Despite Emphasis on Winning, Consistency Keeping Ryan Newman Alive
While the new Chase format emphasizes winning, consistency has also been key for drivers that have advanced to the later stages.
Kyle Busch proved that just one bad finish can doom your entire Chase run. After finishing in the Top 10 in each of the first five races of the Chase, Busch finished 40th at Talladega Superspeedway, eliminating him from advancing to the Eliminator Round of the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship.
Meanwhile, Ryan Newman has five consecutive Top 10 finishes, and he hopes he won’t meet a similar fate to Busch. Newman’s worst finish in the last five races is an 8th-place finish at Dover.
He has finished in the Top 12 in three of the last four races at Texas Motor Speedway, the site of this weekend’s AAA 500. Newman has also fared well at Phoenix over the course of his career.
With just four drivers advancing to the winner-take-all Championship that will take place at Homestead, the margin for error is smaller than ever for the remaining Chase-eligible drivers. And with just seven points currently separating 1st through 5th, quality finishes still must be a priority for a guy like Newman if he has any hopes for winning a Sprint Cup Championship.
