Monday, June 25, 2007

Pit strategy was the key to a good finish in the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway in Northern California and Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, and his crew believed they had the right strategy going into Sunday’s race.

With a pit window of 35 to 38 laps in the 110-lap race, crew chief Mike Nelson waited until lap 37 to bring Newman down pit road for his first stop of the day. The car had been handling just a tick loose in the 1.99-mile track's esses, but was running third when Newman came down for four tires, fuel and a half-round in the right-side track bar to slightly tighten the car.

Newman was making his way back up into the top 10 so when the caution flag waved on lap 67 for a spin in turn seven, Newman stayed out when most of the field came in for their second pit stop. Newman ended up fourth behind Tony Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Robby Gordon, respectively. The teams that remained on the track believed that pitting on lap 68 would mean those cars would have to make a third stop and head to the back of the field.

For a couple of cars, like those driven by Jamie McMurray and Bobby Labonte, they did need a little extra fuel, but they chose to stay out instead of making the third stop and ended up running out of fuel on the course. However, too many of the cars that pitted on lap 68 were able to make it to the checkered flag without stopping again, which left Newman in the middle of the pack, finishing the race in 20th.

“It was unfortunate. We got beat by fuel mileage,” Newman said after the race. “We did what we had to do to get to the end and that was it. Those other guys got the fuel mileage. Our strategy just didn’t win the race. We got a 20th-place finish with a top-seven race car. That’s disappointing.”

Newman was able to move up two spots in the drivers’ standings, climbing into 13th, 96 points out of the 12th spot.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger in the LENOX Industrial Tools 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. Live coverage begins at 1 p.m. EDT on TNT and MRN Radio.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Monday, July 2, 2007

Ryan Newman could have had a worse day at New Hampshire International Speedway, but it could have been better as well.
Newman, who qualified 12th on Friday, moved into the top 10 shortly after the green flag dropped on Sunday's LENOX Industrial Tools 300.
A tight condition in the center of the corners caused Newman to temporarily fall outside the top 10, but he quickly made his way back towards the front and was running fifth when green-flag pit stops began on lap 69.
Newman made his stop on lap 71 and received four tires, fuel and one-and-a-half rounds up on the right-side track bar. The stop – which lasted 13.69 seconds – left Newman in 12th when the stops cycled through, but on the next lap, Newman moved back into the top 10. By lap 77, he was fifth.
The tight condition continued to plague Newman's Dodge and on his second stop on lap 98 – during a caution flag for debris in turn three – crew chief Mike Nelson called for four tires, fuel and two more rounds up on the right- side track bar. The second stop took only 12.36 seconds, but Newman still lost one position due to some cars taking only two tires.
When the third of six caution flags flew on lap 121, Newman pitted for right-side tires only, fuel and a half-round up on the right-side track bar. However, problems occurred on pit road that stalled Newman's trek to the front. After front-tire changer Ben Brown finished putting on the right-front tire, the air hose he was using was not pulled back to the pit wall and Newman ran over the hose, pulling it apart and sending the air gun into pit lane. Clint Bowyer's car ran over the air gun, tearing an oil line under his car and dumping oil on the track. Newman was then penalized by NASCAR for removing equipment from his pit stall and he was forced to return to pit road for a stop-and-go penalty.
Nelson had the Alltel crew change the left-side tires, add fuel and go up one more round on the right-side track bar, but by the time Newman had served his penalty, he was in the 26th position when the green flag waved on lap 130.
"I guess (crew members) didn't get the hose pulled back across the car and it got caught in the front of the car," Newman said. "We snagged it and that was pretty much the end of it for us. That cost us a lot of track position. That cost us a good top-five finish and potentially a shot at winning the race."
Newman had made his way back up to 20th by lap 162, but was still fighting a tight condition in his car that existed from the middle of the corners to the exit.
A second round of green-flag stops began on lap 192 and Newman was able to lead three laps and earn five bonus points, which helped him gain ground in the drivers' standings.
Immediately following the green-flag stops, the fourth yellow flag waved for Joe Nemechek's crash in turns three and four and Newman, who only had four cars behind him on the lead lap, came in to top off on fuel. He still restarted in 20th.
As soon as the green flag flew, Newman quickly advanced through the field and was running 11th when the fifth caution came out on lap 254. A 13.42-second pit stop dropped Newman to 12th on the restart, again due to cars in front of him taking only two tires.
After receiving the green flag on lap 259, the caution flag flew again before the field could complete one circuit when Bobby Labonte's and David Stremme's cars crashed. When the race restarted on lap 263, Newman was 12th, but by the time he'd completed one lap, he had returned to the top 10.
For the remaining 35 laps, Newman fought Kyle Busch for the 10th spot and ended up coming out ahead when the checkered flag waved on lap 300, earning his seventh top-10 finish in 2007 – six of which have occurred in the last nine races.
Newman remained 13th in the drivers' standings, 127 points out of 12th.
Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona International Speedway. TNT and MRN Radio will have live race coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. EDT.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Sunday, July 8, 2007

