose and smacked the wall between turns 3 and 4. The damage sustained to the car's right side forced Busch into the garage for extensive repairs.

The Pat Tryson-led team repaired the damage in time to have Busch back on the track with 25 minutes remaining in the 90-minute session. Beating the odds, Busch clocked in with the seventh-fastest practice lap.

But the team's troubles weren't over. After a fine stream of fluid was detected under the front of the Miller Lite Dodge, it was determined that the car had a leaking radiator. Quick work by the team between practice and qualifying had the blue deuce late through the tech line, yet on schedule to take to the track 19th in the qualifying order, as mandated by the morning's draw.

"It's been quite an interesting day here, to say the least,¿ said Busch, who recorded a 30.692-second, 175.942-mph lap for the fifth starting position. "Today certainly illustrates what a great team that our Pat Tryson-led Miller Lite Dodge crew is. We were definitely behind the eight ball, but nobody panicked. We picked up almost a 10th and a half (of a second) between practice and qualifying and we can¿t ask for much more than that. To have a shot at Ryan (Newman) on a Friday qualifying day -- that means you did something good.

"I am confident that we¿ll have a car capable of winning the race here on Sunday. It¿ll certainly be a special win if we can pull it off. Tomorrow¿s two practice sessions may just be the two most important practices of the entire year.¿

Hornish's 31.021-second, 174.076-mph lap provided the Mobil 1 Dodge Charger with the 29th starting position.

"For the most part, it was pretty good," Hornish said about his qualifying lap that made him the sixth fastest among the 14 drivers that had to make the grid on speed. "We were a little bit too tight with the car. That hurt us a little bit, but I think our times are pretty respectable."

Hornish made his Cup debut last weekend in the Car of Tomorrow ¿ Dodge Avenger ¿ but qualified Friday in the Dodge Charger. The Ohio native admits that unlike most NASCAR drivers, he's glad the COT will be used in every race next year.

"I¿m so used to a car that doesn¿t move around this much [as the Dodge Charger]," Hornish said. "The Car of Tomorrow is a jump in that direction. It¿s not anywhere near it, but it¿s more in that range. I actually like the Car of Tomorrow a lot better because it doesn¿t move around as much (as the Charger)."

Coverage of Sunday's Ford 400 begins at 3 p.m. on ABC and MRN Radio.

NASCAR'sNewest Fan Has Joined Us

2007-11-17T12:17:00.000-05:00

Faith Ann Pratt (my daughter) was born yesterday (Nov 16th, 2007) at 10:21 am. 6 lbs 8 oz and 19 inches long.

Jeni woke me up at 4 am and told me it was time to go. Waking me up can be a real treat so after asking her a bunch of "I am still sleeping questions" I finally came to and jumped out of bed. We were up, coffee brewed, T.J. (our 19 month old) dressed and at the hospital by 4:45 am.

We are so happy and Mama and Faith are 100% healthy. Probably going home today.

So my race coverage this week will also probably be next to nothing.

She is a good NASCAR fan comiing into the world when she did, I will be able to see Sundays race, the last race of 2007.

Newman Could Takes Risks At Homestead For A Win

2007-11-15T20:16:00.000-05:00

FOXSPORTS

Ryan Newman
The "Rocket Man" has been dominant of late, racing to three top-five finishes in his past four starts and four in his past six rides. Of course, Newman's also seen four of his past eight starts finish early because of accidents and engine issues. Therefore, he's a high-risk, high-reward proposition for this weekend's run at Homestead-Miami. He's raced to two top-10 finishes in five career starts with three top-five qualifying efforts. However, he's also had two efforts end early because of accidents.

Noting Newman - Homestead

2007-11-14T20:45:00.000-05:00

-- Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, will make his sixth Cup start at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will be his 224th career start in the Cup Series.

-- Newman has an average start of 8.0 and an average finish of 20.6 at the 1.5-mile track. All of his starts have been 16th or higher, including three from the top-five.

-- Newman has two top-10 finishes at Homestead. His other finishes have been 23rd, 30th and 37th.

-- Newman has led 133 laps in three races. He has completed 1,187 laps of a possible 1,340 since he made his debut in 2002 at the south Florida track. Newman has a completion rate of 88.6 percent.

-- Crew chief Mike Nelson and the Alltel team are taking chassis PRS-110 to Homestead as its primary car. This was the car Newman raced at Texas where he qualified 11th and finished fifth. The backup car is chassis PRS-108. This car was last raced in Atlanta at the end of October. It qualified ninth, but finished 37th after developing engine problems.

Newman On Homestead: ¿This is our last chance to get a win before the season is over and I think we have a good chance of getting it done. Our team has been solid the last couple of weeks and even though we had some problems in Atlanta, we¿ve still been running really well.¿

¿I¿m really proud of our team and the way they¿ve been able to battle back throughout the season. It seems like every time we have a bad weekend, we come back to the track and have a few good finishes in a row. That shows how dedicated these guys are. They¿re not going to let one bad week keep them from working hard the next week and getting good finishes in the Alltel Dodge.¿

NEWMAN LOOKING FOR WIN

2007-11-14T20:38:00.000-05:00

Ryan Newman will make his sixth Cup start at Homestead-Miami Speedway. It will be his 224th career start in the Cup Series.

"This is our last chance to get a win before the season is over and I think we have a good chance of getting it done. Our team has been solid the last couple of weeks and even though we had some problems in Atlanta, we've still been running really well," Newman said.

Newman has an average start of 8.0 and an average finish of 20.6 at the 1.5-mile track. All of his starts have been 16th or higher, including three from the top-five.

Newman has two top-10 finishes at Homestead. His other finishes have been 23rd, 30th and 37th.

Newman has led 133 laps in three races. He has completed 1,187 laps of a possible 1,340 since he made his debut in 2002 at the south Florida track. Newman has a completion rate of 88.6 percent.

Crew chief Mike Nelson and the Alltel team are taking chassis PRS-110 to Homestead as its primary car. This was the car Newman raced at Texas where he qualified 11th and finished fifth. The back-up car is chassis PRS-108. This car was last raced in Atlanta at the end of October. It qualified ninth, but finished 37th after developing engine problems.

"I'm really proud of our team and the way they've been able to battle back throughout the season. It seems like every time we have a bad weekend, we come back to the track and have a few good finishes in a row," Newman said. "That shows how dedicated these guys are. They're not going to let one bad week keep them from working hard the next week and getting good finishes in the Alltel Dodge."

NASCAR overall TV ratings down 2nd straight year

2007-11-14T20:35:00.002-05:00

NASCAR ends its season Sunday with ratings down again this year. And while it has fan interest beyond its Southern base, it’s still an also-ran in big cities outside the South. This season’s NASCAR Nextel Cup races — airing on Fox, TNT, ESPN and ABC — are averaging 4.2% of U.S. TV households — down 9% from last year’s average and off 21% from 2005. ABC’s Checker Auto Parts 500 on Sunday — when Jimmie Johnson virtually nailed down the season points title — showed interest still is largely regional.

The race drew 10.5% of households in Greenville, S.C., 9.1% in Knoxville, Tenn. and 7.8% in Birmingham, Ala. But it drew just 1.3% in New York, 1.9% in Los Angeles and 2.4% in Chicago. Dick Glover, NASCAR vice president/broadcasting, notes the average NASCAR race ratings in New York (1.9%), Los Angeles (2.1%) and Chicago (2.9%) — which together constitute about 15% of TV households in the USA — are up slightly or even with last year.

Newman, Busch Lead Dodge Contingent At Phoenix; Hornish Finishes 30th In NASCAR Cup Debut

2007-11-14T20:35:00.001-05:00

AVONDALE, Ariz. (Nov. 11, 2007) ¿ Penske Racing led the Dodge contingent in Sunday's Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway with Ryan Newman finishing fifth and Kurt Busch placing 12th. Sam Hornish Jr. took 30th in his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup debut.

Newman's second straight top-five finish and his seventh this season moved him up one position in the point standings to 13th with one race remaining in the season. He is now 58 points ahead of the 14th-place Dale Earnhardt Jr.

¿The Alltel Dodge was pretty good," said Newman, who led once for four laps after starting 13th in the 312-lap race on the 1-mile track. "We knew we were good enough to get track position with the disadvantage; with two tires or with fuel only, and that was OK. I wasn¿t mad about that, but I wish we just had that extra little speed so we could get on everyone else¿s strategy. You know, being able to take two tires when everybody takes two, or take four when they take four. We¿re getting closer to that. It¿s just a matter of time."

Newman consistently ran in the top 10 throughout the race after gaining track position with a two-tire stop during the first of 10 caution flags. That strategy enabled Newman to gain 11 positions, placing him in second when the race restarted on lap 29.

The Alltel crew gave Newman the lead on lap 236 with a quick pit stop during the eighth caution period. However, when the race restarted, Newman couldn't hold off the charging Matt Kenseth, who was on fresh tires. Newman, however, never dropped lower than sixth in the final 70 laps.

¿To have a top-five finish is great," Newman said. "To build on another top-five finish, that¿s two in a row, that¿s really great. I don¿t know if we¿ve done that all year.¿

Meanwhile, Busch found himself battling a "wicked handling" Miller Lite Dodge Avenger throughout the race. His 12th-place finish also dropped him a position in the standings, leaving him 10th with one race remaining. However, he is only 47 points behind the seventh-place Kevin Harvick.

¿It was pretty wicked handling for him much of the day,¿ crew chief Pat Tryson said about the car that Busch qualified ninth. ¿We kept making some pretty big adjustments throughout the race. It wasn¿t the super day we were looking for out here, but it was a good learning experience. It¿s evident that we have a little catching up to do with our Miller Lite Dodge Avenger and we¿re already focusing on doing all we can during the off-season to be really prepared with this car when the 2008 season kicks off next February in Daytona."

Despite the handling problems, Busch still felt he had a "good run" in his Miller Lite Dodge.

"It was just a little too tight in one spot and a little too loose in another spot," Busch added. "So, all-in-all, we'll chalk it up as a year of experience with the COTs. We have some more work to do."

Hornish's goals were to not cause problems for his teammates and the top two in the point standings, complete as many laps as possible, and finish in the top 30. The 2006 Indianapolis 500 winner achieved all of his objectives.

¿I still have a lot to learn, but I¿m enjoying the challenge. We¿ll keep working our way at it and continue to get better. I¿ll go into Miami with one race under my belt ¿ a little bit less of a rookie, I guess,¿ said Hornish, who will attempt another double-duty weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend.

¿I¿m a bit rusty as far as racing goes lately. It¿s been about two months since I¿ve run this long of a race and that was probably the longest I¿ve run in the COT car. But I was pretty happy with the car, especially at the end. We started out tight and got a pretty long run there at the beginning where we lost a lap, but we eventually got to where the car needed to be.¿

Although Hornish was two laps down at the event's conclusion, 310 laps allowed him to begin to define the physical differences and challenges between the Indy Car and COT car.

¿If you¿re running one or two laps, the Indy Car is definitely a lot more physical," Hornish explained. "But this is very demanding because the temperature that you face inside the car and the amount of footwork that goes into it. Plus, you have 42 other cars so there¿s nowhere to really relax. I didn¿t even find my rhythm to where I was able to try new lines until about the last five laps. The rest of the time, I was in traffic, right at the edge of my seat. The physical effort of racing these cars is very demanding. It¿s like racing in a sauna. With all the heat, I think I drank about 10 bottles of water throughout the day and I still think I¿m dehydrated."

Sunday's Ford 400 season finale will be televised on ABC and broadcast on MRN Radio starting at 3 p.m. EST.

Penske still undecided about points switch

2007-11-14T20:34:00.000-05:00

Team owner Roger Penske said Saturday he hasn't decided if he'll move No. 2-Kurt Busch's points to Sam Hornish Jr. to guarantee the driver a spot in the first five races of next season.

Hornish is leaving the IndyCar Series for a full NASCAR schedule next season, but his No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge won't be one of the 35 cars locked into the first five races of the year. As a former series champion, Busch has a provisional that he could fall back on should he fail to qualify on speed.

"We have a number of options and we're looking at all of them ... we'll see," Penske said at Phoenix International Raceway. "This isn't all about the first five races. This is about a long career for a great race car driver and someone who has delivered for us for a long time at Penske Racing."

NEWMAN FINISHES FIFTH FOR SECOND STRAIGHT WEEK

2007-11-14T20:33:00.000-05:00

AVONDALE, Ariz., (Nov. 11, 2007) – For the seventh time in 2007, Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, earned a top-five finish – his second straight – with a fifth-place finish in Sunday's Checkers Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway.

Newman, who started 13th for the 312-lap race, battled a loose condition in his car at the race's beginning, but he was able to maintain a position just outside the top 10 until his first pit stop on lap 27.

After David Gilliland hit the wall coming down the frontstretch, crew chief Mike Nelson brought the Alltel Dodge down pit road for right-side tires, fuel, one round of wedge in the left rear and one round up on the right-side track bar. The two-tire, 6.11-second stop jumped Newman from 13th to second for the restart on lap 29.

Many of the cars behind Newman received four tires to his two. Within five laps of the restart, Newman was back in fourth. However, he was able to hold on strong to a top-five position.

After falling back to sixth on lap 58, Newman told his crew that his car was "really, really tight" in the center.

“I’m going to play with my line a little bit here,” Newman relayed.

Running high on both sides of the track allowed Newman to regain a spot in the top five until the next caution flag waved on lap 86 for debris.

During the next pit stop, the Alltel Dodge crew gave Newman four tires and fuel and kept him in fifth.

At the restart, Newman and Matt Kenseth battled for a few laps for the fifth spot, but Newman won out before another wreck brought out the third of 10 yellow flags.

During the next two caution periods, Nelson kept Newman on the track, allowing him to hold on to third. Newman informed his crew that he was happy with the car and its balance was pretty good. Newman would maintain third until he finally made his third pit stop on lap 140.

Even though Newman received only four tires and fuel and the Alltel crew completed the stop in 13.11 seconds, Newman still came out of the pits in 11th since the top eight cars remained on the track due to pitting earlier.

After the restart on lap 144, Newman needed only two laps to move back into the top 10 and was running ninth when the seventh caution flag waved on lap 148. The car was still pretty good, so Newman stayed on the track with the other front-runners.

Newman steadily moved toward the front of the pack and was sixth on lap 171 when he started having some problems with the car.

“I’m struggling a little bit, mostly with grip,” Newman told his crew. “I’m a little too tight. We need to free it up with bite.”

Despite the balance issues, Newman managed to move into the top five by lap 187, just before green flag pit stops began on lap 190.

Newman was running fourth when he came in for his green-flag stop on lap 220 and received four tires, fuel and two rounds of wedge out of the left rear. Newman returned to the track in 17th, still on the lead lap. By lap 224, Newman was in 10th and he began passing the cars in front of him.

“The car is definitely better,” Newman told his crew. “We need the track position, but we need to free it up a little bit on the next stop.”

Pit strategy played into the team’s hands on lap 234 when the yellow waved for the eighth time for Dave Blaney's spin. Since it had only been 13 laps since Newman had been on pit road, Nelson brought the Alltel Dodge in for fuel and a half round of wedge out of the left rear. The strategy worked and put Newman into the lead for the first time.

After leading four laps and earning five bonus points, Newman’s older tires were no match for cars with fresh tires and Kenseth took over the lead just one lap after the restart on lap 240. Tony Stewart also passed Newman, but no one else could get by him before the ninth yellow flag waved.

Newman remained third for the next 25 laps until the final caution flag, this one for debris, occurred. Newman then pitted for the final time. After receiving right-side tires and fuel, Newman restarted sixth due to two cars remaining on the track.

Newman fought his way back into the top five and for the last 20 laps held off a charging Kevin Harvick to finish fifth. It is only the third time in 11 career starts that Newman has finished in the top five at the 1-mile track. His other eight finishes have all been outside the top 10.

“The Alltel Dodge was pretty good. We knew that we were good enough to get track position with the disadvantage. With two tires or with fuel only and that was OK,” said Newman, who moved into 13th in the point standings. “I wasn’t mad about that, but I wish we just had that extra little speed so we could get on everyone else’s strategy. You know, being able to take two tires when everybody takes two, or take four when they take four. We’re getting closer to that. It’s just a matter of time.

“To have a top-five finish is great. To build on another top-five finish, that’s two in a row, that’s really great. I don’t know if we’ve done that all year, so to finish up at least two out of three would be great.”

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger in the season finale Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. ABC and MRN Radio will broadcast the final race of the 2007 season beginning at 3 p.m. EST.

Ryan Newman: “To build on another top-five finish, that’s two in a row, that’s really great”

2007-11-14T20:18:00.000-05:00

Avondale, Ariz.
Nov 13, 2007

Penske Racing led the Dodge contingent in Sunday’s Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway with Ryan Newman finishing fifth and Kurt Busch placing 12th. Sam Hornish Jr. took 30th in his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup debut.

Newman’s second straight top-five finish and his seventh this season moved him up one position in the point standings to 13th with one race remaining in the season. He is now 58 points ahead of the 14th-place Dale Earnhardt Jr.

“The Alltel Dodge was pretty good, “ said Newman, who led once for four laps after starting 13th in the 312-lap race on the 1-mile track. “We knew we were good enough to get track position with the disadvantage; with two tires or with fuel only, and that was OK. I wasn’t mad about that, but I wish we just had that extra little speed so we could get on everyone else’s strategy. You know, being able to take two tires when everybody takes two, or take four when they take four. We’re getting closer to that. It’s just a matter of time. “

Newman consistently ran in the top 10 throughout the race after gaining track position with a two-tire stop during the first of 10 caution flags. That strategy enabled Newman to gain 11 positions, placing him in second when the race restarted on lap 29.

