Days after Ryan Newman‘s horrific Daytona 500 crash, fans still cannot stop talking about the inspiring moment the NASCAR driver walked out of the hospital, though much of the buzz is surrounding a peculiar clothing choice on Newman’s part, or lack thereof. Stepping foot out of Halifax Medical Center on Wednesday holding the hands of his two daughters, fans could not help but notice that Newman wasn’t wearing any shoes.
Ryan Newman has been treated and released from Halifax Medical Center pic.twitter.com/J0twhGgQm7
— Roush Fenway (@roushfenway) February 19, 2020
“Is Ryan reprising Paul McCartney’s Barefoot Abbey Road Cover?” joked one fan. “*have the conspiracies begun yet?* Fantastic news! Amazing. Never would have thunk it! [Daytona 500] [Engineering].”
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“BAREFOOT FARMBOY,” declared a second.
“Just saw video of him waking (albeit gingerly) barefoot in streetclothes outside the hospital with his girls,” reacted somebody else. “No casts, no bandages visable. From the back. Amazing, Just unreal!!!”
“[Ryan Newman] is walking out of the hospital like [Conor McGregor] after kicking some a—,” wrote another. “Barefoot nonetheless.”
“Beyond the glory that is seeing [Ryan Newman] walking out under his own power as a Father, the real glory of this picture is he’s in blue jeans, his socks and wearing a turkey hunting shirt,” commented a fifth. “Hell. Yea.”
“You know [Ryan Newman] is feeling OK when he is so anxious to leave the hospital that he walks out in those wonderful hospital socks,” added another fan. “So glad to see this pic.”
Newman left the hospital left than 48 hours after the Monday crash, which initially left viewers and his fellow NASCAR drivers worried for his fate. Following his release, his wife, Krissie Newman, praised the “amazing staff and amazing people” at Halifax Medical Center. Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark also extended his appreciation to the medical staff who had cared for Newman.
“We owe a debt of gratitude to many people for what transpired over the last few days but a special thanks to the incredible care and attention from the staff at Halifax Health Medical Center,” he said in a statement shared to Twitter.
Although out of the hospital and appearing to be doing well, there is “no timetable” for Newman’s return to racing. He was set to race at the Pennzoil 400 on Sunday, Feb. 22, though it has since been announced that driver Ross Chastain will be sitting behind the No. 6 wheel.
