Harvick Hopes To Repeat Restrictor Plate Success
The car Kevin Harvick won the Daytona 500 with isn't available for this weekend's Aaron's 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. That No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet is sitting in Daytona USA, a high-priced piece of memorabilia fans can see any time. But Kevin Harvick said the team wasn't planning on using that restrictor-plate car at Talladega, anyway.
The cars have become so different from Daytona to Talladega," Kevin Harvick said. "At Daytona, you work so much on finding the right setup so it will handle in the draft and late in a run. I think it has become a different car for almost everyone. I know for us we had planned on bringing a different car to Talladega, so it isn't that big of a deal that we don't have our 500 car."
Daytona is more of a handling track, especially after the 2.66-mile Talladega Superspeedway was repaved last year. Teams want to bring the most aerodynamic car to Talladega as possible, as chassis setup means less there. Drivers mean a lot, too, of course, as working the draft has become an art.
"I always hear drivers say they just turn the wheel at Talladega and the car does all the work," said Todd Berrier, Kevin Harvick's crew chief. "That isn't true at all. It might be in qualifying, but once the race starts, Kevin Harvick is my biggest advantage. He knows where to go, who to work with, and how to avoid a bad situation. Not every driver knows what to do and how to work the pack.
"Every now and then somebody wins at Talladega and it is a surprise. However, when I read the list of winners - the [Dale] Earnhardts, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, and Mark Martin - these are hall of fame drivers. Say what you want, but the drivers play a huge role at Talladega."
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