05/18/2021

Ryan Newman – COTA Advance

ADVANCE NOTES 

NASCAR Set for Inaugural Race at COTA 

• This weekend serves as one of the most anticipated on the 2021 NASCAR slate, which features a record-breaking six road courses, including the inaugural event at the 3.41-mile long Circuit of the Americas. 
• The course is the only circuit in the United States to annually host both F1 and MotoGP. 
• With the new track, the weekend schedule features both practice and qualifying, a rare occurrence in the 2021 campaign. Teams will practice for 50 minutes at 10:05 a.m. ET Saturday morning. Qualifying takes place Sunday at 11 a.m. ET, just prior to the race rolling off at 2:30 p.m. ET. 

Newman at Road Courses 

• Along with the rest of the field, Newman makes his first-ever start at Circuit of the Americas on Sunday. He has 41 starts on road courses all-time in the Cup Series with 11 top-10s and three top fives. 
• Most recently, Newman ran 20th on the Daytona Road Course this February. Eight of his 11 career top-10s on road course came at Sonoma, including the last event there in 2019 when the 43-year-old ran seventh. He finished runner-up there in 2006, and also ran fifth in 2003. 
• Overall Newman has 35 Cup starts in The Lone Star state with one win at Texas Motor Speedway, which came in the 2003 season. 

Scott Graves at Road Courses 

• Graves will be atop the box for his 14th race on a road course in the NCS. In 13 starts he has three finishes inside the top-10, including two in the top five. 
• Graves most recently led Newman to the seventh-place run at Sonoma in 2019, and outside of that had finishes of third and fourth with Daniel Suarez at Watkins Glen in 2017-18. 
• Graves has two Xfinity wins on road courses, including one at WGI with Carl Edwards in 2012, as well as a victory with Chris Buescher at Mid-Ohio in 2014. 

QUOTE WORTHY
Newman on racing at COTA:
“This will obviously be one of the more unique experiences for everybody involved in our sport. Any time we race at a road course it brings a lot of variables into play, but especially this weekend with the 20-turn course at COTA. Simulator time has been key leading up to this point, and the 50-minute practice session on Saturday will be even more important. We’ll give it our best shot in the Guaranteed Rate Ford in what is sure to be an adventure.” 

Last Time Out
Newman finished 23rd last week at Dover in the Guaranteed Rate Ford. 

Where They Rank
Newman is 20th in points through 13 events. 

On the Car 

Guaranteed Rate returns to Newman’s machine for its fourth points race of 2021. 

About Guaranteed Rate 

The Guaranteed Rate Companies, which includes Guaranteed Rate, Inc., Guaranteed Rate Affinity, LLC, and Proper Rate, LLC, has more than 9,000 employees in over 750 offices across the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, Guaranteed Rate Companies is one of the largest retail mortgage lenders in the United States, funding over $73 billion in 2020. Founded in 2000 and located in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., Guaranteed Rate Companies has helped homeowners nationwide with home purchase loans and refinances. The company has established itself as an industry leader by introducing innovative technology, offering low rates and delivering unparalleled customer service. 2017 marked the launch of Guaranteed Rate Affinity, LLC, a mortgage origination joint venture between Guaranteed Rate, Inc. and Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY), a global leader in residential real estate franchising and brokerage. In 2020, the company launched Proper Rate, LLC, a mortgage origination joint venture between Guaranteed Rate, Inc. and @properties, one of the nation’s largest residential brokerage firms. Collectively, the Guaranteed Rate Companies have earned honors and awards including: Top Lender for Online Service for 2018 by U.S. News & World Report; Best Mortgage Lender for Online Loans and Best Mortgage Lender for Refinancing by NerdWallet for 2021; HousingWire’s 2020 Tech100 award for the company’s industry-leading FlashCloseSM technology; No. 3 ranking in Scotsman Guide‘s Top Retail Mortgage Lenders 2019; Chicago Agent Magazine’s Lender of the Year for five consecutive years; Chicago Tribune‘s Top Workplaces list for seven consecutive years. Visit rate.com for more information.