Greg Biffle has five wins so far this season. Credit: Autostock

Biffle: Newman may be peaking at right time

DOVER, Del. -- For a guy trying to give Roush Racing its third consecutive title, Greg Biffle didn't want to see Ryan Newman in his rearview mirror.

Biffle hasn't had to worry about Newman all season, but with the Chase format, Newman is suddenly just 20 points behind him.

	Credit: Autostock
	Inside the Numbers Greg Biffle vs. Ryan Newman during the 2005 season   Biffle Newman Wins 5 1 Top-5s 11 6 Top-10s 16 11 Poles 0 6 Avg. Finish 12.3 16.1

Biffle and Tony Stewart have dominated the 2005 season -- the pair have won 10 of 27 races -- but Newman enters the Chase's second race with a truckload of momentum.

Newman went from 10th to third in the standings with a win last weekend at Loudon, and he went on to win the Bud Pole at Dover on Friday. He has three wins in six Dover starts.

Newman's lap of 158.102 mph easily topped the qualifying speed chart, and Newman was strong in the spring Dover event, finishing eighth.

"[The Chase] makes us nervous about Ryan. We know Ryan is very capable of winning races and running well," Biffle said. "He hadn't been a huge threat. He is kind of lurking back there like the monster, and now, all of a sudden, there he is.

"They have been gaining. They had a tough middle part of the season like we did."

Newman returned Biffle's compliments.

"I guess that is a good thing because he's got four teammates," said Newman. "Biffle is a great driver and that means a lot coming from him, considering how he's performed this year."

Biffle qualified a mediocre 18th, and Stewart was a lowly 31st. Qualifying outside the top 10 often sounds a death knell for victory at Dover, since only six drivers have managed to win after starting 15th or worse.

"We're racing everyone for a win," Newman said. "Just because Tony qualified 31st doesn't mean we will be fast tomorrow in practice."

As Kurt Busch showed in 2004, it is important to start the Chase stretch with a lot of momentum, and Newman benefited from having Loudon and Dover as the start of the 10-race shootout. Five of Newman's 12 career wins have come at Loudon or Dover.

"We enjoy the tracks that are coming up," Newman said. "I really enjoy this track, but its just part of the schedule. We'll see if we can do what we did at Loudon."

While Newman is comfortable on Dover's Monster Mile, he knows Penske Racing will have to improve its consistency on the high-banked 1.5-milers. They hope to improve on their downforce program with an extensive test at Kansas Speedway next week.

"We hope to live up to our expectations, and that is beating other people," Newman said.