Ryan Newman had high hopes for a strong finish Sunday at Dover (Del.) International Speedway, but a power-steering issue plagued his No. 39 Haas Automation Chevrolet SS throughout the middle stages of the FedEx 400 benefitting Autism Speaks NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. That problem played part in late-race contact with another competitor that saw Newman’s day end prematurely, as he was credited with 36th place after completing 298 of 400 laps.
Newman started fifth in the 43-car field and held his position in the opening laps. But he began to drop down the scoring pylon as a tight-handling racecar saw him running in the 11th position by lap 18. Crew chief Matt Borland called for a slight air pressure adjustment when three-time Dover winner Newman came to pit road for service at lap 75, but Newman continued to struggle with an ill-handling car.
Just past the halfway point of the race, Newman reported that he had a mechanical issue that limited his ability to steer his racecar. He made an unscheduled pit stop at lap 222 to make adjustments, but the problems continued to plague him as the laps clicked off. Now two laps down to the race leader, Newman continued to bide his time until a caution period at lap 279 gave him the opportunity he needed to come to pit road for an assessment. The Borland-led team went over the wall three times to try to fix the issue but was unable to determine the source of the problem.
As Newman continued to log laps, he tangled with another competitor at lap 299, resulting in significant damage to the No. 39 machine. The Haas Automation team took its racecar to the garage and made repairs that allowed Newman to rejoin the field, but he was only able to complete two laps before returning to the garage and parking the battered racecar for the afternoon.
Tony Stewart led the way for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) by winning the FedEx 400 benefiting Autism Speaks NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Code 3 Associates/Mobil 1 Chevrolet SS, took the lead for the first time on lap 398 of the 400-lap race and led the final three laps on the 1-mile concrete oval en route to scoring his 48th career victory and first this season. It was his third victory, 11th top-five finish and 16th top-10 in 29 career Sprint Cup starts at Dover. It was also his third top-10 this season.
The victory also extended Stewart’s streak of winning at least one race per season since joining the Sprint Cup Series in 1999.
Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 24th. It was Patrick’s 23rd career Sprint Cup start and her second at Dover.
Juan Pablo Montoya finished .788 of a second behind Stewart in the runner-up spot, while Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski rounded out the top-five. Clint Bowyer, Joey Logano, Kevin Harvick, Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt Jr. comprised the remainder of the top-10.
There were seven caution periods for 32 laps, with nine drivers failing to finish the 400-lap race.
With round 13 of 36 complete, Stewart leads the SHR contingent in the championship point standings. He moved up four spots to 16th and has 338 points, 135 back of series leader Jimmie Johnson and 33 points behind 10th-place Paul Menard. Newman fell four places to 20th in the standings and has 323 points, 150 out of first and 48 behind Menard. Patrick picked up one position to 29th in the standings and has 231 points, 242 behind Johnson and 140 away from Menard.
Thirteen races remain before the 12-driver, 10-race Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup begins Sept. 15 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill. Only the top-10 in points are locked into the Chase. Positions 11 and 12 in the Chase are wild cards, awarded to the two drivers between 11th and 20th in points with the most wins. If multiple drivers have the same number of wins, a driver’s point standing serves as the tiebreaker.
Patrick, who is competing for Rookie of the Year honors against Ricky Stenhouse Jr., finished 11 spots behind Stenhouse, who placed 13th.
The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the Party in the Poconos 400 on Sunday, June 9 at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway. The race starts at 1 p.m. EDT, with live coverage provided by TNT beginning with its pre-race show at noon.
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