Roush Fenway Racing driver Ryan Newman, who was admitted in hospitalized after a last-lap accident in the Daytona 500 back in February, stated Sunday he plans to return to the seat of his No. 6 Ford when NASCAR racing restart.
Newman‘s statement came during the broadcast of the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series simulation race at Talladega Superspeedway, the fifth iRacing event since real-world racing was suspended due to the coronavirus outbreak. He offered his gratitude for the support and people who gave him
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“this multitude of miracles” to return to competition.
“That’s the absolute plan, for sure,” Newman told FOX Sports. “I’m healthy. I’ve been blessed with another layer of this situation giving me more time to heal and look forward to being back in the seat, for sure.”
For drivers to receive clearance to return to racing after an injury, NASCAR relies on medical experts to decide when a driver may resume activity without restrictions — and while the sanctioning body does not comment on a driver‘s specific path to medical clearance, NASCAR shared the following statement.
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“We share Ryan‘s enthusiasm in his return to the track. We look forward to Ryan returning to racing as soon as he is medically cleared to race.”
Ross Chastain drove Newman’s No. 6 for Roush at Las Vegas, Fontana & Phoenix. With Ryan expected to return, that could leave Chastain eligible to take over the No. 42 for Chip Ganassi Racing. That seat is currently unoccupied after Ganassi fired Kyle Larson for using a racial slur during an iRacing event on April 12.