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, was having a top-10 day until the final 35 laps of Saturday night’s Pepsi 400.

Newman started the race from the 14th position after qualifying was rained out on Saturday night, leaving NASCAR to set the field based on owners’ points. Within four laps, the caution flag waved for the first time and Newman was up in the top 10.

The first 13 of 26 laps would be run under yellow-flag conditions and while Newman didn’t get much of a chance to get a good feel for the balance in green-flag laps, he radioed in to his crew that he was “definitely on the free side”. He also informed the Alltel crew that he needed more grip.

After coming in for his first pit stop on lap 17 and receiving four tires and fuel, Newman still fought the loose condition, but the car began to tighten up on him as the run went on and Newman was comfortable with the balance of the race car.

By lap 40, Newman was running in the top five and was pretty happy with the car only needing more grip.

When the caution flag waved again on lap 57, crew chief Mike Nelson brought the Alltel Dodge down pit road for their second stop of the night.

“It’s a little free in turns one and two, but good in turns three and four,” Newman relayed to Nelson. “It’s free in general.”

In order to tighten the car up, Nelson called for two rounds down on the right side track bar along with four tires, fuel and a half pound of pressure out of the left side tires.

As soon as the field took the green again, Newman said that the car was just a tick loose, but after 10 laps, the car got aero tight and Newman wanted the car freed up a bit on the next stop.

The field cycled through one round of green-flag pit stops and Newman came down pit road for his third stop on lap 110. To loosen the car up, Nelson had the Alltel crew put two rounds in the right rear wedge along with four tires and fuel. Once Newman got back on the track, he radioed in that the car was a tick free, but soon the car began to tighten up on him.

On lap 122, Newman – who was running fourth at the time – got shuffled out of line and fell back through the field, dropping out of the top 10. He dropped as far back as 17th at one point and had a hard time fighting his way through the field without any drafting help.

With 15 laps to go, Newman made his way back into the top 10 after avoiding the spinning car of David Gilliland, but Newman wouldn’t be able to hold on to that spot. When the checkered flag waved on lap 160, Newman was in the 14th position.

“We started 14th, finished 14th and fell to 14th in the standings. The only good result was we’re only 61 points out of 12th now and we entered the race 127 out of 12th,” Newman said after climbing out of his car. “It’s going to be tough, but we really want to qualify for The Chase. We had a good car tonight, but we didn’t get a good finish with it. We’ll try to bounce back and get ‘em next week in Chicago.”

Jamie McMurray, who had been just behind Newman in the drivers’ standings, earned his first win in five years and with the victory, McMurray moved ahead of Newman in the points. Although Newman fell to 14th in points, he gained ground on the 12th position and is now only 61 points behind Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who holds onto the 12th spot after finishing 36th following an accident on lap 14.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger in the USG Sheetrock 400 at Chicagoland Speedway. TNT will broadcast their final race of the 2007 season begining at 2:30 p.m. EDT. MRN Radio will also cover the race live.

Newman will also be driving the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Charger in the NASCAR Busch Series race. The USG Durock 300 will be broadcast live by ABC and MRN Radio starting at 2:30 p.m. EDT on Saturday, July 14.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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There's always next weekend though...

Yes there is! ......

Monday July 30, 2007

The Allstate 400 at the Brickyard may be one of the biggest races of the year in the NASCAR Cup Series, but for Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger, it is a race he would prefer to forget.

After starting Sunday's 400-mile race in the third position, Newman’s day went from bad to worse in 20 laps.

