Ryan Newman explains how he passed everyone to win The Winston as a rookie. Credit: Autostock

Enduring Performance: 2002 The Winston

To say Ryan Newman's chances of winning the 2002 The Winston were somewhere between slim and none when the evening started would be no bull.

Or No Bull 5, to be more precise.

	Ryan Newman makes his way around Jeremy Mayfield. Credit: Autostock
	2002 The Winston Results Pos. Driver Make 1. Ryan Newman Ford 2. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevy 3. Matt Kenseth Ford 4. Kurt Busch Ford 5. Jimmie Johnson Chevy 6. Tony Stewart Pontiac 7. Robby Gordon Chevy 8. Kevin Harvick Chevy 9. Ricky Craven Ford 10. Bill Elliott Dodge Note: Only 10 cars advanced to the final segment ALL-STAR COVERAGE •   Complete All-Star Coverage

A veteran of exactly 19 Cup starts, Ryan Newman in the spring of 2002 wasn't a household name, despite a pair of poles and two second-place finishes.

In fact, he wasn't even the most popular race driver named Newman -- that would have to be actor Paul Newman, who won national sports car championships and owned an open-wheel team.

So Newman was one of the drivers facing long odds at Lowe's Motor Speedway, having to first finish in the top five of the Winston Open just to have a chance to win the No Bull 5 -- and the final spot in The Winston field.

However, as a veteran of short races where a driver's ability to get to the front in a hurry is an advantage, he had been primed for just that -- and when that opportunity arose, Newman was there.

"After growing up as a Friday and Saturday night Midget racer, racing 30-lappers and doing that -- whatever it was, 80 laps on that given night and beating everybody for money and pride -- not points racing was really awesome," Newman said.

He finished third behind Jeremy Mayfield in the Open, then won the No Bull 5 to earn the 27th and final starting spot in the main event.

While Jimmie Johnson was drawing the spotlight with his charge from 17th to the front, Newman was doing the same thing farther back. When the field was inverted for the final sprint, Newman's car was flat-out flying.

"We struggled a little bit in qualifying, but kept working on making it better," he said. "We barely made the cuts. I had to drive the wheels off the thing."

There were three confrontations during The Winston, one involving the eventual winner.

An angry Elliott Sadler scored a bullseye with a helmet toss off the side of the No. 12 Ford after spinning into the Turn 2 wall during the start of the second segment.

"We don't have the money and stuff to be tearing cars up like that," Sadler said. "What made me mad was the way [Newman] pushed me all the way down the front straightaway, run me high and finally put me in the wall.

"I know it's The Winston, but it's 30 laps. Man, you can't win it on the first one. Sorry, I apologize to my sponsors. But this is The Winston and I wanted to win."

Sterling Marlin and Jeff Burton had cross words for each other after a crash in the first segment that involved four cars. Marlin claimed he was heading for pit road while Burton said he never saw a hand signal.

The final one came in the closing laps, when Kurt Busch spun Robby Gordon to bring out the caution and bunch up the field. That resulted in a $10,000 fine for Busch.

"We had a shot at the win and hated to use Robby Gordon as a yellow, but I think we needed a yellow there at the end," Busch said after the event. "I bumped him, that's part of it. I think we needed a yellow so we could put on a good show there at the end."

Gordon wasn't amused.

"When I pulled alongside Busch under caution, I was just telling him he was No. 1," he said.