Gregory Jack Biffle
Born	(1969-12-23) December 23, 1969 (age 42) Vancouver, Washington, United States
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg)
Achievements	2000 Craftsman Truck Series Champion 2002 Busch Series Champion
Awards	1998 Craftsman Truck Series Rookie of the Year 2001 Busch Series Rookie of the Year 2002 Busch Series Most Popular Driver
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career
342 race(s) run over 11 year(s)
Car no., team	No. 16 (Roush Fenway Racing)
2011 position	16th
Best finish	2nd – 2005
First race	2002 NAPA Auto Parts 500 (Fontana)
Last race	2012 Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)
First win	2003 Pepsi 400 (Daytona)
Last win	2012 Samsung Mobile 500 Texas Motor Speedway
Wins Top tens Poles 17 131 11
NASCAR Nationwide Series career
244 race(s) run over 11 year(s)
Best finish	1st – 2002
First race	1996 AC-Delco 200 (Rockingham)
Last race	2010 Tech-Net Auto Service 300 (Charlotte)
First win	2001 Pepsi 300 Presented by Mapco/Williams (Nashville)
Last win	2009 Bashas' Supermarkets 200 (Phoenix)
Wins Top tens Poles 20 149 14
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
81 race(s) run over 5 year(s)
Best finish	1st – 2000
First race	1998 Chevy Trucks Challenge (Orlando)
Last race	2004 Ford 200 (Homestead)
First win	1999 Memphis 200 (Memphis)
Last win	2001 Chevy Silverado 150 (Phoenix)
Wins Top tens Poles 16 54 12
Statistics current as of May 27, 2012.

Gregory Jack "Greg" Biffle (born December 23, 1969 in Vancouver, Washington^[1]) is a NASCAR driver who drives the #16 3M Ford Fusion for Roush Fenway Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-90s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former announcer Benny Parsons. He subsequently became champion in NASCAR's other two national touring divisions, the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series.

Racing career[link]

Biffle grew up in Camas, Washington and began his racing career driving on short tracks around the Pacific Northwest. He first gained national attention as a driver when he raced in the nationally televised Winter Heat Series in the winter of 1995–1996. Biffle dominated the series championship that winter, leading former ESPN announcer and NASCAR champion, Benny Parsons, to recommend the driver to Jack Roush.^[2]

Biffle entered the first two races of the 1996 Winston West Series, finishing 30th at Tucson and 4th at Altamont. His debut in one of NASCAR's national divisions came later that year when he ran the final two Busch Series races of the season. Driving a Chevrolet for Dick Bown, he finished 23rd at Rockingham but lost an engine the following race at Homestead and finished 36th.

In 1997, Biffle competed in the now-defunct NASCAR Northwest Series and won the Most Popular Driver Award.^[3]

Truck Series[link]

Roush Racing promoted Biffle to a full-time driver in the Craftsman Truck Series in 1998. Despite not winning a race that season, Biffle's four pole positions are the most by a Truck Series rookie to date and they helped him earn an 8th place finish in the final standings and the Rookie of the Year Award. He followed it up with a stellar 1999 season in which he recorded nine wins, a single-season Truck Series record that still stands as of 2009^[update]. He finished second in the final standings, just eight points behind champion Jack Sprague.

In 2000, Biffle won the Truck Series title with another five-win season, beating his Roush teammate Kurt Busch by 230 points. It was Biffle's first championship in one of NASCAR's three major series. It was announced that Biffle would move up to the Busch Series for 2001; however, he ran four more Truck races for Roush that season and won at Phoenix. Biffle's last Truck Series start was in 2004 for another long-time Ford team, Circle Bar Racing, at Homestead.

Busch/Nationwide Series[link]

Biffle joined the Busch Series full-time in 2001 and won the Rookie of the Year Award with five wins a fourth-place finish in the final standings. The following season, he won another four races and earned 20 top-five finishes out of 34 races en route to his first Busch Series title and the second NASCAR national championship of his career.