Immediately after the green flag dropped at the 2.5-mile track, Newman told his crew the car was “really, really tight”. Newman fell to 20th on lap 15, but crew chief Mike Nelson kept reminding Newman that NASCAR would throw a competition caution soon due to tire-wear concerns. NASCAR, however, didn’t have to throw the caution as Jeff Green's car crashed in turn three on lap 15, bringing out the first of nine yellow flags.

“We have to go back on some of the changes we made yesterday,” Newman relayed to Nelson.

During discussions about their first pit stop, Newman asked for air out of the tires and a small amount of bite out of the car to help its entry into the corners. The engine was also concerning the team since the water temperature had risen to 259 degrees.

When Newman pitted, the Alltel Dodge crew put one round of wedge in the right rear, went one round down on the right-side track bar, put on four fresh tires with 2 pounds of air out of the right-side tires and a full tank of fuel. The stop enabled Newman to restart in the 16th spot.

The field took the green flag on lap 20 and on the next lap, David Stremme's Dodge got into the back of the Alltel Dodge. Newman spun and slammed the fourth-turn wall, severely damaging his car. The damage was too extensive to fix and the Alltel Dodge crew had to pack up early, leaving Newman in the 42nd position.

There was a silver lining, however. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who remains in the final transfer spot for the 2007 Chase, blew an engine with 24 laps remaining in the 160-lap race and gained only 29 points on Newman. Although Newman fell to the 14th position in the drivers’ standings – teammate Kurt Busch moved into 13th – Newman is only 59 points out of 12th place with six races remaining before the Chase cutoff.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger in the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway. The team looks to rebound at the 2.5-mile track where Newman earned his third-consecutive Bud Pole Award just seven weeks ago – his fourth of 2007 – and finished second after rain ended the race just as Newman was passing Jeff Gordon for the lead. ESPN and MRN Radio will begin their live coverage of the Pennsylvania 500 at 1 p.m. EDT.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Monday, August 6, 2007

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Mobil 1 Dodge Charger, was a little disappointed with his seventh-place finish in Sunday's Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway, but the team remained in contention to make the "Chase for the Championship" with just five races left before the cutoff.

“We had a top two or three car today, but we made the wrong adjustments for our second-to-last run and it really hurt us,” Newman said after climbing from his car on pit road. “The guys did an excellent job in the pits, and (crew chief) Mike (Nelson) made good calls all day. I wanted the car freed up just a little bit and we just went a little too far on our track bar, but it was still a good run for the Mobil 1 Dodge and we’re still in a good position to make the Chase, so the day was good…just not great.”

Newman, who qualified fourth at the 2.5-mile, triangular-shaped track, moved up to the second position as soon as the green flag waved, falling in behind teammate Kurt Busch to lead the field. The car was a little tight in turn two and Busch was able to get away from Newman and the rest of the field, but Newman hung on to second for a good portion of the race. In fact, the only time Newman fell out of the top 10 was during green-flag pit stops while the field was cycling through. The first time Newman dropped out of the top five was on lap 145 when his car was too loose after the track bar adjustment.

For most of the race, Newman's Dodge was too tight and the condition kept him from gaining ground on Busch, who led a record 175 laps en route to victory lane. The car's tightness seemed to remain even after two pit stops to correct the problem. On Newman's third stop, Nelson called for two rounds of wedge out of the left rear and two rounds up on the right-side track bar, but those changes seemed to make Newman's car too loose until the sun popped out from behind the clouds. Then, all of a sudden, Newman’s car became too tight, again.

When Newman pitted for the fourth time – third green-flag stop of the day – he crossed the start/finish line as the race leader and earned five bonus points with the help of Nelson and Newman’s spotter, who assisted in making the strategy call to get Newman the extra points.

On that same stop, Nelson had the Mobil 1 crew put a half-round of wedge into the left rear, which seemed to help the car a great deal. Newman told his crew at one point that the car felt “pretty nice”, but it would only be a few more laps before the car tightened up again and gave Newman more problems.

The next stop was on lap 140, which was when the track bar adjustment occurred that caused Newman’s car to get too tight and dropped the Mobil 1 Dodge out of the top five. When Newman came down for his last stop on lap 170, Nelson reversed the previous adjustments, but the move wasn’t enough to help Newman fight his way back into the top five.

With only 30 laps remaining after his last stop, Newman fought off a charging Clint Bowyer. Newman was able to pass some lapped cars and get traffic in between him and Bowyer, but with less than 10 laps remaining, Bowyer passed the lapped cars and was coming on strong. Fortunately, Newman held on to earn his ninth top-10 finish of 2007.

