A couple of hours before Saturday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Chicagoland Speedway, Ryan Newman said that a lack of performance by his team had pushed him to the brink of looking for a new job.
On Monday, it became apparent the brink had been crossed as Newman and Penske Racing officials said they will part ways at the end of the current season.
The move could pave the way for Newman to join Tony Stewart on the newly formed Stewart Haas Racing team, the birth of which was also announced last week at Chicagoland.
Newman would leave Penske Racing at the end of the season — by “mutual” agreement — ending a nine-year partnership in which he won 13 races and 43 poles but never became the championship contender his first few seasons seemed to foreshadow.
Newman, who is 16th in Sprint Cup points, said “my goal is to be the best driver I can be and get the best results, wherever that is, whether it’s Penske Racing or any other place. I have to be fair to myself and my long-term goals and everything else, and (team owner) Roger (Penske) knows that.”
“We want to thank Ryan for his hard work and contributions to Penske Racing over the past nine years,” team owner Roger Penske said in a statement. “We wish Ryan all the best for the future and we’ll continue to focus our efforts on making the Chase with Ryan and the Alltel Dodge team this season.”
Newman expressed his appreciation to Penske and to the team in a statement, but gave no indication where he will be racing in 2009.
“I appreciate Penske Racing and all that they have done for me, but more importantly, I appreciate their friendship and what they have done for my career,” Newman said in a joint statement with Penske, whose other Cup drivers are Kurt Busch and Sam Hornish Jr.
Newman is the latest in what is becoming a flurry of driver changes for next season. Mark Martin already has agreed to take over the No. 5 Chevrolet for Casey Mears at Hendrick Motorsports; Aric Almirola will drive the No. 8 Chevy at Dale Earnhardt Inc. full time (a ride he now shares with Martin) and two-time Cup champion Stewart is leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to be a co-owner/driver at Haas CNC Racing, which will be renamed Stewart-Haas Racing.
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