Author: Kevin McRae
Date: Dec. 2, 2014
Don't look now, but the Daytona 500 is right around the corner.
Perhaps that's exaggerating just a bit, but with less than 90 days until the command to start your engines booms out at Daytona International Speedway, it's time to make a few predictions about the season ahead.
Six drivers, including Sprint Cup champion Kevin Harvick, captured three or more checkered flags during an exciting 2014 season that—by design—came down to the very last laps of the very last race.
With so many returning veterans still pushing for their first, second or seventh championship, and the rise of new stars ready to race their own way to glory, it wouldn't be surprising to see an even more wide-open Chase in 2015.
But the cream usually rises to the top, and certain drivers just know how to win and win consistently.
These are the five drivers most likely to find their way to Victory Lane at least three times in the coming season.
Kevin Harvick
Anyone disagree with Harvick’s inclusion on this list?
Didn’t think so.
It was only a matter of time before Harvick, one of the most consistent drivers on NASCAR’s big league circuit over the past several seasons, won the Sprint Cup title, and boy, did he do it in dramatic fashion.
Harvick left no doubt, winning an elimination race at Phoenix to keep his championship hopes alive, before making it back-to-back victories at Homestead’s season-ending Ford EcoBoost 400 to win the title in his first season with Stewart-Haas Racing.
The tangible benefits of working for a close friend, Tony Stewart, and with an experienced crew headed by Rodney Childers provided immediate benefits for Harvick, who led more than 2,000 laps this past season.
Harvick won five times in 2014, including the two most important races of the year, and there’s absolutely no reason to think that he’ll struggle to find his way to Victory Lane multiple times in the season ahead. Not with this team and not with this crew.
It’s just not very often that the No. 4 car doesn’t find itself in the mix at the end of races.
It’s never easy to defend the Sprint Cup championship, especially when everyone is gunning for you, but it's easier when you’re at or near the front each and every week. That’s how Harvick rolls—with 20 top-10 finishes last season alone—and you can safely expect that to continue given the confidence gained from wining a first title for the driver and his team.
To view the complete article on BleacherReport.com, click here.