Tony Stewart and Ryan Newman joke during Friday's press conference anouncing Newman as the second driver for Stewart-Haas Racing. (Geoff Burke/Getty Images Photo)

Still, there is much to do in a short time, with Daytona testing just five months away. “Both drivers have obligations through the end of this year to finish up strongly, plus Haas,” said two-time defending Cup champion Jimmie Johnson. “Then those guys need to somehow gel during our short off season and come together and be ready. So they have a lot of work ahead of themselves, but I think you have professionals across the board over there and they will do a good job.”

Kasey Kahne believes Newman’s experience will be a huge benefit to Stewart. “I think Tony needs to have guys he knows that have won races before – that helps the team,” said Kahne, who drives for Gillett Evernham Motorsports. “When you’ve won, you have certain ideas for what you need at certain race tracks. That’s a good thing with Ryan and Tony, they both have those feelings to be able to help each other – help the team – and make things better quicker over there. Those two as teammates is no different than Jimmie (Johnson) and Jeff (Gordon) as teammates.”

The most optimistic assessment of the pairing may have come from Roush Fenway Racing’s Greg Biffle. “I think it will be a good combination,” said Biffle. “They’ve both proved on the race track and in the garage area that they’re competitive guys and competitive drivers and can get their race cars figured out. Ryan is a heck of a qualifier and racer, and so is Tony. … They’ll both bring a lot of information to the table, I think, and they’ll both bring a lot of good people, and being in the equipment that they’re gonna be in – with Hendrick power and chassis and information and what-not – I think they’re gonna be in great shape. I think they’ll run really well.”

Tom Jensen is the Senior NASCAR Editor 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 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