Newman remains in the 14th position in the drivers’ standings and with Busch’s victory and Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s second-place finish, Newman is 90 points out of 12th – now held by Busch.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Avenger in Sunday's Centurion Boats at The Glen at Watkins Glen International. ESPN and MRN Radio will cover the race beginning at 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday.

Newman will also drive the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Charger in Saturday's Zippo 200 at The Glen in the NASCAR Busch Series. ESPN2 and MRN Radio will broadcast the race live on Saturday afternoon beginning at 3 p.m. EDT.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Mon, 08/13/2007 - 8:36am

The 90-lap race at Watkins Glen International on Sunday nearly turned into a 90-lap circus before the checkered flag waved. Drivers got into shoving matches, an extended red-flag period to clean up oil and debris in turn one had crew members wondering if they should take rags to the site to help move things along, and a fan even ran down to the stopped cars to seek an autograph.

Ryan Newman also had his own share of excitement during the 220.5-mile race.

The field was set by owners' points after rain canceled Friday's qualifying session and Newman started 15th. Eleven laps into the event, Newman's car wheel-hopped entering turn 10 and sent the Indiana native spinning into the gravel pit. Fortunately, Newman kept the tires rolling and made it out on his own, carrying about 20 pounds of debris with him on the car's splitter. David Ragan was not as lucky and he spun into the same gravel pit shortly after Newman. The first of eight caution periods began on lap 12, providing Newman the opportunity to come into the pits to fix his car.

A brake duct was damaged in the spin, forcing Newman to pit before pit road was open and that resulted in a penalty. NASCAR officials ordered Newman to the rear of the longest line and that sent him to the 41st position for the race's restart on lap 14.

Although Newman's car was tight going through the 11-turn road course, he was still able to pick up a few spots before the next caution flew for debris on lap 23. Crew chief Mike Nelson brought Newman back onto pit road for adjustments to free up the car, giving Newman one round of wedge out of the left rear, one round of wedge in the right rear and two rounds up on the right-side track bar along with a full tank of fuel. This stop put the team back on its original pit strategy and moved Newman to 21st for the race's restart on lap 26.

The car was loose when Newman returned to the track, but he was able to make his way into the top 15 and hovered there until the third caution period began on lap 41.

Newman pitted for a third time to go back on the previous adjustments that had only hurt his car's balance. Nelson had the Kodak team put 1 1/2 rounds of wedge into the left rear, take 1 1/2 rounds of wedge out of the right rear and supply Newman with four fresh tires and fuel. Once again, Newman restarted near the rear of the field in 34th. Unfortunately, the changes didn't help Newman's car once the field returned to green-flag conditions.

"The balance is no good," Newman told his crew on lap 49. "It's really loose off (turns) 10 and 11."

A few laps later, Newman was racing Clint Bowyer when both men suddenly found themselves in one of the winding track's gravel pits. Both, however, maintained their momentum and continued.

On Newman's fourth stop, Nelson gave him fuel only and went three rounds down on the right- side track bar. The quick stop allowed Newman to gain 15 spots and placed him 15th in the running order.

For 12 of the final 25 laps, the field ran under yellow-flag conditions as four caution periods occurred during that time frame. When a five-car accident occurred on lap 73, the clean-up was lengthy, even bringing out the red flag for 26 minutes 4 seconds as crews worked in turn one to clean up the oil that spilled onto the track. It was during this time that drivers Kevin Harvick and Juan Pablo Montoya, who were involved in the incident, began yelling and shoving each other before NASCAR officials could come between them.

The lengthy cleanup created an antsy feeling among the drivers and crew members, and left them wondering what they could do to accelerate the track clearing procedure. While the race was stopped, Matt Kenseth received a surprise when a fan ran through a grassy area to the track and shoved an object inside the car's window for Kenseth to autograph. Kenseth told the fan he was a little busy and eventually, the man gave up and left the car. Track security later took him away in handcuffs.

