Forward Drive: Bump And Run Gets Kevin Harvick Win In Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 At NHMS

Kevin Harvick celebrates victory in the Monster Energy Cup Series Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Photo: Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images)

LOUDON, N.H. – Rain forced fans to wait three more hours than expected to see the NASCAR Monster Energy Cup Series hit the track Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

But by the end of the day in Loudon it was Kevin Harvick bringing the thunder on track to make for a dramatic finish.

Harvick used a bump and run to move Kyle Busch out of the lead on lap 295 and went on to win the Monster Energy Cup Series Foxwoods Resort Casino 301 Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.

“I just didn’t know if I was going to get there again,” Harvick said of the contact he made with Busch to push him up the track and take the lead. “I felt like that was my best opportunity to do what I had to do to win. I didn’t want to wreck him, but I didn’t want to waste a bunch of time behind him so.”

Busch, known as one of the most aggressive competitors in the series, calmly summed up Harvick’s move for the win.

“I’m not sure he had to do it, but he did, it’s fine,” Busch said. “How you race is how you get raced so it’s fine.”

Said Harvick “Your goal is to not wreck him. Your goal is to move him out of the groove and get away from him far enough because you know they’re going to be mad. Today that was the situation.”

It was the the third career Monster Energy Cup Series victory at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for Harvick and his sixth victory of the season.

Busch held on to finish second and Aric Almirola was third.

The race was originally scheduled for a 2 p.m. start, but that time was rescheduled Saturday to 1 p.m. based on weather forecasts. Morning and afternoon rains forced a delay that had the field taking the green flag at about 4:15 p.m.

With Almirola leading, Harvick second and Busch third, caution flew on lap 258 sending all the leaders to pit road. Busch’s team got him off pit road first with Harvick in second and Almirola third.

“We had a really really poor performance today,” Busch said. “Our [car] just wasn’t there. It wasn’t there all weekend. We kept fighting the same things all weekend. We could never make any gains on it all through practice and we kind of struggled with it through the race. [Crew chief Adam Stevens] made some really really good calls, some really good adjustments to just try to keep improving on it. My pit crew was flawless. They gained us all those spots on pit road to get us out front to get us in that position to have a shot to go for the win.”

Kevin Harvick raises the winner’s lobster in victory lane Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway (Photo: Brian Lawdermilk/Getty Images)

Busch was able to briefly drive away from Harvick after the lap 263 restart. By lap 292 Harvick was back to Busch’s bumper. A lap later he gave Busch a nudge in turn two. Harvick delivered nudges again on lap 293 and 294.

On lap 295 Harvick got a run on the inside of Busch on the frontstretch. Into turn one Harvick once again nudged Busch in the left rear and Busch’s car skated up the track toward the wall. Harvick motored through the lane low lane to the lead and quickly scurried away from Busch.

“We were just running out of laps and I knew that I might not get to him again,” Harvick said. “As hard as both of us were pushing, we were chattering the rear tires, the front tires. I got to him and I knew that I needed to take my opportunity. I felt like I needed to try to get him up out of the groove. And I got him up out of the groove and was able to get by him.”

Busch, known for his fiery temper at times after drama on the track, was calm and collected following the race.

“We controlled the restart and drove way by a little bit, but we weren’t the best car on the long run,” Busch said. “… It was good going to be hard hold him off and I was just kind of backing up and you know, three, four, five corners in a row he was the faster car. … A little bumping and banging. Rubbing’s racing, we go on.”

Harvick said he understands payback could come down the road.

“You worry about that stuff later,” Harvick said. “It’s not like I wrecked him.”

Comments

  1. This is great:

    Said Harvick “Your goal is to not wreck him. Your goal is to move him out of the groove and get away from him far enough because you know they’re going to be mad. Today that was the situation.”

    What did K. Busch do to Larson a week or so ago?

    I’m liking Harvick more and more lately.

  2. NH MOD CHASER says

    If you watched that race Larson got into Kyle first thus leaving the door wide open

  3. Crazy in NY says

    What did K. Busch do to Larson a week or so ago?
    ????????????????
    What did Larson do the lap before? Not the same thing.
    The bump and run is the official passing way of NASCAR.
    ain’t racing.

  4. I think the traction compound helped make for better races. I watched more of the xfinity and Cup races this time than years past. I am curious to see how the mods did with the compound on the track. I believe it is being broadcast on NBCSports tonight 7/25 at 7pm

    Personally, I thought the bump and pass made for a pretty good race at Loudon. Though Kyle Busch diffused retaliation in the article, I am more inclined to watch future cup races to see if Kyle Busch gets Kevin Harvick back as he owes him one. I think a rivalry is good for sports, Red Sox v Yankees, Canadians Bruins, Celts Lakers games generate more excitement then a regular game. I think Nascar needs more rivalries to get their race viewership up which by all accounts has been falling. I think rivalries would help the short tracks but I don’t know how you create them. Now a rivalry can go bad, no one wants to see anyone get taken out and injured.

  5. There is plenty of rivalry in Cup, everybody hates Kyle Busch!!!

Leave a Reply

Copyright 2018 E-Media Sports

Website Designed by Thirty Marketing