He ran only part-time in 2003 as Roush moved him up to a full-time ride in the Winston Cup Series for that season, but he returned to contend for the Busch Series championship again in 2004. He placed third in the standings behind Martin Truex, Jr. and Kyle Busch. From 2005 to 2009, Biffle raced part-time for Roush Fenway Racing in the Busch (now Nationwide Series) every year. He won twice in 2009, at Las Vegas and Phoenix, after going winless the previous two seasons. Biffle returned to the Nationwide Series in 2010, driving the #27 Ford for Baker Curb Racing.^[4]

Cup Series[link]

2008 Cup racecar

Biffle attempted his Cup Series debut by trying to qualify a Roush Ford for the 2002 Daytona 500 but failed to make the race. He would make his first Cup start for Roush nine races later at California. His 13th place finish in that race was his best finish in seven 2002 races as he also drove four races in a Chevrolet for Andy Petree Racing and two in a Dodge for Petty Enterprises.

Biffle began competing full-time in NASCAR's top division in 2003, with sponsorship from W. W. Grainger, who had previously sponsored him in his Busch and Truck Series rides. He earned his first win in the Pepsi 400 at Daytona that season and finished second to Jamie McMurray (who would later join him as a teammate at Roush) for Raybestos Rookie of the Year. Biffle placed 20th in the final points standings.

Biffle made an immediate impact in his sophomore season in 2004, earning the pole in the Daytona 500. Despite missing NASCAR's first-ever Chase for the NEXTEL Cup, Biffle won twice that season, at Michigan and Homestead en route to a 17th place finish in the final points standings.

2005 was Biffle's breakout season. He won six races, the most of any driver that year, and qualified for the Chase for the first time in his career. He won at California Speedway. Texas, Darlington,Dover and Michigan along with the season finale at Homestead to finish second in the standings, 35 points behind champion Tony Stewart (Biffle tied with teammate Carl Edwards in points but won the tie-breaker based on race wins).

Biffle regressed in 2006, missing the Chase for the Cup despite winning twice, at Darlington Raceway and Homestead-Miami Speedway (both of which were tracks at which he had also won in the previous season). He finished 13th in the standings, third-best of the drivers not to qualify for the Chase. He also missed the Chase the following year, in a season marred by the #16 team's new primary sponsor Ameriquest Mortgage suffering financial difficulty and having to sell off a number of its race sponsorships. Biffle won just once in 2007, at Kansas Speedway, and finished 14th in the standings, second-best of the non-Chase drivers as the Chase expanded to a 12-driver format that year.

In June 2008, Biffle signed a 3-year contract extension with Roush Fenway Racing.^[5] Despite going winless during the 26-race regular season, Biffle made for the Chase for the Sprint Cup that year and won the first two Chase races, at New Hampshire and Dover. In doing so, he became the first driver to win the first two Chase races in a season.

Biffle qualified for the Chase for the second year in a row in 2009 but, for the first time since 2002 (when he ran a limited schedule), failed to record a win. During a January 2009 test, Biffle managed to reach 218 miles per hour (351 km/h) in a test for Roush Fenway Racing as part of evading NASCAR's testing ban. This became the fastest time ever achieved on this track by any competitor (amateur or professional).

In 2010 Biffle qualified for the third year in a row for the Chase despite spotty performance in the regular season. He scored 2 wins at Pocono and Kansas. For 2011, Biffle's season improved, thanks in part to the implementation of Ford's new FR9 engine. However, crew chief Greg Erwin was replaced after Kentucky by Matt Puccia. The addition of Puccia helped Biffle's perfomance late in the season, despite the team missing the Chase and finishing 16th in points. Biffle missed the chase in 2011 for the first time since 2007.^{[citation needed]}

In 2012, Biffle and Puccia remained at RFR, and gained the points lead after Las Vegas after three consecutive third place finishes. Eerily, the third place at Vegas came in Biffle's 333rd Cup start. Biffle's first win of the 2012 season came at Texas Motor Speedway in the Samsung Mobile 500 after passing Jimmie Johnson with 30 laps left in the race.^[6]

Personal life[link]

Greg Biffle signs autographs along pit lane at Pocono Raceway

Greg is married to Nicole (née Lunders) since October 17, 2007.^[7] The couple were married in South Carolina and now live in Mooresville, North Carolina. Biffle and his wife welcomed their daughter, Emma Elizabeth on July 6, 2011. She weighted 7 lbs and 6 oz.

