Hello (again), Newman: ‘Rocketman’ returns

He’s gone 59 races without a win, but he’s contending again.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Winning poles is the easy part for Ryan Newman. Getting to Victory Lane is another matter.

Newman’s winless streak reached 59 races Sunday when rain denied him a chance at victory at Pocono Raceway. NASCAR stopped the race seconds before Newman pulled alongside Jeff Gordon in a challenge for the lead, and he was frozen in second place.

Newman had about 30 minutes to wonder what might have been as he and Gordon waited on pit road for the rain to subside.

It never happened, NASCAR canceled the rest of the race, and Gordon was credited with his fourth victory of the season.

Instead of lamenting his bad luck, Newman considered it karma.

“Unfortunately, the rain came on the wrong lap,” Newman said.

“I’m not mad by any means. I won my first race because it rained out and got too dark. I guess it’s only right I lose one that way at some point.”

Newman’s 2002 victory at New Hampshire came in a race that was delayed by rain and then shortened when NASCAR ran out of daylight. So he’s even now — if Sunday’s race had gone one minute longer, Newman would have celebrated in Victory Lane.

Hard times

Newman used to be a regular there, with 12 wins in four seasons. But the two-time championship contender hit hard times and hasn’t won a race since 2005.

Even more alarming was a lack of speed, which “The Rocketman” was famous for while racking up pole after pole. He did so at an average of one every five races.

He had 11 of them in 2003, the year he won eight races. There were nine poles the next season, and eight in 2005 when he only won one race.

But his winless 2006 season saw his qualifying prowess rapidly decline and Newman only won two poles all year. Crew chief Matt Borland, who had been with Newman for all 12 of his career victories, was ousted at season’s end.

The change gave Newman new leadership for the first time in his career, and it’s taken almost six months for the No. 12 team to get back on track.

And make no mistake about it, Newman is officially back.

Sure he lost the race on Sunday, but it was his second consecutive runner-up finish. And he’s won the last three poles — four in all this season — to prove he’s still the best at pushing the pedal to the floor for one white-knuckle lap.

Taking the first step

Newman knows that’s the first step toward winning races.

“I never thought it would have slipped away in the first place,” he said.

“I think as long as we keep putting ourselves in position and qualifying, as well as having fast race cars in the race ... we’ll be in position at some point.

“It would be nice to click off three wins in a row and not just three poles in a row.”

The finishes are improving, and Newman’s been in the top 10 for five of the past six races. It’s put him back into title contention, raising him from 26th to 13th in the standings, and he’s only 22 points away from moving becoming eligible for the Chase for the championship.

Newman heads now to Michigan International Speedway intent on winning more than just another pole. An Indiana native who considers MIS his home track, Newman scored wins there in 2003 and 2004 and finished inside the top 15 another four times.

“I’m excited to get to Michigan,” he said.

“We’ve been running so well ... we are so close to getting our next win and it would be awesome to get that win at Michigan. I think we’re definitely capable.”