NASCAR
Kevin Harvick Earns First 2019 Win at New Hampshire After Thrilling Last-Lap Battle
Exactly 1 year ago, New Hampshire marked win number 6 of 2018 for Kevin Harvick. Fast forward to 2019, and the 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Mustang went winless through the season’s first 19 weeks. After a daring call by crew chief Rodney Childers, Harvick stayed out and was able to hold back a charge from Denny Hamlin. After a contact-filled last lap, the 4 beat the 11 to the checkers for Harvick’s first 2019 win. This also marks the first victory of the year for Stewart-Haas Racing.
NASCAR Family Mourns Loss of Crew Chief
All of NASCAR was competing with heavy hearts on Sunday, after waking up to tragic news involving a longtime crew member. After competing in Saturday’s Xfinity race with Justin Haley and the Kaulig 11, crew chief Nick Harrison went to bed and passed away in his sleep. Harrison was only 37 years old, and won races with Austin Dillon, Paul Menard, and Kurt Busch. Harrison was also a crew member on Brad Keselowski’s first Cup win in 2009, so his passing was felt throughout the garage.
Austin Dillon posted to Instagram on Sunday “(Nick) was a racer and a friend you couldn’t help but smile if you were around him. He always showed my family so much love. I’ll never forget the late nights by the pool talking about how to go fast or how we kicked ass on the track. All I can say is I love you brother.”
Harrison’s latest driver Justin Haley also posted several pictures in remembrance of Nick’s life and lovable personality as a crew chief. Haley was only the latest in a long line of young drivers to be mentored by Harrison. This list includes both Dillon brothers, Daniel Hemric, Justin Allgaier, Ryan Truex, and Regan Smith. Harrison’s character and loving spirit will be eternally missed in the NASCAR garages.
Trouble for Many in Practice, Qualifying
This New Hampshire race weekend in particular got off to a weird start. Attrition was a factor throughout prerace practice sessions as well as qualifying. As a result, 5 teams would race on Sunday with backup cars. This meant that Ryan Newman, Denny Hamlin, Kyle Larson, William Byron, and Alex Bowman would all start from the rear. For Bowman in particular it was a tough weekend, as the 88 had to borrow Jimmie Johnson’s backup car after wrecking 2 cars. Other than having a black base color rather than the Axalta blue, nobody could tell a difference by race time on Sunday.
Busch Breaks Away on the Start
Despite starting 2nd to Brad Keselowski, Kyle Busch got a jump on the initial start and would lead the opening laps. The 18 appeared to be rocket-fast, as Busch was one of 6 drivers going for a record-tying 4th Loudon win. By lap 6, Busch’s lead was already 1 second and growing. In total, the 18 led the first 36 laps at Loudon. This would change when the 2 of Keselowski stalked him down and took the top spot away.
In this fist run, many of the drivers who started in the rear made significant recoveries. This charge was led by Denny Hamlin and Kyle Larson, as they both gained 14 positions in the first 10 laps. This surge by Hamlin, Larson, and others would be halted by the first caution of the day on lap 47.
3 Team Puts Themselves in Hole
The yellow flag flew for the first time on lap 47, when the 3 of Austin Dillon hit the turn 4 wall. He was slow on the track for several laps prior with a tire issue and the leaders had just put him 1 lap down. This began what would be a long day for the RCR 3 team, as they eventually went behind the wall for mechanical repairs.
Busch Holds Serve for Stage 1
Despite losing the lead to Erik Jones under the yellow, it took less than a lap for Kyle Busch to regain the top spot. On the restart he made a daring dive bomb move into turn 1 that amazingly stuck, and he cruised by the 20 into turn 3. For the remainder of Stage 1, it was the 18 pulling away from the field. Kyle Busch secured his 7th Stage win of 2019, now tied with Joey Logano for a series-high mark.
For the start of Stage 2, the story was much of the same. The 18 rocketed off with a perfect restart, leaving Keselowski and others in the dust. By the time of the next yellow, Busch’s lead was 2 seconds.
The caution was brought out again by a pair of Daniels-Hemric and Suarez-spinning in turn 2. Chase Elliott’s 9 Chevrolet had laid down fluid just moments prior, and the 41 Mustang of Suarez went right through it. With nowhere to go, Hemric’s number 8 Camaro got tagged by the spinning Haas machine. Hemric made heavy wall contact, but Suarez went onward without damage. This incident would relegate Hemric to a last-place finish in 37th.
18 Recovers on Another Restart
After the Suarez-Hemric incident, many of the leaders came to pit road for fresh tires. However, Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin stayed out and would lead the field back to green. Although the 4 got a jump on the 11, 3rd-place running Kyle Busch quickly regrouped and took the lead again. The 18 had nailed another restart, and looked to be the fastest man in town by a wide margin. However, a late yellow in Stage 2 would jumble up the running order at the front of the pack.
