Category: Post-Race Reports

Event:               Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race(non-points event)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format:            80 laps, broken into four stages (30 laps/20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)
Start/Finish:      4^th/ 1^st(Running, completed 93 of 93 laps)

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing(Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing(Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing(Toyota)
Stage 3 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing(Ford) 

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-30): 

• Kevin Harvick started fourth and finished first.
• Harvick took the lead for the first time on lap seven.
• The Jimmy John’s driver held the lead for the remainder of the stage.
• Following the end of the stage, Harvick came to pit road for four tires and fuel. An issue during the pit stop dropped the team to fifth on the ensuing restart.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 31-50): 

• Started fifth and finished 10^th.
• The 2014 Cup Series champion raced his way back up to third in the beginning of the stage.
• However, Harvick fell back after getting hung out on the bottom and finished the stage in 10^th.
• Harvick came to pit road for four tires, air pressure, wedge and fuel at the end of the stage. 

Stage 3 Recap (Laps 51-70): 

• Started eighth and finished first.
• Harvick raced up to fourth at the start of the stage, but he got stuck in the middle with no help and eventually fell back to ninth.
• The Jimmy John’s driver found himself seventh when the caution flew on lap 55. He came to pit road on lap 57 and restarted 15^th.
• After running just inside the top-10, Harvick stayed out on the lap-70 caution, which advanced him to fifth.
• Having pitted early in the stage, Harvick had fresher tires than everyone in front of him.
• More good fortune came on lap 75 when an accident took out most of the competitors that had newer tires than the No. 4 car.
• Harvick restarted fourth on the overtime finish for Stage 3 and moved his way up to the front, winning his second stage of the race.

Stage 4 Recap (Laps 71-80): 

• Started first and finished first.
• Harvick stayed out during the last stage break and restarted the final 10-lap shootout in the lead.
• A caution on lap 91 set up another two-lap shootout to decide for a million dollars, with Daniel Suarez lining up below Harvick in second, Suarez’ teammate Denny Hamlin behind him and Joey Logano behind Harvick.
• With a push from Logano, Harvick was able to hold off the Suarez-Hamlin duo on the inside, bring home a victory and keep his hot streak going. 

Notes:

• Harvick’s victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race marked the 50^thoverall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s third non-points victory in the NASCAR Cup Series to go along with its 45 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series wins and two NASCAR Xfinity Series wins.
• This was SHR’s second All-Star Race win. The first came in 2009 when Tony Stewart took the first win of any kind for SHR along with his first win in the All-Star Race.
• This was Harvick’s second victory in 18 career All-Star races. Harvick won the All-Star Race in 2007.
• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Suarez was .325 of a second.
• The All-Star Race featured 12 lead changes among seven different drivers. Twenty-one drivers comprised the field. 

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

Take us through the decision to start on the outside and hold on for the win.

“I thought on that last restart that my best opportunity was Logano. He is one of the best on the restarts. I knew he would work with me as good as possible, because that is just the way that most of us do it from Ford. We were able to just stay even through one and two, and I really thought once we got to the backstretch we could clear him. I didn’t want to be on the bottom. I didn’t feel my car was stable enough to be under someone when they were on my right side. I had to take my lumps through one and two and hope that the guy behind me was still with me when we got to the exit of two – and we were able to win. Just want to thank everybody from Jimmy John’s, Busch, Ford, Fields, Haas Automation, Mobil 1, Outback Steakhouse, Hunt Brothers Pizza, Morton Buildings, Textron Off-Road, Liftmaster and the fans, especially. We needed to be in control of the race to have a chance at winning. If we were third or fourth we would have been in big trouble. We needed to be on the front row with clean air, because that is the only chance our car would handle good enough. It was so fast.”

What are your overall thoughts on the aero package used for this race? 

“A lot of pushing and shoving. It reminded me a lot of IROC racing back in the day. We will see what everybody thinks and go from there.” 

Next Up:

The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series returns to points-paying racing on Sunday, May 27, with the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. The longest race on the Cup Series schedule gets underway at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX, PRN Radio and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Event:               Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race (non-points event)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format:            80 laps, broken into four stages (30 laps/20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)
Start/Finish:      15^th/18^th(Accident, completed 74 of 93 laps) 

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 3 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap:

• Buschstarted 15^th, but a spin on just the second lap sent him backward into the turn four wall. He finished the stage in 21^st.
• The impact caused minor rear-end damage to the No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion.
• Repairs were made on pit road during thesubsequent caution, allowing Busch to complete the stage.
• Busch finished one lap down, but took the wave-around and earned his lap back before pitting.

