Newman, Army Team Encouraged About Momentum Swing

MARTINSVILLE, Va. March 25, 2009: Continuing the momentum is the foremost objective for Ryan Newman and the No. 39 U.S. Army team as the Sprint Cup circuit heads to Martinsville Speedway for Sunday's running of the Goody's Fast Pain Relief 500.

Newman is coming off a solid performance at Bristol Motor Speedway, where he finished seventh in Sunday's race while running in the top 10 for virtually the entire 503-lap event. It was the first race of the season that the No. 39 team out of the Stewart-Haas Racing organization was able to compete without encountering any misfortunes.

"Everyone wants to jump off to a strong start," said Newman. "We felt going into the Daytona (season opener) that we would be competitive out of the box. We actually were competitive before Bristol but had too many bad breaks go our way. But Bristol showed what this team can do. We need to keep up the momentum and keep on improving. The ultimate goal of course is to put the Soldiers' car in Victory Lane."

Newman, a 13-time tour winner, has indeed come close to scoring a win at the half-mile Martinsville flat track -- finishing runner-up to Jimmie Johnson in the 2007 fall race. Newman has tallied five top fives and six top 10s in 14 career starts at Martinsville.

When it comes to qualifying at Martinsville, Newman’s record is even stronger with two poles along with eight top-five and 10 top-10 starting positions.

"Short tracks are where most of us were prepped on," said the 31-year-old Newman, who was inducted into the Quarter Midget Hall of Fame in 1993. "I feel upbeat about Martinsville knowing that we'll have another strong U.S. Army Chevy."

The Army Chevy that Newman referenced is a new Stewart-Haas-built car that completed a successful test session on Monday (March 23) at the Little Rock half-mile circuit in Rockingham, N.C.

The test session along with the Bristol result also has crew chief Tony Gibson feeling encouraged about the upcoming races.

"We're definitely confident following the Bristol performance and Monday's test," noted Gibson. "It's a spark that we needed. The team's mission is to build on our momentum and continue with solid finishes in the upcoming races. Ryan and the guys believe in one another and know that we have the potential to be successful on a consistent basis."