Kevin Harvick, the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series wins leader, has perfected the art of closing – likely terrifying news to the rest of the competition.
Consider these points…
• Each of Harvick’s three wins have featured late-race passes for the lead. At Auto Club Speedway, he passed Jimmie Johnson on the final lap. At Martinsville, he swiped the lead away from Dale Earnhardt Jr. with four laps remaining. Last Sunday, he won his first Charlotte points race, again snatching the lead from Earnhardt – this time on the final lap.
• Harvick has led a combined nine laps in his three victories this season. In his 17 career wins, he has led triple-digit laps four times.
• Of his 17 career wins, 10 featured race-winning passes for the lead with 10 laps or less remaining. Four his last seven victories came on last lap passes for the win.
But there’s plenty more to his Coca-Cola 600 victory than that.
Harvick pretty much locked up a spot in NASCAR’s playoffs – the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
After race number 26 at Richmond, the top 10 drivers will earn a spot in the Chase. Spots 11 and 12 – the Wild Card spots – will go to those outside the top 10 who have the most wins, provided they are in the top 20. Harvick, currently second in the points, will likely not need that fall-back – but it’s there if he does.
Owner Richard Childress said the team could be more aggressive now that it seems a lock to earn a playoff spot when the Chase begins at Chicagoland Speedway on Sept. 18. Click here to listen to Childress’ thoughts.
At Kansas, Harvick has four top 10s in 10 starts – including a third-place finish last season. True to form, Harvick closed strong in that race, too. His Average Running Position was 6.9.
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