Race 2 Win: Pepsi 300 - Kevin Harvick Notes

NASCAR Busch Series

Pepsi 300 - Kevin Harvick Notes

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

Event/Date: Pepsi 300 – April 15, 2006
Venue: Nashville Superspeedway – Lebanon, Tenn.

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Nashville Superspeedway … Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 052 from the Richard Childress Racing stable, which recently finished third at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This is also the same car Harvick won with last fall at Texas Motor Speedway.

Points Chase … Harvick maintained the lead in the NASCAR Busch Series drivers’ point standings after his eighth-place finish at Texas Motor Speedway. He is currently 146 points ahead of Denny Hamlin. The No. 21 U.S. Coast Guard race team is also sitting first in the NASCAR Busch Series owners’ point standings, 155 points ahead of Hamlin’s team fielded by Joe Gibbs Racing.

One of Two … Kevin Harvick is one of two drivers to complete every lap of NASCAR Busch Series competition for the 2006 race season. He along with RCR teammate Clint Bowyer have completed all 1,257 laps of competition.

Almost a Rookie … Harvick has only competed at Nashville Superspeedway once in his NASCAR Busch Series career. The 2001 NASCAR Busch Series champion captured the Busch Pole in the inaugural race at the 1.333-mile track in 2001.

Harvick’s Back … Harvick, who is running the full NASCAR Busch Series season, will driver 30 races in the No. 21 Coast Guard machine, one race in the No. 29 Hershey’s Kissable Chevy and the remainder of the schedule will be completed in the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. entry.

Did You Know? … In Kevin Harvick’s 138 Busch Series starts, he has 68 top-five and 95 top 10 finishes. Harvick has finished in the top-10 in nearly 70 percent of the races he’s competed in the Busch Series. He also has 17 wins to add to his Busch Series resume. Consistency has been the key for Harvick in the Busch Series; he’s finished on the led lap in 103 of 138 starts.

Busch Series Milestones: At Bristol, Kevin Harvick passed the $6 million mark in career money won, a mark which has been reached by only seven drivers.

At the Top … The U.S. Coast Guard team has accumulated one win, five top-five and six top-10 finishes this season. In addition, they have led 348 of 1,257 laps completed.

GM Promotion … GM Goodwrench and Kevin Harvick kicked off a promotion Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in which GM customers and NASCAR fans have a chance to cash in on a $10 rebate when the No. 29 machine, driven by Kevin Harvick , reaches Victory Lane. Throughout the remainder of the 2006 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season, anytime the No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet is first past the checkers, the first 5,000 people who visit www.Goodwrench.com starting at 3 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) the Monday after the win can celebrate with a $ 10 mail-in rebate on a customer-paid Goodwrench service(s) and/or part(s) on a GM vehicle.

Up to Speed … The Pepsi 300 at Nashville Superspeedway will be televised live Saturday, April 15 beginning at 3:30 p.m. EDT on FX. The Motor Racing Network (MRN) and XM Satellite will also carry the race broadcast live. Qualifying for the Pepsi 300 will air live on SPEED Saturday, April 15 beginning at 1 p.m. EDT.

CREW CHIEF SHANE WILSON QUOTES:

From a crew chief standpoint, what is the key to a strong finish at Nashville Superspeedway?

“We approach Nashville with the same mind-set that we do Atlanta and Texas. It is a smaller version of the mile-and-a-half “cookie cutter” tracks that we run. The only difference is that the straightaway’s are a little shorter and the corners are a little tighter . The track is concrete and smooth, so it is pretty easy to get the car neutral. The man who comes out on top will be the driver that runs the best from the start of each run to the end of each run.”

You have worked with Orleans Racing, which was a single-car team, and now you are with Richard Childress Racing, a multi-car team. What is you thought on letting the bigger multi-car teams run their Cup stars in the Busch Series?

“I can definitely see both sides of the story. NASCAR is good because it is equal opportunity. It is equal opportunity for Kevin Harvick and also for up-and-coming drivers like Brandon Miller. With more Cup drivers in the Busch Series, it hurts the younger drivers trying to get in. It also hurts the smaller teams that can’t afford to hire a Cup driver to run their car. I am obviously on the good side of things right now, and I have been lucky this year to work with two great drivers in Harvick and Jeff Burton. In this business, you have to stay competitive and if that is following your competitor, then so be it. When looking at the whole picture, I don’t think there is anything wrong with full-time Cup drivers in the Busch Series.”

After seven races, are you ahead of your goals?

“I had really high expectations going into this year. I think the team has done their part in execution. They have given us the opportunity to win every weekend. I feel like I have let them down a few times and didn’t make the right call on the last stop. That is my main focus of improvement throughout this year. I think Kevin and Jeff are great drivers, but now that I get to work with Kevin for the rest of the year, hopefully it will make it a little easier to make the right calls.”

Explain a little bit about where you think the team is in terms of development. You’ve got a few guys from last year’s team but you also brought in some new guys during the off-season.

“I think we have done really well and we have minimized the mistakes that we have made. They’re going to get better and that is a fact. We are working really hard right now to work out our system at the shop and race track. I think we might have overachieved a little bit but I think some of that is the drivers. Our team is going to be a lot better at the end of the year.”