Kevin Harvick Clinches Chase Berth at Kentucky,Sparta Kentucky

Posted by Wayne G. Barber

                 Budweiser/Jimmy John’s Driver Records 16^th Top-10 of 2015

Date: July 11, 2015

Event: Kentucky 400 (Round 18 of 36)

Series: NASCAR Sprint Cup Series

Location: Kentucky Speedway in Sparta (1.5-mile oval)

Start/Finish: 15^th/8^th (Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)

Point Standing: 1st (692 points, 68 points ahead of second)

Winner: Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)

  Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Budweiser/Jimmy John’s Chevrolet SS for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), finished eighth in the Kentucky 400 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta on Saturday night. The finish put Harvick 410 points ahead of the driver listed 31^st in the points standings and clinched his berth in the 10-race NASCAR Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.

NASCAR introduced a new low-downforce aerodynamics package this weekend at Kentucky Speedway. Due to constant rain, NASCAR cancelled a scheduled test on Wednesday as well as a makeup test day on Thursday. Teams were able to participate in a rain-shortened practice on Friday afternoon, but the rain returned and NASCAR decided to cancel Sprint Cup qualifying in favor of an extended practice session late Friday afternoon. The field for Saturday’s race was set according to the NASCAR rule book, with the reigning Sprint Cup champion Harvick starting in the 15^th position.
At the beginning of the race Harvick reported that the No. 4 Chevrolet was loose in, so the team went to work making adjustments with each stop on pit road. Harvick raced his way up to third by lap 157.

Harvick brought the Budweiser/Jimmy John’s Chevrolet to pit road under caution on lap 210 for a four-tire pit stop and returned to the racetrack in the 10^th position as the first car with four fresh tires. He raced the No. 4 Chevrolet up to eighth by the final caution on lap 221. Following the restart Harvick advanced up to the seventh position, but he crossed the finish line in the eighth spot.

“I’m really proud of everyone on our Budweiser/Jimmy John’s team for the work they did this weekend getting ready for this new package,” said Harvick, who scored his third top-10 in five career Sprint Cup starts at Kentucky and his 16^th top-10 this season. “We were definitely sliding around more often on restarts, but as you got going the cars just kind of got spread out and I thought the gaps were a little bit bigger. Definitely a lot of information to take away from this and looking forward to Indy in a couple of weeks to see what we take away from there.”​

  Harvick’s eighth-place finish led the four-car SHR contingent Saturday night. Kurt Busch, driver of the No. 41 Haas Automation Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 10^th to earn his third top-10 in five career Sprint Cup starts at Kentucky and his 10^th top-10 this season.

Tony Stewart, driver of the No. 14 Rush Truck Centers Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 33^rd.

Danica Patrick, driver of the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet SS for SHR, finished 34^th.

Kyle Busch won the Kentucky 400 to score his 31^st career Sprint Cup victory, his second this season and his second at Kentucky.

Joey Logano finished 1.594 seconds behind Busch, while Denny Hamlin, Carl Edwards and Matt Kenseth rounded out the top-five. Brad Keselowski, Jeff Gordon, Harvick, Jimmie Johnson and Kurt Busch comprised the remainder of the top-10.

There were 11 caution periods for 49 laps, with three drivers failing to finish the 267-lap race around the 1.5-mile oval.With round 18 of 36 complete, Harvick leads SHR in the championship point standings. He is first with 692 points, 68 ahead of second-place Johnson. Busch is eighth with 542 points, 150 out of first. With two wins apiece, teammates Harvick and Busch are locked into the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Patrick is 22^nd with 396 points, 77 out of 16^th, the cutoff position to make the 16-driver Chase field on points. Stewart is 28^th with 342 points, 131 out of 16^th.

The next event on the Sprint Cup schedule is the New Hampshire 301 on Sunday, July 19 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. The race starts at 1:30 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by NBC Sports Network. I hope to see you all there !