When the field finally received the green flag again, only 12 laps remained and Newman was in 16th. There was one more caution flag before the checkered flag waved, but when the race finally ended Newman had advanced to 13th. Due to the engine troubles that eliminated Dale Earnhardt Jr. from the race, Newman moved into 13th in the drivers' standings, 96 points behind the Chase-eligible 12th position held by Penske Racing teammate Kurt Busch.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger at the 2-mile Michigan International Speedway for the 3M Performance 400. ESPN and MRN Radio will broadcast the event that has a 2 p.m. EDT starting time.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Wed, 08/22/2007

After two days of waiting for the 3M Performance 400 at Michigan International Speedway to begin, the green flag finally fell Tuesday morning after the fog hovering over the track lifted.

The race started with eight green-yellow flag laps. The spotters above the frontstretch and the NASCAR officials in the tower couldn't see the entire track clearly due to the fog and wanted to wait until it was clear before letting the 43-car field go green. After eight laps, NASCAR brought the cars down pit road on lap 9 for a 32-minute 16-second red-flag period.

The drivers were finally turned loose under green-flag conditions on lap 13. Newman gained 10 spots in 11 laps, but the car was tight, especially in the center of turns three and four. A competition yellow waved on lap 31 and Newman was able to bring the No. 12 Alltel Dodge down pit road for his first stop for four tires, fuel and four rounds up on the right-side track bar.

Newman restarted in 25th and quickly climbed into the top 20, despite battling a very loose car entering and exiting the corners that was also tight in the middle of turns three and four.

Crew chief Mike Nelson brought Newman to pit road for his second stop on lap 74 during a green-flag sequence. Nelson called for four tires, fuel, one round of wedge out of the left rear and 1.5-rounds up on the right-side track bar. When the green-flag stops cycled through, Newman was in 18th.

The yellow flag flew again on lap 88 when Mark Martin's car began smoking, giving Newman a chance to return to pit road. This stop consisted of four tires and fuel only, but the crew found a little bit of fender damage during the stop and extended it to make some repairs. The 16.75-second stop cost Newman four spots, but the yellow was back out within a lap when Michael Waltrip's car spun. Newman barely missed hitting Waltrip's car as a cloud of smoke filled the track. Newman quickly maneuvered his car to the bottom of the track and kept it clean.

Newman's car was still extremely loose, causing him to return to his pit for more chassis adjustments. This time, Nelson had the Alltel crew give him four tires, fuel, one round down on the right-side track bar, and a half-round of wedge in the left rear.

The stop put Newman back in the 27th position, but again, he was able to move through the field pretty quickly, landing in 20th before a second round of green-flag stops began on lap 127. Newman pitted on lap 131 and a second extended stop left him 24th. The adjustments that had been made – half-round of wedge out of the right rear and one round up on the right-side track bar along with four tires and fuel – made Newman's car loose around the entire track.

A third round of green-flag stops began on lap 165. Newman was running fourth when Paul Menard's car lost an engine. The lead-lap cars were waiting for NASCAR to throw the caution flag, but Menard was able to get his car onto pit road and NASCAR officials didn't believe there was any danger on the track.

On lap 170, through pit strategy, Newman was able to take the lead for two laps and gain five bonus points. When a spin on the track still didn't bring out the yellow flag, Newman came into his pit stall for four tires, fuel and one round of wedge out of the right rear.

Newman returned to the track, but was one lap down. When the yellow came out for the sixth time on lap 176, Newman stayed on the track and was second in line to receive the Lucky Dog Award when the next caution occurred. On the restart, Newman passed Juan Pablo Montoya to put himself in position for the Lucky Dog, which he received on lap 190 when Jeff Gordon spun on the frontstretch and became stuck in the grassy apron.

Back on the lead lap, Newman restarted in 20th and was able to pick up four spots before the checkered flag flew on lap 203.

Newman's 16th-place finish did little to help him in the point standings, though. Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 12th and moved past Newman into the 13th spot. However, Newman is still only 171 points out of 12th – still held by teammate Kurt Busch – with three races remaining before the Chase begins in Loudon, N.H.

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday night. ESPN and PRN radio will broadcast the race live beginning at 7 p.m. EDT.

Newman will also drive the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Charger in Friday night's Food City 250 at BMS. ESPN2 and PRN radio will cover the NASCAR Busch Series race live beginning at 7:30 p.m. EDT.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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Monday, August 27, 2007


Ryan Newman kept his Chase hopes alive Saturday night with a seventh-place finish in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

Newman, who entered the race in 14th in the standings, 171 points out of 12th, remains 14th. He lost only four points to teammate Kurt Busch, who possesses the final transfer spot, and is now 175 points out of the Chase with two races remaining.

