Ryan Newman Finishes 28th After Crash With 3 To Go

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

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????

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

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

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

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

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 .

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

-- 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

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

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

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'

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

***********
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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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 .

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

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

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

-- 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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

Newman front row start disallowed

Ryan Newman was second fastest in qualifying at the Kansas Speedway on Friday, but after he failed post- qualifying inspection, he will start 42nd on Sunday.

The No.12 Alltel Dodge posted a lap of 30.876 seconds, second only to pole winner Jimmie Johnson, but his car was found to be too low in the post- qualifying inspection

POST-QUALIFYING INSPECTION DEEMS ALLTEL DODGE TOO LOW; NEWMAN STARTS 42ND

What started as a good qualifying run that left Newman in second beside pole sitter Jimmie Johnson, turned into a bad start for Ryan Newman and the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger at Kansas Speedway.

Newman was just three one-hundredths of a second slower than Johnson, but following post-qualifying inspection, NASCAR officials deemed the Alltel Dodge Charger’s roof was too low and the right-rear quarter panel was too high. NASCAR disallowed Newman’s qualifying run, which relegated Newman to the 42nd starting position for Sunday’s 267-lap race in Kansas.

“I’m not sure what happened,” Newman said. “The car got through inspection before qualifying, but something wasn’t right when we went back through inspection after our run. We’ll just have to make up for this setback on Sunday.”

The team will also lose its position in pit stall selection. Instead of picking second, the team will select 42nd.

Coverage of Sunday’s Lifelock 400 from Kansas will be broadcast by ABC and MRN Radio beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

Line-up for the Lifelock 400:

1. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Lowe’s Chevrolet
2. Matt Kenseth, No. 17 DeWalt Ford
3. Scott Riggs, No. 10 Valvoline/Stanley Tools Dodge
4. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet
5. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 FedEx Freight Chevrolet
12. Kurt Busch, No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge
42. Ryan Newman, No. 12 Alltel Dodge

"It was a good run for us. We picked up from practice and not many people did. I think (Jimmie) Johnson was the only other one that did. It was a good run for the alltell Dodge. We had four this year (poles), just so you know. Don’t sell me out short. It was a great effort for the Alltel Dodge and hopefully we’ll just keep going here."

Ryan Newman and the Kansas Speedway

Welcome to Kansas Speedway located in Kansas City, KS.

Ryan Newman and his Penske Racing #12 Alltel Dodge will be racing here this weekend in the Kansas 400.
Kansas Speedway


-Location : Kansas City, KS
-Completed : 2001
-Distance : 1.5 miles
-Shape : D-shaped oval
-Seating : 81,687
-Nextel Cup Top Race Speed : 137.774 by Mark Martin on 10/9/2005
-Nextel Cup Top Qualifying Speed : 180.856 by Matt Kenseth on 10/8/2005

MANUFATURER WINS AT Kansas Speedway SINCE 2002
DODGE = 1
FORD = 1
CHEVROLET = 3


RYAN NEWMAN'S STATS AT Kansas Speedway

Ryan Newman's Stats
At Kansas Speedway		At Intermediate Tracks
STARTS	6	141
POLES	0	NA
WINS	1	11
TOP 5	3	41
TOP 10	3	61
AVG START	10.7	8.2
AVG FINISH	14.2	17.3
LAPS COMP	1557	NA
% COMP	-0.9719	NA
LAPS LED	120	NA
TOTAL $$$	688698	NA

Good luck to Ryan Newman and the Penske Racing's #12 Alltel Dodge NASCAR Nextel Cup Team at Kansas Speedway for the Kansas 400 this coming week and weekend!!!


Mike Pratt

New Ryan Newman Podcast - After Dover II

Newman, Alltel Team Start 24th and Finish 28th after wreck-filled race at the 'Monster Mile'

Driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Ryan Newman and XM Satellite Radio Host Claire B. Lang catch up to discuss the race from Dover International Speedway, where a late race melee involving both Penske cars ended the Alltel team's chances of securing a top-five finish. Newman and Lang also chat about a possible third Penske team with Sam Hornish Jr. at the helm in 2008.

