The top-five finish, which marked Harvick and Company’s fifth consecutive top-10 finish, allowed the Bakersfield, Calif., native to jump to seventh in the NASCAR Sprint Cup point standings and now has a 160-point cushion over 13th. Additionally, the 11-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series winner only needs to start the race next weekend at Richmond International Raceway to clinch a spot in the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup.
After starting the 250-lap contest 33rd in front of an announced crowd of 70,000, the 2007 Daytona 500 winner set sail toward the front of the pack and grabbed 11 positions before the field slowed for the second time on lap 19 for debris.
Crew Chief Todd Berrier summoned his driver down pit road and fine-tuned the handling of the Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet with an air pressure adjustment to the right-rear tire and, courtesy of dynamite service by the over-the-wall crew, Harvick moved up five spots, to 22nd, for the restart on lap 24.
Over the next 18 laps, Harvick sliced and diced his way to seventh but was in need of forward bite to compete with the leaders. The third of eight caution flags flew on lap 42 and Harvick hit pit road one lap later for another round of air pressure adjustments. He restarted seventh on lap 46.
The air pressure adjustment seemed to help the bright yellow and red machine and Harvick continued his steady charge forward. He was sixth on lap 47, fifth on lap 48 and fourth when the caution flag flew on lap
68 for a single-car incident in turn two.
Harvick made the hard left turn down pit road for a routine four-tire pit stop. The 2007 Chase contender restarted fourth on lap 73.
The 2006 NASCAR Nationwide Series champ continued to run in and around the top five over the next 72 laps. Another caution flag flew on lap
145 and Harvick informed Berrier that the Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet was loose exiting the corners. The Shell-Pennzoil crew bolted on four new Goodyear tires including an air pressure adjustment, fuel and a minor chassis adjustment. “Happy” took the green flag fourth on lap 151.
As the race headed into the final 100 laps, Harvick started to battle with a tight-handling Shell-Pennzoil Chevy but was able to maintain a top-eight position on the race track.
The seventh caution flag flew on lap 180 and Harvick hit pit road for tires, fuel and another round of air pressure and chassis adjustments.
A lightning-fast pit stop by the No. 29 over-the-wall crew netted Harvick two stops on pit road and he restarted sixth on lap 186.
As the field started to settle in for the final 50 laps of competition, Harvick’s No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet began to come around. He was able to grab the fifth spot on lap 196 and passed Carl Edwards for fourth on lap 226.
The fourth-place finish was the team’s second top-five finish in as many weeks and the 11th top-10 finish of the season. Additionally, this was the sixth top-10 finish in the last seven races for the No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Racing team.
Jimmie Johnson notched his third series win of 2008 over Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Harvick and Matt Kenseth.
Richard Childress Racing teammate Clint Bowyer finished 10th and sits 12th in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series point standing. Harvick’s other RCR teammate, Jeff Burton, finished 17th and clinched a spot in the 2008 Chase for the Sprint Cup.
Next weekend, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series travels to Richmond (Va.) International Raceway for the final race leading up to the Chase for the Championship.
Live coverage of the Chevy Rock and Roll 400 will take the green flag Saturday, September 6 at 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time and will be telecast live on ABC. The event will also be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Sirius Satellite Radio. Qualifying is scheduled for Friday, September 5 beginning at 6 p.m. EDT on ESPN 2.
MRN and Sirius Satellite Radio will also provide live qualifying updates beginning at 6 p.m. EDT.
KEVIN HARVICK - NO. 29 SHELL-PENNZOIL CHEVROLET IMPALA SS –
“Our Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet was really good tonight at the beginning of the race and we were able to get through traffic when it seemed like a lot of guys were struggling. The guys did a great job making the car better each stop and the car was the best on the last run. Fourth place is quite an accomplishment for us. Normally, California is one of our worst race tracks. To come away with a top-five finish speaks a lot for Todd (Berrier) and what he has done over the last couple of months to get our cars to where they need to be. I am looking forward to getting going in the Chase.”
