RYAN NEWMAN, NO. 12 ALLTEL DODGE
DODGE AVENGER 500
DARLINGTON RACEWAY
Notes:
Ryan Newman, driver of the No. 12 Alltel Dodge Avenger, will make his ninth Cup Series start at Darlington Raceway and his 199th in the series.
Newman has an average start of 4.375 and an average finish of 11.5. He has seven top-10 starts at the track deemed ‘Too Tough to Tame’, including five from the top five. Newman has one pole — August 2003.
Newman has earned five top-10 finishes at Darlington, including four top-fives.
In eight previous races, Newman has led a total of 210 laps in six of those events. He has completed 2,671 laps of a possible 2,717, giving him a 98.3 percent completion rate.
In 2006, Newman had two consecutive top-10 finishes once during the season; an eighth at Richmond followed by a sixth-place finish at Darlington. Newman will be looking for his third consecutive top-10 finish at Darlington after a ninth-place finish at Talladega and a sixth Sunday at Richmond.
Ryan’s Remark… on Darlington
“I’m really looking forward to Darlington. Obviously the Hendrick cars are the ones to beat, and from what I’ve heard, they got a head start on everybody with testing, and that kind of shows up. But the bottom line is I like Darlington and I look forward to going there because it’s a fun track for me. Our Car of Tomorrow program is strong. I’m not saying we can’t make it stronger, but it’s definitely strong right now.”
Chassis
PRS-513: This chassis ran three weeks ago at Phoenix International Raceway. The car was strong and running in the top five before a miscommunication in the pits left the Alltel Dodge Avenger 11 laps down in the 38th position.
PRS-509: This COT car was tested at Richmond at the beginning of April, but has not been used during a race.
The Penske Pit Box...Did You Know?
...Mobil 1 is not only the official motor oil of NASCAR, it also sponsors every car that Roger Penske fields, including his entries in the NASCAR Cup and Busch Series, Indy Racing League and American Le Mans Series.
...When Kodak adorned the hood of the No. 12 Dodge Charger in Talladega two weeks ago, it had been 15 months since Kodak last sponsored a car in the Cup Series.
