Race 2 Win: Sam's Town 250 - Kevin Harvick Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Sam's Town 250 - Kevin Harvick Notes

Kevin Harvick
No. 21 U.S. Coast Guard Chevrolet
Event Preview Fact Sheet

Event/Date: Sam’s Town 250 – October 28, 2006
Venue: Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Memphis Motorsports Park … Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 058 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. Built new for 2006, this is the same car Harvick drove to victory in Martinsville in July, Indianapolis in August and Richmond in September.

Stat Facts … In two Busch Series starts at Memphis, Harvick has posted one win, one pole and two top-five finishes. Additionally, the 30-year-old driver has an average starting spot of 1.5 and an average finishing position of second.

King of the Mountain … Harvick clinched his second NASCAR Busch Series championship two weeks ago at Lowes’ Motor Speedway. To date, Harvick has collected seven wins, 20 top-five and 28 top-10 finishes. With his seven wins this season, Harvick’s Busch Series win total is 24, placing him third on the all-time win list.

Owners’ Championship … RCR can clinch its third NASCAR Busch Series Owners’ championship if Harvick and the No. 21 Coast Guard team finish 35th or better.

Part of a Dynasty … Busch Team Manager Will Lind, is only one of eight RCR employees who have been a part of its 10 NASCAR championships. He won six NEXTEL Cup Series titles with the legendary Dale Earnhardt (1986, ’87, ’90, ’91, ’93, and ’94), two Busch Series titles (with Harvick in 2001 and the owner-only title in 2003 with Harvick and Johnny Sauter) and the inaugural Craftsman Truck Series crown in 1995 with Mike Skinner.

Pinch Driver … Randy LaJoie will sub for Harvick this weekend at Memphis Motorsports Park for Friday’s practice sessions and qualifying on Saturday. LaJoie is a two-time NASCAR Busch Series Champion (1996 and 1997) with 15 wins, 62 top-five and 118 top-10 finishes in his career.

New Kid on the Block … Timothy Peters, the latest addition to RCR’s stable of drivers, will make his NASCAR Busch Series debut Saturday behind the wheel of the No. 29 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS. Peter’s team will be lead by veteran crew chief Pat Smith with RCR’s No. 21 Busch Series team servicing the car on pit road. Harvick’s NEXTEL Cup crew will make the trip to Memphis to pit the No. 21 Coast Guard machine.

Chasing History … With Harvick’s ninth-place finish two weeks ago at Lowes’ Motor Speedway, he has now collected 28 top-10 finishes this season. He is only two away from tying Sam Ard’s 1983 record for the most top-10 finishes in a season.

Up to Speed … The Sam’s Town 250 at Memphis Motorsports Park will be televised live Saturday, October 28 beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on NBC. The Motor Racing Network and XM Satellite will also carry the race broadcast live. Qualifying for the Sam’s Town 250 will take the green flag Saturday, beginning at 11:05 a.m. EDT.

KEVIN HARVICK QUOTES:
How much has the Busch organization contributed to the turn around at RCR?
“Our Busch teams have always been good at RCR year after year. Obviously, this year they are exceptional. I think when the Cup cars got better, the Busch cars got even better. As we went through Saturdays and things were going good, that momentum carries over to Sunday a little bit. However, I really think that the Cup cars getting better made the Busch cars that much better, because a lot of things we do bleed down to the Busch cars. They have put a tremendous effort into the engine program. The engines have gotten better, the cars have gotten better, and everything has gotten better.

What did you do differently than the other full-time Cup drivers in the Busch Series to win the championship by such a huge margin?
“I think a lot of people have overlooked that when they talk about the Busch Series. There are a lot of guys out there that run week-in and week-out; we have been able to beat them week-in and week-out. It all boils down to cars, motors, organization and the people who have put the No. 21, No. 29 and No. 2 cars on the race track. I think it says a lot about an organization when you can put all three teams into Victory Lane and be consistent every race. They do all the small things right and that is what makes the world go around. When we are having an off day or something goes wrong, we are still able to run in the top 10. When we’re off, we aren’t off by very much.”

Will Lind, Busch Team Manager, has been involved in all 10 championships at RCR. What does he bring to the table?
“What people need to remember is when these guys at RCR were winning the truck championship, Will was there. That is the common link between the trucks and the Busch program and has been the consistent thing with the Busch program throughout the whole thing. I know there have been other people who have come and gone but the fact that he has been there through all the Earnhardt championships gives him as many championships as Richard. Will is one of those people that some days you just want to kick him right in the butt – but he knows what he wants and he is the reason this thing has kept going and growing year after year.