The Alltel crew gave Newman the lead on lap 236 with a quick pit stop during the eighth caution period. However, when the race restarted, Newman couldn’t hold off the charging Matt Kenseth, who was on fresh tires. Newman, however, never dropped lower than sixth in the final 70 laps.

“To have a top-five finish is great, “ Newman said. “To build on another top-five finish, that’s two in a row, that’s really great. I don’t know if we’ve done that all year. “

Meanwhile, Busch found himself battling a “wicked handling” Miller Lite Dodge Avenger throughout the race. His 12th-place finish also dropped him a position in the standings, leaving him 10th with one race remaining. However, he is only 47 points behind the seventh-place Kevin Harvick.

“It was pretty wicked handling for him much of the day, “ crew chief Pat Tryson said about the car that Busch qualified ninth. “We kept making some pretty big adjustments throughout the race. It wasn’t the super day we were looking for out here, but it was a good learning experience. It’s evident that we have a little catching up to do with our Miller Lite Dodge Avenger and we’re already focusing on doing all we can during the off-season to be really prepared with this car when the 2008 season kicks off next February in Daytona. “

Despite the handling problems, Busch still felt he had a “good run” in his Miller Lite Dodge.

“It was just a little too tight in one spot and a little too loose in another spot, “ Busch added. “So, all-in-all, we’ll chalk it up as a year of experience with the COTs. We have some more work to do. “

Hornish’s goals were to not cause problems for his teammates and the top two in the point standings, complete as many laps as possible, and finish in the top 30. The 2006 Indianapolis 500 winner achieved all of his objectives.

“I still have a lot to learn, but I’m enjoying the challenge. We’ll keep working our way at it and continue to get better. I’ll go into Miami with one race under my belt - a little bit less of a rookie, I guess, “ said Hornish, who will attempt another double-duty weekend at Homestead-Miami Speedway next weekend.

“I’m a bit rusty as far as racing goes lately. It’s been about two months since I’ve run this long of a race and that was probably the longest I’ve run in the COT car. But I was pretty happy with the car, especially at the end. We started out tight and got a pretty long run there at the beginning where we lost a lap, but we eventually got to where the car needed to be. “

Although Hornish was two laps down at the event’s co nclusion, 310 laps allowed him to begin to define the physical differences and challenges between the Indy Car and COT car.

“If you’re running one or two laps, the Indy Car is definitely a lot more physical, “ Hornish explained. “But this is very demanding because the temperature that you face inside the car and the amount of footwork that goes into it. Plus, you have 42 other cars so there’s nowhere to really relax. I didn’t even find my rhythm to where I was able to try new lines until about the last five laps. The rest of the time, I was in traffic, right at the edge of my seat. The physical effort of racing these cars is very demanding. It’s like racing in a sauna. With all the heat, I think I drank about 10 bottles of water throughout the day and I still think I’m dehydrated. “

Past Weekend Race Coverage

2007-11-13T09:09:00.001-05:00

I feel a need to apologize to the readers of this blog that are interested in Ryan Newman coverage. I have not been on here for a little while due to a SEVERE sinus infection. This little booger had me knocked out. I was in a lot of pain in both my sinus and my teeth. Unbelievable pain really. I have had sinus infections before, but nothing like this.

I missed all the postings for Ryan's Practice and Qualifying times (although the times are available on the site - just no postings). I missed the race. I did see some of it here and there, but overall I missed it.

But I am feeling 85% better now. Which means I feel great.

Next weekend's coverage may be spotty at best also. My daughter is due come out of Mama on Sunday - Homestead-Miami weekend. So, hopefully she is ready to come join us before Sunday. Jeni, my fiance, is ready now. And to be honest I am ready to.

Faith Ann is (will be) her name and we are VERY excited.

Anyway, I will get some stories posted about this weekends race and Ryan Newmans performance. About all that I do know is that that Jimmie Johnson won (again) and that Ryan Newman finished 5th. Not bad, 4 of his last 6 races have been top 5 finishes. Maybe a preview for next season? In fact after looking at the numbers, if Newman did not have Engine problems or an accident during these last ten races (The Chase), then he has finished 9th, 5th, 2nd, 5th and 5th. Not to shabby. We are 9 races into the Chase with 1 more race left on the schedule for the year. So that means Ryan had 4 engine or accident problems. Actually it is 2 a piece. Of the 2 accidents the one that sticks out in my mind was Lowes. He had the lead with a couple laps to go and blew a tire. GRRRRR.

Anyway, I will be catching up on things this week.

Mike

Ryan Newman's Catfish Recipe

2007-11-08T07:15:00.000-05:00

FROM - Leather District Gourmet

Beer Battered Fried Catfish

The Ryan Newman Foundation, which was awarded $10,000 from the Catfish Institute for winning the NASCAR Cook-off, does a lot of great work to help animals. Anyone interested in learning more about catfish can visit The Catfish Institute. To find a restaurant nearby serving catfish, click here.

Ryan Newman's Catfish recipe was one of the first entries in our "Teach a Man to Fish" Sustainble Seafood Event.

Beer Battered Fried Catfish

1/2 cup unsifted all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon Everglade seasoning, optional
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed

3/4 cup room-temperature beer
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Vegetable oil
1 pound U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish fillets, cut into 3 to 4 inch strips
In a medium bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, Cajun seasoning, garlic powder, Everglades seasoning (if using), baking powder, paprika, white and red peppers and oregano. If not using Everglade seasoning, add 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk in beer and egg until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.

When ready to cook: In a deep skillet or large pan, pour vegetable oil to the depth of 3 inches; heat to 375°F. Stir batter and fold in catfish. When oil is hot, lift fish strips with tongs, draining excess batter; place catfish in oil several pieces at a time (do not over crowd). Fry until well browned on all sides, about 3 minutes. Remove to paper towels to drain. Keep warm, repeat with remaining catfish.

Newman’s Team Takes Pit Crew Honors in Texas

2007-11-07T21:34:00.000-05:00

Checkers®/Rally’s® Double Drive-Thru Challenge season championship still up for grabs

Ryan Newman’s over-the-wall crew took top honors in Sunday’s Checkers®/Rally’s® Double Drive-Thru Challenge at Texas Motor Speedway.

The No. 12 Penske Racing crew visited pit road for a total of 306.591 seconds during Sunday’s Nextel Cup event.

"The guys did a great job in the pits today, as they've done for the entire season,” said Newman. “We took a few risks by taking two tires only in order to gain track position and (crew chief) Mike Nelson did a great job making those calls. It helped us lead a few laps and get a fifth-place finish at Texas. Our last stop helped us gain five spots and we were able to hold on against teams that took four tires."

Checkers/Rally’s will present Newman’s team with an $11,000 check for winning the weekly competition. An additional $111,150 prize will be awarded to the over-the-wall crew with the most wins at the completion of the 36-race Nextel Cup schedule.

Newman’s team consists of: Bryan White (jackman), Scott Reiniger (front-tire carrier), Ben Brown (front-tire changer), Trent Cherry (rear-tire carrier), Joe Piette Jr. (rear-tire changer), George Whitley (gasman), Britt Goodrich (catch can) and Michael Warren (eighth-man). Cherry and Bob Pressley are the pit crew coaches.

With two races remaining, the Checkers/Rally’s Double Drive-Thru Challenge season championship is still up for grabs. Mark Martin’s No. 01 crew and Jeff Gordon’s No. 24 crew are currently tied for the lead with four wins each; however, six other teams are still mathematically in contention.

If there’s a tie after the final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Nov. 18), the team which finishes highest in the driver point standings will be awarded the Checkers/Rally’s Double Drive-Thru season championship.

Daytona (2/18) Martin Team
California (2/25) Martin Team
Las Vegas (3/11) Martin Team
Atlanta (3/18) Johnson Team
Bristol (3/25) Hamlin Team
Martinsville (4/1) Earnhardt Team
Texas (4/15) Martin Team
Phoenix (4/21) Hamlin Team
Talladega (4/29) Kurt Busch Team
Richmond (5/6) J. Gordon Team
Darlington (5/13) J. Gordon Team
Charlotte (5/27) Hamlin Team
Dover (6/4) Newman Team
Pocono (6/10) J. Gordon Team
Michigan (6/19) Kyle Busch Team
Infineon (6/24) Harvick Team
New Hamp. (7/1) Johnson Team
Daytona (7/7) Mears Team
Chicago (7/15) Harvick Team
Indianapolis (7/29) Sorenson Team
Pocono (8/5) Newman Team
Watkins Glen (8/12) Truex Team
Michigan (8/21) Kurt Busch Team
Bristol (8/25) Bowyer Team
California (9/2) Earnhardt Team
Richmond (9/8) J. Gordon Team
New Hamp. (9/16) Kyle Busch Team
Dover (9/23) Mears Team
Kansas (9/30) Earnhardt Team
Talladega (10/7) Sauter Team
Charlotte (10/13) Bowyer Team
Martinsville (10/21) Kyle Busch Team
Atlanta (10/28) Sorenson Team
Texas (11/4) Newman Team

RYAN NEWMAN RETURNS TO MIDGETS AT P.I.R. THURSDAY

2007-11-06T16:39:00.001-05:00

Ryan Newman, whose 13 career USAC National Midget victories came on paved ovals, returns to USAC Midget racing Thursday at Phoenix (Ariz.) International Raceway to compete in the 2007 "Copper World Classic."

Newman will pilot one of four cars entered by Keith Kunz Motorsports of Columbus, Ind. as a teammate to Bryan Clauson, Marc Jessup and Cameron Dodson in the program which includes a 25-mile feature for the Midgets on the 1-mile paved oval.

Thursday's race will be Newman's first in a USAC Midget since finishing third in a National race in July of 2006 at Columbus, Ohio, also driving for Keith Kunz and crew member Pete Willoughby. "I'm looking forward to having some fun Thursday," says Newman. "It's a nice coincidence that the Midgets are running there the same week as our NASCAR Nextel Cup Chase race. Maybe I can finally pick up a Phoenix victory. The Copper World is an important event and a win would be a nice addition to the resume."

Newman held the all-time USAC Midget qualifying record for nine years before Bobby Santos III eclipsed it last year at Iowa Speedway with a lap at 145.145 mph.

Newman, who finished second in the 1999 National standings behind Jason Leffler, last competed in the "Copper World Classic" in 2000, winning the pole and finishing second to race winner Tony Stewart. His last USAC National victory came in 2000 in a Midget at Pikes Peak International Raceway in Fountain, Colo.

USAC's 1999 Silver Crown Champion, Newman is the only driver ever to win "Rookie of the Year" honors in all three USAC National racing series.

Newman will face a formidable field in Thursday's race, including National Midget point leader Jerry Coons Jr. and Western Midget point leader Johnny Rodriguez, plus NASCAR drivers J.J. Yeley and Bobby East, defending USAC Sprint Car Champion Levi Jones and two-time "Copper World" Midget Champ Dave Steele.

Although he will be seeking his first P.I.R. victory Thursday, Newman has posted three poles and a pair of top-five finishes at the track in NASCAR Nextel Cup racing.

NEWMAN EARNS 1ST TOP 10 AT TEXAS SINCE 2003 WIN

2007-11-06T16:04:00.001-05:00

For just the second time in nine career races at Texas Motor Speedway, Ryan Newman earned a top-five finish in Sunday's Dickies 500.

Newman's only other top-five came in 2003 when he won the Samsung 500 after starting third. All of Newman's remaining seven races at the 1.5-mile track have resulted in finishes of 16th or lower.

Newman, who qualified 11th for Sunday's 334-lap race, had his share of issues during the event, but he was able to overcome them to finish fifth.

After taking the green flag, Newman moved up to seventh before 10 circuits were completed at the Texas track. He complained of his car being just a tick loose getting in and out of the corners and tight when he was in dirty air.

When the first of 12 caution flags waved on lap 15, Newman was still riding in seventh before coming in for his first pit stop. Crew chief Mike Nelson decided a two-tire stop was all that was needed and Newman received right-side tires, fuel and a half round of wedge in the left rear. The 6.62-second stop took Newman up to second for the restart non lap 19.

Newman fell back to fourth after just one lap, but radioed to his crew that he had spun the tires pretty bad on the restart, which caused him to lose the positions.

A third caution period that begun on lap 30 brought in many of the cars in the back of the field, while many of the front-runners remained on the track. However, after taking the green flag again on lap 33, the yellow flag would wave again on lap 36. This time, the front-runners came in, which put them in the middle of the field. Newman came in for left-side tires, fuel and a half round of wedge in the left rear. The stop lasted only 5.44 seconds, but with many cars staying out during the stop, Newman restarted in 21st.

After the green flag waved, Newman began making his way back up through the field. In 16 laps, Newman was back inside the top 15 and still climbing.

Newman was up to third, but still fighting a loose condition in his car getting into the corners when he made his first green-flag pit stop on lap 91. For the first time in the race, Nelson called for four tires, fuel and three-quarters of a round of wedge out of the right rear.

Newman came out of the pits in 14th, but was once again moving forward before the car became aero tight, especially in the middle, and halted Newman's progress toward the front of the field.

Nelson brought the Alltel Dodge back down pit road on lap 120 for four tires, fuel and a half round of wedge in the right rear during the fifth caution period. When the caution came out again on lap 132, Newman stayed out to take over the second position behind Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Newman challenged Earnhardt Jr. for the lead on lap 142, but Kyle Busch, who had four fresh tires, was able to get by both drivers to take over the No. 1 position. Newman finally got by Earnhardt Jr. on lap 145 just as the caution flag waved again.

For 35 laps, Newman ran second behind Busch before he had to come in for his second green-flag pit stop on lap 180 for four tires and fuel. Prior to the stop, Newman relayed to his crew that the car's balance was definitely better and was maybe just a tick tight in the center.

After the 15.48-second, green-flag stop, Newman was one lap down in 24th, but it wouldn't be long before the rest of the leaders had to make their own green-flag stops and Newman began to head toward the front again.

On lap 190, Newman was back on the lead lap and quickly moving toward the top 10.

Newman made his way into the top five on lap 202, but radioed in that the left-front tire felt like it was down. However, Newman remained in fifth until lap 228 when the car began to get tight.

The 10th caution on lap 233 allowed Newman to bring the Alltel Dodge down pit road for right-side tires, fuel and a half round of wedge in the right rear. Newman moved up to fourth from seventh when he came off pit road, but after the restart, the car was still too tight.

Newman remained in the top 10 for the rest of the 501-mile race and was even able to lead four laps after a caution on lap 298 saw him come down pit road for right-side tires and fuel only. The risky call on Nelson's part put Newman in the lead when many of the lead-lap cars took four tires.

After earning five bonus points, Newman lost the lead to Matt Kenseth on the lap 306 restart. With only 28 laps remaining, Newman's goal was to hang on to his top five run while facing drivers who had four fresh tires compared to his two.

When the checkered flag waved on lap 334, Newman was fifth in the Alltel Dodge.

"It was a good run for us to finish in the top five with the Alltel Dodge," Newman said following the race. "Nevertheless, we didn't have the best racecar on the short run. We had a decent racecar in the long runs. The short runs got us behind and we had a few of those there at the end. The two tire call was a good one to get track position. We just didn't have a fast enough racecar to stay up front."

With its quick work on pit road during the race, the No. 12 Alltel Dodge team earned its third Checker's/Rally's Double Drive-Thru Challenge Award, which is given to the team that finishes on the lead lap and spends the least amount of time on pit road during the race. The Alltel Dodge crew also received the award after the June Dover race and the August Pocono event.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger in the Checkers Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. ABC and MRN Radio will broadcast the final Car of Tomorrow race this season before the car runs a full schedule in 2008 beginning at 3 p.m. EST.

Ryan Newman Gets Top 5 Finish At Texas

2007-11-04T22:09:00.000-05:00

Jeff Gordon, driver of the #24 DuPont Chevrolet, leads against Ryan Newman, driver of the #12 alltel Dodge, during the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway on November 4, 2007 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Ryan Newman had a good day at Texas Motor Speedway for the Dickies 500 finishing 5th. This was Newman's 6th top 5 finish of the year.

Newman's Top 5 finish takes him 2 postions up in the points standings to 14th. He is only 72 points behind Dale Earnhardt JR in 13th and 67 points ahead of 15th position Casey Mears.

After qualifying for the race, Newman said that Mike Nelson and the team had "de-tuned" the engine a little to make sure that it lasted the whole 500 miles.

My questing is this - Has all the blown engines Newman has had this year been do to "over-tuned" engines?

In front of Newman at the checkered flag was Jimmie Johnson taking the win followed by Matt Kenseth, Martin Truex JR and Kyle Busch.

Newman ran up front for most of the day staying in or near the top 5. The couple of times he was back around 20th was due to pit strategy.

The final caution of the day (the 12th caution) came on lap 298 of the 334 lap race when Gregg Biffle spun in turn 2 and came to a stop with the cockpit was full of smoke. This set up the final round of pit stops.

Newman and crew chief Mike Nelson chose to go with only 2 tires for a quick pit stop. This led to Newman being the first out of the pits.

Newman took the green flag followed by Matt Kenseth, Jaime McMurray, Martin Truex JR and Jimmie Johnson.

One lap latter Matt Kenseth gets around Newman and he starts falling back.

RYAN NEWMAN'S QUOTE ON THE TEXAS RACE -
"It was a good run for us to finish in the top five with the alltel Dodge. Nevertheless, we didn’t have the best racecar on the short run. We had a decent racecar in the long runs. The short runs got us behind and we had a few of those there at the end. The two tire call was a good one to get track position. We just didn’t have a fast enough racecar to stay up front."

The final laps proved to be pretty exciting. I am not a fan of Matt Kenseth or Jimmie Johnson but they had some hard racing at the end. They were side by side a couple of times and Matt Kenseth was getting loose. Jimmie Johnson finally got by him and took the checkered flag.

