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AAA 400 at Dover International Speedway

Budweiser Racing Team Notes of Interest:

Kevin Harvick and the No. 4 Budweiser Chevrolet SS team dominated Sunday’s AAA 400 until they suffered a flat left-front tire with approximately 150 laps to go in the race. After dropping back to 21st, the team rebounded to score a 13th-place finish at Dover International Speedway.

• Harvick started the race from the pole position. He managed a tight-handling race car and remained at the front of the field until an issue with the left-front suspension dropped him back to second at lap 148. 
• The No. 4 Budweiser team’s pit crew got Harvick off of pit road first and back to the lead following a lap 172 pit stop. When the green flag waved, Harvick checked out from the field once again.
• Crew chief Rodney Childers called Harvick to pit road for a green-flag pit stop at lap 249. Shortly after returning to the track, Harvick slowed as his left-front tire went flat as the valve stem was knocked out of the tire’s inner liner. Spotter Tim Fedewa helped Kevin get into position to get to pit road as the caution flag waved for debris.
• The team pitted once to change left-side tires and then twice more to repair damage to the left front of the car. Harvick restarted at the tail end of the field in the 21st position. In the closing laps of the race, Harvick was able to make his way toward the front of the field and scored a 13th-place finish.
• Jeff Gordon scored the win in Sunday’s race. Brad Keselowski, Jimmie Johnson, Joey Logano and Matt Kenseth completed the top-five positions.
• Following the conclusion of the Challenge Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, the top-12 drivers advanced to the Contender Round. The point standings were reset and all 12 drivers enter the next round with 3,000 points. Harvick is seeded third behind Keselowski and Logano. Johnson and Gordon round out the top five. 

Harvick on the race at Dover International Speedway:

It was a frustrating day for you. You didn’t get the finish that you deserved. Take us through what happened with the left front and what set you back. “It knocked the inner valve stem out of the left front. A lug nut got in between the wheel and the brake rotor and knocked the vale stem out. It’s crazy. We’re just handing out early Christmas presents to people for winning races that we should be winning. But all in all, the Budweiser guys did a great job. It’s just crazy luck. It’s just unbelievable that it can happen.”

The following is the finishing position of the other SHR teams in Sunday's race:

• Tony Stewart and the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet team finished 14th.
• Kurt Busch and the No. 41Haas Automation Chevrolet team finished 18th. 
• Danica Patrick and the No. 10 GoDaddy Chevrolet team finished 25th.

Coming Up:

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams travel to Kansas Speedway next weekend for the Hollywood Casino 400. ESPN will have live coverage of the race at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday. MRN Radio radio affiliates and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio will provide the radio broadcast.

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