Ryan Newman finished 23rd at Kansas despite the benefit of two "lucky dog" passes. Credit: Autostock

Newman still in second, but now 75 points behind

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Little did Ryan Newman know that when the field rolled off pit road for the start of Sunday's Banquet 400, that would be as close as he would come to a top-10 finish for the rest of a long and disappointing day.

Coming in four points behind Tony Stewart, Newman left Kansas Speedway 75 points out of the lead after finishing 23rd, but remarkably still in second place in the Chase with six races to go.

Inside the Chase Point standings after Kansas Pos. Driver Pts. Behind 1. T. Stewart 5,684 -- 2. R. Newman 5,609 -75 3. G. Biffle 5,596 -88 4. R. Wallace 5,594 -90 5. J. Johnson 5,592 -92 6. C. Edwards 5,589 -95 7. M. Martin 5,571 -113 8. M. Kenseth 5,568 -116 9. J. Mayfield 5,527 -157 10. Ku. Busch 5,460 -224 • Race results, click here • Cup standings, click here Victory LaneMark Martin celebrates his 35th career win at Kansas On the moveGreg Biffle gains two spots in the point standings Banquet 400Catch all the highlights of the Chase in Kansas Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

"That's definitely not the finish we wanted [Sunday]," Newman said. "We just couldn't get a handle on [the car].

Newman qualified 11th in his No. 12 Dodge, but after the team changed the car's transmission during a time when the cars were impounded, NASCAR rules specified that he had to move to the tail end of the field for the start.

Newman let the field string out single file, then began picking off the backmarkers, following Kasey Kahne and Denny Hamlin, who had crashed their primary cars in qualifying.

But on Lap 17, Dale Earnhardt Jr. tapped Brandon Ash, who spun sideways in Turn 2. In the smokiness, both Dale Jarrett and Newman received damage. The rear end of Jarrett's No. 88 Ford was heavily damaged, while Newman's left-front fender was clipped.

"Starting in the back hurt us," Newman said. "Then we got in that early accident which damaged the left front pretty good. Being stuck back there all day in dirty air just worked against us."

From that point on, Newman was never able to mount a serious challenge, despite getting the benefit of two free passes under caution.

Stuck in 30th place for a 30-lap stretch, Newman was lapped by leader Greg Biffle on Lap 92. Ten laps later, Stuart Kirby's accident allowed him to return to the lead lap in 33rd position.

Over the next 100 laps, Newman was able to rally to 23rd but went down a lap for a second time on Lap 215, just three laps before Michael Waltrip's engine problem bought out the sixth of seven caution periods.

From that point, Newman was unable to advance any higher up the order, settling for his worst finish since a 39th at Bristol.

"We had a top-five finish at Charlotte earlier this year, so hopefully we'll turn this performance around next weekend,." Newman said. "We're still in the hunt for the title, so we'll just put this behind us."