NASCAR Cup Series: Ryan Newman granted a playoff waiver
By Asher Fair
Ryan Newman has been granted a playoff waiver, which will allow him to compete for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series championship despite missing three races.
Ryan Newman suffered a brain bruise in a late crash during the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season-opening Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway, which caused him to miss three races.
But the second-year Roush Fenway Racing driver will still be allowed to compete for this year’s championship.
Roush Fenway Racing Steve Newmark announced that the 41-year-old South Bend, Indiana has been granted a playoff waiver by NASCAR officials.
We're thrilled to announce that @NASCAR has granted @RyanJNewman a playoff waiver and he will be eligible to run for the Championship. The entire @roushfenway team is ready for the task ahead . . . .
— Steve Newmark (@NewmarkRFK) April 28, 2020
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Playoff eligibility depends on two things: competing in every race and staying in the top 30 in the championship standings.
The waiver which Newman has been granted waives the first of those two requirements.
Newman will be eligible for the playoffs if he finishes the regular season standings in the top 30 with a victory, or if he finishes high enough in the standings to qualify for one of the 16 playoff positions without a victory.
He placed ninth in the Daytona 500 and sat in fifth place in the championship standings with 36 points following the race, but after missing the three races that followed, he dropped to 29th. He sits 54 points behind the playoff cut line. Chip Ganassi Racing’s Kurt Busch currently occupies the 16th and final playoff spot with 90 points.
Newman missed the races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway and Phoenix Raceway before the season was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. NASCAR has not been in action since that race at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday, March 8.
He announced this past Sunday during the live broadcast of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series race at virtual Talladega Superspeedway on Fox and Fox Sports 1 that he planned to be back behind the wheel of the #6 Ford whenever the NASCAR season resumes, and he was then medically cleared to return.
As it turns out, he had reportedly already partaken in a private test at Darlington Raceway roughly a month and a half ago.
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The resumption date for the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season remains up in the air. The next race on the schedule is scheduled to take place at Charlotte Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 24, but there are rumors that Darlington Raceway could host a previously non-scheduled race on Sunday, May 17.