Ryan Newman

Infobox_NASCAR_ driver


Name = Ryan Joseph Newman
Birthdate = birth date and age|1977|12|8 | Birthplace =South Bend, Indiana
Cup_Car_Team = #12 - Penske Racing South
Previous_Year = 2006
Prev_Cup_Pos = 18th
Best_Cup_Pos = 6th - 2002, 2003 (Winston Cup), & 2005 (Nextel Cup)
Cup_Wins = 13
Cup_Top_Tens = 103
Cup_Poles = 43
First_Cup_Race = 2000 Checker Auto Parts/Dura Lube 500 (Phoenix)
First_Cup_Win = 2002 New Hampshire 300 (Loudon)
Last_Cup_Win = 2008 Daytona 500 (Daytona)
Awards = 1996 USAC Silver Crown Rookie of the Year

1999 USAC Weld Racing Silver Crown Series champion

2002 Rookie of the Year

Sprint All-Star Race XVIII Winner

2003 Driver of the Year

2008 Daytona 500 winner

Busch_Car_Team = #12 - Penske Racing South
Previous_Year = 2007
Prev_Busch_Pos = 50th
Best_Busch_Pos = 28th - 2001 (Busch)
Busch_Wins = 7
Busch_Top_Tens = 22
Busch_Poles = 11
First_Busch_Race = 2001 Alltel 200 (Rockingham)
First_Busch_Win = 2001 NAPAonline.com 250 (Loudon)
Last_Busch_Win = 2005 Ford 300 (Homestead)
Updated_On = September 19, 2008

Ryan Joseph Newman (born December 8, 1977 in South Bend, Indiana) is a driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He drives the #12 Alltel/Mobil 1/Kodak Dodge Charger for Penske Racing. Newman graduated from Purdue University in 2001 with a B.S. in vehicle structure engineering. [cite web|url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCH/is_1_32/ai_109579101 | title = A Breed Apart] In 2002, he was the Raybestos Rookie of the Year.

He enjoys fishing and working on vintage automobiles, particularly 1950s Chryslers. Newman's car was featured on the cover of the 2005 EA Sports computer game "NASCAR SimRacing", and he was actively involved in its development.

Newman won the Daytona 500 on February 17, 2008, after passing Tony Stewart on the final lap. It was his first win since September 2005.

In July of 2008, Newman and Penske Racing announced they would part ways. Later that month it was speculated that Newman entered into a verbal agreement to drive for Stewart Haas Racing in 2009 in their #39 Chevrolet. This was confirmed in a press conference held by Stewart Haas Racing on August 15, 2008 at Michigan International Speedway.

Racing career

Early days

Newman made his racing debut in 1993 in the All-American Midget Series, winning both Rookie of the Year and the championship. His 100 feature wins and two titles have him in the Quarter Midget Hall of Fame. Moving to USAC in 1995, he was ROTY again in both the Midget Series and the Silver Crown in 1996. In 1999, he was the first driver to win in all three divisions while being the Silver Bullet Series champion.

Beginnings with Penske

Newman began working for legendary racing icon Roger Penske in 2000, winning 3 of the five ARCA RE/MAX Series races he entered, and making his Winston Cup debut at Phoenix International Raceway. In 2001, Newman continued in both ARCA and NASCAR, while attending Purdue. Around this time he would meet racing legend Buddy Baker, who would eventually become his mentor on superspeedways.

On July 14, 2008, it was announced that Newman would part ways with Penske after eight seasons. Newman has been rumored as a teammate to 2-time Cup Champ Tony Stewart at the newly formed Stewart-Haas Racing team in 2009.

"Rocket Man"

In 2002, Newman won a season-high six poles, breaking the record set by Davey Allison, and won his first career Busch Series race. In September, he won his first career Winston Cup race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after starting from the pole. Newman also became the second rookie since Dale Earnhardt Jr. to win the The Winston. He beat out Jimmie Johnson for the Rookie of the Year award.