Top 10 Finishers Where -

1 8 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet Lowe's / Kobalt Tools 190/5 334 Running
2 18 17 Matt Kenseth Ford USG Sheetrock / DEWALT 175/5 334 Running
3 1 1 Martin Truex Jr. Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Tracker 170/5 334 Running
4 17 5 Kyle Busch Chevrolet CARQUEST / Kellogg's 170/10 334 Running
5 11 12 Ryan Newman Dodge ALLTEL 160/5 334 Running
6 27 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet AT&T Mobility 150/0 334 Running
7 2 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 151/5 334 Running
8 6 2 Kurt Busch Dodge Miller Lite 147/5 334 Running
9 24 26 Jamie McMurray Ford Crown Royal Special Reserve 138/0 334 Running
10 4 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil 134/0 334 Running

Newman feels good about rebounding from tough breaks

2007-11-04T07:27:00.000-05:00

espn.com

It's a familiar and unsettling story for Ryan Newman.

Running in the top 10 two-thirds of the way through last Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Atlanta, Newman's No. 12 Penske Dodge encounters engine trouble and he winds up finishing 37th.

Engine failures, flat tires, crashes and a multitude of gremlins. All have seemingly been constant companions since the 2004 season for a driver once considered a top star in the elite stock car series.

Newman won 35 poles and had 12 victories through 2005, his fourth full season in Cup races. Since then, there has been little to celebrate, other than an occasional pole for the guy whose consistent speed on qualifying day earned the nickname "Rocketman."

His last win came at New Hampshire in the fall of 2005, but a recent resurgence has raised a few eyebrows in the garage and done wonders for the 2002 Rookie of the Year's confidence.

In the three weeks before Atlanta, Newman had finishes of fifth at Talladega, 28th at Charlotte and second at Martinsville. He could just as easily have won all of them, including the Charlotte race where a blown tire knocked him out of the lead and sent his car into the wall with five laps remaining.

"The performance has been a lot better," Newman said. "It's all attributed to teamwork and just pure car performance -- that's the biggest thing. Everybody at the shop has done a great job to step up and be better.

"We had a big personnel change in the offseason, and that was hard to battle through. Secondly, the performance of the race car has improved dramatically in the last half of the season. Those three races we had a shot of winning in the last three laps. Not everybody can say that. Especially after a rebound, it's nice to be able to say that."

Although he missed out on the Chase for the championship for the second consecutive year and is currently 16th in the standings, Newman is feeling good about the present and the future heading into the final three events of 2007, starting with Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway.

He's even OK answering questions about not winning his most recent races.

"I'm glad we're rebounding to the point where we can talk about it," he said. "There's potential. We didn't have potential for a long time.

"Before this year, I lost a lot of confidence as a driver. I didn't lose any ability, but the confidence gives you that extra edge. The ability just allows you to do it and that confidence is what's helped me with my qualifying and getting better track position, which helps us all the way through the race."

Another big part of the resurgence is the rapport Newman has developed with teammate Kurt Busch, who replaced longtime NASCAR star Rusty Wallace in the team's No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge in 2006. It was no secret that Newman and Wallace did not get along and had little communication.

Busch made the 12-man Chase this year with his own late-season surge after Pat Tryson took over as his crew chief. And the friendship of the two drivers, as well as Tryson and Mike Nelson, Newman's crew chief, has made a difference.

"The relationship between Kurt and me has been good and I think, more importantly, the teams, the two crew chiefs, the race engineers, even down to the shock guys," Newman said. "I've seen Miller Lite shirts in my truck 100 times more this year than I have in the last six years put together. And vice versa."

Team owner Roger Penske likes what he is seeing from Newman.

"Ryan's a great race driver and it's just a matter of getting the right car under him," Penske said. "And I think he's got confidence now. He's had a couple of tough breaks with some engine issues. But, overall, I think we've got a solid guy there and you're going to see a great last couple of races."

Ryan Newmans Practice #3 Results - Dickies 500 | Texas Motor Speedway

2007-11-04T07:26:00.001-05:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 4 fastest in the third practice at Texas Motor Speedway for the Dickies 500 . Newman\'s practice run included a speed of 186.638/28.933 putting him -0.053 behind the fastest of the practice, Jimmie Johnson. Practice 3 Results
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results
Practice 2 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #2 Results - Texas Motor Speedway

2007-11-04T07:25:00.001-05:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 11 fastest in the second practice at Texas Motor Speedway for the Dickies 500 . Newman\'s practice run included a speed of 187.454/28.807 putting him -0.346 behind the fastest of the practice, Tony Stewart. Practice 2 Results
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newman Qualifying Quote - Atlanta

2007-11-03T09:04:00.000-04:00

***********
It sounds to me like Ryan Newman and Mike Nelson are starting to be worried about the engines they have blown this year. This "detuning" sounds to me like they have had it with blown engines and just want to make sure they finish a race. Makes sense to me.
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RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 alltel Dodge Charger)
“We’re caught between a rock and a hard place. We’re detuning the engine just enough so we can make the race but then we’re hoping it will last for 500 miles.”

Ryan Newmans qualifying Results - Dickies 500 | Texas Motor Speedway

2007-11-02T21:57:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 11 fastest in qualifying at Texas Motor Speedway for the Dickies 500 . Newman\'s qualifying run included a speed of 191.557/28.190 putting him -0.226 behind the fastest qualifier, Error! Retrieved 0 matches!. Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #1 Results - Texas Motor Speedway

2007-11-02T21:45:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 23 fastest in the first practice at Texas Motor Speedway for the Dickies 500 . Newman's practice run included a speed of 189.947/28.429 putting him -0.346 behind the fastest of the practice, Jeff Gordon.
Practice 1 Results
Qualifying Results

THE Ryan Newman Race Preview - Texas

2007-11-01T22:13:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 ALLTEL Dodge Team will be racing here at Texas Motor Speedway this weekend for the Dickies 500 .

Texas Motor Speedway Quick Facts :
Location - Fort Worth, TX
completed - 1996
Distance - 1.5 miles
Shape - Quad-oval
Seating - 159,585
According to NASCAR.com Carl Edwards has the Nextel Cup race record at Texas with a speed and date of 151.055 - 11/06/05. Terry Labonte has the qualifying record here with a speed and date of 192.137 - 2000.

Ryan Newman's History At Texas Motor Speedway
STARTS - 7
POLES - 2
WINS - 1
TOP 5's - 1
TOP 10's - 1
AVG START - 12.9
AVG FINISH - 27.6

Ryan Newman's Previous Races at Texas
2007 - Samsung 500 - 20 - 32 - Running
2006 - Samsung/RadioShack 500 - 14 - 40 - Accident
2006 - Dickies 500 - 24 - 34 - Running
2005 - Samsung/RadioShack 500 - 1 - 16 - Running
2005 - Dickies 500 - 1 - 25 - Running
2004 - Samsung/Radio Shack 500 - 15 - 39 - Accident
2003 - Samsung/RadioShack 500 - 3 - 1 - Running
2002 - Samsung/RadioShack 500 - 36 - 40 - Engine

Ryan Newman and Intermediate Track Racing -
Newman has 144 starts at Intermediate\'s with 11 win(s), 41 Top 5(s) and 61 Top 10(s). He also has an average start of 8.4 and an average finish of 17.7.

Ryan Newman and his #12 team will be taking chasis PRS-110 as thier primary chasis. Thier backup chasis is PRS-108

And from PenskeRacing.com here is Ryan Newmans quote on Texas Motor Speedway--

Were taking a brand-new car to Texas this week. We tested it at Kentucky, but thats the only time its been on the track, so well see how it goes.

Last week, we had problems with our car all weekend. It didnt qualify the way it usually does and then it just got worse as the weekend went on. We had some great momentum going into Atlanta, but well be able to get that back during these last three weeks and hopefully, we can win a second time at Texas.

Ryan Newman is building confidence after 2 years of on-track struggle

2007-10-31T16:06:00.001-04:00

It's a familiar and unsettling story for Ryan Newman.

Running in the top 10 two-thirds of the way through last Sunday's NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Atlanta, Newman's No. 12 Penske Dodge encounters engine trouble and he winds up finishing 37th.

Engine failures, flat tires, crashes and a multitude of gremlins. All have seemingly been constant companions since the 2004 season for a driver once considered a top star in the elite stock car series.

Newman won 35 poles and had 12 victories through 2005, his fourth full season in Cup races. Since then, there has been little to celebrate, other than an occasional pole for the guy whose consistent speed on qualifying day earned the nickname "Rocketman."

His last win came at New Hampshire in the fall of 2005, but a recent resurgence has raised a few eyebrows in the garage and done wonders for the 2002 Rookie of the Year's confidence.

In the three weeks before Atlanta, Newman had finishes of fifth at Talladega, 28th at Charlotte and second at Martinsville. He could just as easily have won all of them, including the Charlotte race where a blown tire knocked him out of the lead and sent his car into the wall with five laps remaining.

"The performance has been a lot better," Newman said. "It's all attributed to teamwork and just pure car performance - that's the biggest thing. Everybody at the shop has done a great job to step up and be better.

"We had a big personnel change in the off-season, and that was hard to battle through. Secondly, the performance of the race car has improved dramatically in the last half of the season. Those three races we had a shot of winning in the last three laps. Not everybody can say that. Especially after a rebound, it's nice to be able to say that."

Although he missed out on the Chase for the championship for the second straight year and is currently 16th in the standings, Newman is feeling good about the present and the future heading into the final three events of 2007, starting with Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway.

He's even OK answering questions about not winning his most recent races.

"I'm glad we're rebounding to the point where we can talk about it," he said. "There's potential. We didn't have potential for a long time.

"Before this year, I lost a lot of confidence as a driver. I didn't lose any ability, but the confidence gives you that extra edge. The ability just allows you to do it and that confidence is what's helped me with my qualifying and getting better track position, which helps us all the way through the race."

Another big part of the resurgence is the rapport Newman has developed with teammate Kurt Busch, who replaced longtime NASCAR star Rusty Wallace in the team's No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge in 2006. It was no secret that Newman and Wallace did not get along and had little communication.

Busch made the 12-man Chase this year with his own late-season surge after Pat Tryson took over as his crew chief. And the friendship of the two drivers, as well as Tryson and Mike Nelson, Newman's crew chief, has made a difference.

"The relationship between Kurt and me has been good and I think, more importantly, the teams, the two crew chiefs, the race engineers, even down to the shock guys," Newman said. "I've seen Miller Lite shirts in my truck 100 times more this year than I have in the last six years put together. And vice versa."

Team owner Roger Penske likes what he is seeing from Newman.

"Ryan's a great race driver and it's just a matter of getting the right car under him," Penske said. "And I think he's got confidence now. He's had a couple of tough breaks with some engine issues. But, overall, I think we've got a solid guy there and you're going to see a great last couple of races."

NEWMAN IN NEW CAR AT TEXAS

2007-10-31T16:03:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman will make his ninth Cup start at Texas Motor Speedway. It will be his 222nd career start in the Cup Series.

Newman has an average start of 14.2 and an average finish of 28.4 at the 1.5-mile track. He has three top-five starts, including two Bud Pole Awards, which he swept in 2005.
Newman has one win at Texas - March 2003. His next highest finish is a 16th in April 2005. His other six finishes have been 25th or lower.

Newman has led 80 laps in three Texas races. He has completed 2,306 laps of a possible 2,677 since he made his Cup debut at the track in 2002. Newman has a completion rate of 86.1 percent at the intermediate track.

Crew chief Mike Nelson and the Alltel team are taking chassis PRS-110 to Texas as their primary car. The car was tested at Kentucky, but it has never been raced. The backup car is PRS-108, which was raced by Newman last weekend in Atlanta. It qualified fifth, but finished 37th after an engine failure eliminated Newman from the race on lap 267.

Newman On Texas: "We're taking a brand-new car to Texas this week. We tested it at Kentucky, but that's the only time it's been on the track, so we'll see how it goes.
"Last week, we had problems with our car all weekend. It didn't qualify the way it usually does and then it just got worse as the weekend went on. We had some great momentum going into Atlanta, but we'll be able to get that back during these last three weeks and hopefully, we can win a second time at Texas."

Newman And Alltel Dodge Team Look To Rebound At Texas

2007-10-31T13:42:00.001-04:00

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 30, 2007) After a tough weekend at Atlanta Motor Speedway in which Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, qualified fifth but finished 37th after his car's engine failed, the team will head to Texas Motor Speedway for this weekend's Dickies 500.

Newman will make his ninth Cup start at the 1.5-mile track, just outside Fort Worth, Texas. It will be his 222nd career start in the Cup Series.

Newman has an average start of 14.2 and an average finish of 28.4 at the speedway that opened in 1997. He possesses three top-five starts, including two Bud Pole Awards, which he swept in 2005.

Newman owns one Texas win March 2003. His next highest finish is a 16th in April 2005. His other six finishes have been 25th or lower.

Were taking a brand-new car to Texas this week, Newman said. We tested it at Kentucky, but thats the only time its been on the track, so well see how it goes.
Last week, we had problems with our car all weekend. It didnt qualify the way it usually does and then it just got worse as the weekend went on. We had some great momentum going into Atlanta, but well be able to get that back during these last three weeks and hopefully, we can win a second time at Texas.

Newman has led 80 laps in three Texas races. He has completed 2,306 laps of a possible 2,677 since he made his Cup debut at the track in 2002. He possesses a completion rate of 86.1 percent at the intermediate track.

Crew Chief Michael Nelson and the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger team will take PRS-110 to Texas as their primary car. This car was tested at Kentucky, but has not been used in a race. The back-up car is PRS-108, which was used last weekend in Atlanta.

Sundays Dickies 500 will be covered live by ABC and PRN radio beginning at 2 p.m. EST.

Penske Staying with Dodge

2007-10-30T15:30:00.001-04:00

Penske Racing owner Roger Penske said Sunday that his team will be driving Dodges for years to come. Penske said he has agreed to a multi-year deal with Dodge. The team contract was set to expire at the end of the 2008 season.

Water in fuel supply at Atlanta

2007-10-30T09:30:00.001-04:00

**********
I read one article that said that Ryan Newman's car also had water in the fuel along with Kurt Busch's.
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HAMPTON, Georgia (AP) - Water got into the fuel supply of more than two cars during the weekend NASCAR race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, apparently leading to a crash that took out several top contenders near the end.

Denny Hamlin was leading the Pep Boys Auto 500 with three laps to go on Sunday when his car stalled while taking the green flag after a caution period. Martin Truex, who led the most laps, smashed into the back of Hamlin's car and finished 31st. Hamlin slipped to 24th.

"There are multiple teams that are showing positive for some level of water contamination level in their fuel," John Darby, NASCAR's Nextel Cup director, said on Monday. "It's more than two and less than 43 at the moment."

Darby dismissed sabotage as a possible explanation, saying too many teams were affected for anyone to have been singled out.

He said extensive testing done by Sunoco, NASCAR's official fuel supplier, showed no signs of problems in the underground storage tanks at the suburban Atlanta speedway. The problem likely occurred in the piping that runs from the tanks to the pumps, or in the pumps themselves.

"It's a brownish-colored water," Darby said. "If it was just water, it would be more clear. That should help us understand if it came from a failed pipe or a failed pump or some other source that allowed it to enter the fuel."

In a "huge majority" of cars that tested positive for water in their fuel systems, the amount was so small that it didn't affect performance. For example, winner Jimmie Johnson had some water in his carburetor during the post-race inspection.

But the amount of water was enough to affect at least two drivers: Hamlin and Dave Blaney, who had performance issues all day and finished 38th, 66 laps behind Johnson.

Atlanta TV ratings down over last year

2007-10-30T09:12:00.001-04:00

**************
I don't know, but is ABC/ESPN the culprit for this. I have said many times that I am just sick of ESPN's coverage. It amazes me how different (better) it is to watch a truck race on SPEEDTV then to watch a Nextel Cup race on ABC/ESPN. ABC/ESPN always misses the race restarts, has probably double the commercials than the other networks that carry the Cup races and they just annoy me. I think at least twice during the race at Atlanta a caution came out while they were at yet another commercial break. We resumed watching while the cars were already in pit row. Then taking forever to even tell us why there was a caution. ABC/ESPN really needs to change how they operate or get out of NASCAR!!
***************

The overnight TV rating for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Pep Boys Auto 500 on ABC Sunday was a 3.5, down 17% from last year's overnight of 4.2/8 Share on NBC.

Ryan Newman Finishes 37th At Atlanta Due To Engine Problems

2007-10-28T21:16:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 Mobile 1 Dodge finished 37th today at Atlanta because of engine troubles.

Newman ran pretty good all day running in just in the top 10 or just out of the top 10. Then on lap 268 Newman brought out the 11th caution of the day when his engine blew.

Here is what Newman had to say about his car and engine -

"We had a good car; just a good car. It was a top ten car. I don’t know if it was a winning car. The Mobil 1 Dodge was competitive at times. We got too loose at the end and dropped a cylinder, then dropped the rest of that cylinder and then she blew up. It was unfortunate. We’re struggling with these engines, [the] engine company has been letting us down a few times but we’ll keep with it and keep going."

Newman fell to 2 spots in the points standings to 16th. Besides the 12 Chasers Newman is behind 13th spot Dale Earnhardt JR, 14th Casey Mears and 15th Greg Biffle.

Other late race excitement included a tire blown on lap 318 of 325 by Jonny Sauter. The blown tire caused debris all over. But that wasn't the half of it.

The restart came on lap 322, 3 to go. When the cars came to the restart line Denny Hamlin was the leader. Hamlin ran out of gas right when it was time to punch it. All the cars started piling up behind him and crashing. This of course brought out a caution.

After that they were down to a green, white checkered restart. On the restart Jimmie Johnson brought them to the green fag. But 1 lap later Dale Earnhardt JR lost his right rear tire. JR spun around and slammed into the wall on his drivers side. In the process he collected Jaime McMurray.