Greg is a fan of fishing and enjoys deep sea fishing in Mexico, where he keeps a factory sponsored Luhrs fishing boat. Greg formerly owned a pub venture in his hometown of Vancouver called "Biffle's Pub and Grill" located at 11500 NE 76th St. He is a private pilot and owns a Cessna 210.^[8] Greg owns an 07 Ford GT and an 07 Shelby Mustang.

Appearances in media[link]

Greg guest starred in a 2005 episode of CBS's situational comedy Yes, Dear, entitled, "On Your Marks, Get Set, Mow". Biffle portrayed himself as a NASCAR racer moonlighting in a small-time lawnmower racing series.

Greg appeared on a special features scene of the 2006 NASCAR-themed comedy film, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, but was not credited with appearing in the film itself.

On December 22, 2007 Greg appeared on the Food Network show Paula's Party with cook Paula Deen to cook steak,^[9] and take Paula for a ride in his 2007 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.^[10]

Greg was a regular panelist on the Speed program, This Week in NASCAR which stopped airing at the end of the 2009 season.

Greg appeared on an episode of Speed Network TV's show "Pass Time" filmed in 2009, he ran is Mustang GT500 in 10.11 seconds.

Greg Biffle Foundation[link]

Greg also has a foundation in his name that he and Nicole manage. Their primary goal is to create awareness and serve as an advocate to improve the well-being of animals by engaging the power and passion of the motorsports industry. The foundation donates to local Humane Societies, no-kill animal shelters, spay and neuter clinics, and the Animal Adoption League.

Career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Statistics[link]

Data as of February 18, 2012^[11]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Greg Biffle at Racing Reference
• Greg Biffle at Roush Fenway Racing
• Greg Biffle at NASCAR.com
• Greg Biffle at The Coca-Cola Racing Family
• The Greg Biffle Foundation

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (May 2009)

Kevin Michael Harvick
Born	(1975-12-08) December 8, 1975 (age 36) Bakersfield, California, United States
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight	175 lb (79 kg)
Achievements	1998 NASCAR Winston West Series Champion 2001, 2006 NASCAR Busch Series Champion 2002 IROC Champion 2003 Brickyard 400 Winner 2007 Daytona 500 Winner 2007 Sprint All-Star Race XXIII Winner 2009, 2010 Budweiser Shootout Winner
Awards	1995 NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series Rookie of the Year 2000 NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of the Year 2001 NASCAR Busch Series Most Popular Driver 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career
406 race(s) run over 12 year(s)
Car no., team	No. 29 (Richard Childress Racing)
2011 position	3rd
Best finish	3rd – 2010, 2011
First race	2001 Dura Lube 400 (Rockingham)
Last race	2012 Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte)
First win	2001 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500 (Atlanta)
Last win	2011 Wonderful Pistachios 400 (Richmond)
Wins Top tens Poles 18 180 5
NASCAR Nationwide Series career
282 race(s) run over 14 year(s)
Car no., team	No. 33 (Richard Childress Racing)
2011 position	99
Best finish	1st – 2001, 2006
First race	1999 Kmart 200 (Rockingham)
Last race	2012 History 300 (Charlotte)
First win	2000 Carquest Auto Parts 250 (Gateway)
Last win	2010 Virginia 529 College Savings 250 (Richmond)
Wins Top tens Poles 37 205 24
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
119 race(s) run over 16 year(s)
Truck no., team	No. 2 (Richard Childress Racing)
2011 position	82nd
Best finish	12th – 1999
First race	1995 Spears Manufacturing 200 (Mesa Marin)
Last race	2012 Lucas Oil 200 (Dover)
First win	2002 Chevy Silverado 150 (Phoenix)
Last win	2012 Kroger 250 (Martinsville)
Wins Top tens Poles 14 61 4
Statistics current as of June 1, 2012.

Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American NASCAR driver. He drives the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet Impala for Richard Childress Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. Harvick, until 2011, also owned a race team, Kevin Harvick Incorporated, that ran in the Nationwide Series and the Camping World Truck Series.

