Ryan Newman delivers drama and eliminates Jeff Gordon at Phoenix

Ryan Newman meets with the media Sunday evening at Phoenix. (Getty Images)
Ryan Newman meets with the media Sunday evening at Phoenix. (Getty Images)
Ryan Newman meets with the media Sunday evening at Phoenix. (Getty Images)

There was a great deal of drama Sunday at Phoenix International Raceway. Kevin Harvick won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Quicken Loans 500 in dominating fashion.  Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano also overcame numerous issues to finish inside the top ten and secure positions in NASCAR final round of the Chase at Homestead in one week.

The biggest drama however , came in the race for the final spot.  Jeff Gordon and Ryan Newman were tied for the spot as the laps wound down; at the end of the day, Newman was in and Gordon was out despite finishing second.

Newman spent much of the race comfortably inside the top 10 and high enough in the points to advance. But in the latter stages, Newman began to fade and was 17th on lap 257. He stayed out on a later caution for track position, but on older tires, he started to fade quickly as the laps wound down. He was 12th on the final restart but was passed to fell to 14th.  At that point, Newman was tied with Gordon who was running in second. On the final turn of the final lap however, Newman made contact with Kyle Larson sending Larson up the track and moving up a spot; Newman knocked out Gordon form the Chase and advanced to the final round.MORE>>>

Greg Engle
About Greg Engle 7421 Articles
Greg is a published award winning sportswriter who spent 23 years combined active and active reserve military service, much of that in and around the Special Operations community. Greg is the author of "The Nuts and Bolts of NASCAR: The Definitive Viewers' Guide to Big-Time Stock Car Auto Racing" and has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.