This ended the race with Jimmie Johnson as the leader.

Ryan Newmans Practice #3 Results - Pep Boys Auto 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway

2007-10-28T09:23:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 Mobil 1 Dodge Penske Racing team were the 19 fastest in the third practice at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500 .
Newman's practice run included a speed of 185.710/29.853 putting him -0.434 behind the fastest of the practice, Kasey Kahne.

Practice 3 Results
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results
Practice 2 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #2 Results - Atlanta Motor Speedway

2007-10-28T09:22:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 Mobil 1 Dodge Penske Racing team were the 24 fastest in the second practice at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500 .
Newman's practice run included a speed of 185.915/29.820 putting him -0.689 behind the fastest of the practice, Martin Truex Jr..

Practice 2 Results
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newman Atlanta Qualifying Quote

2007-10-27T08:51:00.000-04:00

RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger)

“The lap felt great. I’m baffled by my time. I know what I felt here in the spring, I know what I felt today and I know what this track is capable of. I just didn’t’ get it. I don’t know what to say. I just hope this car races better than in qualifies. It is a different car from what we had in the spring. We only had it out a couple times this year. I think we’ll still have a decent starting spot but not what we’re expected of here at Atlanta.”

ON THE QUALIFYING RECORD “I don’t focus on it but I’m aware of it and I’d like to beat it. That is what records are made for. It is disappointing from that respect but it’s disappointing from the fact that we didn’t get the pole regardless of any kind of record.”

Ryan Newmans qualifying Results - Pep Boys Auto 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway

2007-10-26T22:21:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 Mobil 1 Dodge Penske Racing team were the 9 fastest in qualifying at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500 .

Newman's qualifying run included a speed of 190.719/29.069 putting him -0.262 behind the fastest qualifier, Error! Retrieved 0 matches!.

Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #1 Results - Atlanta Motor Speedway

2007-10-26T22:17:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 Mobil 1 Dodge Penske Racing team were the 13 fastest in the first practice at Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500 . Newman\'s practice run included a speed of 188.816/29.362 putting him -0.366 behind the fastest of the practice, Kasey Kahne. Practice 1 Results
Qualifying Results

Final Martinsville TV ratings off 9.8 percent

2007-10-26T15:43:00.001-04:00

ABC's broadcast of last Sunday's Subway 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Martinsville Speedway earned a final Nielsen Media Research rating of 3.7, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports.

The rating is 9.8 percent lower than the 4.1 NBC earned when it aired the race last year.

Krissie Newman Celebrates Birthday This Weekend At Atlanta Motor Speedway

2007-10-25T13:48:00.001-04:00

Krissie Newman will be celebrating her birthday this Sunday at while her husband Ryan Newman races around Atlanta Motor Speedway for the Pep Boys Auto 500.

Krissie and Ryan plan on celebrating her birthday by visiting Noah's Ark. Noah's Ark is an animal shelter in Atlanta.

Noah's Ark holds true to it's name by housing some very interesting characters such as tigers, bears and monkeys. And from the pictures on thier website they also house some bears, deer, birds and many other animals.

They also appear to try and get children involved and in 2005 Newman visited Noah's Ark and got to hang out with the kids and animals. Here is a link to a Ryan Newman Foundation article from 2005 when Nemwan Visited. HERE

Here is Noah's Ark information that I found on the Web -

Noah's Ark
712 LG- Griffin Road
Locust Grove, GA 30248-4317
Phone (770) 957-0888
Fax (770) 957-1181
E-Mail Noah@Noahs-Ark.org

http://www.noahs-ark.org/

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO KRISSIE NEWMAN!!

What a great present for Krissie to have Ryan win on Sunday at Atlanta!!!!!

THE Ryan Newman Race Preview - Atlanta

2007-10-24T22:22:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 Mobil 1 Dodge Team will be racing here at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend for the Pep Boys Auto 500 .

Atlanta Motor Speedway Quick Facts :
Location - Hampton, GA
completed - 1960
Distance - 1.54 miles
Shape - Quad-oval
Seating - 124,000
According to NASCAR.com Bobby Labonte has the Nextel Cup race record at Atlanta with a speed and date of 159.904 - 11/16/97. Geoffrey Bodine has the qualifying record here with a speed and date of 197.478 - 1997.

Ryan Newman's History At Atlanta Motor Speedway
STARTS - 11
POLES - 7
WINS - 0
TOP 5\'s - 1
TOP 10\'s - 4
AVG START - 3.1
AVG FINISH - 17.2

Ryan Newman's Previous Races at Atlanta
2007 - Kobalt Tools 500 - 1 - 23 - Running
2006 - Golden Corral 500 - 2 - 18 - Running
2006 - Bass Pro Shops 500 - 17 - 30 - Running
2005 - Golden Corral 500 - 1 - 14 - Running
2005 - Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 - 1 - 23 - Running
2004 - Golden Corral 500 - 1 - 5 - Running
2004 - Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 - 1 - 17 - Running
2003 - Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 - 1 - 10 - Running
2003 - Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 - 1 - 29 - Accident
2002 - MBNA America 500 - 2 - 10 - Running
2002 - NAPA 500 - 6 - 10 - Running

All but 1 of Ryan Newman's 12 wins have come from intermediate tracks. Newman has 143 starts at Intermediate tracks with 11 win(s), 41 Top 5(s) and 61 Top 10(s). He also has an average start of 8.4 and an average finish of 17.6.

Ryan Newman and his #12 team will be taking chasis PRS-108 as thier primary chasis. Thier backup chasis is PRS-082

And from PenskeRacing.com here is Ryan Newmans quote on Atlanta Motor Speedway--

Weve been having some really good runs the last few weeks, beginning with Talladega. We did really well at Charlotte until the truck arm broke with two laps to go, but I think weve improved a lot on our intermediate-track program, so were looking forward to Atlanta. Were taking a good car with us. We got the pole back in March and had to replace the engine before the race, so we started in the back and just couldnt get things going from there. Hopefully, well have some better luck this time around.

LAST-LAP CAUTION LEAVES NEWMAN IN 2ND AT MARTINSVILLE

2007-10-23T11:45:00.001-04:00

ALLTELRACING.COM

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, will have to wait one more week to try and end his 77-race winless streak after a caution during the green-white-checker finish left Newman sitting in second in Sunday's Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway.

Newman, who had qualified 12th for the scheduled 500-lap race, had balance issues for most of the event, but crew chief Michael Nelson had a tire strategy in mind to help Newman at the end.

The Alltel Dodge hovered inside the top 15 until Newman made his first pit stop. Newman told his crew that his car was loose on entry and exit to the corners and it was tight in the center.

Nelson decided to alternate on pit stops between four tires and two tires. The first stop on lap 47 was a two-tire stop in order to get Newman track position. With right-side tires, fuel and one round up on the right-side track bar, Newman gained six spots and restarted eighth on lap 51.

The car's balance remained the same despite the changes, but Newman was able to maintain a top-10 position until his next stop on lap 117.

On the second stop, Nelson called for four tires and fuel with no adjustments. Newman came off pit road in 19th after the first 12 cars stayed on the half-mile track and got off sequence with the front-runners.

With no changes made to the car on the second stop, the car became too tight when the field took the green flag again on lap 125.
"We need a pretty big change on the next stop," Newman relayed to his crew.

After falling back to 23rd during the run, Newman was able to climb back to 21st when the sixth of a record 21 caution flags waved on lap 167 when teammate Kurt Busch hit the wall. On his third stop, Nelson gave Newman right-side tires, fuel and four rounds up on the right-side track bar to loosen the car when the field took the green. Newman gained nine positions with the stop and restarted 12th on lap 173.

However, the Alltel Dodge was still too tight and Newman was falling back, although the constant cautions were helping him stay inside the top 15.

Newman was running 15th when he finally made it back to pit road on lap 217 for his fourth stop. Nelson had to do something with the car to free it up and decided to work on the wedge as well as the track bar. For his second four-tire stop, Newman received fuel, three rounds up on the right-side track bar and one round of wedge out of the left rear, along with the fresh Goodyear Eagles. Once again, with so many cars staying out or taking two tires only, Newman restarted in 25th due to the longer pit stop.
The car's tightness just didn't seem to go away no matter what changes were made.

"The car is too tight in the center," Newman told his crew. "I cannot pass. I need to roll the center better and (I) need more bite coming off."
When the caution came out again on lap 248, Newman stayed on the track while the front-runners came in for their stops, taking Newman from 24th to 14th for the restart on lap 256.

Newman was able to make his way back into the top 10 on lap 276 and was holding his own when he collided with David Ragan, bringing out the 11th caution flag when Ragan's car turned sideways on the track in turn two. Newman was underneath Ragan and got loose, spinning the rookie.

"Tell David I'm sorry, I didn't mean to turn him," Newman radioed to his spotter. "I just got loose and got into him. I didn't do that on purpose."

Newman would come in for another wedge change on lap 297 and receive right-side tires, fuel and two rounds of wedge in the right rear. Nelson then told Newman that he would only have to make one more stop for fuel.

Newman restarted 13th on lap 301 and almost immediately began heading towards the front. Within nine laps, he was up to seventh and he was the fastest car on the track.
The Alltel Dodge was running in sixth when the 12th caution came out on lap 342 and Newman came in for his final four-tire stop. This time, Nelson called for four tires, fuel and two rounds down on the right-side track bar and got Newman back onto the track in sixth.

After the restart, the car went back to the tight side, but Newman was able to maintain his top-10 position.

The 13th caution flag flew on lap 395 and Nelson brought the Alltel Dodge back down pit road when all of the lead-lap cars pitted. Newman received right-side tires, fuel and 1.5-rounds up on the right-side track bar. The final stop for Newman and the Alltel crew took the Indiana native from seventh to second when the green flag flew with just over 100 laps remaining in the race.

Newman was chasing Jeff Gordon for the lead, but eventual race winner Jimmie Johnson was able to pass Newman on lap 437 for second. When Johnson passed Gordon for the lead, Newman began going after Gordon in second, but with all of the cautions that kept occurring, Newman wasn't getting enough time to pass Gordon.

After the restart on lap 491, Newman finally caught Gordon and on lap 495, Newman took over second. Gordon wasn't too happy with Newman's bump-and-run maneuver to move him out of the way and when another caution period occurred on lap 496, Gordon decided to hit Newman's Alltel Dodge under caution. Gordon was not penalized.
The caution with four laps left brought out a green-white-checkered flag finish. When the green flag waved on lap 505, Newman was able to get a jump on Johnson and got under the car in turns three and four, but Johnson held him off as the field came around to get the white flag. With only one lap remaining, Ragan's car spun and brought out the race's 21st caution, ending the Subway 500 with Newman in second.

"It was a good run for the Alltel Dodge Avenger," Newman said during post-race interviews. "We weren't a very good car yesterday [Saturday] in practice at any point. We made some changes that worked and the guys did a good job. In hindsight, I still wish we had the last lap on the outside of the 48. It was a good run for us. We had a little bump-and-run there with the 24 [Gordon]. That is something that has happened to me in the past, so I didn't feel that bad giving it to him. In the end, it was a good finish for us."

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger in the Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. ABC and PRN radio will broadcast the race live beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Ryan Newman Finishes 2nd at Martinsville

2007-10-22T17:33:00.000-04:00

I did not get to see much of the race. I caught the start and then about the last 55 laps.

The end of the race was of course a green, white checkered run. Jimmie Johnson finished first with Ryan Newman on his back bumper. The green, white checkered was cut short due to another spin. I don't know if Newman could have caught Johnson or not, but he was not giving up.

A couple of laps earlier (and a couple cautions earlier) Jeff Gordon was holding Newman up a little and Newman actually "muscled" his way past Gordon. I wish we could see more determined and "bullish" driving from Newman.

This is from Sun Herald.com -
MARTINSVILLE, Va. – The tussle between Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon started on track but ended on pit road.

And there it will remain, both say.

Newman got up alongside of Gordon on Lap 493 of Sunday’s Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway and two fender-banging moves later passed him for second place on Lap 494.

Newman was mounting a challenge for the lead when a caution on the final lap left him with a second-place finish. Gordon ended up third.

Since both finished in the top five, they had to stop their respective cars on pit road for post-race media obligations. After exiting his No. 24 Chevrolet, Gordon made his way over to Newman, who was awaiting a TV interview in front of his car.

“You know why I’m mad,” Gordon said as he approached. He asked Newman if he believed he gave Gordon enough room on the track.

“I know you’re mad, but I want you to know I didn’t do it to you on purpose,” Newman replied. “I gave you the little love tap. You made me drive up (in the gravel) on purpose.”
Said Gordon, “If I made you mad, you’d do the same thing.”

Newman answered, “I know. I know. We’re good. I appreciate you coming over.”

Anyway, congradulations to Ryan Newman and his #12 Penske Racing Alltel Dodge team on their 3rd second place finish of the year.

I am sure Newman wanted victory really bad especially after his dissapointing finish last week at Lowes when it looked like he had the win with a couple of laps to go and blew a tire, ending up in the wall.

Busch, Newman Starting Beside One Another At Martinsville

2007-10-21T00:54:00.000-04:00

MARTINSVILLE, Va. (Oct. 19, 2007) Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman will start beside one another in Sunday's Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway, as a result of the Penske Racing teammates earning the 11th and 12th starting positions, respectively, in Friday's rain-delayed qualifying session.

Busch, who went out 40th in the 48-driver qualifying order, recorded a lap of 20.068 seconds, 94.359 mph, in his Miller Lite Dodge Avenger. Newman's Alltel Dodge Avenger followed Busch. The Indiana native posted a 20.072-second, 94.340-mph lap, just 0.004 second behind Busch and 0.134 second in arrears to pole winner Jeff Gordon.

Sam Hornish Jr., who was attempting to make his NASCAR NEXTEL Cup debut in his Mobil 1 Dodge Avenger, was 38th quickest with a lap of 20.347 seconds, 93.065 mph. However, under NASCAR rules, he wasn't quick enough among those required to qualify on time to make it into the field. He was bumped from the grid by former Daytona 500 winner Ward Burton.

The rain certainly didnt help with getting practice time, said Hornish, who will attempt to qualify for next weekend's race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile track where he competed in a NASCAR Busch Series event earlier this year.

Its tough, but we knew it was going to be tough. That qualifying lap was our own fault. The car was good on the warm-up lap, but it had way too much push on the qualifying lap. Its frustrating, but well keep working at it.

Newman noted he had a "decent starting spot" that hopefully, "will turn into a good day."

"We definitely have a car we can work with tomorrow [Saturday] and Sunday," Newman said. Here you need to be good on long runs and old tires. You can do 150 laps on fuel, but you have to have good tires.

Busch noted he picked up almost five-tenths of a second from practice to qualifying and that was a "nice gain."

"With the weather being such an issue earlier, we were just glad that everything played out as well as it did," Busch said. "We'll be strong here on Sunday and that's what matters most."

Sundays Subway 500 will be televised by ABC and broadcast by MRN Radio beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Ryan Newman Qualifying Quote - Marinsville

2007-10-21T00:53:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman (No. 12 alltel Dodge Avenger)

“The car was just a little tight. It was a decent lap it just felt slow. Either way it was a good reference to the fact that it was our first qualifying run. We definitely have a car we can work with tomorrow and Sunday. It will be a decent starting spot that hopefully will turn into a good day.

“Here you need to be good on long runs and old tires. You can do 150 laps on fuel but you have to have good tires.”

Ryan Newmans Practice #2 Results - Martinsville Speedway

2007-10-20T21:09:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 32 fastest in the second practice at Martinsville Speedway for the Subway 500 .
Newman's practice run included a speed of 92.833/20.398 putting him -0.298 behind the fastest of the practice, Denny Hamlin.

Practice 2 Results
Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans qualifying Results - Subway 500 | Martinsville Speedway

2007-10-20T08:51:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 12 fastest in qualifying at Martinsville Speedway for the Subway 500 .
Newman's qualifying run included a speed of 94.340/20.072 putting him -0.134 behind the fastest qualifier, Error! Retrieved 0 matches!.

Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #1 Results - Martinsville Speedway

2007-10-19T16:51:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 27 fastest in the first practice at Martinsville Speedway for the Subway 500 .
Newman's practice run included a speed of 92.330/20.509 putting him -0.517 behind the fastest of the practice, Jeff Gordon.

Practice 1 Results

Rain pushes back schedule at Martinsville Speedway

2007-10-19T12:41:00.001-04:00

MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Rain has caused today\'s schedule of events at Martinsville Speedway to be altered. Whenever the track is dried - jet dryers were working on the surface at 12:15 p.m. EDT, and the track generally takes about 45 minutes to dry - the NASCAR Nextel Cup cars will begin practice and stay on the track until 2:30 p.m. EDT. The Craftsman Truck Series entries will then practice from 2:40 to 4 p.m., followed by Cup qualifying at 4:45 p.m. EDT.

Ryan Newman and the All Time Pole Position Record Holders

2007-10-18T15:46:00.001-04:00

Thanks to racefan57, I got going on another project to locate stats on all time pole winners. Actually not his fault...just got me thinking. My searching and searching landed me at TheInsideGrove.com. I emailed Donald Miller at the site for some direction, and he directed. On their stats page they have it.

In 2001 Ryan Newman got his first NASCAR pole position in only his 3rd ever NASCAR Cup race. Consequently he also finished dead last in that race due to an accident. Newman raced 7 Cup races in the 2001.

In his first full year in NASCAR Cup racing, Newman was the leader in pole positions in 2002 with 6 poles followed by Jimmie Johnson with 5. Also during his first full year in Cup racing Newman grabbed the pole position at New Hampshire and took the his first checkered flag that weekend. That was Newman's 35th career NASCAR Cup race.
In 2003 Newman had the most poles again with 5 followed by Bobby Labonte.