Late Cautions Lead to Upset Stage 2 Winner
With just 13 laps left in Stage 2, the 17 of Ricky Stenhouse, Jr. lost a left front tire and slammed into the turn 2 wall. The flat tire was a result of contact from Erik Jones, to which Stenhouse said “The 20 just ran over us there. He’s gotten me a couple of times now, so he’ll have one coming at some point when he’s trying to make the Playoffs.” Obviously very upset with Erik Jones, Stenhouse sent a clear threat to the 20 team. We will have to wait and see if this threat is delivered on or if it was just simply an off-the-cuff comment.
Under this caution, the 18 and most of the leaders came into the pits again. However, Aric Almirola stayed out to inherit the lead, with 8 others behind him on older tires. Because of the big buffer to the 18, Almirola’s 10 got a major jump on the restart. Just 2 laps later though, the yellow flew again.
While racing hard on the restart, Clint Bowyer got loose off of turn 4 and turned himself off of Martin Truex, Jr.’s front bumper. Truex was far from happy with Bowyer’s aggressive move, and showed his displeasure by shoving the 14 into turn 1 under yellow. Both drivers had minimal damage however, and were able to continue on.
This yellow set up a 2-lap shootout to close Stage 2, with Almirola still up front on older tires. Although he checked up heavily on the restart, the 10 got a big jump into turn 1. Almirola would hold this position to take the Stage 2 win, his first Stage win of 2019.
Bad Weekend Continues for Hendrick Motorsports
Behind Almirola, the 48 of Jimmie Johnson had his hands full. The Ally 48 was falling fast on the 2-lap dash, as he lost power steering. This issue sent the 48 to pit road for extended repairs, losing the 7-time champion several laps. The day was pretty much over from that point for Johnson, as he only mustered a 30th place result. This mechanical failure sent JJ from 14th to 17th in points, outside of the Playoff cut line. The man who has never missed the Playoffs has a 17 point deficit and 6 weeks to recover. Combined with Alex Bowman and William Byron crashing a total of 3 cars, as well as Chase Elliott’s water pump issues, it was certainly a weekend to forget for Hendrick as an organization.
Hamlin Delivers in Backup Car
After starting the day in the rear of the field for a backup car, Denny Hamlin finally took the lead under the Stage 2 caution. By staying out when others pitted, the 11 took the lead over Harvick, Kurt Busch, and Brad Keselowski. When the green flag flew for the final Stage, Hamlin quickly gained a half-second advantage over Harvick.
While Hamlin was holding serve over Harvick, the man who dominated the race early brought out a caution. On lap 215, the 18 of Kyle Busch went wide in turn 1 and found the wall. Despite the contact, the 18 was able to race on.
Issues for Playoff Bubble Drivers
Just prior to this yellow, the 6 of Ryan Newman reported that he lost a cylinder while running in the top 10. Under the caution, Newman’s pit crew made repairs to his engine, replacing a worn coil wire. The engine issue on the Oscar Mayer Mustang was resolved, and the 6 did stay on the lead lap.
When racing resumed on lap 219, the 42 of Kyle Larson tried making a dive bomb move to the inside of Alex Bowman. Rather than gaining the position, the 42 got loose and spun in turn 1, bringing out another yellow immediately. The 42 would mark the 7th Playoff bubble driver to face issues at New Hampshire. However, Larson remains at 13th on the Playoff grid due to other’s misfortunes.
Penske Pulls Forward
On the ensuing restart, Hamlin held the lead but 2nd place had a new face, Ryan Blaney’s 12. Blaney’s teammate Brad Keselowski quickly gained 3rd on Erik Jones to make it 2 Penske Fords in the top 3. However, Blaney never got within a second of Hamlin’s bumper after the restart. With the laps winding away, it appeared to be Hamlin’s race to lose.
Larson Brings Out Late Yellow
With 37 laps to go, the 42 of Kyle Larson again caused a caution by looping it in turn 2. This damage would be too heavy for the 42 crew to repair, as Larson would be done for the day in 33rd. This yellow set up a split pit strategy among the leaders, as all but 3 came in for fresh tires. The 3 outliers were Kevin Harvick, Erik Jones, and Martin Truex, Jr. With Hamlin set to restart in 4th, many believed the 11 on new tires would quickly knife his way through the top 3.
Last Restart Goes As Planned for Harvick
With prime track position late, the 4 of Harvick simply had to play defense over the last 29 laps. On the restart he easily cleared the 20 and 19 for the lead, but the 11 quickly got up to 2nd. With 28 to go, it would be a dogfight among the 4 and 11 for the win. Even with old tires, the 4 was able to manage a lead of roughly half a second.
