Everyone is talking about NASCAR’s return to action this weekend at the Darlington Raceway. That’s the biggest storyline surrounding this weekend’s race. But, so is Matt Kenseth’s return as well as he replaces Kyle Larson in the No. 42 Chevrolet.

One story that was kind of swept under the rug is the return of Ryan Newman as well. Newman, was involved in a frightening last lap crash of the season opening Daytona 500. He was hospitalized for a couple of days before being released from the Halifax Medical Center less than 48 hours after the incident. That alone is a miracle in its own.

Newman, 42, was diagnosed with a brain bruise but it’s confusing because some other doctors also said that he had a concussion. Nevertheless, he missed the next three races as a result of that. Then, COVID-19 happened and allowed Newman enough time to fully heal and be able to return to action when NASCAR did.

“I feel like a complete walking miracle,” Newman said on Thursday via a video conference call ahead of Sunday’s race in Darlington.

This is the comeback story we should be talking more about.

It was a miracle because not only did Newman suffer a severe hit to the outside SAFER barrier leading into the tri-oval of the 2.5-mile track on that February day, he was also hit by Corey LaJoie’s No. 32 Ford while LaJoie was traveling at speeds close to 200 mph. The angle that LaJoie hit Newman was right in the worst spot possible. The fears that we all had that night were right too. We figured Newman was hit by LaJoie’s car while he was inside of his No. 6 Ford. On Thursday, Newman said that he was hit in the head by LaJoie’s car. His helmet was “crushed” he said.

How can you get hit by a speeding car at speeds near 200 mph in your head and live to tell about it?

Newman noted that he has virtually no memory of the day of the crash, nor the following days in the hospital. His only memory of the entire experience — walking out of the doors with his daughters in tow.

“That tells me God was involved,” he said. “I was blessed in more ways than one. I feel like a walking miracle. Everything aligned perfectly for me to be alive and here with you today. There were multiple miracles that aligned for me to walk out days later with my arms around my daughters.”

NASCAR said that Newman was awake while they were working on him at the scene, which Newman has later confirmed, but he also said that once he arrived at the hospital, doctors put him in a medically induced coma and inserted a PICC line into his chest.

Luckily, his recovery went rather quickly. Oxygen was still getting to his brain and within a couple of days, he was able to leave. He credits the safety measures that NASCAR has taken in recent years for him to be alive today.

The helmet he was wearing as a new type – a carbon fiber model which is more durable. That was the first time he wore this helmet. The crash bar above the windshield is named after Newman after he told NASCAR following a crash almost a decade ago at Talladega that more bracing needs to be put there. The HANS device that was enforced following Dale Earnhardt’s tragic death in 2001 helped too, albeit Newman said that was hit from the impact with LaJoie’s car too.

Despite all of this, Newman has no recollection at all of the accident. He’s watched every angle of every replay and said that he had to make himself believe that he went through that. Now, he feels like his oldself and ready to go.

“I’ve felt completely normal in the last 8 weeks but that doesn’t mean that I was,” he said.