And in 2004, yes it was Ryan Newman in the lead with 9 followed by Jeff Gordon with 6.

And once again in 2005 Newman had the most poles with 8 followed by Elliot Sadler with 3.

Newman's qualifying and race performance fell off in 2006. He only had 2 poles, tied with 3 others for 5th for the year.

Now in 2007 Newman has 5 poles following Jeff Gordon who has the most with 6 poles.

Newman's Average Finish From The Pole
2001 – 43
2002 – 12.6 (1 win from the pole)
2003 – 10 (1 win from the pole – quite a few top 5's)
2004 – 8.5 (quite a few top 5's and 10 top's)
2005 – 14
2006 – 26.5
2007 – 18.8 (2 2nd place finishes from the pole)
Overall - 13.5

Anyway here is what TheInsideGrove.com has listed as all time pole position winners.
1. Richard Petty – 126
2. David Peason – 113
3. Cale Yarborough – 70
4. Jeff Gordon (A) – 62
5. Darrel Waltrip – 59
6. Bobby Allison – 59
7. Bill Elliott – 55
8. Bobby Isaac – 52
9. Junior Johnson – 46
10. Buck Baker – 44
11. Ryan Newman (A) – 42
12. Mark Martin (A) – 41
13. Buddy Baker – 38
14. Herb Thomas – 38
15. Tim Flock – 38
16. Geoff Bodine – 37
17. Rusty Wallace – 36
18. Ned Jarrett – 35
19. Rex White – 35
20. Firball Roberts – 34
21. Fred Lorenzen – 33
22. Fonty Flock – 32
23. Ricky Rudd – 29
24. Terry Labonte – 28
25. Bobby Labonte (A) – 26
26. Jack Smith – 24
27. Alan Kulwicki – 24
28. Ken Schrader (A) – 23
29. Dale Earnhardt – 22
30. Dick Hutcherson – 22
31. Ernie Irvan – 22
32. Marvin Panch – 21
33. Benny Parsons – 20
34. Neil Bonnett – 20
35. Joe Weatherly – 19
36. Speedy Thompson – 19
37. Lee Petty – 18

Ok, that is as far as I am going!! You can see all the rest at The Inside Grooves Stats Page. So for all time, Ryan Newman is ranked 11th. Actually, The Inside Groove had him behind Mark Martin at 40 poles. But this last weekend Newman got his 42nd Pole Position.

And for active drivers, Newman is ranked 2nd, 20 pole positions behind Jeff Gordon.

Anyway, once again I had fun getting side tracked on a different subject. I mean it. So many times I have 30 things on my brain and 40 working projects, then…………BAM…..I find something else that I have to know the answer to!! And for a brief time I forget about all those other things on my mind!!

Ryan Newman And The Martinsville Speedway

2007-10-18T00:44:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 ALLTEL Dodge Team will be racing here at Martinsville Speedway this weekend for the Subway 500 .

Martinsville Speedway Quick Facts :
Location - Martinsville, VA
completed - 1947
Distance - .526 miles
Shape - Oval
Seating - 65,000

According to NASCAR.com Jeff Gordon has the Nextel Cup race record at Martinsville with a speed and date of 82.223 - 09/22/96. Tony Stewart has the qualifying record here with a speed and date of 95.371 - 2000.

Ryan Newman's History At Martinsville Speedway
STARTS - 11
POLES - 2
WINS - 0
TOP 5's - 4
TOP 10's - 5
AVG START - 5.8
AVG FINISH - 15.1

Ryan Newman's Previous Races at Martinsville
2007 - Goody's Cool Orange 500 - 24 - 14 - Running
2006 - DirecTV 500 - 4 - 18 - Running
2006 - Subway 500 - 4 - 13 - Running
2005 - Advance Auto Parts 500 - 2 - 4 - Running
2005 - Subway 500 - 4 - 10 - Running
2004 - Advance Auto Parts 500 - 3 - 5 - Running
2004 - Subway 500 - 1 - 3 - Running
2003 - Virginia 500 - 3 - 38 - Brakes
2003 - Subway 500 - 8 - 5 - Running
2002 - Virginia 500 - 10 - 41 - Overheating
2002 - Old Dominion 500 - 1 - 15 - Running

Ryan Newman and Short Track Racing -
Newman has 35 starts at Short Track's with 1 win(s), 9 Top 5(s) and 18 Top 10(s). He also has an average start of 7.8 and an average finish of 15.5.

Ryan Newman and his #12 team will be taking chasis PRS- as thier primary chasis. Thier backup chasis is PRS-

And from PenskeRacing.com here is Ryan Newman's quote on Martinsville Speedway--

We were so close to getting that win at Charlotte. It wouldve been really nice to get a win at Lowes, but well just have to wait another week.

Ive never won at Martinsville, but Ive had some good runs there. We had a little bit of a problem during qualifying there earlier this year, but we still pulled out a 14th-place finish. Weve got a good COT program at Penske, so I think we have a good shot at getting another good finish there this weekend.

>

This track at NASCAR.COM
This track at FoxSports.COM
Some track details including track records varies between the 2 sites

Penske - Noting Newman - Oct. 16, 2007

2007-10-16T22:18:00.000-04:00
-- Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, will make his 12th Cup start at Martinsville Speedway. It will be his 220th career start in the Cup Series.

-- Newman has an average start of 5.8 and an average finish of 15.1. He only has one start outside the top 10a 24th in April after he spun during his qualifying lapand eight starts inside the top five, including two Bud Pole Awards..

-- Newman has five top-10 finishes at Martinsville, all from the top five. He has four other finishes inside the top 20.

-- Newman has led 83 laps in four Martinsville races. He has completed 5,190 laps of a possible 5,500 since he made his Cup debut at the Virginia track in 2002. Newman has a completion rate of 94.4 percent at the half-mile track.

-- Newman's primary car this weekend is chassis PRS-509, which was last used at Loudon, N.H., where the Indiana native qualified fifth and finished ninth. The backup car is PRS-519, which was tested at Charlotte in August, but has not been used in a race.

Newman On Martinsville: We were so close to getting that win at Charlotte. It wouldve been really nice to get a win at Lowes, but well just have to wait another week.

Ive never won at Martinsville, but Ive had some good runs there. We had a little bit of a problem during qualifying there earlier this year, but we still pulled out a 14th-place finish. Weve got a good COT program at Penske, so I think we have a good shot at getting another good finish there this weekend.

World Speed Record set in Dodge Charger

2007-10-15T16:37:00.001-04:00
Russ Wicks, who holds World Speed Records of more than 200 miles per hour on both land and water, has set a stock car world record of 244.9 miles per hour, which has been confirmed by Guinness World Records.
Wick successfully achieved the record on Tuesday, October 9 at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Northwestern Utah while driving a 2007 Dodge Charger built to NASCAR specifications.
The new mark shatters Wicks´ previous stock car world speed record of 222 miles per hour. Wicks´ vehicle was developed with the backing of the Dodge Motorsports Engineering Group and Arrington Engines.

BLOWN TIRE RUINS NEWMAN'S NIGHT

2007-10-15T16:35:00.001-04:00
The Bank of America 500 weekend started out great for Ryan Newman with his fifth Bud Pole Award this season and his seventh pole at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
In all three weekend practice sessions, Newman was in the top 10. But everything soured just three laps from the checkered flag Saturday night when he cut a tire while leading, dropping from first to a 28th-place finish.
"I couldn't tell if it felt a little spongy before, but obviously, the car was plenty fast," Newman said. "I felt it pop and it spun around and hit the wall. We tried to complete some more laps after that, but that was it."
When the green flag waved at the beginning of the scheduled 334-lap race, Newman started strong, leading the first nine laps.
Newman reported the car was a little loose at first, but then it went to the tight side. However, when Newman came in for his first pit stop during the second of 15 caution flags, crew chief Michael Nelson called for right-side tires and fuel only, no adjustments. Newman restarted in fourth, but immediately lost three spots when the car started out loose.
Newman was able to regain two spots and was one of the fastest cars on the track, even though he radioed in to his crew that he had a slight tire vibration. Newman was also having trouble running the high side as the car was too tight, but it was only slightly tight when he ran on the bottom.
As the run progressed, the Alltel Dodge got even tighter and Newman was having to go easy on the car's right-front tire – where the vibration was occurring. He continued to lose positions until he could get back into the pits.
The third yellow flag waved on lap 67 when Reed Sorenson hit the third-turn wall. Newman pitted and received four tires, fuel and three rounds up on the right-side track bar. The extended stop dropped Newman from sixth to 11th, as many teams took only two tires.
After the restart, Newman fell to 12th, but immediately moved back up into the top 10 before the fourth caution came out on lap 77.
Newman hovered just inside the top 10 while he continued to fight a tight condition in his race car. Before Newman had to make a green-flag stop, the yellow flag waved again for debris on lap 118. Nelson brought Newman down pit road for four tires, fuel, one round of wedge out of the left rear and had the Alltel crew put a rubber in the right rear. Newman dropped to 15th on the restart with an 18.73-second stop, but he was able to advance through the field as soon as the green flag was shown again.
On the next pit stop on lap 139, Newman received right-side tires, fuel and three rounds down on the right-side track bar. The quick stop returned Newman to the top 10 for the restart and again, Newman lingered inside the top 10, but this time, his car was too free.
A fifth stop on lap 160 gave Newman four fresh tires, fuel and two more rounds down on the right-side track bar. Newman restarted 10th and he was pretty happy with the car, even though it was a little loose on entry at times. However, in dirty air, Newman didn't have much room to move and he was still 10th when the eighth caution began on lap 176.
Again, Newman only got right-side tires, fuel and a half round of wedge in the left rear. Newman restarted ninth and advanced to seventh when the yellow occurred again. This time, when Newman pitted, Nelson gave him only fuel and that got him back onto the track in third.
As soon as the green flag waved, Newman told his crew the car was free, but then suddenly it became extremely loose after hitting something in the center of turn three. Luckily for Newman, the caution came out again on lap 208 and Newman relayed to his crew that the car was way too hot. His spotter informed them that a windshield tear-off was covering the Alltel Dodge's grill. Newman came in for four tires, fuel, another half round of wedge in the left rear and a thorough cleaning of the grill to cool the car. Again, many teams took only two tires and Newman had to restart 13th.
Newman moved back up to 10th when the caution came out for the 11th time and since Newman had no complaints about the car and fairly new tires, Nelson brought him down pit road for fuel only. That got him back onto the track in third position.
Newman took over second on lap 245 and was chasing down Clint Bowyer for the lead, but the car fell back onto the tight side and Bowyer started to pull away from Newman. Jeff Gordon then passed Newman, dropping him to third.
When Scott Riggs' Dodge hit the wall in turn two on lap 280, all of the lead-lap cars came down pit road for their final stop. Newman received four tires, fuel and one-and-a-half rounds up on the right-side track bar. The 13.86-second kept Newman in the third spot when the green flag waved on lap 284.
The Alltel Dodge was loose after the adjustments and Newman fell back to fourth, but then the car tightened up just a bit and Newman told his crew that the car felt neutral and he was quickly gaining on the three cars in front of him.
Around lap 320, Newman began informing his crew that another car was dropping oil on the track. Although the Alltel crew members kept telling the NASCAR officials about the danger on the track, the yellow flag did not wave until Johnny Sauter's car spun, bringing out the 14th caution flag. That resulted in NASCAR red flagging the race for 12 minutes 6 seconds on lap 324 while they cleaned up all of the oil around the 1.5-mile track.
Newman was in fourth when the race restarted on lap 330. Before making one circuit around LMS, Newman had rocketed into first and was pulling away from the rest of the field. It looked as if he would get his first win in more than two years with only five laps remaining.
"I went around the outside of the No. 07 and the door opened up when the No. 24 and the No. 5 checked up on the bottom," Newman said. "It was a great coincidence for me, but unfortunately the left rear tire blew out after that."
Unfortunately, luck was once again not on Newman's side. Just two laps later, Newman's Alltel Dodge cut its left-front tire going into turn two and Newman hit the wall, leaving the Alltel Dodge battered and unable to complete the remaining laps of the race that ended under green-white-checker conditions.
When the checkered flag waved, Newman was relegated to a 28th-place finish.
Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger in the Subway 500 at Martinsville Speedway. ABC and MRN Radio will broadcast the race live beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Overnight ratings slip 2.5 percent

2007-10-15T16:31:00.001-04:00

ABC's broadcast of Saturday night's Bank of America 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Lowe's Motor Speedway earned an overnight Nielsen Media Research rating of 4.0, Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Daily reports.

The rating is 2.5 percent lower than the 4.1 NBC earned overnight from the nation's largest markets for the race in 2006.

Ryan Newman's Dodge Race Quote - Lowe's

2007-10-14T21:36:00.001-04:00
RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 alltel Dodge Charger)

“We blew a left rear tire out. I couldn’t tell if it felt a little spongy before, but obviously the car was plenty fast. It was a great Alltel Dodge today, just unfortunate. We were running away from them after Gordon’s little slip up there on the restart. I think he vapor locked or something.

“We ended up blowing a left rear tire. It blew a left rear and spun around. I felt it pop and it spun around and hit the wall. We tried to complete some more laps after that but that was it.”

TELL US ABOUT THE MOVE THAT PUT YOU IN THE LEAD. “I went around the outside of the No. 07 and the door opened up when the No. 24 and the No. 5 checked up on the bottom. It was a great coincidence for me, but unfortunately the left rear tire blew out after that.”

DID IT LOOK LIKE JEFF GORDON JUST DIDN’T TIME IT RIGHT? “No, I think he vapor locked from sitting there where the carburetor got too hot. I doubt he missed his shift. It was a good situation for us that turned bad about two laps later.”

Ryan Newman Finishes 28th After Crash With 3 To Go

2007-10-13T23:45:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 Alltel Dodge team had a great night at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. for the Back Of America 500.

Newman ran up front in the top 10 all night and finished 28th, 3 laps down. But that finish was due to him crashing with 3 to go in the race. The rest of Newman's night was great. Newman led about 9 laps for tonight's race.

After a caution with 12 to go a red flag was thrown while speedy dry was thrown down on a lot of the track.

Newman restarted 3rd behind Gordon and Bowyer. Newman went high on the restart and got around Bowyer. Gordon slowed up and Nemwan shot passed him on the high side while Gordon ended up holding up Kyle Bucsh and Clint Bowyer. Newman got a huge lead and was running away.

I thought for sure Newman was going to get a win. Then with 3 to go, Newman lost it in turn 2 and slammed into the wall. He said that he blew a right rear although the TV coverage revealed that the tire was not down. Newman was all on his own, out front and the car just got away from him. It could have been speedy dry still on the track...who knows.

Newman ended up being scored in 28th and 3 laps down. If saw the race, you would know that was not how Newmans night was.

Other notes include my Chase choice - Clint Bowyer finished 2nd. He remains in 3rd behind Jeff Gordon (1st) and Jimmie Johnson (2nd). Bowyer had a chance at the win when on the restart for the Green/White/Checkered Clint restarted in 2nd behind Gordon. Gordon spun his tires. Bowyer couldn't get around him and instead slammed into the back of Gordon propelling Gordon ahead.

A lot of the chasers had problems tonight including Matt Kensith who had a bad car all night and crashed twice.

Kurt Busch, Ryan Newmans Penske Racing teammate had an accident on pit road that crippled his chances in tonights race.

Tony Stewart had a double accident on pit road while leaving his stall. He hit one car when he left then another after he got started after hitting the first.

Denny Hamlin had transmission problems.

Here are the top 10 finishers from tonights race.

1 4 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet DuPont 190/5 337 Running
2 25 07 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet Jack Daniel's 175/5 337 Running
3 13 5 Kyle Busch Chevrolet Kellogg's / CARQUEST 170/5 337 Running
4 27 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet AT&T Mobility 160/0 337 Running
5 18 99 Carl Edwards Ford Office Depot 155/0 337 Running
6 34 22 Dave Blaney Toyota Caterpillar /
CatUsed.com 155/5 337 Running
7 29 20 Tony Stewart Chevrolet The Home Depot 146/0 337 Running
8 5 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge Mopar / Dodge Dealers / UAW 142/0 337 Running
9 28 40 David Stremme Dodge Target 138/0 337 Running
10 19 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota NAPA Auto Parts 139/5 337 Running

Newman unconcerned about lack of attention

2007-10-13T21:34:00.000-04:00
CONCORD, N.C. - Penske Racing's Ryan Newman stole the show with his fast qualifying lap Thursday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Can he turn that into a win in tonight's Bank of America 500?

Newman plans to try. Outside the Chase For The Nextel Cup field, Newman has labored outside the spotlight for the last string of races. He says he doesn't mind - he just wants his team to perform well.

Right now, he's taking things one practice, one qualifying, one race at a time.

"I don't look at it that way," he said when asked about comparisons to the Chase drivers. "I think, from my standpoint and the team's standpoint, we have a job to do on qualifying nights. We have a job to do on race days and try to get the car right in practice. Today was all about doing what we had to do to be first.

"I don't look at it as what we need to do to create some fame, because we're not in the Chase or anything like that. It's just a matter of going out and getting the job done."

Pole Position Records????

2007-10-13T11:17:00.000-04:00

Thanks to "RaceFan57" for kind of posing this question to me. What kind of records are there for winning Pole Positions?

I don't know. But I am now very curious and have been searching ALL OVER with no luck.

If anyone knows where to look, please let me know. I would like to find the "all time" pole winners and see what kind of numbers they have. And then, of course, compare them to "Rocket-Man" Ryan Newman's now 42 pole positions thanks to his efforts at Lowe's Motor Speedway this weekend.

I am sure that Newman is not close to any kind of records, but still would be fun to find one more statistic.

Anyone have any ideas? Please let me know!!

