Race 2 Win: NEXTEL Cup Series Race Notes

Nextel Cup Series

Checker Auto Parts 500 - Kevin Harvick Notes

Kevin Harvick
No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet Impala SS
Event Preview Fact Sheet

Event/Date: Checker Auto parts 500 presented by Pennzoil – November 11, 2007
Venue: Phoenix International Raceway – Avondale, Ariz.

NOTES:

This Week’s Race Car at Phoenix International Raceway … Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 223 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. This is the same Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet Impala SS Harvick drove to a 10th-place finish three weeks ago at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway.

Harvick in the Loop at Phoenix

Phoenix Facts … In nine NASCAR Cup Series starts at Phoenix International Raceway (PIR), Harvick has two wins and three top-five and four top-10 finishes. Additionally, the 31-year-old driver has a 13.7 starting average and a 14.0 finishing average. He has completed all but 16 laps in those nine races and has earned just over $1 million in winnings.

Driver Rating … Harvick is ranked first in NASCAR’s Driver Rating category (113.8) at PIR. The Driver Rating is a formula that combines the following categories: wins, finishes, top-15 finishes, average running position while on the lead lap, average speed under green, fastest lap, most laps led and lead-lap finishes. The maximum points a driver can earn in each race is 150. The Driver Rating number is used pre-race as a prediction tool and post-race as a performance evaluator.

Now that is Performance … “Happy” Harvick is also ranked first in NASCAR’s Average Running Position category (5.8) at PIR. Additionally, he has the most laps in the top 15 (1,452) at the desert track.

The Hat Trick … After Harvick won the NASCAR Cup Series event in 2006, he became the first and only driver to win in all three of NASCAR’s top series at PIR. He won the spring Busch Series race at Phoenix and carried over the momentum into the NASCAR Cup Series event to complete the weekend sweep. Additionally, Harvick won NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races at PIR in 2002 and 2003.

RCR Drivers Lead the Way at Phoenix … Jeff Burton, who’s currently seventh in the point standings, and Harvick lead all Chase participants with two wins each at PIR.

Points Check … Harvick fell one spot to, eighth, in NASCAR’s Cup Series championship point standings after his 10th-place finish last weekend at Texas Motor Speedway. The 2007 Daytona 500 winner is 439 markers out of the lead and just 82 markers out of fifth.

Did you Know … Harvick leads all NASCAR Cup Series drivers in laps completed in 2007, 99,9 %, 9,903 of a possible 10,003.

RCR at PIR … In 45 races at Phoenix, RCR has earned three wins including Harvick’s sweep of both races at PIR last season. Prior to that, Dale Earnhardt won the Checker 500 on November 4, 1990. Additionally, RCR boasts 10 top-five and 18 top-10 finishes at the one-mile desert-oval.

Chevy’s 50th Promotion … To help celebrate the 50th running of the Daytona 500, Chevrolet will be providing 50 race fans from 50 different states a once-in-a-lifetime weekend experience at the Daytona 500 on Feb. 17, 2008, while 10 of those individuals will win a brand new Chevy Impala. Beginning on Oct. 16 and through Dec. 3, fans can visit www.chevy.com/Daytona500 to enter.

Keep on Rolling … Harvick has yet to record a DNF (did not finish) in 2007. He and fellow teammate Clint Bowyer are the only two Chase drivers to have finished every race this season. Harvick has been running at the end of every race dating back to Dover last September, a steak of 42 races.

Up Close and Personal … The No. 29 team will be one of five teams featured this weekend on DIRECTV’S NASCAR HOTPASS. With a channel dedicated solely to the Shell-Pennzoil Racing team during the running of the Checker Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil, fans will be able to watch all the action through DIRECTV’s multiple camera angles, real-time car telemetry and listen to in-car audio communication.

The Trifecta … In addition to his driving duties with the No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet and the No. 21 AutoZone Chevrolet, Harvick, a two-time race winner in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, will drive Kevin Harvick Incorporated’s No. 2 Camping World Chevrolet in the Casino Arizona 150 on Friday, November 9. The race will be televised on SPEED beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST).

Double Down in the Desert … In addition to his driving duties with the No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet, Harvick, a 32-time race winner in the NASCAR Busch Series, will drive RCR’s No. 21 AutoZone Chevrolet in the ARIZONA.TRAVEL 200 from Phoenix International Raceway on Saturday, November 10. The race will be televised on ESPN2 beginning at 4 p.m. EST. The event will also be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network (MRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 34th race on the 2007 NASCAR Busch Series slate will be televised live on SPEED the same day at noon EST.

Up to Speed … Live coverage of the Checker Auto Parts 500 presented by Pennzoil will take the green flag Sunday, November 11 beginning at 3:30 p.m. EST. The race will be televised live on ABC and broadcast worldwide on MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the 35th of 36 points-paying races on the 2007 NASCAR Cup schedule will be televised live on ESPN2 Friday, November 9 at 5:30 p.m. EST.

KEVIN HARVICK QUOTES:
What is it about PIR that you like so much?
“Phoenix has been good to us over the years. We won both Cup races there last year. We also won a Busch race last year and finished second in the other. Phoenix is one of those places I grew up racing on and have a long history there. I have been fortunate to have had a lot of success there and look forward to going back and hopefully turning some of this bad luck (this season) into good luck.”

Does Phoenix fall into the same category as a short track like Martinsville or Richmond?
“I don’t really see Phoenix as a short track. Even though places like Phoenix and New Hampshire are only a mile, they both have a lot of room to race. Phoenix is always a fun race track. There are always at least two lanes, and sometimes even more, to pass. I always seem to do well at Phoenix so I’m excited to see what we can do with the Shell-Pennzoil Chevy this weekend.”

You won both races at Phoenix in 2006 and finished 10th earlier this season. Is Phoenix one of those tracks that you expect a good finish?
“I think Phoenix is a measuring stick for us. If we go there and we are off a little we know that we need to go back to the drawing board and work on our stuff. At the beginning of the season, we were able to go and lead some laps and then had a parts failure that set us back a little. Going back, we should run in the top five and if we don’t we will be very disappointed.”