Harvick: "We still have to beat the Gibbs cars" for title shot
To say Kevin Harvick was disappointed with how his weekend at Kansas Speedway turned out is clearly an understatement.
Harvick had started on the pole and led 104 of 267 laps before finishing 13th in the spring race at Kansas and he and his crew chief, Rodney Childers, were expecting much more the second time around.
With a new car and big improvement with the new aero package over the last several months, the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing team was eyeing Kansas as a prime opportunity for another victory.
Instead, Harvick found himself starting the race from the rear of the field, collecting just five stage points and finishing ninth – but it was still good enough to advance to the semifinal round of the playoffs based on points.
“That was not a very good weekend from top to bottom. I just didn’t have a very good car and didn’t have a very good day on pit road. Nothing went right all weekend,” Harvick said. “It was definitely one of the worst weekends we have had in a while.
“We had to start in the back and had a tough day getting through traffic. A couple times we got up there and then had bad stops and got mired in traffic. It didn’t go as planned but we did what we needed to do to get to the next round.
“Now, we get to start over.”
A weekend to forget
Harvick’s weekend got off to a bad start when he didn’t even get the chance to qualify, in part because his team discovered a problem with the car’s driveline after it passed inspection on its second try.
Once the problem was corrected, the team had to take the car back through inspection (basically failing themselves a second time) and it failed again. The three failures resulted in Harvick being denied the chance to qualify and he had to start the race from the rear of the field.
Harvick managed to get to 14th after the first 80-lap stage. He ran as high as third at one point in Stage 2 before finishing sixth. In the final stage, Harvick struggled to remain in the top-10.
Before returning to another 1.5-mile track to compete with the likes of race winner Denny Hamlin, Harvick said he and his team have some work to do.
“I think we just have to go home and make some decisions for Texas. Obviously, we still have to beat the (Joe) Gibbs (Racing) cars,” he said.
“We just have to go and see what the other cars did this season with their higher downforce cars and see how it worked for them and go from there.”
Previous article
Keselowski exits playoffs: "In the end it didn't work out"
Next article
William Byron to 'keep fighting' following end of playoff run
About this article
| Series | NASCAR Cup |
| Drivers | Kevin Harvick |
| Teams | Stewart-Haas Racing |
| Author | Jim Utter |
From the archive: Dale Earnhardt’s final Autosport interview
The death of Dale Earnhardt in the 2001 Daytona 500 shocked NASCAR to the core. At the Daytona 24 Hours, two weeks before his fatal accident, ‘The Intimidator’ shared his expectations of challenging for an eighth Cup title with JONATHAN INGRAM, in an article first published in the 15 February 2001 issue of Autosport magazine. Little did we know then what tragedy would unfold…
The lasting NASCAR legacy after Dale Earnhardt’s death
On February 18, 2001, seven-time NASCAR Cup champion Dale Earnhardt – the fearless ‘Intimidator’ – was in his element at Daytona International Speedway. While his own DEI team’s cars ran 1-2 towards the finish line, his famed #3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Monte Carlo was playing rear gunner to block any late runs from the chasing pack. As the cars tore through Turns 3 and 4 on that fateful final lap, Earnhardt maintained the strongarm tactics that encapsulated his persona… but his actions in those moments sadly proved to be his last.
Inspired by Pitbull, the “revolution” sweeping through NASCAR
The NASCAR Cup Series is changing. Whether it be the gradual morphing out the seasoned drivers of yesterday as the next generation step up, a radical calendar shake-up featuring more road courses than ever before and the prospect of an all-new car on the horizon, stock car racing’s highest level is nearing the end of a huge facelift.
The NASCAR storylines to watch out for in 2021
This weekend's Daytona 500 kickstarts a NASCAR Cup season that promises plenty of intrigue courtesy of new owners and a refreshed calendar. Here's what you need to know ahead of the new season…
Why Kyle Larson can't blow his big shot at redemption
From a disgraced NASCAR exile, Kyle Larson has been given a chance of redemption by the powerhouse Hendrick Motorsports squad. Effectively replacing seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson is no easy billing, but Larson has every intention of repaying the team's faith...
Why Roger Penske is an American motorsport icon
In this exclusive one-on-one interview, Roger Penske reveals the inner drive that has made him not only a hugely successful team owner and businessman but also the owner of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar. He spoke to David Malsher-Lopez.
Why NASCAR's latest second-generation champion is just getting started
Chase Elliott's late charge to the 2020 NASCAR Cup title defied predictions that it would be a Kevin Harvick versus Denny Hamlin showdown. While the two veterans are showing no signs of slowing down, Elliott's triumph was a window into NASCAR's future…
Why Kyle Larson deserves his second chance in a cancel culture
“You can’t hear me? Hey n*****” Those fateful words uttered by Kyle Larson, spoken into his esports headset on April 12, were directed at his sim racing spotter – but instead they quickly became amplified around the world via social media, including his own Twitch stream.
