After starting the Aarons 312 from the third position, Kevin Harvick settled in near the back of the pack in efforts to preserve his No. 22 Armour Chevrolet throughout the early laps on Saturday afternoon, before getting involved in the “big-one” during the final scheduled lap of the event, relegating the Richard Childress Racing team to a 22nd-place finish at Talladega Superspeedway. After rain canceled qualifying on Friday, the 43-car field was set by points for the eighth race of the 2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series season, lining up the No. 33 Armour Chevrolet in the second row. The Bakersfield, Calif., native dropped to the back of the pack soon after the field took the green flag to protect his engine from the high water and oil temperatures of pack racing. Throughout the course of the race, Harvick brought the Armour Chevrolet to pit road on five separate occasions for scheduled pit stops, gradually making his way toward the front as the laps ticked away. The Ernie Cope-led crew completed their final fuel only pit stop on lap 82 sending their driver back on track in the top position. The RCR veteran driver continued to run within the top five until the final scheduled lap, when another car made contact with the No. 33 machine on the backstretch, sending Harvick for a spin collecting several other drivers. The late-race accident left Harvick and the Armour crew with a 22nd-place finish, dropping the No. 33 team to fourth in the Nationwide Series owner’s championship point standings.
Start – 3 Finish – 22 Laps Led – 8 Owner’s Points – 4
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTE:
“What a race. I think there were just too many cars going for the same position at the end, which lead to the wreck. I really thought that we had a chance to get the Armour Chevrolet in victory lane today but that’s racing. I’m really proud of the whole RCR team and our performance today.”