Early life[link]

Harvick began kart racing after his parents Mike and JoNell bought him a go-kart as a kindergarten graduation gift in 1980. For the next 10 years, Harvick became a highly successful driver on the go-kart circuit. He earned seven national championships and two Grand National championships. In 1992, he started racing late models part-time in the NASCAR Featherlite Southwest Series and he competed there while still in high school. Harvick's father built him his first car to compete in the lower NASCAR Series by using the money he earned to run his own garage, Harvick Motorsports. When Harvick could not race, such as in the winter, he competed on his high school wrestling team at North High School in Bakersfield, California. He won a section title in his weight class his senior year. He then graduated and became a full-time driver and earned the honor of Rookie of the Year in 1995.

NASCAR career[link]

Early career[link]

Harvick made his Camping World Truck Series (was Craftsman Truck Series) debut in 1995 at Mesa Marin Raceway, in his hometown of Bakersfield, where he started and finished 27th in his family-owned #72. He drove four races in the #72 the next season, his best finish was 11th at Mesa Marin. In 1997, he signed to drive the #75 for Spears Motorsports mid-season, posting two eight-place finishes. He ran a full schedule the next season, posting 3 top-fives and finishing 17th in points. Harvick also moved up to the NASCAR Grand National Division, AutoZone West Series in 1997, and in 1998 Harvick won five races on his way to the Winston West Series championship while driving for spears He received his real first national exposure during the winter of 1997/1998 on ESPN2's coverage of the NASCAR Winter Heat Series at Tucson Raceway Park. In 1999, he drove the #98 Porter Cable Ford for Liberty Racing, finishing 12th in points with six top-fives.

1999–2000: NASCAR Busch Series[link]

On October 23, 1999, Harvick made his first NASCAR Busch Series (now Nationwide Series) start in the Kmart 200 at the Rockingham Speedway in the #2 Invica Chevrolet. He would start 24th and finish 42nd due to engine failure. The race would be his only start in 1999. In 2000, Harvick would sign with Richard Childress Racing to drive the #2 AC Delco Chevrolet for his first full Busch Series season. Despite failing to qualify the second race of the season at Rockingham, Harvick would go on to win the NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of the Year with 3 wins, 8 top-five finishes and 16 top-tens as well as garnering a third place points finish.

2001: Replacing a Legend[link]

For 2001, Childress planned to run Harvick in the #2 Chevy in the Busch Series full-time again, while developing him into the Winston Cup Series (now Sprint Cup Series) with up to seven races in the #30 AOL Chevy. He planned to race Harvick for a full schedule in 2002. Childress' plans changed when Dale Earnhardt was killed during the 2001 Daytona 500 and tapped Harvick to be Earnhardt's replacement. For Harvick's first two races the car ran an inverted color scheme, the number changed from 3 to 29, and the pit crew wore generic uniforms. In the third race of the season, the car was painted white and red, while Harvick wore a white-and-red uniform. His pit crew continued to wear the traditional GM Goodwrench Service Plus uniforms.

On March 11, 2001 at the Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500, only three weeks after Earnhardt's death, Harvick won his first career Winston Cup victory in just his third start by narrowly edging Jeff Gordon at Atlanta Motor Speedway, reinvigorating not only his team, the fans, but NASCAR as well. He won the race by only six one-thousandths of a second (.006), proving to be one of the closest finishes in NASCAR history since the introduction of electronic scoring in 1993. After the win, Harvick performed a tire-smoking burnout on the front stretch. Remembering Dale Earnhardt, with three fingers held aloft outside the driver's window, he ran the track backwards as a show of honor and respect.^[1] He recorded his second Cup win of his career at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Illinois. At the end of the season, he finished with 2 victories, 6 top-fives, and 16 top-tens. Harvick was awarded with the NASCAR Rookie of the Year Award, and secured a ninth-place finish in the 2001 points standings. He also won the Busch Series championship, becoming the first driver to win the Busch Series championship while also driving full-time in the Winston Cup Series with a top-ten finish. Harvick would end the season winning 6 pole positions, and driving in 70 races: 35 Cup Series, The Winston, 33 Busch races, and 1 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (at Richmond International Raceway) for Rick Carelli.

