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All systems go: Ryan 'Rocket Man' Newman barely made the Chase, but he is getting hot at the right time

Sporting News, The, Oct 11, 2004 by Matt Crossman

Ryan Newman was so close to not qualifying for the Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup that near the end of the cutoff race at Richmond, he tried to use a hand signal--two fingers in a "V"--to ask Tony Stewart not to pass him. Stewart didn't catch on, mostly because there is no such signal.

Newman held on, qualifying for the Chase in the 10th and final spot. Now that Newman is in, he is showing signs of going on the type of hot streak that helped him win a season-high eight races in 2003.

It's about time. Newman was a preseason favorite of many commentators to win the championship, but his team struggled through much of the 26-race regular season. The Rocket Man sat on the tarmac. "The roller-coaster part of it is the part you have to fight through," he says. "We're doing our best to try to survive."

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More than surviving, Newman is starting to thrive. In the first race in the Chase, at New Hampshire, he had a strong car and led before his engine died. The resulting poor finish left him in a points hole, but he immediately started climbing out.

He was dominant, leading 325 of 400 laps at Dover in the second Chase race and took the checkered flag. Newman typically struggles at restrictor-plate races. Sunday at Talladega, he finished 16th and is seventh in points, 159 behind leader Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Newman has re-entered the championship picture, although to contend he'll need other drivers to have problems. He could make big gains this weekend at Kansas--where he has two seconds and a victory in three races. Having a properly engineered car and a precise approach--hallmarks of Newman's No. 12 team--are the keys to success at Kansas.

Kansas is a 1.5-mile banked oval, which helps Newman, an aggressive driver who pushes his car to the edge every lap. The banking absorbs a car's energy, allowing drivers to take a corner harder than they take corners on flat tracks.

"I definitely enjoy the banked race-tracks" Newman says. "That's a big part of it, being able to work with banking and have track position be only 70 percent of the day instead of 90 percent of the day."

Newman won last season at Kansas, though he didn't have nearly the best car. Bill Elliott dominated the race, but Newman bet right on fuel mileage, which he did in several victories last season--so much so he annoyed competitors.

Fuel mileage hasn't been as big of an issue this season as it was in 2003. Still, Newman should be strong at Kansas. So long as hand signals aren't involved.

Find out who's going to win down the stretch--and why--in our licensed Chase for the NASCAR Nextel Cup preview at sportingnews.com/books/nascar.

All systems go: Ryan 'Rocket Man' Newman barely made the Chase, but he is getting hot at the right time

Sporting News, The, Oct 11, 2004 by Matt Crossman

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