Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch Are Doing The Double-Duty Again

Sadly, Clint Bowyer won't be running enough races this year to defend his Nationwide crown and that's going to leave the door open for the likes of Carl Edwards and Kyle Busch. 

If Carl Edwards, the 2007 champion, is able to come anywhere near last year's incredible comeback karma, he is probably looking at becoming the series' seventh two-time champion.

Edwards, who has always been a full-time driver in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, is one of two double-duty drivers who will vie for the 2009 championship.

When Kyle Busch isn't having snit fits from not winning every time out, he's done just about everything in the NASCAR Nationwide Series except win the title.  He'll also being pulling the double duty, if the points race looks good enough for him this year.  He won the series' Raybestos Rookie of the Year in 2004, and last year won 10 races in three different cars, finishing sixth in the standings despite running only 30 races. The 10 victories tied the record set by two-time champion Sam Ard in 1983.

The man is a nut.

Now we just need to keep an eye out to see how Edwards and Busch handle each other on the track this year!

[NASCAR]

Driver Quote - Ryan Newman

"We've kind of lost the thunder in Preseason Thunder because we're not testing, but at the same time we still have a responsibility to the fans to be able to come here and say thanks and say, hey, we'll be back in a few weeks, so check us out."

- NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver and defending Daytona 500 champion Ryan Newman

[NASCAR Media]

Kyle Busch at Preseason Thunder Fanfest

Press Interview with Kyle Busch at Preseason Thunder:

Being joined by KYLE BUSCH for the NASCAR media group, he answered a few questions posed to him. Let's get right along to it:

On the confidence levels of coming into the Daytona 500: Because they had such a strong restrictor plate program last year, he's coming into this years 500 with a bucket load of confidence.

On Running both the Sprint Cup series and Nationwide, full schedule. He will be running the full Nationwide and the full Cup schedule. At least that's the plan. On top of that they looking at 12 to 14 Camping World Truck Series races and about 10 to 12 late model races of my own team.

On getting over the last 10 races of the year last year. Did it take long to get over it?: "Not really. Pretty much as soon as it was over, it was over. I was glad it was over."

On generating a different outcome than last year: Granted, the first two thirds went really well. Looking back at Loudon, they shouldn't have made the changes on Sunday morning that we did, the change in the length of the sway bar arm and the length that the angle of the dangle didn't fit together, it ended up pulling apart.

They couldn't do anything different about Dover. They never figured out the carburetor problems they had at Kansas and the rest of the season was a little bit good luck and bad luck. They've been working on braking and being able to turn the car at flat tracks with a little testing at New Smyrna, and have a test planned at Rockingham.

Does he have names for the cars that don't perform? They're cut up and thrown away or made into show cars. (Sounds like a vengeful take on his losing cars if you ask me!)

On what, if anything he learned from last season:
"When you lose luck it just changes everything it feels like. The biggest thing that we learned was just for me to work on the bad days. He says he just can't accept running bad, can't accept stuff falling apart and not being able to challenge for a win every week." (Like we didn't notice the fits!)

On what might keep him from running a full Nationwide season:
"Same thing as last year, just right at Milwaukee, Infineon, doing that trip. If you're too far behind in the Nationwide schedule, just skip out on it, forget about it. We've got some leeway in there. There's a couple races that I think J.D. didn't sell that we're just going to put like Gibbs Racing Oil on it or something like that that's our own sponsor, so we've got some room that we can play around with if we want to."

On possibly dealing with fewer wins this year and maturity, what kind of a challenge will it be to deal with less than what you accomplished last year?
He says this will be his biggest challenge and all they can do is work their hardest to continue to perform.

He was asked AGAIN about how he'll be different (Emotionally) this year on the racetrack compared to the past? I found this funny: He was honest and said he didn't know but is hoping that hopefully Tony Stewart with his new team can make it exciting, or Carl Edwards, or anybody else out there that wants to get down and dirty and grind up on each other.

On a possible scenario of running smaller fields while weathering the tough spell:
There is no rule that says there have to be 43 Cup cars, 43 Nationwide cars or 36 trucks but we'd be sacrificing better racing. He says the Truck Series will have 10 trucks that have legitimate chances to win every week. A higher number of cars in the Nationwide Series and the Cup series, even more. With all the folk that are looking for jobs, he thinks that some of the Cup guys available could go to Nationwide teams, helping them get better, mixing up the competition.


