Kevin Harvick
No. 33 Camping World Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
Nicorette 300 Race Recap
Second-Place Finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Points Lead
for Harvick
Hampton, Ga.
(March 10, 2008) — Returning to the East Coast, the
NASCAR Nationwide Series unloaded at one of NASCAR’s fastest
tracks, Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS) for the Nicorette 300 on
Saturday.
Teams pulled into
AMS Thursday for a full day of NASCAR inspection and returned
Friday for two practice sessions. Due to inclement weather, the
first morning practice session was canceled, leaving teams with
only one afternoon practice. Kevin Harvick and the No. 33
Camping World Chevrolet ran fast laps, improving the car
throughout. Harvick rounded out practice with the ninth fastest
time with a lap of 31.311 (177.062 mph). Arriving back at the
track on Saturday morning for qualifying followed by 300 miles
of fast-paced action around the 1.5-mile track, teams were faced
with an unusual sight for Atlanta, Ga. With cold temperatures
and a steady snowfall, qualifying for the Nicorette 300 was
canceled and set by the NASCAR rules. Based on last year’s
Owner’s Point Standings, Harvick lined up sixth on the starting
grid.
With sunny skies and
a dry track, teams took to the track Saturday afternoon for 195
laps and 300 miles around the fast 1.5-mile track. Rolling off
in the sixth position, Harvick moved into fourth place by lap 11
when the first caution flag of the day waved for a wreck in turn
one. Crew chief Wally Rogers made the call to stay out and
Harvick restarted on lap 15 in the fourth position.
By lap 28, Harvick
had moved into the third position and radioed Rogers that the
car was “a little tight up off.” Immediately following the radio
exchange, the second yellow flag of the day waved. The team
entered pit road in the third position, taking on four tires
with half a pound of air pressure removed from the left side
tires and fuel. After examining the tires, Rogers let Harvick
know the “tires looked good.” On the lap 31 restart, Harvick
crossed the line in the fourth position. Losing several
positions, Harvick was scored in the eighth spot on lap 35.
Beginning to make
his move toward the front of the pack, Harvick was in the fifth
position when the race was slowed for the third time on lap 48.
Rogers made the call for Harvick to stay out and restarted on
lap 52 in the fifth position. On the restart, Harvick made a
bold move, passing the No. 5 car and then going four-wide in
turn one to take the lead. Several laps later, while in the
fourth spot, Harvick radioed Rogers to let him know the car was
way too tight off turn two. Ten laps into the run, Harvick was
one of the fastest cars on the track and Rogers radioed Harvick
saying “what you’ve found there is really working.” On lap 74,
Harvick moved the No. 33 car moved into the second position.
With the race
continuing under green-flag conditions, Rogers called Harvick
down pit road on lap 88 for four sticker tires and fuel. After
filtering through green-flag pit stops, Harvick was in the fifth
position on lap 101 when the fourth caution of the day was
brought out. The team made the decision to stay out and
restarted third on lap 106.
As with other
restarts of the day, within 10 laps, Harvick was extremely fast
and had moved into the second position. Caution number five
waved on lap 141 with Harvick pitting on lap 143 from the second
position. The team took on four tires with an air pressure
adjustment and fuel. Rogers again inspected the tires and let
Harvick know that the set looked good. Harvick in return asked
about fuel mileage and Rogers assured him he was good to the
end, no need to save fuel. The race was restarted on lap 145
with the No. 33 in the second position.
Maintaining his spot
behind the dominant car of Kyle Busch, the race was slowed for
the sixth time of the day when Busch’s No. 20 blew a tire in
turn one, hitting the wall. With a loose-handling car, the No.
33 team pitted for four scuffed tires and fuel. After a slow pit
stop, Harvick and the No. 33 Camping World team restarted in the
sixth position with 20 laps remaining in the Nicorette 300.
Making his move
toward the front, Harvick was able to move back into the second
position by lap 188. The seventh caution of the race came on lap
189 when the No. 41, No. 24 and No. 5 cars were involved in a
wreck on the backstretch. NASCAR stopped the field on the
frontstretch, red flagging the race for seven minutes and 53
seconds. Restarting on lap 192, Harvick made a challenge for the
lead, only to have the yellow flag waved on lap 193 for the
eighth and final time. With this caution, the race was forced to
end under the green-white-checked rule. Cars restarted on lap
196 with Harvick in the second position.
Harvick held his
position and took the checkered flag in the second position.
Leaving Atlanta Motor Speedway, Harvick now has the NASCAR
Nationwide Series points lead heading into the World’s Fastest
Half-Mile, Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway.
After the Race with
Harvick:
“We had a good car today,” said Harvick. “Obviously once we got
the track position where we needed to be, we for sure were not
quite as good as the 20, but we put ourselves in a position to
win. We just kind of gave it away on the last pit stop and
didn’t have enough time to get back through there. I’m proud of
the guys for everything they’ve done, but disappointed at the
same time that we’re not capitalizing on the situation. When you
get handed those situations, you’ve got to capitalize on them.” | 
