No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet
Good Sam RV Insurance 500 at Pocono Raceway
Budweiser Racing Team Notes of Interest
• Kevin Harvick and the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet team finished 14th in Sunday’s Good Sam RV Insurance 500 at Pocono Raceway.
• Harvick started the race from 10th position and worked his way up to seventh by lap 2. Several laps later he radioed to the crew that the car was “too loose everywhere,” prompting crew chief Gil Martin to call for chassis and air pressure adjustments on the team’s first trip to pit road at lap 14. The No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet restarted in 11th position after losing several positions on pit road, an issue that plagued the team on several occasions during the race.
• The loose condition persisted and a quarter of the way through the race Harvick tried adjusting his line around the track to gain ground and was able to pick up a couple of positions before the team pitted again at lap 63 for fresh tires, fuel and additional chassis adjustments.
• Over the course of the next two runs, Harvick radioed to the team that the car’s handling was better, but still too loose. He was running in the 12th position when the caution flag waved for rain at lap 122. As the rain intensified, NASCAR officials waved the red flag and the pace car brought the field down pit road. On-track activity was halted for a little less than two hours as officials used jet dryers to dry the track after the rain subsided.
• The No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet team pitted at lap 128 before the race restarted to get four fresh tires and make a chassis adjustment. During the following run, Harvick radioed to the team that the car was too tight exiting the turns. The team hit pit road again under green-flag conditions at lap 151 for tires and adjustments and he reported being too loose on the subsequent run before the next trip to pit road at lap 171.
• Once the field cycled through green-flag stops, the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet was in the 16th position. The caution flag waved at lap 179 with Harvick in the 16th position. He radioed to the team that the car was better and he could use more forward drive, but was still too loose.
• The team made their final pit stop at lap 181, taking four tires and fuel. Several cars stayed out and some took only two tires, placing Harvick in the 20th position when the field restarted at lap 184. In the closing laps he was able to pass several cars and worked his way up to the 14th position before taking the checkered flag at lap 200.
• Brad Keselowski scored the win in Sunday’s race. Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Ryan Newman completed the top-five positions.
• Carl Edwards continues to lead the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver point standings. Johnson, Kyle Busch and Kurt Busch hold spots second through fourth, respectively. Harvick dropped two spots in the standings to fifth this week and is just 20 points behind Edwards.
• Follow along each weekend with Harvick and the team on Twitter. Check out @KevinHarvick for behind-the-scenes information straight from the driver of the No. 29 Budweiser Chevrolet. Get live updates from the track each weekend from @Black29Car, the PR team for Harvick. Also, follow @RCRracing and @RCR29KHarvick for additional information about the Richard Childress Racing organization.
The following is the finish position of the other beverage-sponsored cars participating in the Good Sam RV Insurance 500:
• Brad Keselowski, driver of the No. 2 Miller Lite Dodge, finished first.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. and the No. 88 AMP Energy/National Guard Chevrolet team finished ninth.
• Matt Kenseth and the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford team finished 16th.
• Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 4 Red Bull Toyota, finished 28th.
• Robby Gordon, driver of the No. 7 SPEED Energy Dodge, finished 35th.
• Brian Vickers and the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota team finished 39th.
The following is the finish position of the other Richard Childress Racing teams participating in the Good Sam RV Insurance 500:
• Paul Menard, driver of the No. 27 CertainTeed/Menards Chevrolet, finished 10th.
• Jeff Burton and the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet team finished 17th.
• Clint Bowyer and the No. 33 Good Sam Club Chevrolet finished 18th.
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams will travel to Watkins Glen (N.Y.) International for the Heluva Good! Sour Cream Dips at The Glen on Sunday, August 14. ESPN will air the live television broadcast of the race starting with the pre-race show at noon ET. MRN Radio and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio will provide the radio coverage of the race.