Source: NASCAR press relations

Finally, A Decent NASCAR Joke

NASCAR NEWS...Jeff Gordon fires his entire pit crew.

This announcement followed Gordon's decision to take advantage of the government's scheme to employ Harlem youngsters.

The decision to hire them was brought about by a recent documentary on how unemployed youths from Harlem were able to remove a set of wheels in less than 6 seconds without proper equipment, whereas Gordon's existing crew could only do it in 8 seconds with millions of dollars worth of high tech equipment.

It was thought to be an excellent and bold move by Gordon's management team as most races are won or lost in the pits. However-Gordon got more than he bargained for!

At the crew's first practice session, not only was the inexperienced crew able to change all 4 wheels in under 6 seconds, but within 12 seconds they had changed the paint scheme, altered the Vin number, and sold the car to Dale Jr. for 10 cases of Bud, a bag of weed, and some photos of Jeff Gordon's wife in the shower.

Thanks to Bob C. for the email humor.  I can't believe I actually just got a joke in my in-box that was actually funny!  Can you believe that?

Dale Earnhardt Jr. At Preseason Thunder

NASCAR SprintCup driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. at a news conference Saturday at Preseason Thunder Fan Fest at Daytona International Speedway. (Photo Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCAR)





The press was joined by Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and they chatted about the Daytona 500 and your 2009 season with the No. 88 Chevrolet.

DALE EARNHARDT, JR. is looking forward to going into the season 2009 season and pragmatically has the same perspective I do about things when he said that "It will get here when it gets here," because we still have a few weeks and a Super Bowl to watch. He too is curiously wondering how the testing ban will affect everyone though he feels it won't really affect his team / organization.

With no testing, he basically indicated that "That really only takes a couple laps really to get reacclimated," and "it should just be like an old shoe, you know, your favorite pair of slippers or whatever."

In regards to comparing the old car to the new car, he was asked "How is the new car different here to rate in the draft strategy wise?" and Dale said that "This car is a little bit more difficult to move through the pack." The new car punches a bigger hole when two or three cars get lined up which effectively eleminates the the center lane which used to be an option in the past. The center lane effectively makes it harder on the car to "get any grip out of the car." due to less downforce.

He did say the reason the racing is so much better at the end of the 500 is "The great thing about the 500, though, is it starts in the daytime and ends at night, so when the sun goes down the temperature goes down, the grip comes up a little bit, so the racing right at the end of the race it's a whole lot better than what you've seen all day long."

Dale was asked about a lifetime supply offer of BBQ from Memphis barbecue and his reply kind of cut to the quick, at least for Memphis BBQ:

Basically he said those kind of deals get under your skin because even though he hasn't been there in quite some time and probably won't be in the area for any time soon, they use his name to try to sell tickets and get a "plug for no damn reason." But the Rendezvous dinner was his favorite and that Memphis has great barbecue ribs

He was asked if he evernamed any of your race cars: "Yeah, just for fun. We used to name them all the time. I built some street stocks. My granddaddy Robert G. used to name his race cars all the time. I had the Mach 5 and the car I raced at Myrtle Beach and the late models I built from the ground up, we called it Wild Eyed Crazy Mary." A Pearl Jam song name.

In regards to his first year with Hendrick or his take on the DEI Ganassi merger, he was real happy how the season started but the 2nd half of the season was a bit of a disappointment. As far as the merger is concerned, "I'm pretty happy, I think, for them." Dale says no one can get a word out of Mark Martin about it... "He's like talking to a rock."

"I don't know what they're doing, but I hope that it's good. Merging has always been pretty decent for everybody that I've seen it happen to. Chip has some real strong views, and he's a tough, tough, tough competitor. He's got a reputation, and I think that will be good for them because he's certainly visible at the racetrack, and that's good as an owner for them, and Teresa didn't really like coming to the track and didn't want to be around the racetrack. So now they've got one of the owners that will be at the racetrack. A driver has questions and he needs to talk to an owner sometimes on a Friday night or a Saturday, so that will be good."

When asked about all the people he's met, who is the one person you've come across that you were really surprised to find out was a NASCAR or a racing fan? His take was that he really appreciated LeAnn Rimes for being so kind to me and her husband was a big fan, and she, too, is a big fan, and they're just really really she was always just really pleasant.