2002–2006: The GM Goodwrench Era[link]

In 2002, Kevin Harvick would spend the season concentrating on running the Cup Series and would only start four races in the Busch Series. He would only have 1 top-ten in those four starts. Harvick began the 2002 season with a fine for a post race incident with Greg Biffle at Bristol Motor Speedway. Later, he was suspended for rough driving following a Truck race at Martinsville, Virginia. Harvick scored his first career Winston Cup pole position; this coming at the Daytona International Speedway. Later in the season, he scored his third Winston Cup Victory, finishing first at the Chicagoland Speedway. He finished 21st in the 2002 points standings with 1 win, 5 top-fives, and 8 top-tens. Harvick became the 2002 IROC Champion in his first season in the Series, winning at the California Speedway. In Trucks, Harvick began fielding his own #6 truck, driving himself in five races and winning at Phoenix.

In the 2003 season, Harvick teamed with now former crew chief Todd Berrier in the Cup Series, whom he had won the Busch championship with in 2001. Together, they won the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis in August. Harvick and his team jumped from 21st in the final 2002 points standings, to fifth in the 2003 standings, coming within 252 points of first place Matt Kenseth. In the Busch Series, Harvick was teamed with Johnny Sauter, driving the #21 Hershey's-sponsored PayDay car. The two would combine for 3 wins, 16 top-fives and 24 top-tens, with Harvick posting all 3 wins. They would give Childress the NASCAR Busch Series owner's championship that season, with the driver's championship going to Brian Vickers. It would be the first time that the championship would be split between two teams. Harvick drove in 19 of the 34 races, and Sauter drove in the other 15. Harvick also scored 8 pole positions and finished 16th in the driver's standings.

While winless in the 2004 season, Harvick placed third in the most popular driver voting. He had fourteen top-ten finishes and finished fourteenth in points. In 2004, Harvick was again paired with another driver in the Busch Series, rookie Clint Bowyer. They combined for 1 win, 13 top-fives and 20 top-tens in the #21 Hershey's-sponsored car, with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups being promoted. Harvick drove the #29 ESGR/Coast Guard Busch car in the final race of the season at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the Ford 300, which he would claim his second win of the season. He finished 20th in the driver's standings. The #21 car finished fourth in the owner's standings.

In the 2005 season, Harvick's only Cup win came at the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway, despite starting towards the rear of the field. He won without the assistance of Crew Chief Todd Berrier, who was serving a four-week suspension for a rules violation. The following year, he continued driving the #29 car for Childress in the Sprint Cup Series. With General Motors' financial situation, GM Goodwrench cut back sponsorship, and was joined as primary sponsor for one-third (1/3) of the schedule by Hershey's, with various brands (primarily Reese's) on the car. In the Busch Series, Harvick was paired with Brandon Miller. Harvick and Miller combined for 3 wins, 15 top-fives and 19 top-tens to give the #21 its second fourth-place finish in the owner's standings. Harvick would also drive the #29 Reese's Chocolate Lovers Cup car to Victory Lane in the first "sweep" of his career on Monday, April 4, 2005 in the Rain-Delayed Food City 250 at Bristol Motor Speedway to go along with the Food City 500 win the day before, to give him a record fourth Busch Series win at the track (tying with Morgan Shepherd). Harvick finished 18th in the driver's standings.

Kevin Harvick awaiting Happy Hour prior to his win at Phoenix

In 2006, Harvick decided to run both of NASCAR's top two series full-time. He won his first Busch Series race of the 2006 season. He followed the win with a weekend sweep of the Busch Series and Sprint Cup races at Phoenix International Raceway. Later in the season, Harvick won the Sprint Cup race at Watkins Glen International.

On September 9, 2006, Harvick, only needing to finish 40th or better to clinch a spot in the chase, did better by slipping by Kyle Busch in turn four going into the final lap and holding onto the lead to win the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway. This was his third win of the season, and his second "sweep" of the season, having won the Emerson Radio 250 the night before. This allowed Harvick, along with teammate, Jeff Burton, their First berth, and First for Richard Childress Racing, in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. On September 17, 2006, Starting from the Pole, Harvick won the first race of the chase at New Hampshire International Speedway, in the Sylvania 300. He dominated the race and by winning, was able to take the lead in the point standings for the first time in his career.

