Ryan Newman Blisters the Track Record En Route to the Pole at New Hampshire

         With a time of 27.904 seconds (136.497 mph), Ryan Newman blistered the track record to grab the pole at New Hampshire. It was Newman's second pole of the season after grabbing the pole at the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway earlier this year. Kasey Kahne held the provisional pole for most of the session, but Newman took it away with seven drivers left. After outlasting runs from Jeff Gordon and Greg Biffle, Newman was on point for Sunday's all important Chase race. Newman has had a definite whirlwind throughout the season. He was let go by Stewart-Haas Racing, he was signed by Richard Childress Racing, and he was added to the Chase due to the controversy surrounding Michael Waltrip Racing at Richmond. Now, Newman is taking complete advantage of being added to the Chase with good starts and good finishes. The session was not without its usual craziness and speed. Chase drivers battled for spots throughout the session and some have good starts for Sunday, but others are pretty deep in the field for a track that is not good for passing.


         Kyle Busch was the first driver on the track. Typically, the first driver out in a session is pretty slow, but this session was different. The temperature and track stayed the same throughout the session and this allowed drivers with early draws to have good runs. Busch's was no different as he would end up twelfth at the end of the session. Busch's provisional pole lap was quickly bested by Joey Logano, but Logano would not stay on the provisional pole long. Kasey Kahne went out two drivers later and laid down a lap that bested the track record, which allowed him to take the provisional pole. The first change in qualifying order was with Paul Menard. Menard was put on the five minute clock because his car did not get through inspection easily, but he was able to go out a few drivers later and lay down a pretty quick lap. Kasey Kahne continued to hold the provisional pole when Josh Wise became the first driver to have trouble with the track. While exiting turn 4 to get the green flag, Wise slammed the outside wall. Upon further inspection, the shock absorber had popped out of the right side and caused the car to slam the outside wall. Wise brought his car to a stop on the apron of the track with huge damage. He will have to use a back up car, but he will still be in the race because only forty three cars attempted. The wreck was cleaned up and the session continued on. Four drivers later, the name at the top of the leaderboard would change. Ryan Newman went out and completely demolished Kasey Kahne's new track record lap, which gave Newman the provisional pole and a new track record. The second change in qualifying order would occur after this with Johnny Sauter. Sauter's team had a tough time getting the car through inspection and they were put on the five minute clock. The car finally passed through inspection and Sauter was able to run a lap. After this, only two final bullets remained. Greg Biffle could not best Newman and it was up to Jeff Gordon to take the pole from Newman. Gordon came so close to taking the pole, but he came just short. With David Gilliland's run, the session was over and Newman was a two time pole winner in 2013.

         “The Rocket Man", as Newman is called, has always been a wonderful qualifier throughout his career. In fact, with this pole at New Hampshire, he is now ninth on the all-time list of pole winners with fifty one in his career. To add to that, his most recent pole led him to a win that helped him become a legitimate contender for the Chase and even a championship. Kasey Kahne once again came up short during qualifying. He does not have a pole this year and he is looking for one to make it into the Sprint Unlimited next year. With a lot of good tracks for Kahne coming up, he could take the pole easily at any of the remaining tracks, but his main focus is going to be winning and moving up the standings to take a championship. Jeff Gordon continues to have good starts over the past few weeks. He took his first pole of the season two weeks ago at Richmond. He started sixth last week at Chicago and now he starts third for the second Chase race at New Hampshire. If he grabs some wins in the Chase, he could be a definite factor coming down the stretch. Most of the other Chase drivers are starting near the back end of the top 10 or just outside of the top 10 with Dale Earnhardt Jr. starting seventeenth and Carl Edwards starting twenty sixth. It should be interesting to see if some new faces join the battle for the championship and if some fall out of the battle for the championship. Make sure you check out the race on Sunday because it should tell who is real and who is a joke.
(More Stats Down Below!)




Top 5 Finishers (With Times):
1st: Ryan Newman     27.904 (136.497 mph)
2nd: Kasey Kahne     27.989 (136.082 mph)
3rd: Jeff Gordon     27.995 (136.053 mph)
4th: Kurt Busch     28.033 (135.868 mph)
5th: Martin Truex Jr.     28.081 (135.636 mph)

Notables Not in Top 5 (With Times):
6th: Joey Logano     28.104 (135.525 mph)
8th: Kevin Harvick     28.128 (135.410 mph)
9th: Matt Kenseth     28.136 (135.371 mph)
10th: Greg Biffle     28.170 (135.208 mph)
11th: Jimmie Johnson     28.187 (135.126 mph)
12th: Kyle Busch     28.193 (135.097 mph)
16th: Clint Bowyer     28.236 (134.892 mph)
17th: Dale Earnhardt Jr.     28.323 (134.477 mph)
26th: Carl Edwards      28.501 (133.637 mph)

DNQs: None




Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/sprint-cup-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-qualification.html
http://racing-reference.info/getqualify/2013-28/W
-Image:
https://twitter.com/NASCAR/status/381171501132558336/photo/1