Photo by Todd Warshaw/Getty Images for NASCAR
2011 proved to be a fairly steady season for Ryan Newman and his U.S. Army Chevrolet team. After missing NASCAR's Chase For The Sprint Cup the previous season and finishing 15th in the final standings, Newman was hoping for a much better results in 2011.
Newman more than doubled his top five count from 2010 as he had nine in 2011. In addition, the Stewart-Haas Racing driver had three more top 10 finishes as he scored a total of 17. Unfortunately, Newman was unable to better his win total in 2011 as he again scored a lone victory at New Hampshire in the Lenox Industrial Tools 301. While Newman made the Chase this season, his hopes for winning NASCAR's Sprint Cup went out the window early. Newman opened the final 10 events with an eighth at Chicagoland but was knocked out with finishes of 25th at New Hampshire, 23rd at Dover and 18th at Kansas. Newman was able to pull himself out from 12th in the standings in the final two races to finish ninth in points.
The driver of the 39 and his crew had a great season when it came to abiding by NASCAR's pit road policies. Nearly all of the penalties that were assessed to Newman and his team were due to having to pit before the pits were open due to on-track incidents that damaged their car. Newman avoided getting a penalty from NASCAR in 2011 while his pit crew made one lone mistake late in the season when their driver had to return to the pits for loose lug nuts.
2011 Statistics For Ryan Newman
10th in Sprint Cup standings
1 win (Lenox Industrial Tools 301)
9 top 5s
17 top 10s
403 laps led
2011 Penalty Report For Ryan Newman
Race 1 - Pitting before pit road is open, tail end; Pitting before pit road is open, tail end
Race 6 - Pitting before pit road is open, Tail of Field
Race 8 - Pitting before pit road is open, Tail of Field
Race 12 - Pitting before pit road is open, Garage
Race 16 - Pitting before pit road is open, tail end
Race 30 - Lug nut(s) not installed, Must come in