Dirks Bentley is a big fan and that was great and they've become pretty good friends. But there are a lot of different people.

He was asked the inevitable about the Car of Tomorrow what he thinks it will take to win Daytona this year. Dale Earnhardt Jr said he's got to be fast, like the 18 and the 11 were last year and you need to handle good.

It's all about making the right choices near the end of the race but that every battle for position is a potential battle for the win.

When asked about the Bud Shootout this year and NASCAR's expanding into 28 entries Dale was hoping to avoid this particular question, but he said:

"I don't like the new format. You had a race for guys who won poles, you had a race for guys who won races in the middle of the season, and now neither one of those are hardly recognizable. I haven't asked NASCAR why they changed it, so I don't feel like I can rightfully say much without giving them the opportunity to defend themselves for their reasons. But apparently there were some reasons they changed it, and it's obviously better for the manufacturers with this new format for the Shootout. But it's less about why the race was started in the first place.

It just sucks because I'm such a historian of the sport, and I just like all the history and I like all the cool things about the history, and I like looking back on the guys who were in this race in the '80s and '90s and why they were in it and how they got in it and who missed it the next year and made it the next year. I don't know, just sort of things change. Maybe there's nothing wrong with this new format. Maybe I just hate change. I like the old format.

On Aric Almirola having no guarantees after Daytona and the 8 car being in question for the rest of the season he says he's emotionally connected to the number and he hopes the No 8 can run all year. As far as Almirola, because he's had to put off this season. He's been pretty excited the last couple of years looking forward to this season and now it's up in the air.

"So much has changed in the last six months in this sport, in the last 18 months a bunch has changed, and I just hope we can get all settled down somehow and start having a little bit of order around here and start rebuilding, everybody getting some stability financially to where we can have more expectations than we have questions."

That wraps up some of the material he touched on yesterday in Preseason Thunder! Hope you enjoy

Reformat of 2009 Budweiser Shootout

NASCAR announced Friday a revision to the 2009 Budweiser Shootout on February 7th at Daytona format that provides each manufacturer with a wild card entry, increasing the size of the field from 24 to 28 cars, highlighting the manufacturers� involvement in NASCAR, and featuring more drivers for fans to support.

As was announced last August, the lineup will consist of the top six teams from each manufacturer, based on the final 2008 car owner points. Eligibility is based on owners competing in this event with the same manufacturer as 2008.

The new wrinkle calls for each manufacturer to be able to enter a seventh car, or wild card entry, based on the following criteria:

• Any owner outside of the top six in year end 2008 owners points whose driver is a past NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion that attempted to qualify for all of the 2008 events (only one position will be filled per manufacturer and will be based on the most recent past champion per manufacturer).
• If an owner/manufacturer does not have a past champion driver, the next highest eligible owner outside the top six in year end 2008 owners points from each manufacturer will be eligible to compete in the event.

At least NASCAR fixed the anti-Tony rule they messed up putting out there last year.

Source: NASCAR Press Release

Tony Stewart Chatting At Preseason Thunder

Excerpts from Tony Stewart's NASCAR interview:

In his new team of Stewart Haas Racing, driving No. 14 Chevrolet with Old Spice/Office Depot sponsorship, Tony Stewart says it's different for sure, as an owner and a driver but something that he's looking forward to. (Until the insanity sets in!) We're had a great off season. For Tony, it's been the most exciting off season he's ever had because of the anticipation.

As far as driver development under Stewart Haas Racing, he says right now he just wants to keep his job as a driver right now. For now, they're focused on him and Ryan and getting the two teams they have competitive.

In case you haven't heard, NASCAR ADDED A WILD CARD RULE for the SHOOTOUT that allows a manufacturer to add a wildcard driver. For Tony that means he now can run the Shootout and has that extra track time and he's excited about that. Not to mention that it was a nice cover / fix by NASCAR on their own oversight of some of the drivers while they were letting newbies into the Shootout... oops... but nice cover. It's nice to be able to make your own rules as you go. (Anyone remember Calvin-Ball from Calvin and Hobbs)

He felt his timing was most fortunate in being able to sign Ryan Newman on board and getting their sponsors before the bottom fell out of the economy.

With the advent of picking up the Office Depot sponsorship, someone asked if we'll be seeing back flips when he wins. LOL. He said only if he wants to go to the hospital and be in traction for two or three months.