Newman also takes fans inside his motor coach this week, divulging unique features about his home away from home. Finally, Newman previews the next race at Kansas Speedway, where he has previously found victory lane.

Ryan Newman needs to win before the season's end

No matter how much the Chase participants may not like it, every driver who didn't make the Chase is in a position to take a strategic roll-of-the-dice to win this Sunday's Nextel Cup race at Kansas Speedway. After all, when you can't run for the championship, all that remains is winning races.

Tony Stewart showed one method of how to do it at Kansas last year, stretching his fuel to complete 71 laps on the 1.5-mile track. He coasted under the checkered flag ahead of a group of cars who also had prudently saved fuel during a long green-flag run. Stewart says it's the only race he's ever won by saving fuel.

Who are the five drivers and crew chiefs with top-15 capable cars willing to make the most desperate moves to get to Victory Lane in the last eight races?

1. Ryan Newman. The Rocketman has gone through 73 straight races without winning. Penske racing teammate Kurt Busch has two victories this season, so the Dodge equipment is there to do the job, and he made the Chase, too. Newman had back-to-back second places at Dover and Pocono, but has gone 13 straight races without a top-five. The No. 12 changed the crew chief, switching to Mike Nelson, after last season, and you wonder how long it will be before the team begins thinking of changing the driver. Newman is safe for '08, but he needs to start building for it with a win this year.

2. Bobby Labonte. The winner of 21 Cup races and the '00 championship hasn't won since joining Petty Enterprises last season and his winless streak has reached 136. Even tougher to take is Labonte doesn't have a top-five this season, but he does have three top-10s. At the legendary Petty team, the expectations might be lower for Labonte among the media and fans, but this a proud organization that hasn't won since 1999. Labonte came to Petty to help turn the team around and a win would do it in one fell swoop.

3. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Junior keeps acting like he's OK with running well -- he has seven top-fives, including a third at Dover last week -- but he doesn't want to depart DEI after going winless in a full season for the first time. Junior has gone 54 straight races without winning and needs to close the book on that streak before departing to Hendrick. It's certainly not the baggage he needs starting over with a new team and sponsors.

4. Kasey Kahne. This season's biggest flop needs to start rebuilding momentum and a single victory would do that. Kahne has only one top-five this season. Kahne won six races, all on 1.5- or 2-mile tracks, last season and five of the eight remaining races are on 1.5s. With Budweiser on board for next year, Kahne's future is secure at Gillette-Evernham, but it sure would reduce the pressure he'll face to get back to victory lane this season.

5. Greg Biffle. Biffle had an off season last year when he won two races, but missed the Chase. What do you call this year when he's gone winless? Terrible. Sure, Biffle is 15th in the points, but Roush Fenway teammates, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth, have won races and made the Chase. Biffle started out with Pat Tryson as crew chief. The team fired Tryson, who joined Penske and guided Kurt Busch to the Chase, and Biffle has continued to have a lackluster season with three top-fives. He has too much talent to be where he is performance-wise. A victory in the last eight races would salvage something to take into the off-season.

NASCAR 2008 Sprint Cup Series schedule

**********
Sprint Cup ........... I really don't like that name. At All.
**********

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The 2008 Sprint Cup Series schedule was announced Wednesday, a 36-race slate that kicks off with the 50th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 17 at Daytona International Speedway. The 2008 season also marks NASCAR's 60th year as stock-car racing's longest operating sanctioning body.

Following the "Great American Race" the series travels to Southern California, then to the bright lights of Las Vegas before returning to the Southeast for races at Atlanta and Bristol. The first scheduled off date for the series will be in March during the Easter holiday.

Following the race in Martinsville, the series makes another swing to the Southwest, racing at Texas and Phoenix in early April. The second scheduled off weekend occurs in mid-April.

The series then picks back up with races at Talladega, Richmond and Darlington prior to the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Challenge at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

"By running five consecutive points events before the first scheduled break in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the 2008 schedule is designed to be even more fan-friendly," said NASCAR chairman and CEO Brian France.

Another adjustment to the 2008 schedule is that the Chicago race will be run Saturday night.

