Ryan Newman Could Crash Tony Stewart and Jeff Gordon's party

Tony Stewart, Jeff Gordon, and Robby Gordon are without a doubt, the three top road course racers in NASCAR Nextel Cup.

Everytime the NASCAR Nextel Cup circuit heads to either Infineon or Watkins Glen, the trio of road racing aces Jeff Gordon, Robby Gordon, and Tony Stewart are by far the odd-on favorites. And to validate the trio's road course dominance, here's a little trivia question, who were the last two drivers to win a road course race, besides Jeff Gordon, Robby Gordon, or Tony Stewart.

Ricky Rudd won at Infineon in 2002, and you have to go back even further into the archives to find Steve Park's surprise win at Watkins Glen in 2000.

Neither Ricky Rudd nor Steve Park run with the Nextel Cup circuit any longer, so who is the current driver who could break this Gordon(s) and Stewart road course supremacy?

It's easy to overlook Ryan Newman, simply because his season never really got off the ground. With just two top fives, and five top 10's, Newman is buried back in 18th in the NASCAR Nextel Cup standings.

But the bright spot for Newman and the 12 bunch is the fact that he is a rising road course ace. As a rookie, Newman finished 2nd to Tony Stewart at Watkins Glen.

In Newman's magical 2003 season, he finished 5th at Infineon, and 9th at Watkins Glen.

In 2004, Newman struggled on the two road courses, but recorded a 9th place finish at Infineon in 2005. At Watkins Glen, Newman won the Busch Series race, a race that included Robby Gordon and Tony Stewart. In the Nextel Cup event, Newman clearly had a top five car before mechanical woes ended his chances of challenging Tony Stewart.

And just two months ago at Infineon, Newman finished 2nd to Jeff Gordon. Many would argue that Newman was faster than Gordon on the long run, and may have won the race if he could have passed Terry Labonte sooner.

If Newman can qualify well, and keep his nose clean, this could be the weekend where he turns things around.

Other full-time Nextel Cup regulars who could score their first road course win this weekend include Kevin Harvick, Kurt Busch, and Jimmie Johnson.

email the author: autoracing@suite101.com