After starting from the 33rd position and avoiding the infamous 'Big One,' Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Jimmy John's team finished 12th at Talladega Superspeedway. Following the strategy implemented by crew chief Gil Martin and the team before the race, the Richard Childress Racing driver laid back in the field during early stages of the race in an attempt to avoid the destruction that is synonymous with restrictor-plate racing. With roughly 50 laps remaining in the 188-lap affair, Harvick began working his way toward the front of the field settling into the top five before making a final pit stop on lap 163 for right-side tires and fuel under green-flag conditions. The California native returned to the track without a drafting partner and fell as far back as 25th before crossing the finish line 12th. Following the sixth race in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Harvick is tied for third in the point standings, 26 markers out of the lead.
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:
"We got ourselves in position to be where we needed to be at the end of the race coming to the last pit stop and then lost everything that we gained when we couldn't find a drafting partner when we came off of pit road. I just hate it for all our Jimmy John's guys. We had a strategy that we stuck to and then we were just last off of pit road."