Kevin Harvick ‘Nice Trip’ Concludes at Phoenix: A Bittersweet Farewell

Kevin Harvick was quickest within the first spherical of qualifying on Saturday and finally certified third for the race and he remained aggressive all through the 312-lap occasion, dueling with the 4 drivers contending for the sequence title.

The followers within the grandstands virtually stood and cheered in unison when Harvick’s No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford swept previous championship contender William Byron on lap 93 to take the lead for the primary time.

He remained out entrance till a warning for Christopher Bell’s wreck despatched everybody down pit street tires and gas. He led briefly for 4 laps after the restart however would by no means problem for the highest spot once more.

Kevin Harvick finally completed seventh, which prolonged his streak of consecutive top-10 finishes to a outstanding 21 races.

“It’s sort of a aid, to be sincere with you,” Harvick mentioned of his last begin. “There was simply a lot happening earlier than the race and this week, however it was fairly cool to guide some laps there within the final race.

“I’m simply happy with everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing, everyone that works on this automobile and has labored on this automobile for a very long time. I’ve simply obtained to thank all of the followers and NASCAR and my household and everyone for all of their help.

“It’s been a fantastic trip, and I can’t complain.”

Harvick, 47, was thrust into his Cup profession in 2001 with the demise of Dale Earnhardt in a last-lap crash within the Daytona 500 and took over driving Earnhardt’s rebranded crew at Richard Childress Racing the next week.

Three races later, he captured his first sequence win after a side-by-side, picture end battle with Corridor of Famer Jeff Gordon at Atlanta and his place in NASCAR lore was secured.

Not like lots of at the moment’s up-and-coming Cup stars, nevertheless, Harvick appeared to excel within the twilight of his profession, successful his first Cup title in 2014 on the age of 38 and securing 32 of his 60 Cup wins since then.

Amongst his 60 wins, Harvick owns victories within the “crown-jewel” races of the Daytona 500, Coca-Cola 600, Brickyard 400 and Southern 500. The one different drivers in NASCAR historical past to perform this feat are Earnhardt, Gordon and Jimmie Johnson.

Whereas Harvick went with no win in his last full-time season, he nonetheless remained aggressive. He was the one SHR driver to advance to the playoffs and was within the hunt for race victories a number of occasions all year long.

“It actually hasn’t been about wins or losses, however you by no means wish to flop round, so to have the ability to lead laps within the final race sort of tells you the way aggressive we nonetheless are,” he mentioned. “I feel with some tweaks and changes to a number of the issues at Stewart-Haas, you may go proper again on the market and be the place it is advisable be with all the pieces that we’ve happening.

“I needed to go away right here and be capable of take a look at all you guys, take a look at the followers, stroll within the TV sales space and stroll into any trailer in that storage, whether or not it’s a driver, a crew chief, NASCAR, whoever it’s, and be capable of finish on good phrases and I feel we did that.”

What’s subsequent?

Harvick’s profession in NASCAR is certainly not over.

He’ll be a part of Fox TV’s NASCAR broadcast crew subsequent season, as an analyst within the sales space for Cup races and likewise occasional work in Xfinity and Vehicles.

Because the departure of Gordon, who left the sales space following the 2021 season, Fox has used a rotation of friends to fill the third spot alongside Mike Pleasure and Clint Bowyer.

With Harvick, Fox will get a driver with a Corridor of Fame-worthy profession, who has had no downside talking his thoughts on points in NASCAR, together with security, the need to shakeup the Cup schedule and the significance of grassroots racing.

He and spouse DeLana even have an 11-year-old son Keelan who has been efficiently racing go-karts and Legends automobiles and a five-year-old daughter Piper, who has tried her hand at some racing as nicely.

“We’ve obtained so many issues in movement with the subsequent couple of years with plans and what we wish to do, so we’re going to return to work. I do have already got calls subsequent week with the oldsters from Fox and beginning to work on finish of the 12 months issues for what we wish to do there,” Harvick mentioned.

“I nonetheless suppose the accountability is simply as large to go up there and attempt to give the followers as a lot data as attainable and do a superb job for Fox and everyone with this sport to inform the perfect story that we will.”