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NASCAR Sprint-Cup Series
CUP: Newman On A Roll
Ryan Newman has finished fourth or better in each of the last four NASCAR Sprint Cup points races...
Tom Jensen  |  Posted May 25, 2009   Charlotte, NC
Ryan Newman has finished fourth or better in each of the last four NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point races. (Photo: John Harrelson/Getty Images)

If the old sports axiom that “you are what your record says you are” is really true, than there’s only one way to describe Stewart-Haas Racing’s Ryan Newman: The hottest racer in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Newman parlayed pit strategy into a runner-up spot in Monday’s rain-delayed Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. It was the fourth consecutive points race in which the Indiana native has finished fourth or better. During that stretch, Newman has moved from 17th in points all the way up to seventh, making him a strong candidate to make the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

Race-winner David Reutimann, Newman and third-place finisher Robby Gordon were the only three drivers to stay on the track when NASCAR threw what turned out to be the day’s final caution for rain on Lap 221. They inherited the top three spots in the field when leader Kyle Busch pitted and everyone else went with him. And that’s how they finished, with Carl Edwards and Brian Vickers completing the top five.

Newman was in 15th place in his No. 39 Chevrolet Impala SS when the last caution came out. He and crew chief Tony Gibson talked about pitting if the leaders pitted, but Newman made a last-second decision to stay out.

“I asked if the rain was going to stay and the answer was that it might,” said Newman. “I said, ‘We can't chicken out now’ and I stayed out. In the end it was the right thing to do. It's just strategy — sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't. If the race did go back to green, we would have been in the back.”

The result was Newman's fourth-straight top five. The last time he posted four-straight top fives was at this time of the season in 2005. The Coke 600 second-place result comes on the heels of finishes of third (Talladega), fourth (Richmond) and fourth (Darlington).

“We just need to keep doing what we've been doing and we'll get what we're after — and that's a win,” said Newman. “This was a special race to drive the Army car on Memorial Day weekend. This is a weekend about remembrance for our men and women who served our country and for all the troops who are currently protecting our freedom. I was touched to see all the military personnel line up on the straightaway during the prerace introductions. I am very honored to drive the Army car.”

NASCAR SPRINT CUP SERIES RACE RESULTS: COCA-COLA 600 AT LOWE'S MOTOR SPEEDWAY

Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,” and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the past President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to

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