HARVICK DOMINATES FIELD AT INFINEON

Source: NASCAR Public Relations
Date: 06/23/2003

Series regulars topped the speed charts in qualifying with Todd Souza of Aromas, Calif. collecting his first Bud Pole of the season after the European qualifying sessions were concluded Friday afternoon. Burney Lamar of Sacramento, Calif. clocked in with the second fast time, with Eric Holmes, Kevin Harvick, and David Gilliland rounding out the top five qualifiers. Michelle Nagai, Jeff Belletto, Curtis Lansing, Matt Reilly, and M.K. Kanke failed to make the show after qualifying concluded.

Souza's time at the point of the 64 lap event was short lived as Kevin Harvick passed the 2000 series rookie-of-the-year in two and built a two second lead by the completion of lap one. Souza maintained second. By lap 5 Robby Gordon, who was a late substitute for Rick Ruzbarsky in the #51, was up to the 24th position after starting at the rear of the 42-car field.

Harvick maintained the lead at lap ten followed by Souza, Eric Holmes, Jim Inglebright, and David Gilliland. The second five included Boris Said, Brandon Whitt, Bryan Germone, Kenny Shepherd, and Mike Ledbetter.

The first of five cautions flew at lap 16 for Victory Circle Chassis' Rookie-of-the-Year contender Danny Burson of Albuquerque, NM as he hit spun his Chevrolet and came to rest on top of the tire barrier outside of turn three. Harvick pitted the next time by for two tires and fuel.

The restart on lap 20 shuffled the field as a majority of the drivers decided to pit at a later time forcing Harvick to negotiate traffic as he worked his way back to the front. Souza held the point for the next six laps until Eric Holmes took over on lap 23 when Souza pitted under caution. The race restarted on lap 26 with Holmes leading Inglebright, Troy Ermish, Brandon Whitt, and Tyler McQuarrie.

After the green flag flew several of the leaders ducked in the pits where they could change four tires under green and get fuel. That turned the lead over to Dan Holtz on lap 29 where he led for two laps before coming into the pits for service. At the lap 30 mark, Holtz led Scott Busby, Brandon Kraus, Ben Walker, and Jeff Bailey.

Harvick took the point for the final time on lap 34 after pit stops cycled through the field. Harvick was able to build his lead to as much as five seconds at some points, only to have it erased by cautions. On lap 49, a turn one incident between Brandon Whitt and Craig Raudman left the #28 McMillin Homes Pontiac severely damage after contact with the inside wall. Both drivers were unhurt.

The final caution flew for Shepherd as he lost the handle on his Chevrolet exiting turn ten and sent debris across the track. The race went one extra lap, as the Featherlite Southwest Series will always complete events with a green, white, and checkered finish. Kevin Harvick's Snap-On Tools Chevrolet crossed the finish line 3.9 seconds ahead of Boris Said, with Dave Brown in third. Jim Inglebright was not able to "four-peat" as he rallied to finish fourth, with Tyler McQuarrie rounding out the top five finishers.

Dave Byrd finished sixth; with 1997 series champion Bryan Germone finishing seventh. Raybestos Brakes Northwest Series competitor Jeff Bailey crossed the line in eighth place in his first ever road course start. Eric Holmes and Nathan Thiesse rounded out the top ten.

"We unloaded off the trailer and made eight or nine laps in the car, and that was it," said Harvick. "Last year, we went home with our noses in the dirt. We were pretty embarrassed. We went home and built a new car. It was a lot of fun for me and great for all the folks at Snap-On."

When asked about his pit strategy, Harvick said it is all about pitting first. "The (second) caution, we pitted. The (third) caution, everyone who hadn't pitted did, and we were done pitting," Harvick said. "That's the whole game plan here, pit before everyone else does."

Dave Brown finished third in his Featherlite southwest Series debut and was extremely pleased with his performance. "It feels great to do so well in this type of car," Brown said. Brown who regularly campaigns cars in local NASA and SCCA races would like to get some more seat time in the Featherlite Southwest Series. "If you are going to go places in racing you need to be in stock cars. I would really like to run three or four races this season and put something together for next year to run the whole schedule."

Robby Gordon's day ended on lap 27 with suspension problems. Outside front row starter Burney Lamar did not take the initial green flag as ignition problems developed on the parade lap. Lamar rejoined the field on lap 15 and finished in the 32nd position.

The race took 2 hours, 14 minutes, and 29 seconds to complete at an average speed of 60.037 mph. The margin of victory was 3.938 seconds and the action was slowed eight times for 25 laps of caution. Todd Souza won the Bud Pole Award with a quick lap of 78.072 seconds/91.761 mph. Jeff Bailey claimed the Powerade Power Move-of-the-Race with an eighth place finish after starting 41st on the grid. Nathan Thiesse took home Victory Circle Chassis' Rookie-of-the-Race honors with a tenth place performance. There were eight lead changes between six drivers with Harvick leading the most laps (46).

The next race for the Featherlite Southwest Series is this Saturday night at Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield, Calif. in the annual running of the HPS Mechanical/Victory Circle Chassis Firecracker "150". For all the latest news and information regarding the Featherlite Southwest Series, log on to www.nascartouring.com

See Also .:

• Infineon Raceway Track Page

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