While the release of Ryan Newman from the hospital has been a huge relief to the racing world, one fan couldn’t help point out something was amiss about the whole thing. In the photo that showed Newman taking his first steps out of the hospital on Wednesday, he’s not wearing any shoes. Naturally, this raised an important question with Twitter user @4thRangers.
Why did you let him walk out barefoot?
— 4th Virginia Partisan Rangers (@4thRangers) February 20, 2020
While it is a valid question, they’re not the first to ask it.
Videos by PopCulture.com
The photo itself was tweeted by Newman’s team, Roush Fenway Wednesday afternoon when Newman’s lack of footwear was first noticed. Not long after, Newman’s Daytona 500 competitor Corey LaJoie jokingly tweeted that he’d forgotten his shoes on the way out.
Newman was seconds away from crossing the finish line of the Daytona 500 Monday night when his car started flipping over several times before briefly catching fire. He was rushed to the hospital immediately afterward and released two days later. He also documented his stay with a photo alongside his kids and some of the Halifax Health staff who treated Newman during his stay.
Though he appears to be doing well and was even spotted out visiting fans Thursday, there’s no actual timetable on when he’ll return to the driver’s seat. Steve Newmark, president of Roush Fenway, issued a statement that made it clear that their “focus remains with Ryan and his family as he continues to recover.”
“We also want to express our sincere gratitude to all of those who have offered support and taken the time to send their thoughts and prayers to Ryan, his family and everyone at Roush Fenway Racing. The NASCAR community has long prided itself on being a close-knit family. That is never more evident than during these types of moments, and we want to express our appreciation to everyone at Chip Ganassi Racing as well as Kaulig Racing for allowing Ross to fill in for Ryan in the No. 6 on such short notice.”
The last line refers to Ross Chastain, who will be subbing for Newman this weekend at the Pennzoil 400 race in Las Vegas.
NASCAR has also announced that they’ll be studying the remains of Newman’s car to help address what exactly went wrong and help make the sport safer for all competitors. According to FOX 13, Andy Petree, competition director for Richard Childress Racing, said it’s “kind of like and [National Transportation Safety Board] investigation. Take that mindset and go find anything and everything they can to make the car safer.
