Nov. 9, 2014 By Seth Livingstone NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz.– The right side of Ryan Newman’s Caterpillar Mining Chevrolet bore more than a few dents and scuffs, emblematic of its epic struggle on the track. At least one or two of those blemishes might deserve a place in history, representing the bumping of Sunoco Rookie of the Year frontrunner Kyle Larson that ultimately gave Newman the chance to battle for his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship next Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway (3 p.m. ET on ESPN). Although he took little pride in the method, Newman did what he needed to…

Nov. 9, 2014 By Reid Spencer NASCAR Wire Service AVONDALE, Ariz.— A victory at Phoenix—and a dominating one at that—was exactly what Kevin Harvick needed to keep his hopes for a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship alive. But a second-place finish in Sunday’s Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 did Jeff Gordon no good, thanks to a final-lap banzai run by Ryan Newman, who passed rookie Kyle Parson for the 11th position on the final lap to eliminate Gordon from the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup by a single point. Polesitter Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano, who shared the Chase lead…