Kevin Harvick

FORT WORTH, Texas. (April 5, 2008) — Starting from the pole position for the first time this season, the No. 33 Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) RoadLoans.com Chevrolet seemed poised for a great run in the O’Reilly 300 at Texas Motor Speedway. Unfortunately, a rear axle failure caused driver Kevin Harvick and the team to settle for a 34th-place finish.

“Our RoadLoans.com Chevrolet was really good,” said Harvick. “We were fast from the start, even after we changed the axle. It’s unfortunate that this happened, but we’ll leave here and move on to Phoenix (International Raceway).”

Harvick, who started from the pole after rain cancelled qualifying on Thursday, led the first 55 laps of the 200-lap race. The team made a routine green-flap pit stop on lap 56 for four tires and fuel, but as soon as the car was dropped from the jack, it was apparent something was wrong with the No. 33 RoadLoans.com car. Determining the rear axle had broken, Harvick took the car to the garage for repairs.

The team worked diligently to change the rear axle and returned to the race on lap 79 in the 35th position, 21 laps down. With 121 laps remaining in the race, Harvick continued to run lap times as quick as the leaders.

With the focus now shifted from winning the race to gaining positions and bringing the car home in one piece, the team continued to work hard throughout the day to ensure Harvick had a good, fast car. When the checkered flag waved on lap 200, the No. 33 RoadLoans.com Chevrolet crossed the finish line in the 34th position.