Stage 2 Recap: 

• Buschstarted 21^stand finished 20^th.
• Busch radioed that his No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion was “still pretty loose” as the stage drew to a close.
• Crew chief Billy Scott called for significant changes during the four-tire pit stop at the end of the stage, one of which was a massive left-rear wedge adjustment. 

Stage 3 Recap: 

• Buschstarted 20^thand finished 18^thafter getting collected in a multicar accident.
• A caution period on lap 57 allowed Busch to pit for four tires and fuel with another series of chassis adjustments.
• When the race returned to green on lap 59, Busch remained in 20^th, but climbed to 12^thbefore another caution flag waved.
• While others used the caution to pit, Busch stayed out to gain track position. He was eighth for the restart.
• The well-earned track position went for naught when Busch was collected in a crash three laps from the end of the stage.
• With his No. 41 Monster Energy Ford Fusion too damaged to continue, Busch was forced to the garage. 

Notes:

• This was Busch’s 17^thcareer start in the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race. Harvick and Matt Kenseth are the only active drivers with more All-Star Race starts.
• Busch won the All-Star Race in 2010.
• Harvick’s victory in the All-Star Race marked the 50^thoverall win for SHR. It was the organization’s third non-points victory in the NASCAR Cup Series to go along with its 45 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series wins and two NASCAR Xfinity Series wins.
• This was SHR’s second All-Star Race win. SHR’s first All-Star Race victory came in 2009 when Tony Stewart took the first win of any kind for SHR along with his first win in the All-Star Race.
• Twenty-one drivers comprised the field, which consisted of drivers who won a points-paying race in 2017 or 2018, fulltime drivers who have previously won the All-Star Race, fulltime drivers who have won a NASCAR Cup Series championship, and drivers who advanced from the undercard Monster Energy Open. 

Next Up: 

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Event:               Monster Energy Open(non-points event)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format:            50 laps, broken into three stages (20 laps/20 laps/10 laps)
Start/Finish:      1^st/ 6^th(Running, completed 50 of 50 laps)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-20): 

• Aric Almirolastarted first and finished sixth.
• Almirola put the No. 10 Smithfield/Waffle House Ford Fusion into the lead right at the beginning of the race and paced the field for the first 11 laps.
• Almirola noted that the front end of his car began to plow on lap 12.
• Pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments at the end of Stage 1.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 21-40): 

• Started seventh and finished sixth.
• Almirola drove back to second place before he was shuffled out of the lead draft and fell to seventh place. 

Stage 3 Recap (Laps 41-50): 

• Started third and finished sixth.
• Almirola ran in and around the top-five during the final 10-lap dash.
• Almirola’s Smithfield/Waffle House Ford found momentum on the last lap, but was caught behind traffic as the stage ended. 

Next Up: 

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Event:  Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race
Series:  Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:  Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Start/Finish: 3rd/19th (Running, completed 74 of 90 laps)

Race Winner:  Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:  Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:  Kyle Busch of Joe Gibbs Racing(Toyota)
Stage 3 Winner:  Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-30):

• ClintBowyerstarted third, finished 18th.
• Bowyer dropped to 16th in the opening laps when he was pinned in the middle lane without a drafting partner to push from behind.
• Bowyer reported his car was also struggling to turn on the 1.5-mile oval.
• He could not regain the lost spots before the stage ended. 

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 31-50):

• Bowyerstarted 18th, finished 18th.
• No. 14 crew made major changes during the race’s first stop to help the car turn in the corners.
• Bowyer dropped to 20th and climbed as high as 14th before finishing 18th. 

Stage 3 Recap (Laps 51-70):

• Bowyerstarted 18th, finished 19th.
• Pitted from 18th for four tires and fuel during the lap 56 caution. Restarted 16th.
• Made a quick pit stop on lap 70 for a loose lug nut from the previous stop and restarted in 10th.
• Stage could not end under caution so it went to overtime.
• An eight-car accident on lap 74 collected Bowyer.
• Bowyer was uninjured, but the No. 14 was heavily damaged and he drove it to the garage.

Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 SHR Fan Club Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

“That was so frustrating tonight. The minute you got bogged down you were all the way to the back again. We just got caught up in the wreck when someone hit us.”

