07/29/2020
Ryan Newman | Loudon Advance
ADVANCE NOTES
Loudon Next Stop for NASCAR Cup Series
- With a longer gap than usual since the last NASCAR Cup Series event, the series heads to New Hampshire Motor Speedway for a standalone race Sunday afternoon. By the time Sunday rolls around, nine days will have passed since the race at Kansas Speedway, the 19th points event of 2020.
- Kansas capped a stretch in NASCAR’s return to racing that included 16 Cup events in a span of 82 days, with the schedule through August setting up for the series’ scheduled 10-race playoff run beginning Labor Day weekend.
- With no practice or qualifying session on the books due to restrictions from COVID-19, starting lineups will continue to be set by a random draw within the teams’ order in owners’ points. Newman will draw for a spot in the 13-24 group.
- Four weeks of NASCAR action were initially completed prior to the COVID-19 hiatus with races at Atlanta, Homestead, Texas, Bristol, Richmond, Talladega, Dover and Martinsville postponed before the schedule later picked back up in mid-May.
Newman Historically at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
- Newman – a three-time winner at NHMS – will make his 35th Cup start on Sunday. In 34 prior events, Newman has 20 top-10s and seven finishes inside the top five. His overall average finish is 13.5, one of his best on the circuit, with 722 laps led, second-most of any active track.
- Newman earned wins in 2002, 2005 and 2011 at the 1.058-mile track. He led a combined 328 laps in the three victories and started from the pole in two (2002, 2011). Dating back 10 events, Newman has five top fives, including a strong seventh-place run a season ago.
- Newman has an average starting spot of 11th in Loudon with seven poles. He started from the point in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, swept both poles in 2011, and again in 2013.
- Newman has a wealth of experience in other series’ at NHMS, including one Xfinity Series start (2001) and 20 starts in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour Series.
- The modified event at NHMS has become an annual tradition for Newman, who has two wins (both 2010), nine top-five and 11 top-10 finishes. He has sat on the pole for seven of the events and led 231 laps overall. Unfortunately, this season’s NWMT race at Loudon was postponed due to COVID-19.
Scott Graves at New Hampshire Motor Speedway
- Graves will be atop the box for his seventh Cup race at NHMS on Sunday. In six prior starts, Graves has three top-10 finishes with a best finish of sixth (2017). Most recently, he led Newman to a seventh-place run in 2019 after starting 26th.
- Graves also called three Xfinity Series events in Loudon, earning two top-five results. He led Chris Buescher to fifth back in 2014, and most recently finished fourth with Suarez in 2016.
QUOTE WORTHY
Newman on racing at NHMS:
“I’m excited to get up to New Hampshire, the site of my first win and a place I’ve been fortunate enough to have a lot of success at. Last year we battled in a tough race and finished seventh, and arguably had a winning car, which does a lot for our confidence heading into the weekend. We’re proud to welcome Guaranteed Rate to our Ford Mustang and look forward to putting on a good show for them in their debut into the sport.”
Last Time Out
Newman was caught up in a multi-car incident in the last race at Kansas Speedway, where despite the team’s effort to keep him going, ultimately finished 28th.
Where They Rank
Newman is 26th in driver points after 16 points races in his 2020 campaign. In owners’ points, the No. 6 is 20th.
On the Car
Guaranteed Rate makes its NASCAR debut at New Hampshire Motor Speedway aboard Newman’s machine. It was announced last week that the retail mortgage lender would join the No. 6 team as the primary partner in Loudon, with Newman sporting a grey, red and white scheme at one of his favorite tracks.
About Guaranteed Rate
Guaranteed Rate is one of the largest retail mortgage lenders in the United States. Headquartered in Chicago, the Company has more than 5,000 employees in nearly 350 offices across the U.S., and is licensed in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Since its founding in 2000, Guaranteed Rate has helped hundreds of thousands of homeowners with home purchase loans and refinances and funded more than $30 billion in loans in 2019 alone. The Company has cemented itself as Positively Different by introducing innovative technology, such as the world’s first Digital Mortgage, by offering low rates and by delivering unparalleled customer service. Honors and awards include: Top Lender for Online Service for 2018 by U.S. News & World Report; No. 3 ranking in Scotsman Guide’s Top Retail Mortgage Lenders 2019; Top Lender 2016, 2017 and 2018 by Chicago Agent magazine; Chicago Tribune’s Top Workplaces list for seven consecutive years; and Best Online Mortgage Lender, Best Mortgage Lender for VA loans and Best Conventional Mortgage Lender by NerdWallet in 2019. Visit rate.com for more information.