Lapped Traffic Costs Harvick Late, Sets Up Last-Lap Thriller
With 4 laps to go, the 4 still led the 11 by about 6 tenths. When Hamlin over-drove turn 1 and washed up on lap 295, one would think the race was over for him. Instead, Harvick quickly caught lapped traffic and had to fight his way by. This allowed Hamlin to close in; by the white flag they were nose-to-tail.
As the 2 leaders took the white flag, Hamlin gave Harvick a big nudge entering turn 1. The 4 slid up the racetrack but stayed even with the 11. Down the backstretch for the final time, the top 2 were side by side, with Harvick in the outside lane. Harvick cleared the 11 getting into 3 and crossed down into the preferred inside line. Hamlin gave Harvick one last shot in turn 4, but Harvick stayed ahead of Hamlin and beat him back to the stripe.
Significance of the First 2019 Win for Harvick
New Hampshire marks Harvick’s first victory of the year, as well as SHR’s first 2019 win. For 2-straight years now, Harvick has come out on top in exciting finishes at Loudon. Last year, he moved Kyle Busch with 7 to go, this year he did not get moved by Hamlin on the last lap. Overall, this is Harvick’s 46th career Cup Series win, tied for 16th all-time. In addition, Harvick now ties Jeff Burton’s all-time record of 4 wins at New Hampshire.
This win officially locks Harvick into the 2019 Playoffs, his 13th postseason appearance. The 4 team at Stewart-Haas Racing now has at least 1 win for every season since 2014, as Harvick inches closer to team owner Tony Stewart’s 49-win total. Can this win propel the 4 team to a championship threat? History says yes, as the 4 has made the championship finale in 4 of the last 5 years.
Other Notables in the Top 10
Just behind Harvick at the end was Denny Hamlin, who said post race “I wanted to just tap him there, but I didn’t want to completely screw him. I at least wanted to give him a fair shot there. It was a fun race, we had a fast car, congrats to him.” Hamlin was chasing his 3rd win of 2019 and 4th at Loudon.
Coming home in the top 3 for the second week in a row was Erik Jones. After back-to-back 3rd place results, Jones has gone from outside the top 16 to 14th in the Playoffs, 21 points above the cut line. Jones is the lone JGR Toyota still searching for his first 2019 win.
In 4th was Ryan Blaney, earning his first top 5 since Sonoma in June. If the Playoffs started today, the 12 team would be seeded in 11th. They have a comfortable 84-point gap to the cut line, but still lack their first 2019 win as well.
Rounding out the top 5 was Matt Dibenedetto, in his career-best finish at Loudon, and second top 5 of the year. With an uncertain future, strong runs like Loudon mean extra for Matt. After the top 5 run, he said “That was awesome, a great comeback for us. Raced up there all day and had to adjust on the car a good bit because we missed on all the final practice. It shows how good my team is, they deserve it, man.”
Recovery Efforts in Top 10
In 6th was Martin Truex, Jr. who was able to rebound nicely after the Clint Bowyer incident on lap 146. Despite having strong performances consistently at Loudon, MTJ still has yet to win at this track.
Calling New Hampshire “the best team performance we’ve had all year,” was 7th-place finisher Ryan Newman. After diagnosing his engine issue, Newman was able to retain a top 10 spot, and jump up into the top 16 in points. Newman is currently the last man in, by just 17 points over Jimmie Johnson. With 6 weeks left, it’s still a cautious spot for Newman to occupy.
After heavy wall contact with 86 laps to go, Kyle Busch brought the 18 across the line in 8th. Far from where many expected the 18 to finish, Busch leaves New Hampshire with a Stage 1 win, 118 laps led, and 3 points back of the regular season championship.
Right behind Busch in 9th was the man he’s chasing for the regular season title, Joey Logano. The defending Cup champion had an unusually quiet day at his home track. The 22 was towards the back half of the top 10 for much of the day, but did finish Stage 2 in 2nd.
Closing out the top 10 was polesitter Brad Keselowski. While 3 Penske cars in the top 10 is a great achievement, Keselowski only led for 12 circuits on a day where he thought he could win.
How to Watch the Next Race
The next stop for the Cup Series is a return trip to Pocono. “The Tricky Triangle” will play host for Sunday’s Gander RV 400. Coverage will be on NBCSN, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 on Sunday, July 28 at 3 PM EST. Over the last 4 races at Pocono, Kyle Busch has scored 3 wins. Can anyone stop Rowdy from taking the checkers again in Pennsylvania? Differing strategy at Pocono could lead one team to their first 2019 win.
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Written by Peter Stratta
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Photo credit to NASCARMedia.