The Alltel Dodge started seventh, but Newman fell back to 11th shortly after the green flag waved. However, he quickly moved back towards the front of the field and had climbed into the top five by lap 19. Newman would then remain in the top five for most of the race.

Newman was the fastest car on the track for many of the opening laps, running more than a tenth of a second faster than the other cars, including the leader.

The car was a little loose at the start of a run, but became tighter during the long runs. Newman was able to manage the car's tightness, but he still asked crew chief Mike Nelson to free up the car on the team's first stop.

By lap 67, Newman was running second to Kasey Kahne, but lap traffic kept him from catching Kahne and taking the lead.

On the team's first stop, the Alltel Dodge crew put on four fresh tires, filled the car with fuel and went up two rounds on the right-side track bar in an effort to eliminate the tightness in the car. Rear-tire changer Joe Piette Jr. tripped over the air hose as he ran to the car's left side and the mishap cost Newman two spots when the field restarted after the first of nine caution periods ended on lap 135.

Newman and Dale Earnhardt Jr., the 13th-place driver in the standings, battled for a good portion of the race. Early in the event, the two drivers gave each other room, but as the event progressed, things became heated between the two, who are battling for the 12th spot in the Chase.

Newman passed Earnhardt Jr. on lap 170 for fourth, and the two swapped spots again on lap 193.

"He gave it to me, I'm just giving it back," Newman told his crew.

The caution flag waved again on lap 211 when Denny Hamlin's car caught fire after apparently losing an engine. Newman asked his crew to free up his car even more. On his second stop, Nelson called for four tires, fuel and two more rounds up on the right-side track bar. Newman, who had entered the pits in fifth, restarted seventh.

It wouldn't be long before another caution occurred, but Newman was having problems of his own with lap down cars racing him hard and keeping him from getting back to the front.

"The 8 [Earnhardt Jr.] is the only one who's given me a break all night," Newman said.

Newman regained a top-five spot when he passed Jeff Gordon on lap 264 for fifth, but lap traffic once again kept Newman in place and unable to catch the guys in front of him.

The car became a little too tight in the center of the turns after the second stop and Newman told his crew to go back on the track bar during their next stop. However, it would be quite a while before Newman would be on pit road again.

More problems began occurring for Newman as the race progressed. After 350 laps, Newman told his crew he was struggling in the car with carbon monoxide fumes. Luckily, Nelson informed Newman that he would be pitting soon.

Green-flag pit stops began on lap 359 and Newman was able to hold out for a few laps to take over the lead and gain five bonus points to stay close to Earnhardt Jr. in the point standings. When Newman finally pitted on lap 364, his Alltel Dodge received four tires, fuel, one round down on the right-side track bar and one round of wedge out of the left rear to loosen the car.

The fourth of nine caution flags waved on lap 369, but green-flag stops had cycled through enough that Newman remained on the lead lap. Nelson also told Newman that they were good until the end on fuel. Newman replied that the car had felt better on the short run since the last adjustments.

When the field received the green flag on lap 378, Newman restarted sixth, but he was back in the top five in six laps and once again was battling the 8 car for position. Newman took over fifth when Earnhardt Jr. and Newman collided and Earnhardt Jr.'s car slid up the track, leaving Newman with the position.

"If the 8 wants to beat and bang, I'll beat and bang with him," Newman told his spotter. "He came down on me and deserved what he got."

The friendly battle had now heated up between the two drivers. Unfortunately for Newman, Earnhardt Jr. was able to recoup and recover his position in the top five on lap 395.

Newman remained in sixth for several laps, but was starting to feel worse as the carbon monoxide fumes became stronger inside the car.

In the closing laps, Tony Stewart passed three cars, including Newman, which left the Alltel Dodge Avenger in seventh when the checkered flag flew on lap 500.

"I was miserable in the car, but it was a good run for the Alltel Dodge,"
Newman said after climbing from his car. "We just got behind a little bit on pit road and that was enough. We just didn't have enough to get past those guys. We were good enough to hold our own, but couldn't pass them."

Next weekend, Newman will drive the No. 12 Kodak Dodge Charger in the Sharp AQUOS 500 at California Speedway on Sunday night. ESPN and MRN Radio will broadcast the race live beginning at 7 p.m. EDT.

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Ryan Newman, Daytona 500 Champion!!
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