Harvick (#21) during his 2006 Busch championship season

Harvick would have a substandard Chase run, falling to sixth in the point standings, until finishing third in Texas and following that up with another dominating performance in the Checker Auto Parts 500 at Phoenix International Raceway on November 12, 2006, winning the race, and moving into 3rd place in the point standings. At the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Harvick would finish fifth in the race and slip to fourth in the final standings to eventual 2006 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson. In the Busch Series, Harvick would be scheduled to run all 35 races, with three different cars (#21, #33, #29) and two different teams, Richard Childress Racing and his own team, Kevin Harvick Incorporated. Harvick had 9 wins, 23 top-fives and 32 top-tens. He clinched the 2006 NASCAR Busch Series championship on October 13, 2006 at Lowe's Motor Speedway in the Dollar General 300. It was the earliest clinch of the championship ever in the Busch Series, locking up the title with four races to go. He ended the season with a record 824-point margin in the final standings.

2007–2010: The Shell/Pennzoil era[link]

In 2007, his Cup team again split primary sponsors, with Hershey's being joined by new primary sponsor Shell Oil Company and their Pennzoil brand.^[2] On Sunday, February 18, 2007 in the season-opening Daytona 500, Harvick claimed his first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory in a restrictor plate race with a dramatic final lap pass over Mark Martin by .020 seconds in a green-white-checkered finish, the closest margin at the 500 since electronic scoring started in 1993. The race was on the sixth anniversary of the death of his predecessor at Richard Childress Racing, Dale Earnhardt. He would become only the fourth NASCAR driver to sweep both the Nationwide and Cup races in the opening weekend at Daytona (along with Bobby Allison (1988), Darrell Waltrip (1989), and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (2004)). Harvick also tied Benny Parsons for the fewest number of laps led by a Daytona 500 winner, who did it in 1975 (the year Harvick was born) with four laps. He started 34th (lowest ever by a winner at the track), and became the first Nationwide Series champion to win the Daytona 500 the following year. With the win, Harvick also became the sixth of seven drivers to win both the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400 joining Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt, Dale Jarrett, Bill Elliott, Jimmie Johnson, and Jamie McMurray.^[3][4] Four days after Harvick won the Daytona 500 in his inaugural race with Shell-Pennzoil as a primary sponsor, Harvick's team owner, Richard Childress, was asked by NASCAR to downsize the Shell logo on his fire suit and to have Harvick wear a more prominent Pennzoil logo, in an effort to play down any perceived competition with Sunoco. Sunoco asked NASCAR to talk with Richard Childress after Harvick won both the Nationwide Series and Sprint Cup Series races wearing a prominent Shell logo on his fire suit.^[5] For the rest of the season, Harvick won the Sprint All-Star Race and finished tenth in points.

In 2007, Harvick started the Nationwide Series season by winning the Orbitz 300 at Daytona, claiming his first win in a restrictor plate race, as well as the first win for new sponsor AutoZone in NASCAR Nationwide Series competition. He also took the Checkers at New Hampshire International Speedway, winning the Camping World 200 presented by RVs.com. He also won the inaugural NAPA Auto Parts 200 at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Harvick would end his partial Nationwide Series season fourth in points.

2008 Sprint Cup car

Harvick went winless in 2008, but he was still able to post a fourth-place in the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup. The fourth-place finish in the 2008 standings tied 2006 for his highest points position at the end of the season. Harvick also went the entire season without a single DNF for the second straight year. In the Nationwide Series, he ran twenty-two races for his own team with sponsorship from Camping World, Rheem, and RoadLoans. He did not win a race in this series either. His lone win came in a Truck race at Phoenix.

2009 Sprint Cup car following a crash

Harvick started the 2009 season by winning the Budweiser Shootout with a last-lap pass on Jamie McMurray, reminiscent of his win in the 2007 Daytona 500. He also launched a new social networking site, Fan Central, for his fans.^[6] A few days later Harvick damaged his primary car for the 2009 Daytona 500. The team decided to switch to the car he drove in the shootout. Harvick went on to finish second in the second shortest Daytona 500 in NASCAR history.

