Ryan Newman/All-Star Challenge Advance
Notes:
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel My Circle Dodge, will make his fifth appearance in Saturday's NASCAR All-Star race. In four previous appearances, Newman has earned one pole and one victory. He also won the 2002 No Bull Sprint, which gave him the last starting position in the All-Star event.
Newman's victory in the race's 2002 version made him only the second rookie to win the event.
The Alltel team has started on the front row the last two years of the All-Star Challenge. Last year, the team earned the pole position and a $25,000 check. In 2004, the Alltel team started and finished second.
In six races during the NASCAR All-Star Challenge weekend, Newman has never finished outside the top-20. Four of his finishes have been in the top-five.
Leading up to the 2002 The Winston all-star race at Charlotte, Newman finished third in the Winston Open and then won the No Bull Sprint. He completed 100 percent of the laps in both of those races -- 30 of 30 and 16 of 16, respectively. In the four All-Star races in which Newman has competed, he has finished 88 percent of the laps -- 316 of 360 laps. Overall, Newman has an 89 percent completion rate in all six races -- 362 of 406 laps.
The No. 12 Alltel My Circle Dodge team will compete in the Pit Crew Challenge on Wednesday, May 17, at the Bobcats Arena in Charlotte. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. and consists of both individual and team competitions.
Matt Borland, crew chief of the No. 12 Alltel My Circle Dodge, will take chassis PRS-46 to the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge. While this car has not run this year, it was used in four races last year: the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway; the Pennsylvania 500 at Pocono Raceway; the MBNA RacePoints 400 at Dover International Speedway; and the Banquet 400 at Kansas Speedway. In all of those races, except Kansas, Newman finished fifth. He placed 23rd at Kansas.
Quotes:
Newman on the NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge: "Teamwork is always important, but it seems like the crew gets a lot more recognition during the All-Star weekend. First, there is the pit crew competition. Then in qualifying they play a key role because of the four-tire stop that is part of the qualifying run. It was neat to win the pole last year, and it was special to win the race during my rookie season. But the thing I really like about this weekend is we can just race and not have to worry about points. I think you see the type of racing this weekend that you would see every weekend if points weren't involved."
Trent Cherry, trainer and rear tire carrier for the No. 12 Alltel team, on the roll the crew plays in the All-Star race: "This is the only event during the season where the pit crew gets to participate in qualifying. Usually, we're watching it on TV. The crew will be in the spotlight as Ryan brings his car down pit road for a four-tire stop. Last year, we were able to help Ryan earn the pole for the All-Star race and the year before that we started second, so the pit crew has been doing their job during qualifying for the last couple of years. Hopefully, we can keep it going and get another front row start for Ryan and this Alltel Dodge team."
Quick Stats:
All-Star Races: 4 Races
Led/Laps Led: 3/111
Best Starting Position: 1
(2005) Best Finishing Position: 1 (2002)
2005 Start: 1
2005 Finish: 12
