Race 2 Win: Sharpie 500 - Ryan Newman Notes

Nextel Cup Series

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Sharpie 500 - Ryan Newman Notes

Ryan Newman/Bristol Advance

NNCS Notes:

Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge, will make his eighth Bristol Motor Speedway start and his 140th in the NASCAR Cup Series this Saturday.

In his seven previous BMS starts, Newman has posted three top-10 finishes.

Newman scored his career best BMS finish, second, last August.

In seven qualifying attempts, Newman has qualified within the top 10 six times, including two poles. Newman set the track qualifying record of 129.709 mph in March, 2003.

Matt Borland, crew chief of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge, is taking chassis PRS-41--"Popeye"--to BMS this weekend. "Popeye" earned its name after winning the June 2003 race at Dover International Speedway. He went on to win four of Newman's eight victories that season, including both Dover races, Chicago and Michigan International Speedway.

With three races remaining until the "Chase for the Championship", Newman and the Alltel team sit eighth in the point standings. The team rebounded last season from 13th in the standings with a second-place finish at BMS, a fifth-place finish at California Speedway and a 20th-place finish at Richmond International Raceway.

Newman spent Tuesday fishing with track representatives and the media near Bristol Motor Speedway.

The Sharpie 500 will air live on TNT at 7 p.m., EDT on Saturday, Aug. 27 and can be heard on PRN Radio.

Stats:
BMS Cup Starts: 7
Races/Laps Led: 2/55
Poles: 2 (March 2003, March 2004)
Highest Finish: 2 (August 2004)

Quotes:
Newman on BMS: "Just like last season, Bristol will be the race that makes it or breaks it for a lot of teams, as far as getting into the 'chase' is involved. We went into last year's race with that mentality and came out with our best ever finish there. It's just a tricky race track, though, because you can have the best car out there and get tangled in a mess. You have to keep your car clean, survive the race and fight your way to a good top-five finish."

Newman on the point race: "We're about 120 points ahead of 11th place, which isn't great, but it's a better position than we were in last year. There's no 'safe' racing. We're still out to win every race."

News and Results | Point Standings | 2005 Schedule | 2005 Teams | 2004 Schedule and Results