Ryan Newman pulls the surprise, beating Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Kyle Busch to win Phoenix 600

 Ryan Newman (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)

  
  

   By Mike Mulhern
   mikemulhern.net

   PHOENIX
   It was Kyle Busch versus Jimmie Johnson most of the night, but a late caution with less than 10 miles left turned the game upside down, and Ryan Newman wound up the surprise winner of the Subway 600K, in a three-lap shootout against Jeff Gordon.
   When the yellow came out for Scott Riggs brushing the wall, Busch was holding a nearly three-second lead over Johnson and cruising toward what appeared to be his first win of the year.
   But at the yellow the entire 20  cars still on the lead lap all pitted for tires, remembering how four fresh tires late had been key to winning at  Bristol (Jimmie Johnson) and Martinsville (Denny Hamlin).
   The key this time, however, six men took only two new tires, while the rest took four. And those six were just ahead of Busch for the restart.
   Busch's four tires didn't pay off, and he finished eighth.
   Gordon had the lead for the restart, and he chose the outside line. But Newman, on the inside, got a better restart, beating Gordon to the first turn.
   "This is the most emotional victory I've ever had in my career, because it's been so long," Newman said, after his first tour win since taking the 2008 Daytona 500.
   It was crew chief Tony Gibson's first Cup tour win ever: "Ryan's feedback is awesome, and that's the biggest part of the battle."
  Gibson and most of his crew are former Dale Earnhardt Inc. men.
   "Every restart I was on the inside up till then I just couldn't get going," Newman said. "I don't know if Jeff had a problem or not.
   "I couldn't believe it. I saw that white flag and said 'Hey, I don't have that far to go.'"
   "I spun the tires on the restart, and Ryan got a good start, and it was pretty much game-over," Gordon said. "All of a sudden he just shot forward, and I knew I was in trouble.
   "I tried to make a run at him, but just came up short."
    Gordon went quickly to victory lane to congratulate Newman.
   Johnson, Gordon's teammate, pulled off third, to remain atop the Sprint Cup standings. "We led a lot, we were very competitive, just a little off those last two runs," Johnson said. "I was glad to see the caution come out...and I made the call for four tires. It was the first time I've made a call like that.
   "And we made it from seventh (on the restart) to third, and stretched out the points a little."
   The race was scheduled for 375 laps (miles), a sizeable increase over the usual 312. And then it went into overtime, running 378 laps -- nearly four hours, despite relatively few (nine) cautions. NASCAR cleared all cars in post-race inspection, and it took the engines from Newman's car and the cars of Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Michael McDowell back to Concord for further inspection, as routine, and it took the Newman and Earnhardt cars themselves also back for more routine inspection.

   
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                              The finishing order of Saturday night's Subway Phoenix 600K