"Night racing provides an additional element of intrigue and excitement," France said. "Running under the lights at Chicagoland on a Saturday night will be even more exciting for the fans in the stands as well as those watching from home."

Other key dates:

• The 30th annual Budweiser Shootout at Daytona will be held on Feb. 9.

• On Sunday, July 27, the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard will be held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

• On the evening of Saturday, Sept. 6, Richmond International Raceway will be the last opportunity for drivers to qualify for the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

• The week after Richmond, on Sunday, Sept. 14, New Hampshire again will have the kickoff event in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, which covers the season's last 10 races and determines the series champion.

• On Sunday, Nov. 16, Homestead-Miami Speedway will again host the season finale, where the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion will be crowned.

CLICK HERE to view the schedule

NEWMAN VISITING SOLDIERS PRIOR TO KANSAS

Ryan Newman will join several other NASCAR drivers Wednesday when they travel to Washington, D.C., to visit the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and spend time with soldiers who are back from Iraq and Afghanistan. The special day begins around 2 p.m. with visits to the hospital's different wards. After nearly three hours of talking with the soldiers, the drivers will spend an hour signing autographs and taking pictures with them.

A dinner and mini concert will occur just before the drivers get on stage for a brief question-and-answer session. Then it is off to Dulles International for their return to North Carolina before the drivers and teams leave for this weekend's Lifelock 400 at Kansas Speedway. This is Newman's first trip to the annual "Tribute to the Soldiers" event.

"I'm excited to go up to D.C. and visit with the troops. I didn't get to go last year when the drivers went up to Walter Reed, but I think it's a great opportunity for us to show the men and women in the military how much we support them," Newman said.

Newman will make his seventh Cup start at Kansas Speedway. It will be his 217th career start in the Cup Series.

Newman has an average start of 10.7 and an average finish of 14.2 at Kansas. He has started every race at the 1.5-mile track from inside the top 20, including two in the top 10. His best start came in 2002 when he qualified third.

Newman has three top-five finishes at Kansas, including a win in 2003. He finished second in his first two races at the Midwest track, but his last three have been from 23rd or lower.

Newman has led 118 laps in four Kansas races. He has completed 1,557 laps of a possible 1,602 since he made his Cup debut at Kansas in 2001. Newman has a completion rate of 97.2 percent at the Kansas track.

This weekend, the Alltel team will use PRS-071 as its primary car. This car last ran at California four weeks ago. Newman was running near the front when the car's engine expired, leaving him 39th at the finish. The backup car is PRS-108. It was last raced at Chicago in July where Newman qualified third and finished eighth.

Newman On Kansas: "We haven't had much luck in Kansas lately, but our intermediate program has been much better this year than it has been in the last couple of years. We're working hard to get a win for this team and for our sponsors before the year is over and I think the team has been doing a great job. We had great pit stops last weekend in Dover and had a good top-five run going, but things just didn't work out. Those things happen and now it's time to focus our efforts on Kansas."

Penske: Noting Newman - Kansas

-- Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, will join several other NASCAR drivers Wednesday when they travel to Washington, D.C., to visit the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and spend time with soldiers who are back from Iraq and Afghanistan. The special day begins around 2 p.m. with visits to the hospitals different wards. After nearly three hours of talking with the soldiers, the drivers will spend an hour signing autographs and taking pictures with them.

A dinner and mini concert will occur just before the drivers get on stage for a brief question-and-answer session. Then it is off to Dulles International for their return to North Carolina before the drivers and teams leave for this weekends Lifelock 400 at Kansas Speedway. This is Newmans first trip to the annual Tribute to the Soldiers event.

Im excited to go up to D.C. and visit with the troops. I didnt get to go last year when the drivers went up to Walter Reed, but I think its a great opportunity for us to show the men and women in the military how much we support them., Newman said.

-- Newman will make his seventh Cup start at Kansas Speedway. It will be his 217th career start in the Cup Series.

-- Newman has an average start of 10.7 and an average finish of 14.2 at Kansas. He has started every race at the 1.5-mile track from inside the top 20, including two in the top 10. His best start came in 2002 when he qualified third.