 Notes:

• Harvick’s victory in the Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race marked the 50th overall win for SHR. It was the organization’s third non-points victory in the NASCAR Cup Series to go along with its 45 points-paying NASCAR Cup Series wins and two NASCAR Xfinity Series wins.
• This was SHR’s second All-Star Race win. SHR’s first All-Star Race victory came in 2009 when Tony Stewart took the first win of any kind for SHR along with his first win in the All-Star Race.
• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Daniel Suarez was .325 of a second.
•  Twenty-one drivers comprised the field.

Next Up:                     

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, May 27 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 6 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FOX beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Date:                 May 12, 2018
Event:               KC Masterpiece 400 (Round 12 of 36)
Series:               Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Kansas Speedway in Kansas City (1.5-mile oval)
Format:             267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/80 laps/107 laps)
Start/Finish:      1^st / 1^st (Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
Point Standing:  3^rd (484 points, 19 out of first)

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):

• Kevin Harvick started first and finished second, scoring nine bonus points.
• The No. 4 Busch Light Ford jumped out to the early lead to start the race and was in the lead during the race’s first competition caution on lap 30.
• Harvick pitted for four tires and fuel and resumed in third, then moved up to second on the ensuing restart on lap 34.
• On lap 50, Harvick reported he might have a right-rear tire going down. That turned out to not be the case, as he was fighting a loose condition off the corners.
• He held second place and was battling for the lead at the close of the stage but came up just short.
• The No. 4 Ford came to pit road at the conclusion of the stage for fuel and air-pressure adjustments and won the race off pit road.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160): 

• Started first and finished second to earn nine bonus points.
• Harvick reported a possible vibration on lap 108, but no issue was found as he remained in the lead.
• The Busch Light Ford pitted on lap 124 for four tires, fuel and an air-pressure adjustment and resumed seventh.
• Harvick retook the lead on lap 129 but fell to second two laps later when Kyle Larson completed a pass.
• Harvick brought the No. 4 Ford in at the end of the stage for four tires, fuel and air pressure and wedge adjustments and resumed in second place.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):

• Started second and finished first.
• Harvick came to pit road under green on lap 213 for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment and was third when the field cycled through that round of stops.
• The caution flag flew on lap 236 with Harvick in third. He pitted on lap 238 for four tires, fuel and air pressure adjustments and resumed in second.
• Harvick pitted under caution on lap 248 for four tires. He restarted eighth as six cars ahead of him either stayed out or took just two tires.
• Harvick had worked his way up to sixth when a multicar accident brought out the red flag on lap 253.
• He restarted sixth when the race went back to green with nine laps to go and gradually chased down Martin Truex Jr., passing him for the lead with a lap and a half to go.

Notes:

• This was Harvick’s fifth victory, ninth top-five and 10th top-10 finish of 2018.
• Harvick’s fifth win this year matches the most he has won in any single season – and 24 races still remain in 2018.
• Harvick is the first driver to notch five wins in the first 12 races of the season since Jeff Gordon in 1997. Gordon went on to win the championship in 1997.
• Harvick earned his third victory, eighth top-five and 14th top-10 in 25 career Cup Series starts at Kansas.
• This was Harvick’s 14th career Cup Series win on a mile-and-a-half racetrack.
• Harvick finished second in Stage 1 to earn nine bonus points and second in Stage 2 to earn an additional nine bonus points.
• Harvick led five times for 79 laps to increase his laps-led total at Kansas to 675.
• Harvick’s victory in the KC Masterpiece 400 marked the 49th overall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s 45th points-paying Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win and its third at Kansas.
• Saturday’s win marked SHR’s sixth victory in the first 12 races of the 2018 season.
• This was SHR’s ninth Cup Series victory with Ford.
• This was Harvick’s 42nd career Cup Series win and it keeps him in sole possession of 18th on the all-time Cup Series win list.
• This was Harvick’s 19th Cup Series victory since joining SHR in 2014.
• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Martin Truex Jr., was .390 of a second.
• There were six caution periods for a total of 31 laps.
• Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the KC Masterpiece 400 finished on the lead lap. 

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Busch Light Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

“I think, as you look at the last couple of laps, it wasn’t working for me on the bottom, and I was able to make up some ground on the top; and really, I thought, if it came down to it I could pass him on the bottom because my car went through one and two on the bottom or I could drive through the middle of three and four, but I just had to pick which a lane. He wasn’t going to choose, and he never chose the high lane, and we were able to drive right by.

“I think this weekend shows really how good the race team is. Everything didn’t go exactly smooth, and everybody just kept a good demeanor about things and kept calm and kept working through things. The same thing tonight. Everybody just kept working through, trying to make the car better, and we were able to wind up in victory lane. Those are the days that you just grind it out.”