According to NASCAR.com Ryan Newman has set 3 qualifying CUP records. He set them at -

CUP
FONTANA Ryan Newman 187.432 - 2002
BRISTOL Ryan Newman 128.709 - 2003
Michigan Ryan Newman 194.232 - 2005

BUSCH
Atlanta Ryan Newman 191.661 - 2001
DARLINGTON Ryan Newman 170.301 - 2001
Chicago Ryan Newman 181.886 - 2001

Other sources have him having MORE qualifying records. I am currently updating my information to reflect that. For instance, I think FOX has Newman with about 6 CUP qualifying records.

But this is a general idea.

Also, more impoirtantly, from what I have seen, Newman has NO race records. Oh well.

Mike

NEWMAN SWEEPS POLES AT LOWE'S

2007-10-12T20:51:00.000-04:00
For the second time in his NASCAR Cup Series career at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Ryan Newman has swept the Bud Pole Award at the 1.5-mile track.

Newman, who went out 45th of 49 drivers in Thursday's "Bojangles Pole Night", posted a lap time of 28.512 seconds – bettering the second-place Jimmie Johnson by 0.061 second; Johnson went out 42nd in qualifying.

"It was a great lap for the Alltel Dodge. Michael Nelson, Travis (Geisler) and the guys from the engineering group did a great job to bring the car off the truck fast," Newman said during his post-qualifying interviews. "We did some scuff runs in race trim; switched the car over to qualifying trim, did two qualifying runs and qualifying was just a matter of beating the 48 car.

"He [Johnson] was the guy to beat in practice, after practice. He had a good draw; we had a tick better draw. I had the advantage of knowing what he ran and I pushed my car to what I thought I needed to. It was a great lap for us. It was smooth. If I had to do it all over again, I’d say I could have done it better, but maybe not. I just look forward to the rest of the weekend after a great start here tonight."

YOU BEAT JIMMIE JOHNSON BY HALF A SECOND. CAN YOU FEEL THAT MUCH DIFFERENCE IN SPEED IN THE RACECAR?

“You can typically feel the speed difference. We picked up over a half a second difference over practice. So, I felt the grip in the car in my out lap through three and four. I had a pretty good one and two. I think I gave up just a tick in three and four. You can have a good sense of it. I’ve had a good sense of it, I thought I had a good sense of it before and be off. Typically here at Charlotte you can feel the speed and it was a great lap for us.”

AS A DRIVER NOT IN THE CHASE, ARE YOU GETTING WHAT YOU CAN GET?

“I don’t look at it that way. I think from my standpoint and the team’s standpoint we have a job to do on qualifying nights. We have a job to do on race days and try to get the car right in practice. Today was all about doing what we had to do to be first. I don’t look at it as what we need to do to create some fame because we’re not in the Chase or anything like that. It’s just a matter of going out and getting the job done. Tonight was a good night for that. Talladega was a good day for that. Jamie Little was asking me what’s the advantage of trying to qualifying so well here. It’s about getting it done in your back yard. It’s about beating everybody their on home turf; that’s what’s the most gratifying of it all.

WOULD THE RACING BE BETTER IF THE CARS WERE SLOWER HERE?

“You would get to a point where the balance wouldn’t matter. The more you slow the cars down the less the balance matters to the point if we all raced rental cars around here we ran wide open we’d all run the exact same speed. The speed is a good thing as long as we’re safe. I would say NASCAR has done a good job policing that at placing like and places like this and places like Daytona and Talladega to make sure the drivers are safe and most importantly the fans are safe.

The run gave Newman his seventh career Bud Pole Award at the North Carolina track and his 42nd overall; it is his fifth pole of the year. Newman also swept the Bud Pole Award in 2003 at LMS.

Newman has swept the pole at the same track four previous times as well; three times at Atlanta Motor Speedway where he won six consecutive Bud Pole Awards from March 2003 until October 2005, and at Texas Motor Speedway in 2005. Newman also has seven poles at Atlanta and is tied with mentor Buddy Baker for the most at the Georgia track. He has the opportunity to break that record at the end of October and sweep yet another track.

Coverage of Saturday's Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway will be broadcast by ABC and PRN radio beginning at 7 p.m. EDT.

Line-up for the Bank of America 500:

1. Ryan Newman, No. 12 Alltel Dodge

2. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s/Kobalt Tools Chevrolet

3. Bobby Labonte, No. 43 Cheerios Racing/Pink for the Cure Dodge

4. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet

5. Kasey Kahne, No. 9 Mopar/Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge

8. Kurt Busch, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge

Newman scores 42nd career pole at Cup Bank of America 500

2007-10-12T20:30:00.000-04:00
CONCORD, North Carolina (Ticker) - He's been called "Flyin' Ryan" and Ryan Newman lived up to that nickname Thursday night at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Newman won the pole for Saturday night's NASCAR Nextel Cup Bank of America 500 with a lap at 189.394 miles per hour around the 1 1/2-mile oval.

It was Newman's 42nd career Cup pole in 219 starts and his fifth pole this season. It was also his seventh pole and 12th top-10 start in 14 races at LMS, one of NASCAR's most historic venues that is located just outside Charlotte, North Carolina.

"The track is very fast tonight and just a good run," Newman said. "I knew Jimmie would be tough here. It's great to be able to do this. We came off the track fast and did some qualifying runs. It was just a matter of beating the 48 (Jimmie Johnson) car.

"If I had to do it all over again maybe I could have done it better. Maybe not."

Newman's run knocked Jimmie Johnson off the pole after the No. 2 driver in "The Chase" ran a lap at 188.990 mph in a Chevrolet Monte Carlo.

"I'm not surprised by that time," Johnson said of Newman's lap. "I couldn't have gone any faster. That's all I had. I think we'll still be in good shape for the race. It's one of the better qualifying spots that I've had here.

"Ryan nipped us by just a little bit. I'm looking forward to a good weekend."

Newman is not one of the 12 drivers in "The Chase." Johnson is second in points, nine behind Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jeff Gordon, who qualified fourth at 188.298 mph just behind non-Chase driver Bobby Labonte.

Only the top four drivers in "The Chase" are within 200 points of the lead so this race could be critical to the eight other drivers who are rapidly losing touch with the leaders.

"I would think so but it depends on what the guys up front do in this race," Johnson said. "It's getting more and more difficult as the races go by. If you collect first through fourth in the points, those other guys are back in it."

Starting up front is important to Johnson, who has five wins, including sweeps of both races in 2004 and 2005, eight top-five and 11 top-10 finishes in 12 previous Cup starts here.

"When you are able to keep track position it makes the race that much easier for you," Johnson said. "At Kansas we had a good car in traffic but didn't have enough to win. If you can stay up there with the guys racing for the win it really helps you. It's better to get off to a good start. Those things all help us focus on qualifying."

Labonte was third in a Dodge. It was his eighth top-10 start in 2007 and best starting position since third at Bristol in August 2006.

"I thought our lap was great," Labonte said. "It was an uneventful lap. The car started well and turned well. It was a good lap for us."

Labonte is coming off a good race at Talladega, Alabama last Sunday before he was involved in a crash after 144 laps. He started eighth but finished 35th.

"Last weekend was really good for us," Labonte said. "The restrictor plate program we had at Talladega was the best we've had since I've been at Petty Enterprises with Evernham engines. I think we're gaining on it. To come here at Charlotte we always run good here. It's one of our strongest tracks that we come to. Hopefully we can have some momentum on our side.

"We still need to be a little bit better for 400 or 500 miles."

Defending race winner Kasey Kahne rounded out the top five with a lap at 188.088 mph in a Dodge.

Newman said he felt the additional speed in his car on his out lap when he came off the pits before running under the clock for the pole run.

"You could feel the speed and it was a great lap for us," Newman said. "We have a job to do on qualifying day and a car to do on race day. Today was all about getting the car first. I don't look at it as trying to create fame because we're not in The Chase; it's about getting the job done."

With most of the NASCAR Nextel Cup teams based in the Charlotte area, winning anything at this track is a big deal to the drivers in the series, even if they aren't in "The Chase."

"It's about getting it done in your backyard about beating everybody on your home turf," said Newman, who hasn't won a Cup race since September 18, 2005 at Loudon, New Hampshire. "If we had 20 poles at his point in my career and 12 wins, people would think that's acceptable. Maybe we've won too many poles. It's easier to do one lap than 325 that we do here on a given night.

"It's still fun either way it's that qualifying seems to be one of our strong suits."

Clint Bowyer, third in The Chase, qualified 25th at 186.374 mph in a Chevrolet. He is 63 points out of first. Tony Stewart, fourth in points 154 behind, qualified 29th at 185.842 mph in a Chevrolet.

Kevin Harvick, fifth in the Chase but 202 out of the lead, qualified 24th at 186.419 mph in a Chevrolet.

All other drivers in The Chase are 205 or more points out of the lead.

Ryan Newman Grabs The Pole Position for the Bank of America 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway

2007-10-11T21:33:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the fastest in qualifying at Lowe's Motor Speedway for the Bank of America 500 earning him and his team the POLE POSITION.

Newman's qualifying run included a speed of 189.394/28.512.

Congradulations to Ryan Newman for getting the Pole Position at Lowe's.

Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #1 Results - Lowe's Motor Speedway

2007-10-11T21:32:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 3 fastest in the first practice at Lowe's Motor Speedway for the Bank of America 500 .

Newman's practice run included a speed of 184.944/29.198 putting him -0.126 behind the fastest of the practice, Jimmie Johnson.

Practice 1 Results
Qualifying Results

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 ALLTEL Dodge Team will be racing here at Lowe's Motor Speedway this weekend for the Bank of America 500 .

2007-10-11T21:31:00.001-04:00
Ryan Newman has 13 starts at Lowes Motor Speedway. Out of those 13 starts, Newman and his #12 Dodge Penske Racing Team have 6 pole(s), 0 win(s), 3 Top 5(s) and 5 Top 10(s).Newman has an average starting position of 11.1 and a average finish here of 29.7.

All but 1 of Ryan Newman's 12 wins have come from intermediate tracks. Intermediate's. Newman has 142 starts at Intermediate's with 11 win(s), 41 Top 5(s) and 61 Top 10(s). He also has an average start of 8.5 and an average finish of 17.5.

Ryan Newman and his #12 team will be taking chasis PRS-071 as thier primary chasis. Thier backup chasis is PRS-108

And from PenskeRacing.com here is Ryan Newman's quote on Lowes Motor Speedway--

We had a great run last weekend, but couldnt pull out the win once those Hendrick cars came to the front. The last time we were in Charlotte, we had a really good, fast car and won the polethe first of three in a rowbut we had problems with the motor and went out of the race early. Were hoping to get back in the Alltel Dodge Charger at Lowes and hopefully, have a much better finish there this time and get a win before the season is over.

PENSKE:Noting Newman - Oct. 9, 2007 - Charlotte

2007-10-10T21:50:00.000-04:00
-- Ryan Newman will host his annual Fan Club Appreciation Day on Wednesday at Penske Racing. Fan Club members who registered will have the opportunity to spend time with Newman and his wife, Krissie, from 9 a.m. until noon at the race shop in Mooresville, N.C. Lunch will be provided for those who attend. Later that day, Newman will race at the Dirt Track at Lowe¿s Motor Speedway and fan club members will receive a special discounted price on their tickets. The Jani-King Southern Showdown begins at 7 p.m. EDT.

-- Newman will make his 14th Cup start at Lowe¿s Motor Speedway in his No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger this weekend. It will be his 219th career start in the Cup Series.

-- Newman has an average start of 4.2 and an average finish of 21.5. He only has two starts outside the top five at Charlotte¿both in 2006¿and has earned six Bud Pole Awards, including one in May 2007.

-- Newman has five top-10 finishes at LMS, including three top-fives. Newman finished 39th in May after engine troubles eliminated him from the race after only 172 laps.

-- Newman has led 232 laps in seven Charlotte races. He has completed 3,660 laps of a possible 4,682 since he made his Cup debut at the North Carolina track in 2001. Newman has a completion rate of 78.2 percent at the 1.5-mile track.

-- This week, the Alltel team will use PRS-071 as its primary car. It was last used at Kansas where Newman started 42nd and finished 43rd after the engine failed 108 laps into the rain-shortened race. The backup car is PRS-108, which was last used in Michigan where Newman qualified 34th and finished 16th after rain delayed the race until Tuesday morning.

-- While en route to Texas Motor Speedway for the Nov. 2-4 race weekend, Newman will stop in Beaumont, Texas, on Nov. 1 to visit the ExxonMobil refinery.
-- Newman will participate in the annual Hot Rods & Reels Fishing Tournament at Homestead-Miami Speedway scheduled for Nov. 17.

Newman On Lowe's Motor Speedway: ¿We had a great run last weekend, but couldn¿t pull out the win once those Hendrick cars came to the front. The last time we were in Charlotte, we had a really good, fast car and won the pole¿the first of three in a row¿but we had problems with the motor and went out of the race early. We¿re hoping to get back in the Alltel Dodge Charger at Lowe¿s and hopefully, have a much better finish there this time and get a win before the season is over.

MIS improvements slated for 2008

2007-10-10T21:32:00.001-04:00
With Michigan International Speedway celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2008, the Irish Hills track has begun construction on several capital improvement projects that will strengthen the speedway’s on-going commitment to its race fans.

Michigan International Speedway will spend about $10 million in the coming months to continue enhancing the speedway based on feedback from the fans. The latest round of improvements will be completed by the start of the track’s 40th season of racing in June.

“It is an exciting time at MIS,” track president Roger Curtis said. “We have incredible momentum from the success of our improved traffic patterns following our June events, and are looking forward to further implementing some of the fan feedback that our guests continue to give us. All of these ongoing projects to elevate and enhance the fan experience are a result of the fans taking ownership of Michigan International Speedway and telling us what they want.”

Projects include:

* A new, state-of-the-art 142-foot, three-sided LED leaderboard. The scoreboard, higher than the 130-foot Scoring Tower, will replace three scoreboards at MIS, two in the turns and one in the center and be visible from all grandstand seats, as well as several of the infield camping sites. The old center scoreboard only showed the top-five positions, a far cry from the new leaderboard display which can track all 43 drivers in a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. The scoreboard can also be programmed to show video and graphics displays, setting the industry standard for motorsports venues.
* The first phase of a signage project throughout MIS property will also begin. The branded signage will help pedestrians, motorists and campers find their way in, out and around the 1,400-acre racetrack property.
* Some 300 new campsites sites with electric hookups will be added to the Graves Campground, bringing the total number of campsites at MIS to nearly 9,000.
* A permanent restroom/shower building will be built in the Graves Campground.
* Michigan International Speedway is moving forward with additional improved seating. Two additional grandstands in Turn One have been torn down and will soon be replaced with a grandstand that has wider seats, seatbacks and more leg room. The project began last year when one of the old “silver” grandstands was torn down and replaced with seats that are four inches wider than seats in the old grandstands. The project does not add seats, but merely replaces old seats.
* Lastly, as part of the grandstand replacement project, MIS will be acquiring more than 32,000 grandstand seats from the former Pikes Peak International Raceway for future “silver” grandstand replacement.

“These are just a few of the ongoing projects we are continuing in an effort to enhance and elevate the fan experience at MIS for many seasons to come,” Curtis said. “I would also like to thank the State of Michigan for their support in making these investments possible. These new improvements will help us continue are commitment to the race fan, which in turn will help drive tourism to the state during the popular summer months.”

Bowyer and Newman will dish dirt tonight

2007-10-10T21:10:00.000-04:00
Race week at Lowe's Motor Speedway kicks off tonight across the street from the 1.5-mile oval at The Dirt Track.

NASCAR drivers Clint Bowyer and Ryan Newman are among those scheduled to compete when 800-horsepower super late model stock cars from the World of Outlaws Late Model Series compete in the Jani-King Southern Showdown.

Gates open at 5 p.m. with practice laps beginning at 6:45 p.m. The top three in each of six heats, which begin at 7:30, advance to a 50-lap feature scheduled to begin just after 10 p.m.

Scott Bloomquist, who won The Dirt Track's first late model race in 2000 and has back-to-back $50,000 victories in the Colossal 100, is also entered. So is Jimmy Owens, who won the prestigious World 100 at Eldora Speedway.

Drivers will draw for positions in the feature, and if the winner's official entry form was submitted by Sept. 15, that driver will pick up a $10,000 first prize along with $1,000 multiplied by his starting spot. In effect, the winner could get $1,000 for every position gained.

‘Rocket Man’ Ryan Newman Looks to Claim Atlanta Motor Speedway’s All-Time Pole Rec

2007-10-09T15:35:00.000-04:00

Hampton, Ga.
Oct 08, 2007

NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series driver Ryan Newman will attempt to become the driver with the most pole positions in Atlanta Motor Speedway history this Oct. 26 during Georgia-Pacific Qualifying night.

Newman and NASCAR legend Buddy Baker are currently tied with seven AMS poles each, but Newman would like to see his number atop not only the scoring tower on Oct. 26, but also on top of the Atlanta Motor Speedway record book.

"It would be an honor to beat Buddy Baker in all-time poles at Atlanta Motor Speedway, " Newman said. "Atlanta is a place where I enjoy qualifying and I have a great record there. I am really looking forward to trying to claim the all-time qualifying record. "

If Newman were to claim the top-spot for the Oct. 28 Pep Boys Auto 500 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series race, moving Baker to second-place, he would be de-throneing his friend and mentor.

"Buddy and I always drove the tracks backwards because it gives you a different perspective of entry and exit points, " Newman said. "It lets you know how to approach those points when you are going the right way. Its something we did at Atlanta when he was teaching me about the track and I have always qualified well there. "

Although Newman's remarkable qualifying attempts haven't always translated into great race finishes, his best was a fifth-place finish in 2004, Newman still loves the pure speed that Atlanta Motor Speedway offers.

