Ryan Newman And The Richmond International Speedway

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April 30th, 2008 | Categories: Pre-Race, YR-08
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Ryan Newman will be heading to his favorite short track, Richmond International Speedway sitting 11th in the Sprint Cup point standings.

Newman does very well at Richmond. After 12 starts he 0 DNF’s, 1 pole, 1 win, 4 Top 5’s and 7 Top 10’s. On top of that his average starting position is 8.83 and his average finishing position is 11.08. Thats really not too bad.

For this race last year Newman started 30th and ended with a 6th place finish. He did statistically better in the September race last year, but started 4th and finished 11th. His September race had more Laps in the Top 15, more laps led and a lot higher driver rating.

Race Date May 2007 / Sept 2007
Start 30 4
Mid Race 11 6
Closer Place 8 11
Finish 6 11
High Pos 1 1
Low Pos 31 27
Avg Pos 13 8
Pass Diff. 18 11
Green Pass 64 48
Green Times Passed 46 37
Quality Passes 38 34
% of Quality Passes 59.4 70.8
# of Fastest Laps 0 13
Laps in Top 15 321 360
% of Laps in Top 15 80.3 90
Laps Led 1 33
% of Laps Led 0.3 8.3
Total Laps 400 400
Driver Rating 87.3 105.2
Pts 155 135


Ryan Newman -

RACING AT RICHMOND: “Richmond is a fun race. It’s under the lights on Saturday night - it’s always exciting. I think it is probably the best short track we have on the NASCAR circuit. The key to racing at Richmond is that you have to be considerate of the entries to the corners. Turn one is sweeping and you have to be sensitive to getting loose there. Turn three is pretty much a 90 degree corner and turn four opens up, so you will see a lot of passing there. Both ends are different so it really is a driver’s race track. It’s a place where it is rewarding to be patient and smooth, but you also have to be aggressive at times, too.

“We had a really good car at Phoenix, which is a sister track to Richmond. We sat on the pole, led quite a few laps, but then we had a motor problem that knocked us out early. We’re looking forward to Richmond because we think that we have a really good car and a good setup for the race. We’re hoping to build on the start we had at Phoenix and last weekend’s top 10 at Talladega.”

Roy McCauley -

KEYS AT RICHMOND: “At Richmond, the key is you have keep the car turning in the center-it is similar to Phoenix in that respect. You can’t get too loose getting into the corners and you have to keep it turning. Richmond is different in that there’s a little bit more of a problem with traffic there, so having good track position is key. Having track position and being able to pass is crucial.”

SIMILARITIES TO PHOENIX: “Phoenix and Richmond are similar, but Richmond has its own characteristics, too. Running well at Phoenix does give us a little bit of confidence heading into this race, but I have confidence in the Alltel team and what we have been able to accomplish this season. And I have confidence in Ryan as a driver. You have to approach Richmond differently because it is an impound event, but I think we will do well there.”

CHASSIS NOTES
PRS-561: The No. 12 Alltel Dodge for Richmond this weekend is a brand new car for Newman. He will turn the car’s first laps on a track on Friday morning in practice.

PRS-519: The backup Alltel Dodge for the Richmond race also served as the backup at Phoenix earlier this season.