In regards to the economy and all of motorsports, including Indy racing, he said it was a fortunate amount of timing for his team since other teams were letting people go and it created a kind of buffet of available talent.

The down side to team ownership was that he never realized there was a 6:00 a.m. until this year, now that he has to actually get up that early. Poor guy.

As far as personal driver goals, he doesn't have a set date for when he's going to stop driving and he's really focused on winning the Daytona 500 in addition to winning at Darlington and Vegas and California where they haven't won yet.

Source: NASCAR Press Release

Siegel To Leave What Was DEI

Max Siegel left SONY BMG to do one thing, maybe two in DEI and neither worked out. He stayed on for some time beyond but now his usefulness to what was once DEI is done.

DEI has become the museum everyone said Teresa would make it and Dale Earnhardt Jr. is pursuing his rightful path in NASCAR where he can best be served with decent equipment, practice, etc..

Now that DEI has merged with Ganassi Racing, his time has come. (At least now the race team will have an on-track presence at the races verse when Teresa didn't seem to care enough to show up for the weekend events.... guess she doesn't work weekends.)

With that, Siegel is leaving DEI at the end of this month and headed to greener pastures but he's staying with NASCAR to manage NASCAR's Drive for Diversity program.

Siegel's aim is to make the program more credible within and out of NASCAR.

source: associated press

Special Daytona 500 Ticket Prices

A limited number of tickets in select areas on the famed Superstretch for the 51st annual Daytona 500 on Sunday, Feb. 15 will be rolled back from $99 to $55, Daytona International Speedway President Robin Braig announced.

The $55 ticket price for the Daytona 500 is the lowest ticket price for "The Great American Race" since 1995.

"The roll back of ticket prices in select areas for the Daytona 500 is a significant and important step for race fans," Braig said. "These are challenging times for everyone and we hope that these adjustments in ticket prices will make it more affordable for race fans to witness the excitement and pageantry of the Daytona 500 in person.

"And even though these are tough times, this is a great opportunity for race fans to attend 'The Great American Race.' Along with the rollback in ticket prices, parking is always free, race fans can continue to bring their coolers with food and beverages and we've worked with area hotels to make their stay even more affordable."

Tickets and great camping packages for DIRECTV Speedweeks and the 51st annual Daytona 500 can be purchased online at www.daytona500.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.

In addition to rolling back ticket prices, Daytona International Speedway has also created several unique ticket packages that give fans added value and one-of-a-kind experiences with their race tickets during DIRECTV Speedweeks.

Daytona International Speedway's ticket price adjustments is the first of many initiatives that International Speedway Corporation is planning to make throughout the year for race fans so that attending race events is easier and more affordable.

To purchase race tickets for DIRECTV Speedweeks 2009 and the 51st annual Daytona 500, go online to www.daytona500.com or call 1-800-PITSHOP.

Ryan Newman Media Interview

Ryan was kind enough to participate in a teleconference with the Media. Here's a select number of questions I pulled from the interview: ( I listened in but didn't ask any questions)

Ryan, coming into Daytona, what's it feel like to be able to roll into the Speedway and be called the defending Daytona 500 winner?

RYAN NEWMAN: Well, I wish the year hadn't passed already almost because it was pretty cool. I'm ready to defend it but I'm not sure I want to give up the title because I've got a 1 in 43 chance of doing that. It was a great win last year, for myself, for Penske Racing.

Q. I guess I'm going to ask you what changes you've noticed or that you know are coming up at Stewart Haas Racing, how much you've been to the shop, and if anything is real different over there and what you've found as you've gotten started.

RYAN NEWMAN: Well, I have kind of spent some time vacationing, which I don't typically do, just because it is vacation time. Krissie and I went to Idaho to do some snowmobiling through New Year's and came back, and I went on a little man trip, went hunting up in Illinois, and got back and doing a little bit of work this week.

But just in general, Tony Gibson, Tony Stewart, Darian Grubb, all those guys, Bobby Hutchins, are working on putting the family tree together. They've done a great job in my opinion so far. We're really looking forward to testing. Tomorrow we're going down to test in New Smyrna, Florida, with the 39 and the 14. Just look forward to getting some of the first experiences underneath our belt.

Obviously with the testing schedule this year it's a little bit different, so just want to make sure we've got everything shined up for the Daytona 500.

