Author: Michelle R. Martinelli
Date: May 17, 2020
Kevin Harvick won NASCAR’s first race back Sunday at Darlington Raceway after the season was suspended for 10 weeks this spring because of the global COVID-19 crisis.
The No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford driver dominated The Real Heroes 400, leading 159 of 293 total laps and earning his 50th career Cup Series win and first of the 2020 season. He’s the 14th driver to hit that milestone and is now in a three-way tie for 12th on the all-time wins list, joining Ned Jarrett and Junior Johnson and breaking his tie with team owner Tony Stewart, who retired with 49 career wins.
Harvick, the 2014 Cup Series champ, entered the first of nine currently scheduled NASCAR races as the leader in the standings and is the only driver to finish all five races so far this season in the top 10. Alex Bowman, Kurt Busch, Chase Elliott and Denny Hamlin rounded out the top-5 finishers Sunday.
In Harvick’s post-race, on-track interview with FOX Sports, he seemed to be in disbelief over his career achievement. He said: “It doesn’t seem real. And I think as you look at Darlington, I think as you look at the things that happened this weekend, I really thought that it would definitely play into our hand just because our guys are so good at hitting the car off the truck for the most part. We put a lot of time, a lot of effort, a lot of studying, a lot of meetings and just have to thank everybody at the shop who has built all these cars. And just, man, I’m excited. It is weird just because there’s nobody up there. … I’m speechless.”
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