Chicagoland Set Up For Stewart-Harvick Showdown
This Saturday night at Chicagoland Speedway, Tony Stewart and Kevin Harvick (No. 29 Shell Pennzoil Chevrolet) will wage what could be an epic head-to-head battle.
Sure, there will be 41 other cars out there. But right now, Stewart-Harvick is the main event.
Only two points separate the two in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series standings. The winner will either stay in the top 12 (if Stewart finishes ahead of Harvick), or will move into the top 12 (if Harvick finishes on top).
What makes this even more intriguing is that both are phenomenal at Chicagoland.
Only two drivers have multiple wins at Chicagoland – Stewart and Harvick.
The two, along with Matt Kenseth (No. 17 USG Ford), are the only drivers with more than 200 laps led at Chicagoland. And Stewart, Harvick and Kenseth are the only drivers with Driver Ratings above 110.0.
In other words, the battle for a coveted top-12 spot will be held up front.
Over the past three years, Havick owns slightly better stats at Chicagoland than Stewart. Below is the tale of the tape:
Driver Rating: Harvick leads 114.6 to 112.2
Average Running Position: Harvick leads 5.4 to 7.6
Fastest Laps Run: Stewart leads 82 to 27
Laps in the Top 15 percentage: Harvick leads 95% to 88.2%
But since 2005, Kenseth has been the class of the Chicagoland field – despite zero trips to Victory Lane.
Over the past three years, Kenseth has notched two runner-up finishes (2005 and 2007) and a 22nd-place finish in 2006 after leading a race-high 112 laps.
During that span, Kenseth has racked up series-high marks in Driver Rating (126.2), Average Running Position (3.9), Fastest Laps Run (146) and Laps in the Top 15 (792/98.5%).
Also watch for wins and standings leader Kyle Busch to make a strong push for another 10 potential Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup bonus points. With his win at Daytona, Busch now has 60 bonus points, opening up a 40 point lead over Carl Edwards and Kasey Kahne.
There’s a good chance he’ll add to that total. In his Chicagoland career, Busch has a Driver Rating of 105.0 (fifth-best), an Average Running Position of 7.8 (fourth) and 25 Fastest Laps Run (tied for eighth).