"Atlanta wasn't ever intimidating to me as far as speed is concerned, " Newman said. "Even if you crash at full speed at Atlanta, you just have to go back and do it again. You always try to go wide open there. You have to go wide open to be competitive. "

To Newman, racing at 'Dega in COT was 'disappointing'

2007-10-08T11:19:00.001-04:00

TALLADEGA, Ala. - Ryan Newman was disappointed in the caliber of racing in Sunday's UAW-Ford 500 - and he was very vocal about it.

Newman ran in the middle to the front of the field throughout the NASCAR Nextel Cup race. He led 10 laps and finished fifth, the best performance for his Penske Racing team in 16 races.

And then he questioned the nature of the racing in the car of tomorrow debut at the restrictor-plate track.

"It was crazy," he said. "I think the racing was not very good. I think the racing was disappointing. To see single-file racing and the guy that wins the race is sitting in the back all day just lounging around.

"That's not racing to me. I hope it wasn't what NASCAR intended with this car."

That wasn't, Newman pointed out, a questioning of the car of tomorrow. Instead, he was questioning the intent of the competition.

"I'm not complaining about the car because the old car did relatively the same ting. We gotta do something where we can race a little bit.

"I mean I was driving around with one hand running 15th just riding, on and off the gas. It's not racing. If we're going to do that, why don't we just make it a 100-mile race and we'll tear them all up in the first 50."

COT promotes mostly dull big-track debut at 'Dega

2007-10-08T08:39:00.001-04:00

***********
I think I disagree. It did get old seeing single file racing but after about the half way mark, things seemed to pick up a little. It was Talladega. The race itself wasn't that much different than a "the old car" racing. I think they were hoping for some "better" racing and ended up with the same results with the COT as they have had with the Old Car.

And it's a superspeedway. What can be done for more exciting racing. Running almost 200 mph drivers aren't going to take chances 100 miles into it. I don't see what could be "fixed".
***********
TALLADEGA, Ala. -- NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow didn't exactly pass its first superspeedway test with flying colors.

But, on the plus side, there were no flying racecars Sunday at Talladega.

Despite all the trepidation and unanswered questions heading into the next-generation stock car's first race on the biggest and most dangerous oval in the Nextel Cup Series, the UAW-Ford 500 did bear at least some resemblance to a typical Talladega race.

There were two- and three-wide freight trains racing inches from each other at nearly 200 mph -- at times.

There were multi-car crashes, including the expected Big One involving 11 cars.

And the finish, with Jeff Gordon out-dueling Hendrick Motorsports teammate Jimmie Johnson at the head of a huge pack of challengers, shouldn't have disappointed any real racing fan.

But there also were long periods of ho-hum racing during the 188-lap event, with most of the drivers riding lap after lap in single file, apparently holding their collective breath in anticipation of disaster just up the road.

The 145,000 fans on hand at the sprawling Alabama track had little to cheer until the waning laps, except for the brief periods when their favorite, Dale Earnhardt Jr., surged into the lead before his day was cut short by another broken engine.

Even the drivers felt it.

"It was really, really boring," Earnhardt said after his early exit.

And Gordon, whose victory bore little resemblance to his six previous wins on Talladega's 2.66-mile oval, agreed with the driver who will be his new teammate next season.

Gordon spent three-quarters of the race riding near the back of the field, biding his time and just trying to stay out of trouble. It wasn't until the last 30 laps that the four-time Cup champion, now the leader in the Chase, got racy.

"It was terrible," he said. "It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in a racecar. I like to think that I've got pretty good patience, but that's beyond patience. There's just nothing fun about that, but I knew it was a smart thing.

"I've never yawned in a racecar in my life and I yawned back there."

This was the 14th of 16 COT races this year, but the first on an oval longer than 1.33 miles for the car that will be run for the entire schedule in 2007.

The problem is that NASCAR and the Cup teams have not yet totally figured out the COT, a bigger, bulkier car developed over a seven-year period to enhance safety, cut team costs by making all cars more uniform and level out the competition.

On the big Talladega track, the bulky COT carves a huge hole in the air and gives a car coming from behind an accelerated closing rate. And, with the bumpers lined up perfectly level on the new cars, the competitors gain most of their momentum for passes with lots of hard bump-drafting.

If this was a preview of the next COT race on a carburetor restrictor-plate track, there are going to be a lot of people yawning in the Daytona 500 in February.
"I still think we need to work on this car a little bit," Gordon said. "I think we would never race like that if we didn't have the closing rate that we have, and [with] the bump-drafting being so drastic that I think we need to make some adjustments here.

"I knew the race was going to be spectacular at the end. It's always going to be spectacular at the end here at Talladega. But that wasn't the kind of race we want to see up to the 10-to-go or 20-to-go mark, guys riding single final or guys running the back with a group of 10 cars."

Dave Blaney, who matched his career best with a third-place finish, also agreed that most of the race wasn't very exciting. But he noted that NASCAR has plenty of ammunition to make the racing better.

"They can play with the restrictor plate and the wicker and the wing and gearing," Blaney said. "They could change it all around. So the package is all right. It just maybe needs tweaking a little bit."

Hopefully, NASCAR will get it done before Daytona.

Ryan Newman Finishes 5th At Talladega

2007-10-08T07:27:00.001-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 Alltel Dodge finished 5th at Talladega for the UAW Ford 500. Jeff Gordon was took the checkered flag after an exciting last 8 laps.

Starting at about lap 150, Newman was in second behind Tony Stewart. Behind Newman in 3rd was his team mate Kurt Busch. On the last 3 restarts Newman was pushing Steward. Stewart, Newman, Busch and others were using the high lane, and Jimmie Johnson was coming on the low lane. Around lap 175 Tony Stewart dropped down to the low lane to block Johnson, then shot back up the track to block Newman. Newman and Busch cut to the inside of Stewart, causing Stewart to be left out and shuffled back.

Yellow flag came out on lap 176. Michael Waltrip who qualilfied for the race and won the pole position had a great day, but cut a tire taking out a couple other cars as well. Waltrip was interviewed afterward and said it felt great to be running up front all day again.

Lap 180 brings out the green flag - Nemwan leading, Busch second and Juan Pablo Montoya in third. Montoya had been running strong and up front almost all day.

Lap 181 and Newman is still leading. Newman fans are happy to Newman out in front, but we also know that this is not the place to be at the end of a restrictor plate race. By lap 182 Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Casey Mears and Tony Stewart are on the bottom and have caught Ryan Newman, Busch and Montoya who are on the top.

Now things start getting pretty exciting. I don't understand why Newman and Busch, or just Newman did not jump down in front of Johnson, but it is easy to be a driver a from the couch. There is some yelling going on in my house at this point. My 18 month old son is just as excited as I am and is laughing his butt off watching the "vroom vrooms". Mommy is yelling at us to quiet down......making us laugh even more.

Lap 184 Stewart tries to get by Johnson by going to the middle. Great plan except nobody went with him and he is hung out to dry.

Lap 185 and Stewart latches on to the Penske Train still be lead by Newman on the outside. They have caught back up to Johnson.

On the final lap everyone is trying to be out front. Gordon ditches his team mate and shoots to the front for the win.

Newman had a great day. He ran all over the place from the front to the back. He made up alot of positions on almost every pit stop by taking only 2 tires ( I assume).

Kudo's to Kurt Busch. I am not a fan but in pre-race interviews he said that he would help Newman if that situation arised and he did. He also said Newman woud do the same for him. Before the restart on lap 166, Newman and Busch talked about what to do. They really did not know. But Busch ended the conversation by saying "I'll follow you", and that is what he did.

As usual, Talladega was a good race with an exciting finish.

1 Jeff Gordon
2 Jimmie Johnson
3 Dave Blaney
4 Denny Hamlin
5 Ryan Newman
6 Casey Mears
7 Kurt Busch
8 Tony Stewart
9 Tony Raines
10 Reed Sorenson

Dodge Talladega qualifying quotes

2007-10-07T08:52:00.000-04:00
RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 alltel Dodge Avenger)

“The lap was better than I thought we would have based off of what we did yesterday. It gives us something to work with for tomorrow. I think it is entirely a random crap shoot. Our car is made to go fast for 500 miles tomorrow not for one lap today.”

***

KURT BUSCH (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Avenger)

“Some guys have qualifying setups in and that will be good for making the race but then how are they going to deal with it for 500 miles. We can focus on our race setup and then do a couple quick things to go qualify. We actually beat our expectations and that is surprising for us.”

LOOKING AHEAD TO TOMORROW “You need friends to help draft when two cars can cut the air better than one then two are better than one. You have to have friends that will stick with you and make passes when you want to pass.”

EWMAN STARTS 16TH AT TALLADEGA IN FIRST COT RACE AT THE SUPERSPEEDWAY

2007-10-07T08:51:00.000-04:00
In a qualifying session Saturday that was dominated by Toyotas and teams outside the top 35 in owner points, Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, made his way into the 16th starting position for Sunday’s UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.

Newman, who went out 43rd among the 51 cars attempting to qualify, recorded a lap time of 51.301 seconds, 0.653 second behind pole sitter Michael Waltrip.

“The lap was better than I thought we would have based off of what we did yesterday,” Newman said about his lap on the 2.66-mile track. “It gives us something to work with for tomorrow. I think it is entirely a random crap shoot. Our car is made to go fast for 500 miles tomorrow, not for one lap today.”

The top-10 qualifiers were all cars outside the top 35, but only eight of them made it into the race. Newman was 22nd fastest when the final car took the checkered flag to end qualifying, but moved up to 16th after six cars in front of him were sent home due to not qualifying on time.

Coverage of Sunday’s UAW-Ford 500 from Talladega will be broadcast by ABC and MRN Radio beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Line-up for the UAW-Ford 500:
1. Michael Waltrip, No. 55 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota
2. Dave Blaney, No. 22 Caterpillar Toyota
3. Brian Vickers, No. 83 Red Bull Toyota
4. Joe Nemechek, No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet
5. David Reutimann, No. 00 Burger King Toyota
16. Ryan Newman, No. 12 Alltel Dodge
41. Kurt Busch, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge

Waltrip wins pole; Kurt Busch, Ragan fail inspection

2007-10-07T08:50:00.000-04:00
TALLADEGA, Ala. - To say that Toyota teams dominated qualifying at Talladega Superspeedway Saturday would clearly be an understatement.

Michael Waltrip won the pole with a lap of 189.070 mph in his Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota. Dave Blaney followed in his Bill Davis Racing Toyota. Toyota drivers took four of the top five spots.

Team Red Bull driver and defending race winner Brian Vickers qualified third. Joe Nemechek (No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet), David Reutimann (No. 00 MWR), Jacques Villeneuve (No. 27 BDR Toyota), John Andretti (BAM Racing Dodge) and Dale Jarrett (MWR Toyota) all qualified in the top eight. Jarrett will start 43rd by virtue of being the last to qualify of the drivers who were outside the top 35 in owners points.

Of course, that is partially due to the fact that the Toyota teams are all outside the top 35 in owners points and are forced to qualify based on speed for the UAW-Ford 500. Still, this session was an exercise in dominance. The top eight have not participated in the drafting aspects of the practice, for the most part, instead focusing on qualifying.

Team Red Bull's AJ Allmendinger, No Fear Racing's Boris Said and Vaolvoline Evernham Racing's Scott Riggs were in the top 11 in overall qualifying times, but each failed to make the race since the top eight drivers were also in the position of needing to make the race.

"I felt confident yesterday that we would make the race," Waltrip said. "I really didn't think about the pole. The two runs I got in the final practice were both wind-aided. We didn't really know what we had. Our qualifying lap was faster than what we ran in practice.

"If I only had to worry about my car, I would've been happier. But, I had to worry about Dale and David making the race, too. It is more important for me to have all three cars in. For me to be first is a bonus. To have all three cars in the race is very gratifying."

Meanwhile, the cars of Penske Racing's Kurt Busch and Roush Fenway Racing's David Ragan failed postrace inspection for being too low in the front. Their times will be disallowed, forcing them to start at the rear Sunday.

Drivers competing in The Chase For The Nextel Cup didn't fare well either, though each pointed out that qualifying doesn't mean that much on this 2.66-mile restrictor-plate track.

Joe Gibbs Racing's Tony Stewart was fastest among the Chase drivers and will start 11th. Martin Truex Jr. (Dale Earnhardt Inc.) starts 13th, followed by Joe Gibbs Racing's Denny Hamlin (18th), Hendrick Motorsports Jimmie Johnson (19th), Richard Childress Racing's Jeff BUrton (21st), RCR's Clint Bowyer (23rd), Roush Fenway Racing's Matt Kenseth (25th), Roush Fenway's Carl Edwards (31st), Hendrick's Jeff Gordon (34th), Kyle Busch (36h) and RCR's Kevin Harvick (37th). Busch drops to the back and will start 41st.

Said, Riggs, Allmendinger, Penske Racing's Sam Hornish, Morgan-McClure Motorsports Ward Burton, Front Row Motorsports Kevin Lepage, Phoenix Racing's Sterling Marlin and Bill Davis Racing's Jeremy Mayfield failed to make the race.

The UAW-Ford 500 is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. EDT Sunday.

Ryan Newmans qualifying Results - UAW-Ford 500 | Talladega Superspeedway

2007-10-06T17:06:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 23 fastest in qualifying at Talladega Superspeedway for the UAW-Ford 500 .
Newman's qualifying run included a speed of 186.663/51.301 putting him -0.653 behind the fastest qualifier, Michael Waltrip.

Qualifying Results
Practice 1 Results
Practice 2 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #2 Results - Talladega Superspeedway

2007-10-05T20:19:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 49 fastest in the second practice at Talladega Superspeedway for the UAW-Ford 500 .
Newman's practice run included a speed of 182.008/52.613 putting him -3.266 behind the fastest of the practice, Tony Stewart.

Practice 2 Results

Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newmans Practice #1 Results - Talladega Superspeedway

2007-10-05T20:18:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman and his #12 ALLTEL Dodge Penske Racing team were the 26 fastest in the first practice at Talladega Superspeedway for the UAW-Ford 500 .

Newman's practice run included a speed of 192.855/49.654 putting him -0.536 behind the fastest of the practice, Tony Stewart.

Practice 1 Results

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 ALLTEL Dodge Team will be racing here at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend for the UAW-Ford 500 .

2007-10-05T07:01:00.000-04:00

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 ALLTEL Dodge Team will be racing here at Talladega Superspeedway this weekend for the UAW-Ford 500 .

Talladega Superspeedway Quick Facts :
Location - Talladega, AL
completed - 1969
Distance - 2.66 miles
Shape - Tri-oval
Seating - 143,231

According to NASCAR.com Mark Martin has the Nextel Cup race record at Talladega with a speed and date of 188.354 - 05/10/97. Jeff Gordon has the qualifying record here with a speed and date of 192.069 - 04/28/2007.

Ryan Newman has 11 starts at Talladega Superspeedway. Out of those 11 starts, Newman and his #12 Dodge Penske Racing Team have 0 pole(s), 0 win(s), 2 Top 5(s) and 4 Top 10(s).Newman has an average starting position of 12.4 and a average finish here of 19.8.

Newman has not had that much success at Superspeedway's. Newman has 28 starts at Superspeedway's with 0 win(s), 4 Top 5(s) and 8 Top 10(s). He also has an average start of 15.9 and an average finish of 18.6.

Ryan Newman and his #12 team will be taking chasis PRS-521, as thier primary chasis. Thier backup chasis is PRS-515.

And from PenskeRacing.com here is Ryan Newman's quote on Talladega Superspeedway--
This weekend is pretty much going to be a blank slate for everyone. Its the first time any of us will really get a chance to see how the COT car works on a superspeedway and I dont think theres any one driver or any one team that has a noticeable advantage this weekend. Weve had some bad luck the last couple of weeks, so were hoping to see some improvement this weekend and get another top 10 at Talladega like we did back in April.

This track at NASCAR.COM
This track at FoxSports.COM

Some track details including track records varies between the 2 sites

New Ryan Newman Podcast After Kansas

2007-10-05T06:59:00.000-04:00
Driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Ryan Newman and XM Satellite Radio Host Claire B. Lang catch up to discuss the race from Kansas Speedway, where a blown engine resulted in the team's early exit from the race.

Newman and Lang also chat about what makes Newman unique from the other drivers, as well as his plans for the off-season.

Finally, Newman discusses the upcoming trip to Talladega Superspeedway and guarantees Claire and Alltel Racing Fans that it will be an interesting race.

COT DEBUTING AT TALLADEGA

2007-10-05T06:56:00.000-04:00
Ryan Newman will be making his 12th Cup start at Talladega Superspeedway. It will be his 218th career start in the Cup Series.

"This weekend is pretty much going to be a blank slate for everyone," Newman said. "It's the first time any of us will really get a chance to see how the COT car works on a superspeedway and I don't think there's any one driver or any one team that has a noticeable advantage this weekend. We've had some bad luck the last couple of weeks, so we're hoping to see some improvement this weekend and get another top 10 at Talladega like we did back in April."

Newman has an average start of 12.4 and an average finish of 19.8 at Talladega. He has five starts inside the top 10, including two from the top five. Newman's lowest start at the 2.66-mile track has been 28th in April of this year.

Newman has four top-10 finishes at Talladega, including a ninth-place finish in April 2007. He has three other finishes inside the top 20, but his last four races produced finishes of 33rd or lower.

Newman has led 25 laps in six Talladega races. He has completed 1,707 laps of a possible 2,080 since he made his Cup debut at the restrictor-plate track in 2002. Newman has a completion rate of 82.1 percent at the Alabama track.

