Ryan Newman thanked fans for their support as he continues to recover from a head injury suffered in a last-lap crash in the Daytona 500.
In a tweet Monday, Newman thanked fans for “their prayers. … I’ve been blessed in so many ways.”
I’ve gotten though the majority of cards and want to thank everyone for their prayers after my crash in Daytona. I know I’ve been blessed in so many ways.
In an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show on March 11, Newman said he suffered a bruised brain and was knocked unconscious in the crash. He also said in that interview that he wants to return to racing “as soon as I possibly can.”
About his injuries, Newman said on the “Today” show: “It takes time for it to heal. I was knocked out. There was a point where I don’t remember a part of the race. Realistically, I feel so lucky. On so many levels, I feel so lucky. You look at the crash and you think that is spectacular in a bad way. You look at the car afterwards, you think about all the things that happened right for me to be sitting here.”
As for when he will return, Newman said: “I don’t know yet. We’re working on it. Soon as I possibly can.”
Newman led the Daytona 500 with 1 mile to go last month after being pushed to the front by Ryan Blaney. After exiting Turn 4, Newman blocked Blaney, who then tried to push Newman to the win to ensure a Ford victory. But one of the shoves from Blaney’s car unsettled Newman’s car and it turned into the wall.
Newman’s car went airborne. Corey LaJoie couldn’t avoid Newman’s car and hit it on the driver’s side while it was upside down. Newman’s car landed on its roof and slid down the frontstretch, coming to rest beyond the exit of pit road.
Today the NASCAR Cup Series was supposed to run a race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
But like six other Cup races, it has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To get you by today and the remaining Sunday’s without a Cup racing, each weekend we’re going to bring you a look at five memorable moments from each track.
So let’s get started with a look at some memorable moments at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
1. Smoke clinches third Cup title (2011)
When the 2011 postseason began, two-time champion Tony Stewart had no wins and wasn’t expecting to contribute much to the 10-race spectacle.
Then he became the spectacle.
Stewart reeled off five wins in 10 races, including the season finale in Miami, where he beat Carl Edwards and clinched the title in a tiebreaker over Edwards.
Stewart remains the only Cup driver to earn their first win of the season in the playoffs and go on to win the championship.
Jimmie Johnson’s record-tying seventh Cup Series title did not come easily.
After starting the season finale from the rear of the field due to a pre-race inspection failure, the Hendrick Motorsports driver did not lead until an overtime restart to finish the race.
He led the final three laps and solidified his name as one of the greatest to drive a stock car, alongside Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Sr. Johnson’s seven titles are spread out over 11 years and multiple playoff formats.
A displeased Truex declared afterward that Logano “may have won the battle but he ain’t winning the damn war”
When the sun set on the season in Miami, Logano proved Truex wrong. Logano passed him for the lead with 12 laps to go, navigating around Truex’s No. 78 Toyota on the outside in commanding fashion.
Logano cruised to the win and his first Cup title.
4) Kevin Harvick kicks off the elimination era with championship (2014)
The 2014 Cup title came down to a three-lap shootout, with Kevin Harvick and Ryan Newman leading the way.
Newman entered the race having not won any of the previous 35 races. But he wouldn’t get to break NASCAR’s brand new elimination format designed to emphasize wins (Matt Crafton would do that in 2019).
Instead, Harvick held off Newman in the shootout to win the race and his first Cup title.
5) Kurt Busch loses tire mid-race, bounces back to win championship (2004)
The playoff era of NASCAR got off to an interesting start thanks to Kurt Busch.
The Roush Fenway Racing driver entered the season finale with an 18-pointy advantage over Jimmie Johnson, who had won four times in the previous five races.
Busch’s championship hopes almost came apart on Lap 250. As Busch attempted to enter pit road, the right-front tire came off his No. 97 Ford and Busch barely avoided hitting the pit wall. Busch made it to pit road and the tire rolled down the track, creating a caution.
Luckily, he was able to stay on the lead lap. While teammate Greg Biffle won the race and Johnson finished second, Busch placed fifth and clinched his first championship with an eight-point advantage over Johnson.
NASCAR driver: ‘Sitting here at home on a Saturday. It feels weird’
Marcus Lemonis, from series sponsor Gander RV & Outdoors, added another $50,000 to Harvick’s bounty. Truck owner Chris Larsen pledged $50,000 to any Truck Series regular who could win a series race with Kyle Busch.
Suddenly, Saturday’s Truck race at Atlanta Motor Speedway became the most anticipated series event since the Trucks ran at Eldora Speedway for the first time in 2013.
With sports shut down, including NASCAR, for the foreseeable future because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Saturday became a day of confusion. What to do with no racing and no sports.
“I’m sitting here at home on a Saturday. It feels weird,” Matt DiBenedetto said in a video to fans.
Ryan Newman, who continues his recovery from a head injury suffered in a crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500, took time for more of what he called “therapy” on Saturday. He went fishing.
Texas Motor Speedway issued a statement Saturday that track officials are “currently preparing to host our regularly scheduled events and will continue consulting with officials on best practices and recommendations.”
