HOME FOR HARVICK: The NASCAR Nationwide Series heads back west for this weekend’s Royal Purple 300 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif. Kevin Harvick, who hails from Bakersfield, Calif., has 16 previous starts at the two-mile track with one pole, nine top-five and 13 top-10 finishes. He holds the series record for the most top-10 finishes and is tied with Carl Edwards for the most top-five finishes at the speedway.
VICTORY LANE-LESS: Of the 24 venues on the current Nationwide Series schedule, Auto Club Speedway is one of eight at which the two-time series champion does not have a victory. Harvick’s best finish at Fontana is a trio of runner-up finishes. This weekend the driver will look to put the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Impala in victory lane and knock the list of winless tracks down to seven.
TAKE YOUR PICK: March Madness has hit Kevin Harvick. The driver is pulling for Duke University to win a fifth NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, going against his wife DeLana Harvick’s beloved University of North Carolina Tar Heels.
CHASSIS HISTORY: The No. 33 Rheem team will run chassis No. 071 at Auto Club Speedway this weekend. This is a brand new chassis built by the Kevin Harvick Inc. (KHI) team for competition this season.
PREVIOUS RACE RECAP: Kevin Harvick wheeled the No. 33 Rheem Chevrolet Impala to a sixth-place finish at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race last weekend. The top-10 finish moves the No. 33 KHI team up one position to fifth in the Nationwide Series Owner’s Points standings, 10 points out of first.
THOUGHTS FROM KEVIN HARVICK:
What are your thoughts about heading to what you consider your home track?
“It is always nice to come home. Anytime you can come home and race in front of your family and friends you want to win. We have been really close to winning here several times. I’d really love to get to victory lane this trip out to California and be able to celebrate with family and friends.
“Fontana is a fast and wide race track. It has multiple grooves. You can run from the top of the track to the bottom of the track. I’m looking forward to getting out there and seeing what we can do.”