The primary car for Talladega is chassis PRS-521, a new car that was tested at Talladega last month. That's the only time the car has been on the track. The backup car is PRS-515. It was tested at Talladega and was used during the June race at Dover where Newman qualified on the pole and finished second.

alltelracing.com

Penske:Noting Newman - Oct. 2, 2007

2007-10-05T06:52:00.000-04:00
-- Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, gave another lucky fan the chance to go Racin With Ryan last week in Manhattan, Kan. The Racin With Ryan promotion is sponsored by Alltel. At random locations throughout the season, Newman shows up at an Alltel Wireless store and surprises one lucky customer with a trip to a future race and the chance to have his or her name on the side of the Alltel Dodge. Last Thursday, Newman made a stop in Kansas and surprised a customer with tickets to the Nov. 11 Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway. This was the third time this season that Newman had participated in the Racin With Ryan promotion. Earlier this year, he surprised a fan in Augusta, Ga., and awarded tickets to the spring race at Texas. His last surprise occurred in Rapid City, S.D., when he gave an Alltel customer tickets to the August Bristol night race.

-- Newman will make his 12th Cup start at Talladega Superspeedway. It will be his 218th career start in the Cup Series.

-- Newman has an average start of 12.4 and an average finish of 19.8 at Talladega. He has five starts inside the top 10, including two from the top five. Newmans lowest start at the 2.66-mile track has been 28th in April of this year.

-- Newman has four top-10 finishes at Talladega, including a ninth-place finish in April 2007. He has three other finishes inside the top 20, but his last four races produced finishes of 33rd or lower.

-- Newman has led 25 laps in six Talladega races. He has completed 1,707 laps of a possible 2,080 since he made his Cup debut at the restrictor-plate track in 2002. Newman has a completion rate of 82.1 percent at the Alabama track.

-- The primary car for Talladega is chassis PRS-521, a new car that was tested at Talladega last month. That's the only time the car has been on the track. The backup car is PRS-515. It was tested at Talladega and was used during the June race at Dover where Newman qualified on the pole and finished second.

Newman On Talladega: This weekend is pretty much going to be a blank slate for everyone. Its the first time any of us will really get a chance to see how the COT car works on a superspeedway and I dont think theres any one driver or any one team that has a noticeable advantage this weekend. Weve had some bad luck the last couple of weeks, so were hoping to see some improvement this weekend and get another top 10 at Talladega like we did back in April.

Kansas race finale sets ESPN2 race record

2007-10-02T22:26:00.000-04:00
ESPN officials say the late-day coverage of Sunday's LifeLock 400 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Kansas Speedway set a record as the highest-rated and most-viewed auto race in ESPN2's history.

The race, which was switched from ABC after two rain delays, earned a 2.8 rating and was seen by 2.7 million households and 4.1 million viewers.

Nationwide could become new Busch Series sponsor

2007-10-02T22:25:00.000-04:00
Nationwide is moving into the final stages of negotiations to replace Anheuser-Busch’s Busch beer as title sponsor of NASCAR’s #2 series, sources are telling Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Daily. Michael Smith of Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal this morning reported in the Daily that Nationwide submitted an offer last Thursday, as did Subway, the sandwich franchise operation that had been considered the frontrunner.

Nationwide’s talks with NASCAR progressed over the weekend, the story said, and a contract proposal is believed to be in the legal pipeline at Nationwide. Officials at NASCAR say that it does not have a deal with a new sponsor, but sources say an agreement with Nationwide could be finalized in the coming days.

ENGINE PROBLEMS END NEWMAN’S DAY AT KANSAS

2007-10-01T23:07:00.001-04:00
Rain was the least of Ryan Newman’s problems on Sunday during the LifeLock 400 at Kansas Speedway, as Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, completed just 108 laps of the 210-lap rain-shortened race at the 1.5-mile track.

Newman started the day from the 42nd position after his qualifying time was disallowed for a low roof and a high right-rear quarter panel. The car was fast in Saturday’s practice sessions and Newman was happy with the car heading into Sunday’s race.

When the green flag dropped, Newman quickly made his way through the field and seemed to be on his way to the front. The yellow flag waved early and many of the lead-lap cars came in for fuel-only stops. Newman was still happy with the car for the most part, but informed crew chief Michael Nelson that the car was just a tick loose, so Nelson called for fuel and one round down on the right-side track bar.

The stop put Newman into the 16th position, but the first rain delay of the race would occur on lap 15 and last for 45 minutes 10 seconds.

When the race restarted on lap 19, Newman moved up to the 12th spot and made his way into the top 10 on lap 29 during the second of 12 caution periods.

The car was still loose when Newman came in for his second stop to receive four tires, fuel and one round down on the right-side track bar. Many teams took two tires only, leaving Newman to restart in 15th.

Newman informed his crew the car was still really loose and that it felt like there was a lack of air in the left-rear tire, but the loose condition would be the least of Newman’s problems.

On lap 38, he came on the radio and told his crew the motor was blowing up.

“I dropped a valve,” Newman radioed in. “I’m running on seven cylinders.”

Newman kept running, hoping a caution would come out and allow the Alltel crew to check under the hood. The caution finally came out on lap 60 and Newman was able to come in for work on the car.

After a four-tire-and-fuel stop, engine tuner John Payne was able to assess the extent of the damage to the engine. He found that valve six had broken, but he made temporary repairs in order to keep Newman in the race.

On lap 84, Newman thought the engine was ready to expire for good and reported smoke in the car. When the crew was able to get another look at the engine, they made more repairs and found that a piece of plastic was burning in the car, which was causing the smoke. By the time Newman got out of the pits, he was five laps down in the 40th position.

When Newman completed lap 108, he came back over the radio and told his crew the motor had expired completely and he was headed back to the garage.

The checkered flag flew after 210 laps – 57 laps short of a complete race – with Newman in 43rd place.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger in the UAW-Ford 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. This will be the first Car of Tomorrow race at a track larger than 1.366 miles. ABC and MRN Radio will broadcast the race live beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Can you top the weirdness of the Kansas race? Talladega just might

2007-10-01T23:04:00.000-04:00
By Terry Blount
ESPN.com

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- The Land of Oz became NASCAR's version of the Twilight Zone on Sunday at Kansas Speedway in the wildest race of the season.

Now things may get a little crazier.

Talladega always is a wild show -- big packs, big wrecks and white-knuckle racing on every lap. But as spooky as it is, the drivers have learned what to expect on the high banks in the red clay of Alabama.

Not this time. NASCAR's biggest and most dangerous track is a 2.6-mile asphalt mystery for everyone involved in this weekend's UAW-Ford 500.

It's a world of unknowns for the first restrictor-plate race in the Car of Tomorrow. Theories abound, but no one knows for sure what will happen when the green flag falls.

"It's going to be a little bit more scary than usual," said Clint Bowyer, who ranks third in the Chase after his runner-up finish at Kansas. "We will be closer together, so the least little mistake is going to be catastrophic."

That's one view. Jeff Gordon prefers to look at the bright side.

"It's going to be spectacular," Jeff Gordon said. "I expect it to be pretty wild, pretty crazy and a heck of a show for the fans."

The Cup drivers had a two-day test session at Talladega three weeks ago to get a feel for how things will go in the COT. But the test seemed to bring more questions than answers.

"The test was kind of up and down, but you don't have the big draft in a test," Kasey Kahne said. "It's only like 10 cars in a pack. It's going to change a lot with all the cars out there in a big pack."

But Kahne doesn't think it's a bad thing.

"I think it's going to be the best Car of Tomorrow race we've had yet," he said. "The way the cars line up [on a restrictor-plate track], you can do things out there and have fun. I think it's going to be the most fun we've had in the new car."

That's if you consider it fun racing inches apart at 190 mph, not knowing how your car is going to react in the draft.

"This new car is more violent and more dramatic in the draft," Kurt Busch said. "If you lose draft, which is easier to do, you're a fish out of water."

The COT is bigger and boxier, so it cuts a bigger hole in the air than the old car. Drivers should be able to draft on each other more easily and create more passing, but the racers have mixed opinions on it.

"I really think the race is going to be different than what we've seen in the past," Jimmie Johnson said. "The greenhouse [driver compartment] is much larger [in the COT] and we didn't realize how that extra couple of inches really made a difference in the draft. They do suck up better, but for whatever reason, they don't pass all that well."

Passing up front has been a problem in other COT races, but Busch said he thinks the car will react differently on a restrictor-plate track.

"With the old car, we did the same thing every plate race," Busch said. "But we have things we can work on this time to see how it affects the COT -- the sway bar, the track bar, the front springs. It makes this Talladega race even more of a wild card than usual."

NASCAR experimented with plate openings, wing angles and wicker size at the test. But Cup director John Darby said those things could change before the race, depending on how fast the cars are in practice Friday.

The COT enables NASCAR to use a larger opening on the restrictor plate, which should add about 80 horsepower. The additional power could give the drivers more throttle response, which could cause more passing.

But one of the biggest problems in recent Talladega events -- increased bump drafting -- could get worse in the COT. Drivers slam into the car ahead of them to get a run in the draft and try to boost both cars forward ahead of the pack.

But the practice is dangerous and can lead to the typical big wreck if the cars aren't lined up properly, or if a bump comes in the turns.

Most of the drivers believe bump drafting will increase in the COT. The cars line up better nose to tail, but it's still risky. A driver could damage the front splitter in the COT if he bumps too aggressively.

"In the test, you could push each other all the way around the track if you wanted to," Bowyer said. "But I don't think there's much of an advantage to it anymore. If you bump someone, they don't seem to go anywhere in the COT cars."

At least you can see them if you're close enough to bump someone. Not so if you're the one getting bumped, according to Johnson.

"Right now, you're driving blind out there,'' Johnson said. "The rear wing, the rear glass angle and the way the sunlight hits the back window, it's tough to see through the glass."

A driver usually waves his right hand inside the car to let the driver behind him know he is pitting. That doesn't work in the COT. You have to stick your left hand out the window.

Signaling other drivers at Talladega is critical because the cars are running so close to each other.

Talladega is all about thinking ahead, avoiding disaster, picking the right time to make a move and reacting quickly when your chance presents itself.

Many drivers believe the need for those skills is magnified in the first restrictor-plate race for the Car of Tomorrow

"I'll predict a lot more moves up front you have to react to," Busch said. "Whoever does it best has a shot at winning."

Terry Blount covers motorsports for ESPN.com. He can be reached at terry@blountspeak.com.

Kansas Dodge teams race quotes

2007-10-01T23:02:00.000-04:00
RYAN NEWMAN (No. 12 alltel Dodge Charger)
“We dropped a cylinder there just a little bit after the rain delay. Then it went all together there at the end. It’s just unfortunate. The Alltel Dodge was definitely fast. I had a fast car. I could hold my own in the corner; actually I was gaining about four lengths in the corners and losing about six on each straightaway. Eventually it expired, so it’s unfortunate for the Alltel Dodge.”

KURT BUSCH (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger)

“I thought we had a really fast racecar, it just didn’t pan out on the fuel strategy. Around half way when the rain came out, what it did is it took all the guys that were about 15th to 25th and put them up front, and we just got into Tony (Stewart) when he had a flat tire. That took our chances away at coming up through the pack. Eleventh is alright.”

KASEY KAHNE (No. 9 Dodge Dealers/UAW Dodge Charger)

“The car was good all day. We had the problem and had to make an unscheduled pit stop which got us a lap down, but we were able to make that up. Fortunately, we were able to come back after the long delay and run more laps. Actually, we would have preferred to run more laps because we were one of the fastest cars on the track at the end. It’s good to see the two Dodge Dealer cars in the top 10 and competitive. We need to get the front end of our Charger a little better, but we’re making progress and it showed today. Kenny (Francis, team director) and the crew will work on the front end the next couple of weeks, but I think we’ve got a good car to take to Charlotte.”

Ryan Newman Finishes 43rd at Kansas

2007-09-30T20:27:00.000-04:00
In every race, some one has to come in dead last. That is where Ryan Newman and his #12 Alltel Dodge finished....dead and last - 43rd. This was caused by yet another engine failure for Newman this year.

This infraction regulated that Newman start in the back of the pack at 42nd. The pole setter Jimmie Johnson also had to start at the back because he wrecked his car in Happy Hour and had to resort to his back up car.

Newman made his way up in the field fast. After the first pit stop Newman advanced to 16th by only taking 2 tires on that pit stop.

But around lap 50 (NOT 50 to go - LAP 50) Newman reported that he had lost a valve and was only running on 7 cylinders - that ended his day.

Sundays finish dropped Newman to 16th in the point standings. Newman is now -227 points in behind Dale Earnhardt JR. in 13th (the top position for the non-Chasers). In 14th is Gregg Biffle and 9 points ahead of Newman in 15th place is Casey Mears.

On lap 149 of the race, NASCAR threw the red flag due to weather. Rain, wind and lighting were strong. The race finally got back underway after 7pm. Nascar also announced that the race was going to be shortened to 225 laps due to night fall coming.

After 2 more cautions, NASCAR announced that they were going to have to shorten the race again due to the cautions and time constrants of night fall.

The race ended under caution with Gregg Biffle taking the checkered. There was some controversy though because under caution, Biffle ran out of gas and could not cross the finish line. NASCAR contends that under the caution the field was froze - regardless.

Clint Boyer took second and Jimmie Johnson finished third. Clint was interviewed and politley stated that he thought Biffle should have had to cross the line under his own power and there for making him (Boyer) the winner. I think I agree.

This was overall a bad weekend for Ryan Newman and his #12 Alltel Dodge team. After qualifying 2nd for the race, post qualifying inspection deemed that the Alltel Dodges roof was to low and that the right rear quarter panel was to high.

TOP TEN FINISHERS -

1 Greg Biffle
2 Clint Bowyer
3 Jimmie Johnson
4 Casey Mears
5 Jeff Gordon
6 Kevin Harvick
7 Reed Sorenson
8 Elliott Sadler
9 Kasey Kahne
10 Dale Earnhardt Jr.

NASCAR's Newman driving Mill Lake repairs

2007-09-30T12:22:00.000-04:00
Ann Arbor News - Ann Arbor, Michigan
By - Judy McGovern

Bill Wells has long lamented the deterioration of the vintage camp facilities at Mill Lake in the Waterloo Recreation Area.

Built in the 1930s under Depression-era New Deal employment programs, the rustic cabins and lodges display craftsman-like details and were home to summer youth camps for generations.

But time has taken a toll on the cedar-shake roofs. The electrical service, plumbing and mess-hall kitchen all need attention.

And while Wells and other members of the Waterloo Natural History Association raise and contribute as much as $25,000 a year to provide recreation and education activities at the sprawling state park, the project is simply too big for the community group.

"It's a shame,'' says Wells, a Sylvan Township resident who taught an outdoor class for elementary school kids from nearby Chelsea at the Mill Lake Outdoor Center. "It's a beautiful location and a perfect place for kids.''

But as he strides through the tall grass that's grown between the clusters of cabins, Wells' dismay at roofs collapsed since his last visit is tempered by the knowledge that help is - unexpectedly - on the way.

NASCAR driver Ryan Newman and his wife, through the Ryan Newman Foundation, are leading an effort to put $500,000 into the facilities by next June. And another $3 million to $4 million will go into restoring all 14 structures at Mill Lake.

Yes, NASCAR.

And, no, Newman isn't a local guy.

But the South Bend native apparently does have fond memories of fishing with his grandfather in Michigan waters. And a fairly chance meeting between the popular driver and a staff member the Conservation Fund led to an initiative dubbed "racing for wildlife.''

That national conservation group contacted the state Department of Natural Resources looking for a project proximate to Michigan International Speedway, which was ready to pitch in, says Ron Olson, Ann Arbor's longtime parks and rec boss who now heads the DNR's parks and recreation bureau.

"We're working on ways to get kids and families back outdoors,'' Olson says. "When we explained the idea, the resources at Mill Lake - which has the water, trails and the Eddy Discovery Center nearby - and the historic and cultural significance of the cabins, the Newmans got excited about it. They came out to see it and fell in love with it.''

For their part, DNR and Conservation Fund officials are so in love with the philanthropy that they're suddenly fluent in NASCAR.

Newman, No. 12, has finished in the top 20 the past five years, says Olson, an MIS virgin until last month.

The collaboration does create unusual bedfellows, says Conservation Fund spokeswoman Kathryn Brown. "But,'' she says, "the NASCAR community loves outdoors. And if you talk about getting kids outside, we're all on the same page.''

Beyond Mill Creek, the goal is to launch similar projects across the country, she says. Newman and the Conservation Fund are working with other drivers and tracks to identify projects.

Back at Mill Lake, Wells points out an area that was a canoe launch and a large glacial bowl where weathered benches ring a campfire area that hasn't burned in many summers.

He and DNR staffer Matthew Millar, who's come to check on us, have an animated conversation about skat (too big for raccoon) and revel in the sight of leaves that pour down when a strong blast of wind shakes the trees.

"You see tons of turkey out here and loons, mink and deer,'' says Wells, a native Detroiter who was as a child, in the late 1950s, first exposed to the outdoors at a camp held at nearby Cedar Lake.

A tall guy with a bristly mustache, Wells teaches special education in Dexter. "I told the kids about what the Newmans are going to do,'' he says. His middle-schoolers corrected Wells, who had called the driver Randy instead Ryan, and they seemed to approve of the NASCAR connection.

Some kind of private-sector help was going to be necessary, says Wells, who - as he daydreamed about salvaging the property - had imagined a photography park with corporate sponsorship.

The disrepair doesn't leave much room for argument. And there are plenty of models, among them public radio, where sponsors and the public enjoy mutual benefits in such arrangements.

But there's nothing ungrateful about wondering how public parks - and other institutions - got to this point. Or whether, in the end, the Mill Lake Outdoor Center is more apt to resemble NPR or NASCAR.

Judy McGovern can be reached at 734-994-6863 or jmcgovern@annarbornews.com.