— Texas Motor Speedway (@TXMotorSpeedway) March 12, 2020
But there will be racing Sunday even if Atlanta Motor Speedway will sit silent.
Kevin Hamlin, spotter for Alex Bowman, tweeted that there will be a 100-lap NASCAR industry iRacing event at 3 p.m. ET Sunday. Among those scheduled to take part are Hamlin, Bowman, Earnhardt, William Byron, Bubba Wallace, Justin Allgaier, Harrison Burton and crew chief Chad Knaus.
Newman said in the interview that the cage of his car “was compromised. All those welds held together, so the guys at the shop did an amazing job. I got hit from behind by a car going 190 miles an hour and it pushed me back but then (Corey LaJoie‘s) car pushed me forward, his car actually hit my seat.”
About his injuries, Newman said on the “Today” show: “It takes time for it to heal. I was knocked out. There was a point where I don’t remember a part of the race. Realistically, I feel so lucky. On so many levels, I feel so lucky. You look at the crash and you think that is spectacular in a bad way. You look at the car afterwards, you think about all the things that happened right for me to be sitting here.”
As for when he will return, Newman said: “I don’t know yet. We’re working on it. Soon as I possibly can.”
Newman displayed his trademark humor in the interview when asked about the last thing he remembers from the crash.
Ryan Newman on the set of the Today show on Wednesday (Photo: Today show/@photonate
“This was my I should have won interview, right?” he said to laughter. “It’s emotional, no doubt. I think about the fact that I was that close, but, really in the end, I’m really humbled by the opportunity to continue my life, to be blessed by so many people’s prayers, to be sitting here and hopefully make something of it, enjoy life with my daughters.”
Newman was asked about his interest in safety throughout his NASCAR career. The Purdue engineer has been outspoken about safety issues.
“It’s not just me, but there’s a whole group at NASCAR that has done a great job, from the tracks to the safety personnel, the drivers inside the cars, the cockpits, the containment seats that we have,” he said. “There are so many levels of things that happened in the last 20 years that I’ve been a part of the sport that helped me be able to sit here today.”
Asked about what went right in the crash that helped him survive, Newman told the “Today” show: “Just where I was kind of hit, so to speak. The cage was compromised. All those welds held together, so the guys at the shop did an amazing job. I got hit from behind by a car going 190 miles an hour and it pushed me back but then (Corey LaJoie’s) car pushed me forward, his car actually hit my seat. Just lots of things that happened that aligned. The angels aligned and held a really good grip with their hands.”
“The angels aligned.” NASCAR driver @RyanJNewman opens up about the moments after his frightening wreck on the final lap of the Daytona 500 less than a month ago. pic.twitter.com/WUo27lIruo
Newman was asked why he would want to return to racing after surviving such a horrific accident when he could retire at 42 instead.
“I love it,” he said. “Because I’m just 42 right? Really, I love it. It’s been a little bit painful to be out of the racecar, to not being doing what I’ve done for so many years. I started racing when I was 4 years old, 4 1/2 years old. It’s just kind of who I am.”
As for what he told his two daughters, who walked out of the hospital with him hand in hand, Newman told the “Today” show: “Just daddy’s alright. They seem to be completely fine with the fact that I’m still daddy. I think it would be totally different if something else would have happened, but I’m 100 percent who I was, which they were good with.”
What makes a driver want to get back behind the wheel of a car after a crash?
Newman led the Daytona 500 with 1 mile to go last month after being pushed to the front by Ryan Blaney. After exiting Turn 4, Newman blocked Blaney, who then tried to push Newman to the win to ensure a Ford victory. But one of the shoves from Blaney’s car unsettled Newman’s car and it turned into the wall.
Newman’s car went airborne and spun upside down. LaJoie couldn’t avoid Newman’s car and hit it on the driver’s side while it was upside down. Newman’s car landed on its roof and slid down the frontstretech, coming to rest beyond the exit of pit road.
Last weekend at Phoenix marked Newman’s first time at a track since his crash at Daytona. He told reporters in a brief interview: “It’s great to be alive. If you looked at my car, it’s a miracle.”
Drivers were excited to see Newman at Phoenix. Newman surprised some when he attended an event for Ford drivers.
“It was nice to see him,” Blaney said. “He is full Ryan Newman caliber and it is great to see. It was cool to hear some of the process that he went through and some of the doctors that worked on him. They were very extensive with him and he has been passing everything with flying colors which is unheard of and great to hear.”
Said Daytona 500 winner Denny Hamlin: “It’s a blessing to be in this position and be talking about when he will get back in the car, especially at this time. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Ross Chastain has driven Newman’s No. 6 car for Roush Fenway Racing in the three races since the Daytona 500 and is on the entry list for this weekend’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
Wednesday afternoon, Newman posted a picture of himself doing his “therapy.”
Ryan Newman is scheduled to appear Wednesday morning on NBC’s “Today” show for an exclusive interview about his crash on the last lap of the Daytona 500 and his recovery.
