WATKINS GLEN/THE CENTURION BOATS AT WATKINS GLEN/ZIPPO 200 PREVIEW

The Centurion Boats at Watkins Glen International will be Ryan Newman's second NASCAR Cup race in the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Avenger. This will be Newman's sixth start at the New York road course and his 210th in the Cup Series.

Newman has an average start of 7.6 and an average finish of 15 at Watkins Glen.

Newman has led three races for a total of 19 laps. He has completed 451 laps of a possible 452 for a 99.8 percent completion rate since he first raced at The Glen in 2002.

The No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger pit crew won its second Checker's/Rally's Double-Drive Thru Challenge for spending the least amount of time on pit road at Pocono.
Last weekend, in Pocono Lake, Pa., Krissie Newman and friends helped raise money for the Ryan Newman Foundation by waiting tables at Moyer's Country Kitchen. Owners Donnie and Jeri Moyer – friends of the Newmans – "hired" Krissie and Michelle Croom, executive assistant for RNF, to work at their new restaurant that opened on July 7. The RNF raised $600 from the women's tips, which was matched by Krissie's parents, Jim and JoAnn Boyle.

Crew chief Mike Nelson and the Kodak crew are taking PRS-517 to Watkins Glen. This is the same car Newman used at Infineon Raceway in June. PRS-511 is the backup car. It also served in that role at Infineon. It was tested at Virginia International Raceway and Kershaw, S.C., earlier this year.

Newman's Remarks On Watkins Glen: "We had a good run at Infineon, but our fuel strategy didn't pay off like we thought it would. I like racing at Watkins Glen...we're taking the same car that we had at Infineon and I think we'll have a good shot at winning this Sunday."

NASCAR Busch Series
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Charger, will make his third Busch Series start at Watkins Glen International and his 35th in the series.
Newman has started both of his races at Watkins Glen from the top five. His average start is 4.5 and his average finish is 21. Newman won at The Glen in 2005, but finished 41st last year after a fiery incident on lap 29.
Newman has led nine laps in the two events. He has completed 111 laps of a possible 165, giving him a 67.3 percent completion rate.
Neither the primary car nor the backup car going to Watkins Glen for the Zippo 200 has been on a track this year. The primary car is PBC-005 and the backup car is PBC-009.

Newman on Watkins Glen: "I like driving the road courses and I think Watkins Glen is a better road course to race at than Infineon. There's more opportunity to pass and I think the racing is a little more competitive. I'm looking forward to getting back to The Glen. Last year, we had a freak accident that caused the engine to basically explode, but we won there two years ago and we're looking to do that again."