-- Newman has three top-five finishes at Kansas, including a win in 2003. He finished second in his first two races at the Midwest track, but his last three have been from 23rd or lower.

-- Newman has led 118 laps in four Kansas races. He has completed 1,557 laps of a possible 1,602 since he made his Cup debut at Kansas in 2001. Newman has a completion rate of 97.2 percent at the Kansas track.

-- This weekend, the Alltel team will use PRS-071 as its primary car. This car last ran at California four weeks ago. Newman was running near the front when the cars engine expired, leaving him 39th at the finish. The backup car is PRS-108. It was last raced at Chicago in July where Newman qualified third and finished eighth.

-- Newman On Kansas: We havent had much luck in Kansas lately, but our intermediate program has been much better this year than it has been in the last couple of years. Were working hard to get a win for this team and for our sponsors before the year is over and I think the team has been doing a great job. We had great pit stops last weekend in Dover and had a good top-five run going, but things just didnt work out. Those things happen and now its time to focus our efforts on Kansas.

Newman Heads To Kansas After Strong Run At Dover

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (Sept. 25, 2007)  Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, may have finished 28th in last Sundays Dodge Dealers 400 at Dover International Speedway, but the finish doesnt reflect the fact that Newman was running third at one point during the race and was in fifth when an accident eliminated him from the event with only 15 laps remaining.

We had another good run in our Alltel Dodge at Dover, but we got caught up in an accident and there was nothing that I couldve done to avoid it, Newman said. Thats the way these things work, especially at a track like Dover.

This weekend, Newman and the Alltel Dodge team will head to Kansas Speedway for the LifeLock 400. It will be Newmans seventh Cup start at the 1.5-mile track and the 217th of his career in NASCAR's Cup Series.

Newman possesses an average start of 10.7 and an average finish of 14.2 at the Kansas City, Kan., oval. He has started every race inside the top 20, including two in the top 10. His best start came in 2002 when he qualified third.

Newman has three top-five finishes at Kansas, including a win in 2003. He finished second in his first two races at the Midwest track, but his last three have been from 23rd or lower.

We havent had much luck in Kansas lately, but our intermediate program has been much better this year than it has been in the last couple of years, Newman said. Were working hard to get a win for this team and for our sponsors before the year is over and I think the team has been doing a great job. We had great pit stops last weekend in Dover and had a good top-five run going, but things just didnt work out. Those things happen and now its time to focus our efforts on Kansas.

Newman has led 118 laps in four Kansas races. He has completed 1,557 laps of a possible 1,602 since he made his Cup debut at Kansas in 2001. Newman's completion rate at the track is 97.2 percent.

Crew Chief Michael Nelson and the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger team will take PRS-071 to Dover as their primary car. This car last ran at California four weeks ago. Newman was running near the front when the cars engine expired, leaving him 39th at the finish. The back-up car for Kansas is PRS-108, which last raced at Chicago in July where Newman qualified third and finished eighth.

Sundays LifeLock 400 will be covered live by ABC and MRN Radio beginning at 1 p.m. CDT.

Coors light to become the official beer of NASCAR

Coors Light will announce Tuesday a $20 million deal over five years to become the official beer of NASCAR starting in January.

 

Coors replaces Anheuser-Busch as the official beer sponsor. The new deal includes renaming the pole award to the Coors Light Pole Award from the Bud Pole Award.

 

For Coors, the NASCAR deal also replaces its sponsorship of the No. 40 Dodge in the top-tier Nextel Cup Series.

 

"Our deal was up with those guys and this opportunity came up," says Andy England, chief marketer for Coors. "It feels like we are elevating our game."

Dover: Dodge NASCAR Nextel Cup Race Recap

Sleeping Monster Wakes Up 14 Laps Too Soon It appeared that the Monster took the weekend off, but 14 laps from the finish six Dodges were collected in a 12-car-accident. Kurt Busch, Dodge's only driver in The Chase, was part of that on-trace mishap and now ranks 11th in the standings, 157 points out of the lead.