Q. In the 2008 Daytona 500 you passed Tony Stewart in the last half lap or so to win the race. Pretend it's the 2009 Daytona 500 and it's you and Tony again. What do you do now that he's your boss?

RYAN NEWMAN: Well, if we had to do the same thing last year and replay it, I would anticipate Tony pulling up in front of my line and I would push Tony ahead, knowing that I would be his teammate. Either way, Tony knows I'm a racer and I know he's a racer, and we'll race until the end, but we'll not sacrifice each other's performance to do that. That's the most important thing.

Q. Starting off with a new team, and now that you've been there a little bit, what are your realistic expectations for the year? What do you think the team can do?

RYAN NEWMAN: I am confident coming out of the box that we'll be a contender at the Daytona 500. I feel that there's going to be some things that we'll have to learn, but I think as a group, with our team, with the U.S. Army Chevrolet, that the people that we have with Tony Gibson and his group that came over from BEI and all the other people that were there from Haas racing that we'll be competitive. I feel with the Hendrick components, myself and Darian Grubb and Tony Gibson, that there's no reason that we're not.

Secondly, goal wise our goal is for both cars to make it into the chase. Once we're in the Chase, we'll determine how much of a contender we are for the championship.

Q. I'm just wondering if now that you've had a chance to kind of interact with Tony in his new role as owner if you've got any good Tony stories? Has he surprised you with anything, or has it been about what you expected?

RYAN NEWMAN: No, I'd say the one thing that stands out in my mind when you asked me that was Tony has kind of welcomed me into his family. And when I say family, I don't mean Stewart Haas Racing. He invited my wife Krissie and I up to his place. They did the charity hunt with Johnny Morris from Bass Pro Shops and Bill Jordan from Realtree Outdoors and gave a little girl who is ill an opportunity to shoot a deer, and she did, and it put a smile on her face. Just a situation like that, to do something good with my owner and other people is something I didn't really expect, and I'm happy to be a part of it.

Q. You mentioned that you're going to be testing at New Smyrna Speedway this week. How much testing have you guys been able to do in the wintertime?

RYAN NEWMAN: We tested once at the big Rockingham track, and just a one day test, just to kind of get to meet and know each other on the radio as well as person to person, and this will be, I think, our last test before the season starts. I don't think that there's a necessary need in testing to the point that we're going out there to make cars faster. I believe that as an organization and as a team we can make the cars fast in the shop, be prepared to come off the truck and without testing be competitive.

Q. Tony is a Daytona boy, so I've got a particular interest in him. How is the communication between you guys? I know you guys are just starting, but have you gelled yet? Do you speak the same language?

RYAN NEWMAN: Honestly that's what we're going to work on tomorrow when we go to New Smyrna. He's going to be there and we'll have the 14 and 39 cars there. For me it's important to understand what his balance feels like, and vice versa; for Darian Grubb and Tony Gibson to work together; to understand when Tony says the car is loose that it's drivable or undrivable for me and vice versa. Those are the things that we'll work on from a communication standpoint and from a teamwork standpoint within the drivers and the crew chiefs and the teams tomorrow to be prepared not just for Daytona but for California.

Q. How have things been with the Army sponsorship? Have you gotten to do anything with the Army yet or do you have anything planned in the near future?

RYAN NEWMAN: Yeah, yesterday I went to Fort Bragg with some of the members of the team. That was really a treat. It was a lot of fun, shot some guns, did some simulation things. They fired a few bombs off, shotguns inside of a 20 by 20 room with rubber walls, and I was in on part of that. The coolest thing I'd say was to be in their vertical wind tunnel, which was the simulation for basically skydiving, and to be able to do that in about six minutes, to be able to do it on my own, that was pretty neat.

To be the driver for the U.S. Army Chevrolet is an honor for me, and to see some of their technology and safety and some of the things that they do to prepare their team and their organization just as we do was pretty neat.

Q. I wanted to ask you something about something from last week. David Stremme was on a conference call and I had asked him one thing about what are some of the things that need to improve at Penske for that organization to be in the elite, among the top four, and he talked about a lot of different things. One of the things he said was, "You had Ryan Newman who was here start off the season very well, and then he knew he was leaving. It was kind of he had done a very good job, but he knew he was on his way out and he was going to do some other things."

