Ryan Newman overcame starting at the rear and a mechanical issue to drive his No. 6 Oscar Mayer Ford to a seventh-place finish Sunday afternoon at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, his fifth top-10 in the last six races.
“Honestly, it was the most fun I’ve had all year in a race car, and that’s mostly because we had a good, competitive Oscar Mayer Ford,” Newman said. “I slid through the box. We had a bad coil wire. We had a bunch of things that set us back, being in a back-up car starting last and to have the finish that we did at a track that is usually difficult to pass at, but I will say that I did pass a few guys three-wide and that doesn’t happen very often here. I’m proud of the team effort and it’s something to build on for sure.”
Newman and the No. 6 team got behind the 8-ball early on in the weekend after going to a backup car following a crash on Friday prior to qualifying. Newman was able to turn a qualifying lap, but it was for pit stall selection only as he would line up at the rear of the field on Sunday with a host of other cars.
Just 10 laps in, Newman quickly charged his way through the pack into the top-25, reporting he was tight in his No. 6 machine. His first pit stop came at lap 47 when crew chief Scott Graves called for a bevy of adjustments. After restarting 21st with 25 to go in the stage, Newman crossed the stripe 15th.
He lined up 16th for stage two, but charged his way inside the top-10 just 10 laps later. Another yellow came out at lap 109 when he pitted from the 10th spot and would line up 14th for the green flag. Again, he clawed his way into the top-10 just 14 laps later. The yellow flag was displayed at lap 136 with the South Bend, Indiana, native running ninth, when he elected to stay out on track gaining seven spots for the restart.
He lined up second with seven to go before another caution flag flew just a lap later. He went on to finish the stage in third earning valuable stage points.
After rolling off 18th for the final stage, he made his way back to 14th for the next 50 laps, before reporting he was having engine troubles. Just 10 laps after the first report, the yellow flag flew allowing Newman to pit for a four-tire stop, then again a lap later to diagnose the issue. After the team went under the hood, they quickly identified the faulty part and began to repair.
Newman made it back on track without losing a lap for the restart before the yellow immediately came out again. This time, the team was able to repair the issue and send Newman on his way. The final yellow of the day would come out at lap 264 when Newman rode 14th. He pitted one final time at lap 266 for four tires and adjustments, before lining back up 12th.
Over the course of the final 30 laps Newman picked off multiple positions en route to the seventh-place result, inserting him back into the playoff cut line at 15th.
Newman and the No. 6 team return to the track next weekend at Pocono Raceway for the Gander RV 400. Race coverage on Sunday begins at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN. Coverage can also be heard on MRN and SiriusXM Channel 90.
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