Ryan Newman has joined the Ram Free Agent program and will drive the Kaulig Racing Ram number 25 in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race to be held on July 18 at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Newman, who left the Cup Series after fulfilling his contract with Roush Fenway Racing, returns to a home he knows well. With Dodge he won 13 of his 18 races in the top category and took 43 of his 51 poles. That era with Penske Racing, between 2002 and 2008, included eleven poles in 2003 and victory in the 2008 Daytona 500. His 2014 runner‑up championship came with Richard Childress Racing.

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The Ram Free Agent program has rotated throughout 2026 among retired Cup Series drivers and competitors from other disciplines. The Ram number 25 has already been driven by Tony Stewart, Clint Bowyer, Travis Pastrana and Jamie McMurray, as well as Colin Braun, AJ Allmendinger, Corey LaJoie, Ty Dillon, Parker Kligerman and Carson Ferguson. None of them are chasing the drivers' championship, because the scheme aims to project the image of Ram in the category and give visibility to names that no longer run full‑time in NASCAR.

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Newman has raced seven times in the Truck Series and has one win (Atlanta 2008), one pole, six top‑5s and six top‑10s. He also knows what it is like to win on that same oval since the track resurfaced; in August 2022 he won a 50‑lap modified race that he himself described as one of the most memorable moments of his career. Since his time at Roush ended, Newman has split his activity between sporadic appearances in the Cup Series with Rick Ware Racing, the Whelen Modified Tour, the SMART Modified Tour and the SRX Series, where he was champion in 2023. The North Wilkesboro date marks his return to a NASCAR national championship with a manufacturer that left the championship in 2012 and that this year reappeared through Kaulig.