Newman's sophomore season began with a flip at the 2003 Daytona 500 after contact with Ken Schrader. He and his team recovered and reeled off eight wins and eleven poles, both series highs, but he also finished with seven DNF's, which left him sixth in points. His number of poles during the season led to him being nicknamed "Rocket Man." Fact|date=February 2008

In 2004, Newman would make the inaugural Chase for the Cup, finishing seventh in points with two wins. The next year, Ryan made the Chase again, beginning with his second New Hampshire victory. He returned to the Busch Series after a four-year absence, winning six out of the nine races he entered, including a series-record five straight. Newman endured his first winless season in 2006, finishing a career-worst 18th in points, while his longtime crew chief left for Michael Waltrip Racing.

His pole ratio between his rookie year and 2006 was one in every three races, tying him for 15th on the all-time poles list. In 2007, he again went winless, including a near win at Lowe's Motor Speedway before a blown tire ended his hopes. [cite web|url = http://www.nascar.com/2007/news/headlines/cup/06/08/rnewman.pole.pocono.ap/index.html | title = Newman Wins Third Consecutive Pole] [cite web|url = http://www.nascar.com/kyn/nbtn/cup/data/pole_winners.html| title = Modern Era Pole Winners] The streak ended after he won the 2008 Daytona 500 on February 17, 2008. It was also the first Daytona 500 win for Penske.

On July 15, 2008, Newman announced that he was leaving Penske.

On August 13, 2008 it was confirmed he will drive for Stewart Haas Racing in 2009 in the number 39 [http://www.jayski.com/cupnews.htm#news39] Chevrolet Impala SS his car number in his early years in Midgets. US Army was named the official sponsor for Ryan Newman on October 9, 2008, but only for 23 races in 2008 and it was a confirmed three-year deal according to NASCAR.com. cite news|url=http://www.nascar.com/2008/news/headlines/cup/10/09/army.sponsorship.rnewman.stewarthaas/index.html|title=Stewart-Haas confirms three-year deal with Army|last=Menzer|first=Joe|date=October 9, 2008|publisher=NASCAR.com|accessdate=2008-10-10]

Grandfather clause

Newman's sponsor Alltel is officially banned from NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series sponsorship; however, because of a grandfather clause (when Nextel Communications, the predecessor to Sprint Nextel, agreed to the NASCAR sponsorship) which Alltel agreed in 2003 and has never challenged, the sponsorship has remained legal. Should NASCAR reimpose a ban on Alltel's sponsorship in Sprint Cup following its agreement with Verizon Wireless and the sale of Alltel, however, the sponsorship would move down to the NASCAR Nationwide Series, where there is no restriction.

Charity

Newman and his wife, Krissie, operate the [http://www.ryannewmanfoundation.org/ Ryan Newman Foundation] , which primarily focuses on assuring that adequate care is provided for unwanted dogs and cats in shelters and pounds. He helped fund the construction of the Catawba County, North Carolina Humane Society shelter, in the county where he once lived.

Career NASCAR Statistics

Data as of July 17, 2008 [ [http://racing-reference.info/driver?id=newmary01 Ryan Newman Career Statistics] ]

Honors

On April 29, 2008, the St. Joseph County, Indiana Board of Commissioners dedicated a 0.5-mile (0.8 km) stretch of newly-rerouted Lincoln Way West (former U.S. Route 20) near the South Bend Regional Airport to Newman. [cite news |first=Nancy J |last=Sulok |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Honor for NASCAR's Newman to stretch half-mile |url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/southbendtribune/access/1473588031.html?FMT=ABS |work=South Bend Tribune |publisher= |date=2008-04-30 |accessdate=2008-05-02 ]

References

External links

* [http://www.alltelracing.com Alltel Racing Website]
* [http://www.ryan12newman.com Official Fansite]
* [http://www.kodak.com/go/racing Kodak Motorsports Website]
* [http://www.nascar.com/drivers/dps/rnewman00/cup/index.html NASCAR Driver Website]
* [http://www.penskeracing.com Penske Racing]