| | | | | | | 29 - Kevin Harvick | Bakersfield, CA |
| | Primary Sponsor: Shell/Pennzoil
Manufacturer: Chevrolet
Car Owner: Richard Childress
Team: Richard Childress Racing Kevin Harvick has had many career moments since his start in NASCAR’s premier racing series six years ago. He had a win at the 2003 Brickyard 400 and he is one of only 13 drivers who has won a race in each of the national series – Craftsman Truck, Busch and NEXTEL Cup.
2006 was Harvick’s most successful year so far. For the second time, he claimed the Busch Series championship, an effort in which he earned nine wins, 23 top-five finishes and 32 top-10 finishes. Not only did he claim the title, he did it with four races left in the season, making it mathematically impossible for any other competitor to take over the top spot in points at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in October.
At the same time in 2006, Kevin was busy earning five wins, 15 top-five finishes and 20 top-10 finishes in the Cup Series – his best run to date – and a fourth place finish in points. That was also his first chase for the championship berth.
Kevin Harvick’s racing career began on a go-kart in 1980. In ten years of racing on the go-cart circuit, he won seven national championships and two grand national championships. Leaving the go-kart circuit behind, Kevin began competing in the Featherlite Southwest Series in 1992, a regional touring division of NASCAR. While completing high school he ran a limited schedule for two seasons, then a full schedule in 1995, earning him a Rookie of the Year nod.
Setting aside his plan to study architecture in college he decided to pursue a career in racing, moving on to the Winston West Series. He won five races on his way to the Winston West Series Championship. During a brief stint in the Craftsman Truck Series, Kevin met car owner Richard Childress, who saw potential and offered Kevin a ride in the Busch Grand National Series. Kevin accepted, and in February, 2000, he began a remarkable two-year campaign in the Busch Series. After winning three races he finished third in series points. He started 2001 a favorite for the Busch series title, and finished the year a Winston Cup star.
2001 would turn out to be a pivotal year for Kevin, and one of the best of his career.
Richard Childress asked Kevin to assume the driving duties of the GM Goodwrench Service Plus Monte Carlo on the Winston Cup circuit after losing Dale Earnhardt in a wreck on the last lap of the Daytona 500. Kevin agreed and began an incredible year, despite an intense schedule and the difficulty of driving full-time in two series.
Kevin married DeLana Linville in February 2001, and there was no time for a honeymoon.
He became the first driver in NASCAR history to run both the Busch and Winston Cup series full-time – a total of 70 races – in one season. He was also the first to be named Winston Cup rookie of the year in the same season he won the Busch Series Championship.
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