Carl Edwards won the race and created a logjam at the top – at least for now because Edward's car did not pass post-race inspection. Fines possible and point deductions will be handed down later this week.

Roolkie Juan Pablo Montoya finished ahead of all the other Dodge drivers with a 10th-place run in his No. 42 Texaco Dodge at the track known as the Monster Mile.

For now there's no room at the top of The Chase; Jeff Gordon leads by one point over Tony Stewart, three points over Edwards (stayed tuned) and Kyle Busch 10 points back.

Late Race Accident Robs Busch, Newman Of Top-5 Finish

DOVER, Del. (Sept. 23, 2007) ¿ Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman were within 14 laps of producing top-five finishes in Sunday's Dodge Dealers 400 at Dover International Speedway when a right-front flat tire sent Busch careening into the backstretch's outside wall, triggering a 10-car melee that also involved Newman.

Busch was running fourth and Newman fifth when the accident occurred. When Busch's Miller Lite Dodge Avenger smacked the outside wall, Newman cut his Alltel Dodge Avenger to the left in an attempt to avoid Busch, but Busch bounced off the wall and into Newman. With the field so tightly packed due to a restart just one lap earlier, the accident collected several top-10 cars, three of whom were hoping to make substantial gains in the Chase for the NEXTEL Cup in addition to Busch.

"I don't know exactly what happened, but we must have had a right-front tire go down and something broke on the right-front suspension," said Busch, who is now 11th in the point standings, trailing leader Jeff Gordon by 151 points with eight races remaining in the title chase. "It's a shame because the day was shaping up to be a great comeback for us in the points."

Most everyone involved in the 12-car Chase for the Championship experienced problems Sunday. Some were mechanical, while others were involved in accidents that caused a track record 13 caution flags for a 400-mile race. The lap 386 accident left Newman with a 28th-place finish and Busch 29th.

"If I would have known it was going to be that big of a mess, I would have just hit him [Busch] and tried to knock him out of the way instead of crossing my car up and blocking the race track," said Newman, who remained 14th in the standings.

Both Penske drivers ran in the top 10 for most of the day. Busch, who started fourth, led once for 20 laps and never ran lower than seventh until lap 290 when he had to make a green-flag pit stop. He was seventh when the stops cycled around about 25 laps later, but he was only a straightaway ahead of the leader.

Newman, who started 24th, immediately began moving towards the front on the tough, 1-mile concrete track. He had cracked the top 15 by lap 60; however, with five caution flags in the first 200 laps, it took him until lap 180 to break into the top 10, where he ran for the majority of the remaining laps until the lap 386 accident.

At one point, both Busch and Newman were a lap down, but Newman received the free pass when the eighth caution period began on lap 356. Busch regained his lost lap when he was the Lucky Dog recipient on the ninth caution period that began on lap 364.

In addition to the 13 caution periods, the race was stopped twice while track workers cleared the high-banked speedway after accidents. The first occurred on lap 370 and consumed 5 minutes 12 seconds, while the second came on lap 386 and lasted 11 minutes 40 seconds.

¿We just have to bite the bullet and go on,¿ Pat Tryson, Busch's crew chief, said. ¿It was a really wild race out there today and you can see how much things can change in just one race. You¿d expect this many cars to have trouble at a place like Talladega, but certainly not here at Dover. There¿s a lot of racing left to do, including the races at Talladega, Martinsville and other wild-card sort of tracks, so you never know what can happen.

¿We¿ll just regroup and be ready again for them at Kansas next weekend.¿

Sunday¿s LifeLock 400 at Kansas Speedway has a scheduled 2 p.m. EDT starting time with coverage by ABC and MRN Radio.

Ryan Newman Finishes 29th at Dover

Ryan Newman and his #12 Alltel Dodge team finished a dissappointing 29th in the Dodge Dealers 400 at Dover. Carl Edwards was the winner with a very dominating car.

The good news for Ryan Newman fans is that he had a great run at Dover. He was poised to finish in the top 5 until he got wrapped up in an accident with 18 laps to go involving his teamate Kurt Busch.

Newman has fallen even farther behind Dale Earnhard JR for 13th position. Newman is -170 points behind JR.

