CUP: Happy Pleased With Third

Sprint Cup

CUP: Happy Pleased With Third

Kevin Harvick looked like his old self Saturday night at Chicagoland Speedway, where he was strong all night...

Tom Jensen | Posted July 13, 2008 Joliet, Ill.

Kevin Harvick doesn't consider Charlotte Motor Speedway to be among his best tracks. (Photo: Getty Images)

Kevin Harvick looked like his old self Saturday night at Chicagoland Speedway, where he was strong all night, finishing third in the LifeLock.com 400, the 19th of 36 races on the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule.

It was Harvick’s best finish and first top five since he was runner-up to teammate Jeff Burton at Bristol in March, and it came at a most opportune time, as NASCAR’s regular season is just seven races away from completion. Harvick is one of about 10 drivers contesting the final seven spots in this year’s edition of the Chase for the Sprint Cup and he both needed and got an excellent run under the lights at the 1.5-mile track.

Although Harvick’s Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet did not lead a lap at Chicagoland, a track where he is a two-time winner, it consistently ran near the front for most of the night. Most importantly, it propelled the man they call “Happy” from 13th all the way to ninth in points, which made this a huge race for Harvick.

And even though he was not able to pass race winner Kyle Busch and runner-up Jimmie Johnson in the final 2-lap shootout at the end of the event, Harvick was more than satisfied with how his race went.

“Our Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet was really good all night,” said Harvick, who is still looking for his first Cup victory since the 2007 Daytona 500. “I thought we were in a pretty good position there at the end. I just couldn’t keep up with the 48 (Johnson) and the 18 (Busch) got around him up on the outside there and kept him pinned down and he couldn’t keep his momentum up.”

So could this be a sign that after a recent slump, RCR is back in the title hunt? Harvick thought it might be. “We’ve made a lot of gains in the last month and hopefully we’ve put ourselves in position with these new cars and new engines and everything we’ve got going to get some momentum,” he said.

All in all, it was an excellent result for the No. 29 RCR squad. “This is what we needed tonight, was a good solid finish,” Harvick said. “I thought I might be in the right spot there in the last corner, but I just came up a couple (of positions) short.”

LIFELOCK.COM 400 RESULTS

Tom Jensen is the Senior NASCAR Editor for SPEEDtv.com, the former Executive Editor of NASCAR Scene and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. He is the author of “Cheating: The Bad Things Good NASCAR Nextel Cup Racers Do In Pursuit of SPEED,” and has appeared on television and radio shows to discuss NASCAR racing. Jensen is the President of the National Motorsports Press Association. Jensen is the 1997 National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year and has won numerous national and state awards for news reporting, columns and feature writing. The Answer Man is back at SPEEDtv.com. Tom Jensen answers your questions during every race week and looks forward to hearing from you - please e-mail it to

EDITOR'S NOTE: The last paragraph listed the No. 31, it has been changed to the No. 29

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom Jensen

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