Kevin Harvick and the No. 33 Armour Vienna Sausages team collected a fifth-place finish in the 300-lap NASCAR Nationwide Series event at Bristol Motor Speedway on Saturday afternoon. The Bakersfield, Calif., native took the green flag from the seventh spot and quickly began a charge toward the front of the field, settling into second on lap 33. Harvick reported a loose-handling condition during the early stages of the race, but maintained a position in the top five. As the event progressed, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series regular informed his team that the car's handling had switched from loose to tight, as he continued to run solid lap times, taking over the top spot on lap 196. Persistent handling issues caused Harvick to relinquish the lead on lap 237. The No. 33 Richard Childress Racing team used the final caution period to make one final attempt at improving the car's handling, taking four fresh tires and adding fuel. Harvick lined up eighth for the final restart and picked up three positions before the checkered flag waved, capturing a fifth-place finish.
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:
"We just got too tight at the end and weren't able to get back out front. The Armour Vienna Sausages Chevrolet was fast today, but we lost the handling at the end. It was a fun race and the team worked hard, but we came here to win and we just couldn't get it done today."