This Week’s Budweiser Chevrolet at New Hampshire Motor Speedway ... Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No.400 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend’s SYLVANIA 300. Built new for competition during the 2012 season, this RCR Chevrolet will make its first competitive laps this weekend at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Just the Stats ... This weekend’s event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway marks Harvick’s 422nd career start in the Sprint Cup Series and 24th at the 1.058-mile track. Since 2001, the 36-year-old driver has collected one win (Fall 2006), one pole award (Fall 2006), five top-five and 12 top-10 finishes at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Harvick maintains a 14th-place average starting position, an average finishing position of 13.8, has completed 99.2 percent (6,721 of 6,775) of laps contested and is credited with 319 laps led.
Getting Loopy in Loudon ... Harvick has made 15 Sprint Cup Series starts at the Loudon, N.H.-based facility since the inception of NASCAR’s Loop Data Statistics in 2006. The Bakersfield, Calif., native has led 252 laps ranking him fifth amongst his competitors. Harvick has spent 2,875 Laps in the Top 15 and has a Driver Rating of 92.4 positioning him fourth in both categories. The RCR driver also ranks ninth in Average Running Position (12.907), Fastest Laps Run (147) and Green Flag Speed (124.169 mph).
The Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup ... Following Sunday’s race at Chicagoland Speedway, the first event of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup, Harvick sits 10th in the “Chase” standings, 24 points behind leader Brad Keselowski.
Be(er) Responsible ... As part of “Global Be(er) Responsible Day” on Friday, September 21, Anheuser-Busch and its sister companies around the world will promote the company’s responsible drinking programs. In the United States, Anheuser-Busch employees will canvass street corners, place signs in their yards and visit restaurants, bars and grocery stores to spread the message and celebrate the company’s 30 years of leadership in alcohol responsibility. Harvick’s No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet featured a special “Designate a Driver” paint scheme last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway and adults are encouraged to join Harvick and the No. 29 team in the Nation of Responsible drinkers by taking the pledge to “Designate a Driver and Enjoy the Great Times” at www.NationOfResponsibleDrinkers.com. In the past three decades, Anheuser-Busch and its wholesalers have committed more than $930 million in national advertising campaigns and community-based programs to promote responsible drinking and prevent underage drinking and drunk driving. Recent research from GfK Custom Research North America shows promising news in the area of designated driver use and awareness, including that 65 percent of American adults - or 141 million people 21 or older - have been a designated driver or have been driven home by one.
Meet the Driver ... Race fans in attendance for the weekend’s activities at New Hampshire Motor Speedway will have the chance to meet Harvick during the NASCAR Driver Autograph Session on Friday, Sept. 21 from 5:15-6 p.m. Eastern Time. The autograph session will be located in the Fan Midway next to the SPEED stage.
You’re Invited to Happy’s Birthday Bash ... Harvick will celebrate his 37th birthday when Budweiser presents Happy’s Birthday Bash at The Fox Theater in his hometown of Bakersfield, Calif., on Saturday, Dec. 1. Country music star Craig Morgan will headline the charity event benefiting the Kevin Harvick Foundation with a special guest appearance by Bridgette Tatum. Tickets to the event, which is open to the public, go on sale Friday, Sept. 21 at 10 a.m. ET and can be purchased at www.vallitix.com, by phone at 1-888-825-5484, The Bakersfield Fox Theater Box office or any Vallitix outlet.
The Last Time By ... Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Designate a Driver Chevrolet team salvaged a 12th-place finish during the 2011 SYLVANIA 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway after poor fuel mileage forced the team to pit off sequence from the leaders and put Harvick back in traffic during the final portion of the race.
In the Rearview Mirror: Chicagoland Speedway ... Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Designate a Driver team scored a 12th-place finish in the GEICO 400 at Chicagoland Speedway Sunday afternoon after battling handling issues throughout the 267-lap event.
KEVIN HARVICK QUOTES:
What is the key to running well at New Hampshire Motor Speedway?
“The hardest thing is just making your car turn in the middle of the corner and being able to have enough forward drive off the corners. It always seems like the New Hampshire race comes down to a track position strategy call on two tires or four tires toward the end of the race. Track position will play a big part, but getting your car to handle right will probably play an equal part.”
What do you like about racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway?
“I always look forward to going to New Hampshire. I like that type of track because it’s flat, similar to the tracks out west where I started my racing career. There’s a lot of braking. You have to really work on getting your car through the center of the corner and still have the forward drive you need up off the corner.”
How has the track’s aging affected racing at New Hampshire Motor Speedway?
“I think when they changed the race track it made the racing better. It gave you some more options and I think as the track has aged since they’ve done that, the biggest bumps on the track are going into turn three, so those have gotten a little bit worse. But all in all it hasn’t changed a whole lot.”