'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAYACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABcAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABQkQAAEEAgMBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFABEIEiEGEwEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhEBAAIDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQARMVFh/9oADAMBAAIRAxEAPwC/yC5jP09/afE19D+Rr5MVSrFxQdIfZ1J8Z2NozSWhW5ZUVZNk9Q/JhMPOhvYR3cQFK6g7IGz5jGEzfCNWq0s//9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
As he gets ready to return to racing at Darlington, Ryan Newman believes that the Next Gen Cup car of today is not as secure as it should be.
Due to the slower speeds, Newman decided to race for RWR on the short courses after his horrifying crash at Daytona in 2020. He said:
"I don’t think the (Cup) car is as safe as it should be or as safe as they say it is on the big tracks, I don’t need to be a crash test dummy. I’ve already got two bars named after me. I don’t need a third.”
Since the conclusion of his time with Roush Fenway Racing in the 2021 season, Newman has not started a Cup Series race. He placed 28th in the standings with two top-five finishes and five top-10s.
Ryan Newman left NASCAR in 2022 when Brad Keselowski switched to the newly renamed Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, and it seemed his Cup Series career was gone as he competed in Tony Stewart's SRX summer series.
While competing part-time with RWR, Ryan Newman hasn't won a Cup Series victory since 2017 and is extremely unlikely to add to his current tally of 18 wins.
Eight of Newman's 18 victories in the top division of NASCAR occurred in 2003, when he placed sixth in the standings, and they were spread throughout 22 seasons. In 2014, despite not having a victory, he distinctly came in second to Kevin Harvick in the standings.
Eight drivers have already made starts with RWR in the 2023 season, so the team hasn't fielded a full-time driver. Rick's son Cody Ware was scheduled to run for the team full-time in 2023, but he has since been suspended indefinitely following his felony assault arrest in April.
Ryan Newman's Daytona 500 crash
In a dramatic incident on the penultimate lap of the 2020 Daytona 500, Ryan Newman's No. 6 Cup Series car overturned and flew airborne. It took the trackside rescue team more than 15 minutes to get Newman from his car.
Ryan Newman was airlifted to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, where he was placed in a medically induced coma and sustained a "brain bruise." Less than 48 hours after the collision, he left the hospital clutching the hands of his kids and had no recollection of the accident.
He kept the remains of his No. 6 car and helmet in a barn on his home in North Carolina as a remembrance of what saved him.