I asked him just to clarify if he thought you were quitting on the team, and he said, "No, I don't think Ryan gave up at all." But he says, "Just as a driver and as a team, you see toward the end of the year there's a lot of things happening." He goes on to say, "If you're going to another organization, it's in your mind that, hey, I'm leaving, I'm going to a better place they feel."

I want to ask you a couple things in regard to that; one, if you had any comment in relation to that; and two, what might you say to people who might think lack of success at the end of last year for your team would be related to you looking ahead?

RYAN NEWMAN: David's comment, to me it's kind of vague. You could read it several different ways. But I think he was just talking to the effect of I was moving on. And when you're moving on, it's hard to not necessarily be as dedicated, but for the organization and everything to click the way it was, and at the point that I decided to move on, it wasn't very successful.

The bottom line was I moved on, and I'm happy being where I am with the U.S. Army and Stewart Haas Racing. As far as the situation goes, I felt grateful to have Tony Stewart who was my future teammate to be going through the same situation and talking to him, him separating himself from Joe Gibbs Racing and the Home Depot and all the things that he did, where I was separating from Alltel and all the great successes that we had. It was difficult to separate those things. I guess it's kind of like working two jobs at the same time. Eventually you run out of sleep.

But for me it was just a difficult time to move on. My dedication to driving the race car never changed. I drove every lap as hard as I possibly could, and we just didn't have the successes, even though I was moving on at the end of the year, that I even would have hoped. My goal was still to win five of the last five races. That never changed. It's just, it didn't happen, and it's easy to look at things like that.

Q. Ryan, is it going to be strange at all going back to defend the Daytona 500 title in a different car, different crew and all that stuff?

RYAN NEWMAN: I think the strange moment will be going to the Daytona 500 Experience and being part of that and pulling the old car out. That will be, I guess, the cutting of the umbilical cord of sorts. Again, I really look forward to competing next year this year with Stewart Haas Racing in the U.S. Army Chevrolet. I really look forward to creating our own successes.

Q. It's more of a clarification point than anything else. Can you explain to me the transition of points between the 66 car to your car and where the points are going to come from for Tony and your thought process going into the race based upon that and how that actually formed from the Haas cars into your cars and now Tony's cars from last year?

RYAN NEWMAN: That's a good question (laughing).

Q. I've tried to figure it out. It's complicated and I've got other people trying to figure it out, too. We're trying to clarify because Tony can kind of lean on Sprint Cup champion. Does he take the worst car out of the group and you take the next worst car out of the group and that guarantees you the first six races, that sort of thing?

RYAN NEWMAN: As far as I know, this is the way it all kind of works out. The 66 becomes the 39 in points. Scott Riggs did an excellent job to get back into the top 35 after getting out of it to lock us into a spot for the first five or six races, whatever it is. Tony has the 70 points, which are outside the top 35, but he also has the most recent champion's provisional for anybody that's not locked into the top 35. So that in essence locks him into the first five or six races or whatever. That's the gist of it as far as I know.

Q. What kind of attraction or draw to your family and friends is that gold Daytona 500 trophy wherever you have it displayed, and do you still give it some special attention?

RYAN NEWMAN: Yeah, it's actually sitting right on my desk on my computer in the house. It's a special piece for me. Obviously it's one of a kind, and it was kind of interesting when I got the trophy at first; I thought, man, that's a pretty cool trophy. They were like, yeah, it's gold. I figured every one of them was gold. The 50th running was pretty neat.

It's definitely special. It's a unique trophy. I'm definitely into old cars and stuff like that, and to see the old car on top of it, that's pretty neat, as well.

Q. We sat together last year at the Kennedy Space Center when you got your flags back from the International Space Station, and we talked a little bit about Tony, and at the time it hadn't been announced that you were going to drive for him. But everybody knew that Tony was leaving at that time, and I asked you the question, just random, you kind of gave me a story, I was too dumb to see it, though, I said, would you like to have Tony Stewart as a teammate? And I remember you laughed and you looked at me, and you said something about being far fetched, and then you looked at me again, and you said, "But I know more than you do." I said, "Well, go ahead, expand on that." You said, "No, leave it at that; I know more than you do." So you knew at that time, that there were conversations that you might be joining Tony.

You've just talked about how difficult it was finishing the year knowing you were moving on. How difficult was it maybe those couple of months over the summer that you knew you guys were putting this thing together but you had to be so tight lipped about it?