This was Newman's 5th DNF of the season. This one can not be blamed on engine failure or anything else except bad luck and being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Many of the chase contenders had troubles in todays race including - Kurt Busch - Finished 28th, Matt Kensith - Finished 35th. Driver like Jimmie Johnson struggled all day.

A scary moment during the race was when Art Harris, the gas can man for Michael Waltrip Racing’s No. 55 Nextel Cup car, was struck by a flying tire that was hit on a busy pit road. Harris was reportedly in good condition and was taken to the hospital. His trip to the hospital caused a caution so the ambulance could get out - going acroos the track because there is not tunnel at Dover from the infield to the outside.

Newman added to entry list for dirt-track event at Charlotte

Nextel Cup series championship contender Clint Bowyer will join fellow Cup driver Ryan Newman in competing in the Oct. 10 Jani-King Southern Showdown at The Dirt Track @ Lowe's Motor Speedway. The World of Outlaws Late Model Series event kicks off Bank of America 500 Week and features a possible $30,000 first-place prize for the winner of the 50-lap feature. Prior to joining Richard Childress Racing in 2004, Bowyer won numerous races and championships on both dirt and paved short tracks in the Midwest, including the 2002 NASCAR Weekly Racing Series Midwest Region crown. The Jani-King Southern Showdown's unique format rewards the winner according to the number of positions advanced during the main event. The top-three finishers in each of the six heat races advance directly to the main event and they will draw for starting positions. If the driver who wins the 50-lap finale submitted an official entry form prior to Sept. 15, he will receive the $10,000 first-place prize along with an amount equal to $1,000 multiplied by his starting position. Other early entries for the Oct. 10 Jani-King Southern Showdown include Scott Bloomquist, Chub Frank, Jimmy Owens, Steve Francis, Josh Richards, Steve Shaver, Clint Smith, Earl Pearson Jr., Mike Balzano and Ricky Weeks. Tickets are available by calling the Lowe's Motor Speedway ticket office at 1-800-455-FANS.

Dover: Dodge teams race quotes - Dover

Ryan Newman (No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger)
WHAT HAPPENED OUT THERE? “I know the No. 2 car got high and bounced off the wall. It looked like something broke. He bounced off the wall, came across and if I would have known it was going to be that big of a mess I would have just hit him and tried to knock him out of the way instead of crossing my car up and blocking the race track.

“It was a good run for the alltel Dodge up until that point. We had a great effort for Penske Racing until about twenty to go.”

HOW HARD WAS THE HIT? “It wasn’t that hard of a hit. It was a pretty straight forward hit and the belts take the whole load. It didn’t hurt, really. I was more worried about getting t-boned in the door afterwards which happened, just not a real hard hit.”

HOW FRUSTRATING TO BE INVOLVED IN A WRECK SO CLOSE TO THE FINISH? “It’s unfortunate. Typically it happens at a place like this or this place when you get bunched up like that on a restart; we’ve been racing so hard, car balances change and everybody tries to get two spots instead of one. I’m not sure what happened these last two deals — I know the 17 blew up and I think Kurt broke something. It’s just tough. It’s racing, it’s racing at Dover.

HAD THE RACING GOTTEN SO INTENSE A WRECK WAS ALMOST A FORGONE CONCLUSION? “Yes, it was. But, what happened as far as intense wasn’t what caused the accident. Just in the wrong spot at the wrong time with a good racecar that was capable of a top five.”

***

Kurt Busch (No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge Avenger)

ON THE ACCIDENT “I just caught the fence in turn two and it collected so many top cars and everybody for that matter. It’s tough when everybody puts a lot of hard work into building these cars and one little problem like that took out a lot of cars.

“It was a nice top five that was developing, we actually had thirty lap fresher tires then anybody and something broke.”

Picture - Ryan Newman's Accident Late At Dover

NASCAR drivers Kurt Busch (2), Ryan Newman (12), and Kasey Kahne (9) crash during the NASCAR Dodge Dealers 400 auto race at Dover International Speedway in Dover, Del., on Sunday, Sept., 23, 2007.