Harvick’s Richmond Playground Has Bullies Ready For Friday Night Fight
Kevin Harvick (No. 33 RoadLoans.com Chevrolet) must have been under the weather during the first 2007 NASCAR Busch Series race at Richmond in May. He finished fourth and didn’t lead a single lap. It was an unsusual performance by his Richmond standards.
Usually, the two-time and reigning NASCAR Busch Series champion dominates. He did so in 2005, leading a race-high 149 laps in a win. He did it again twice in 2006, leading a total of 203 laps and sweeping the Richmond card.
Must be nice to finish fourth and consider it a bad day.
Kevin Harvick finds himself at or near the top of practically every key pre-race Loop Data category over the last five races at Richmond. He leads in Driver Rating (123.2) and Fastest Laps Run (156), is third in Average Running Position (6.8) and second in Laps in the Top 15 (1,132).
Clint Bowyer (No. 2 BB&T Chevrolet) was able to stop the Kevin Harvick machine last May, grabbing his second series win of the season. In that race, Bowyer scored a Driver Rating of 13.20 and an Average Running Position of 2.9.
Jason Leffler (No. 38 Great Clips Toyota) could surprise this weekend if he can rebound from a tough performance in May. He finished 37th in the first Richmond race, his worst finish in nine starts at the .75-mile track. Prior to that, he had three straight top-25 finishes and led laps in three consecutive Richmond races.
Leffler’s stats there are also impressive. He has a solid Driver Rating of 90.8, an Average Running Position of 13.8, 33 Fastest Laps Run and 648 Laps in the Top 15.
Another angle sure to heat up is the owner points battle between the No. 60 Roush Fenway Racing Ford and the No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. Jeff Burton drove the No. 29 to Victory Lane at California last weekend and regained the top spot in the standings. This weekend, Scott Wimmer will be piloting the car. He has a solid Driver Rating of 83.9 in three races at Richmond since 2005, while No. 60 driver Carl Edwards has a Richmond Driver Rating of 99.1.
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