At the Auto Club Speedway in California, Harvick blew his engine and it forced him to not finish the race, which resulted in his first DNF in 82 starts. Harvick won the first 2009 Nationwide Series race at Bristol, his first win in his own car. In addition, he won the Camping World Truck Series race at Martinsville Speedway. During the season, Gil Martin became the new crew chief for Harvick as Childress decided to switch all team members of the #07 and #29 except the drivers and spotters, thus giving Casey Mears Harvick's crew chief Todd Berrier.^[7] In the first five races following the switch, Harvick finished with an average of 25.4, finishing 34th, 11th, 41st, 17th, and 24th respectively. A short time later, reports surfaced stating that Harvick had asked a release of his contract at the end of the 2009 season to secure a ride at Stewart Haas Racing for the 2010 season with intentions of bringing Shell-Pennzoil sponsorship with him. When asked about the request, Childress stated that Harvick and Shell-Pennzoil will stay with RCR in 2010.^[8] Harvick did not comment publicly on the subject of where he would be driving in 2010. The first race after the story broke, Kevin finished 6th at the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His best race came at the Pep Boys Auto 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where Harvick had the best car in a long run and led for most of the race, but was denied victory after a late race caution from which later eventual race winner Kasey Kahne took advantage of when he went past Harvick on the restart; he finished 2nd.

Harvick started 2010 the same way he did in 2009 by winning the Budweiser Shootout with a pass in the penultimate lap in a green-white-checkered situation seconds before an incident behind them, resulting then in a caution that automatically ended the race. Harvick placed 2nd in his Gatorade Duel by inches to Jimmie Johnson. He led the most laps in the Daytona 500, but ended up finishing 7th. He followed up his 7th at Daytona with a 2nd at Fontana, California's Auto Club Speedway again to Jimmie Johnson; after the race, Harvick told media members that the #48 team (Jimmie Johnson) "had a golden horseshoe stuck up their ass". Following the race, Harvick followed up with another 2nd place finish to Johnson at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as well as a Nationwide Series win. He won the Aaron's 499 in a crazy Lap 200 (third green-white-checker finish situation) pass of Jamie McMurray that was the 88th lead change of the race, setting a new NASCAR record. It was speculated by McMurray's team owner Felix Sabates that Harvick was below the yellow line when he made the pass, but this was denied by NASCAR at track. On July 3, Harvick captured his second win of the year by winning the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona. On August 15, Harvick captured his third win of the year by winning the Carfax 400 at Michigan. His win at Michigan locked him into the Chase for the Sprint Cup for the fourth time. He finished the regular season first place in points, but started the Chase in third after the points were adjusted. During the 10-race Chase, Harvick scored 5 top-fives and 9 top-tens. Despite scoring an average finish of 5.8 (best in the 2010 Chase and third best all-time in the Chase), Harvick finished third overall, 41 points behind 2010 Champion Jimmie Johnson. It was still the best overall finish of his career in the Sprint Cup standings.

Harvick also won his first career Pole in the Camping World Truck Series at Gateway International Raceway in his own #2 Chevrolet Silverado. This added Harvick to the short list of NASCAR drivers who have won a pole award and a race in each of NASCAR's three major series.

2011–present: The Budweiser era[link]

With the departure of Royal Dutch Shell at the end of 2010 (moves to Penske Racing) announced in the spring, the #29 team was searching for a new sponsor. In August, it was announced that, for 2011, the car's primary sponsor will be with Belgian brewery InBev's Budweiser brand for 20 races.^[9] Adding to Harvick's new sponsorship, on January 25, 2011, Jimmy John's and Richard Childress Racing reached a multi-year agreement to sponsor the #29 Sprint Cup team for 6 races in 2011. On March 27, 2011, Kevin won his 15th career Sprint Cup race at Auto Club Speedway after passing defending series champion, Jimmie Johnson, in the final turn. Harvick took his second consecutive win at Martinsville Speedway, beating Dale Earnhardt, Jr. in the final 10 laps. Following on-track incidents both during and immediately after the Showtime 500 (Darlington) with Kyle Busch, Harvick was placed on probation for 4 races (plus the NASCAR All-Star Race) and fined $25,000. Harvick then won the Coca-Cola 600 after Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran out of fuel in the last turn on Lap 402, finishing off a career accomplishment of winning all three current majors and the Brickyard 400, but is not eligible for a Career Grand Slam because of the Ferko lawsuit that wiped out his chance at the mark only eight drivers have scored since the lawsuit eliminated the fall race at Darlington, which was required for the Career Grand Slam.^[10]. Kevin announced that he will shut down his NASCAR Nationwide/Camping World Truck Series time because he wants some personal time with his wife. In 2012 at Phoenix, Kevin led part of the race, battling rival, Kyle Busch, but Denny Hamlin, Busch's teammate led the rest of the race on the last pit stop. Kevin tried to close on Denny Hamlin, but scored a second place finish after he ran out of gas with two laps to go leaving Hamlin the race winner. He managed to cross the finish line holding off the pack for second place.