RYAN NEWMAN: Well, it was tough for me because I was off of a Daytona 500 victory with a team that I had been with for seven years, and I had a situation that came where I potentially had an opportunity to move on. Tony gave me that opportunity, we talked about it, and my season was kind of dissolving, let's say, throughout the summer months. But yeah, you're right. You potentially have a good future in "Law and Order" or "CSI." I answered the way I wanted to answer, and you kind of got your answer without knowing too much.

Q. My question to you is you have a degree in mechanical engineering, and to the young guys that are coming up in racing right now, how has that impacted your career in terms of being able to communicate to team owners, to sponsors, to crew chiefs? How has that been able to help you out in your career in racing?

RYAN NEWMAN: Well, for me it's just taken me to another level to understand the race car, the physics part of it, the gravities and the way all the things work with the race car mechanically. That makes a difference to me personally. I'm not saying it makes me smarter than everybody else, but it's made me a smarter person to the point that I tell anybody if you have the opportunity to go to college or to a university to get a further education, do it.

What you major in isn't what's going to make you the ultimately smart guy. It's the well roundedness that you come out of any kind of further education with that makes you a better person and will make you a smarter person in order to make more money and be happier in the future.

For me my actual title is vehicle structure engineering. It's a mechanical backbone, but it gave me the opportunity to be flexible in school, and then I obviously have that diploma and that education to fall back on for the rest of my career.

Q. I wanted to ask you about sponsorship, and you're currently not fully being sponsored. Do you worry about that? Do you think about that, and your thoughts on where you're at with that? Is there anything you can do to help further that along in the situation.

RYAN NEWMAN: I'm really excited about what the U.S. Army has done to jump on board and be a sponsor for our #39 Chevrolet. I know that the people at Stewart Haas Racing are continually working on the additional sponsorship to fulfill all 37 races. But in the meantime hopefully we can come out of the box strong. My focus is Daytona, Daytona 500, and in the end they pay me to drive the race car, and that's my ultimate responsibility. But I do stay aware of sponsorship and things that I may be obligated to later in the year.

Q. So you're not worried at being partially sponsored right now?

RYAN NEWMAN: I wouldn't say I'm worried. I just know it's something that the people at SHR are focusing on, and rightfully so. It's a trying time in our economy and we're trying to do the things that we can to be as successful as we can. Having correct sponsorship that will align and work correctly with Office Depot, Old Spice and the U.S. Army is important as well as making our performance and trying to make our team's dreams come true.

Q. You mentioned that you've been over to Rockingham. I'm just wondering, what's that place looking like these days? Do you foresee more testing over at Rockingham because of the rules? And also, where did you say you were going to test and when? Earlier I didn't catch that.

RYAN NEWMAN: Yeah, Rockingham is still a good place to test. It's a great racetrack. I really, really enjoyed the driving around there. It was a lot of fun, really more so racing than driving. The tires fell off so fast that as you test it as a driver it's kind of frustrating, but when you're racing it's kind of like being the local go kart track when they throw the water or powder down; it's kind of slick. Tomorrow actually we're testing in New Smyrna, Florida, both the 14 and the 39, so we're looking forward to that, as well.

Q. Did you get a look at I know Jimmie Johnson talked about them building the short track that's supposed to simulate Martinsville over there at Rockingham. Did you get on that, too?

RYAN NEWMAN: No, I have not tested that. I went over and looked at it. They call it "Little Rock" because it's at Rockingham, but I think Andy Hillenburg has done a great job to try to resurrect what was a great racetrack for the fans to come back and enjoy some great racing. He's done some great things there.

Q. I apologize if you've already answered this. What's it like this year more than any other year, the fact that there is no Preseason Thunder in the actual sense of cars on the track and getting ready for the speed weeks and stuff like that at Daytona?

RYAN NEWMAN: Realistically it's three days off that could have and should have been off in my opinion. I never thought that we needed to test. Sure, it's nice the one thing that I wish we could test for is for the fans because there are several fans that show up at Daytona and come to the racetrack and enjoy the atmosphere and the testing. For instance, some fans might not be able to afford to come for the Daytona 500 or the speed weeks or anything else, or any other race for that matter; they might just want to come to testing. I wish we could service the fans in that way, but in the end with the economy the way it is, I don't feel like we need to test as a team or NASCAR needs to test as an association. It's all good with me. We just get a couple more days off that they find something else for us to do.