This Week’s Race Car at Texas Motor Speedway Kevin Harvick will pilot Chassis No. 238 from the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) stable. Built new for the 2008 season, this is the same Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet Impala SS that Harvick drove to a seventh-place finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway and an eighth-place finish at Auto Club Speedway of Southern California.
Stat Facts
In 10 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series starts at Texas Motor Speedway, Harvick has two top-five and four top-10 finishes. Additionally, the Bakersfield, Calif., native has completed all but eight laps of competition.
Former Winner
Although Harvick is still searching for his first NASCAR Cup Series win at Texas, he has been no stranger to Victory Lane in the Lone Star State. In 2001, he drove the No. 2 Nationwide Series entry to Victory Lane, and then did the same in 2005, 2006 and 2007 behind the wheel of RCR’S No. 21 Chevy. Additionally, Harvick is looking to become the first driver to win five NASCAR Nationwide Series races at Texas Motor Speedway.
Points Check
Harvick jumped to second in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standings after his 12th-place finish last weekend at Martinsville Speedway. Harvick’s RCR teammate, Jeff Burton, took the points lead after his second-place showing at Martinsville, marking the first time in RCR history that its cars are 1-2 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings.
Strong Start
In the season’s first six races, Harvick has earned two top-five and four top-10 finishes and has finished in the top 15 in all six appearances. He currently enjoys a solid 12th-place starting average and a 7.8 finishing average. Over those same six races last season, Harvick’s average start was 23rd coupled with a 19.1 finishing average. He was 10th in points at this time last year.
And There Were Two
Harvick is one of only two drivers who have completed all laps of competition so far this season. Burton is the other driver to finish all 2,048 laps.
RCR at Texas
In 37 starts at Texas Motor Speedway, dating back to 1997, RCR has recorded on win, four top-five and 12 top-10 finishes with drivers Burton, Clint Bowyer, Dale Earnhardt, Harvick and Jeff Green. The lone victory came in spring 2007 when Burton passed Matt Kenseth on the final lap to capture the win. Prior to Texas Motor Speedway’s inaugural season, Childress, a former driver in NASCAR’s top division, earned a pair of top 10s while he was still behind the wheel at the now defunct Texas World Speedway in College Station.
Iron Man
Harvick has not recorded a DNF (did not finish) in 50 consecutive races. Harvick’s last DNF was at Dover in September 2006. Additionally, he has run 89 consecutive points-paying races without crashing out of a single one. Combined, Harvick has gone 157points races in NASCAR’s two top divisions without crashing out.
Help Chevy Help Autism
During April – Autism Awareness Month – people who go to the Autism Speaks website ( www.autismspeaks.org ), can click on the “Help Chevy Help Autism” icon and take a free virtual test drive of the 2008 North American Car of the Year – the all-new Chevy Malibu. Chevrolet has committed to a minimum contribution of $500,000, but every virtual test drive taken gets Chevrolet closer to its goal of donating up to $1 million to Autism Speaks to support its mission of increasing awareness of autism and raising money to fund autism research. Those who participate in the virtual test drive will be offered a free 30-day online trial of XM Satellite Radio.
March Madness Picks
Harvick currently leads the www.washingtonpost.com celebrity NCAA tournament pick challenge. The 2007 Daytona 500 winner has a one-point lead over second place Byron Mouton (former University of Maryland Basketball player) and a five-point lead over third place Antawn Jamison (Washington Wizards All-star Forward). Harvick has the University of North Carolina (UNC) and University of Memphis meeting in the finals with UNC winning the National Championship.
Meet the Press
Harvick will be available outside the No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil transporter to field questions from the gathered media Friday, March 28 at 11:40 a.m.
Double Down in the Lone Star State
In addition to his driving duties with the No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet, Harvick, a 32-time race winner in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, will drive Kevin Harvick Incorporated’s No. 33 entry in the April 5 O’Reilly 300. The race will air live on ESPN2 beginning at 3 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The race will also broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network (PRN) and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for the seventh of 35 races on the 2008 Nationwide Series calendar will air live Thursday, April 3 on SPEED at 6 p.m. EDT.
Up to Speed
Live coverage of the Samsung 500 at Texas Motor Speedway will take the green flag Sunday, April 6 at 1:30 p.m. EDT and will be telecast on FOX. The event will also be broadcast live on PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying for seventh of 36 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series races will air live on SPEED, PRN and Sirius Satellite Radio Friday, April 4 at 3:30 p.m. EDT.
| 