Kevin Harvick Foundation[link]

Established in 2010 by Harvick and his wife, DeLana, the mission of the Kevin Harvick Foundation (KHF) is to support programs that enrich the lives of children throughout the United States. The foundation works to not only improve the quality of life, but to help underprivileged youth find and realize their dreams by supporting programs such as the Kevin Harvick Athletic Scholarship Fund at California State University, Bakersfield, a camper cabin at Victory Junction, Baptist Children’s Homes of NC, Boys & Girls Clubs and Kevin’s Krew.

Other racing[link]

American Canadian Tour and ARCA REMAX series[link]

On July 21, 2008, Harvick won $37,300 at the 35th annual Toronto-Dominion Bank 250 presented by New England Dodge Dealers in Oxford, Maine. Harvick defeated tour regulars; Glen Luce and Joey Polewarczyk Jr. The event is traditionally one of New England's major short track races. Since his 1998 West Series championship, he has competed in four races with one win. He also made two starts in the ARCA RE/MAX Series in 1999 for Childress in the #20 Invinca-Shields/Realtree Chevrolet, finishing in the top-five both times.

Personal life[link]

Harvick lives in Kernersville, North Carolina, where they have three dogs and two cats. The Harvicks also own a vacation home in Kiawah Island, South Carolina. His wife, Delana appeared in NASCAR Thunder 2003 in one of the opening cameo sequences.

Harvick has been on talk shows such as Late Show with David Letterman, Live with Regis and Kelly, Jim Rome is Burning, and The Tony Danza Show as a guest. He was also on the first season of FX's NASCAR Drivers: 360. It took an in-depth look at NASCAR drivers outside the track and the preparation it takes to be a NASCAR driver.^[11] Harvick has also been on MTV Cribs. He is an avid fan of the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL.^[12][13] He also stated during the ESPN broadcast of the 2011 5-hour Energy 500, while there was a rain delay, that he was a fan of the New York Yankees baseball team.

On Feb. 19, 2011, Harvick's new sponsor, Budweiser hosted "The Roast of Kevin Harvick," which had some of Kevin's opponents and teammates give their thoughts and opinions on the Sprint Cup driver.

On Aug. 10, 2011, Harvick threw out the ceremonial first pitch between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium.

On Jan. 25, 2012, it was announced that the Harvicks were expecting a baby, the first for the couple.

Nicknames[link]

Harvick was nicknamed "Happy Harvick" ironically due to his occasional temper outbursts and in fact his pit sign is a smiley face is a play on this nickname, yet happy attitude and the "Bakersfield Basher" in his early years for his aggressive driving style. Previously he was nicknamed "Big Bird" because his fire suit was yellow when he was sponsored by Shell/Pennzoil.

Because of his last-second passes to win many of his races and his ability to start deep in the field and finish towards the front, he was nicknamed "Mr. Where did he come from?" by NASCAR on Fox announcer Mike Joy. In the 2011 season, commentators began referring to Harvick as "The Closer" for his late-passing wins.

Career NASCAR Sprint Cup Series statistics[link]

* Qualifying Rained Out; set by Owner Standings

** 2012 Season in Progress

As of April 21, 2012

See also[link]

• Kevin Harvick Incorporated – A racing team owned by Kevin Harvick and his wife Delana.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Kevin Harvick at Racing Reference
• Kevin Harvick Foundation
• Richard Childress Racing's official web site
• Kevin Harvick Video on FoxSports Video Archive