Next Up:

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race on Saturday, May 19 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 beginning with a prerace show at 6 p.m.

Date:                 May 12, 2018
Event:               KC Masterpiece 400 (Round 12 of 36)
Series:               Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Kansas Speedway in Kansas City (1.5-mile oval)
Format:             267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/80 laps/107 laps)
Start/Finish:      8^th/ 8^th (Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
Point Standing:  5^th (393 points, 110 out of first) 

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):

• Kurt Busch started eighth and finished ninth to score two bonus points.
• The No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Fusion was eighth when, under caution on lap 32, Busch pitted for four tires, fuel and wedge adjustment.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160): 

• Busch started ninth and finished seventh, scoring four bonus points.
• The No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Fusion pitted on lap 82 for four tires, fuel and a wedge and tire pressure adjustment.
• Busch was in sixth place when he pitted on lap 123 for four tires and fuel.

Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):

• Busch started eighth and finished eighth.
• The No. 41 Haas Automation Ford Fusion pitted on lap 163 for four tires, fuel and a tire pressure adjustment.
• Busch pitted on lap 212 for four tires, fuel and a tire pressure and wedge adjustment while in ninth place.
• The No. 41 Haas Automation Ford team pitted on lap 239 and lap 247 for four tires and fuel. He ended up in eighth place. 

Notes:

• This was Busch’s sixth top-10 of 2018.
• Busch earned his ninth top-10 in 25 career Cup Series starts at Kansas.
• Busch finished ninth in Stage 1 to earn two bonus points and seventh in Stage 2 to earn an additional four bonus points.
• Kevin Harvick won the KC Masterpiece 400 to score his fifth victory, ninth top-five and 10^th top-10 finish of 2018.
• Harvick’s fifth win this year matches the most he has won in any single season – and 24 races still remain in 2018.
• Harvick is the first driver to notch five wins in the first 12 races of the season since Jeff Gordon in 1997. Gordon went on to win the championship in 1997.
• Harvick earned his third victory, eighth top-five and 14^th top-10 in 25 career Cup Series starts at Kansas.
• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Martin Truex Jr., was .390 of a second.
• There were six caution periods for a total of 31 laps.
• Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the KC Masterpiece finished on the lead lap.

Next Up:

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race on Saturday, May 19 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 beginning with a prerace show at 6 p.m.

Date:                 May 12, 2018
Event:               KC Masterpiece 400 (Round 12 of 36)
Series:               Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Kansas Speedway (1.5-mile oval)
Format:             267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/80 laps/107 laps)
Start/Finish:      4th, 9th (Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
Point Standing: 11th (342 points, 161 out of first) 

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-80):

• Aric Almirola started Stage 1 in the fourth position at Kansas Speedway, his best qualifying position of the season, and completed it in the sixth position.
• Almirola made his first pit stop of the evening from the sixth spot during the competition caution on lap 30. He received fuel and four fresh Goodyear tires after reporting the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion was neutral.
• The Tampa native restarted seventh on lap 35 and finished the first stage in the sixth spot to earn five bonus points.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 81-160):

• Before the start of Stage 2, Almirola visited pit road for four tires, fuel and an air pressure adjustment. He started the second stage in the sixth position and ended the stage in sixth to accumulate five bonus points.
• Almirola’s No. 10 Smithfield Prime Ford Fusion continued to maintain a top-10 running position.
• On lap 123 he made a scheduled green-flag pit stop for fuel and four tires after reporting the No. 10 Ford’s handling was tight.
• The 34-year-old maintained the seventh position for most of the stage but was able to gain one position as Stage 2 came to close.
  

Final Stage Recap (Laps 161-267):

• During the caution period for the final stage break, Almirola visited pit road for fuel, four tires and adjustments, and began the final stage from the sixth spot.
• On lap 213 Almirola made a scheduled green-flag pit stop from the seventh position for fuel, four tires and adjustments to help with the No. 10 machine’s handling.
• After the field cycled through green-flag pit stops, Almirola was running in the ninth position.
• During the fifth caution of the race, Almirola had to visit pit road twice and restarted in the 15^th position on lap 252. Just after the restart the sixth caution came out for a multicar accident, and subsequently the red flag was displayed for approximately 13 minutes.
• After the red flag was lifted, Almirola restarted 11^th on lap 258 and worked his way up to ninth, where he ultimately finished.

Notes:

• This was Almirola’s fifth top-10 of 2018.
• Almirola earned his fifth top-10 in 13 career Cup Series starts at Kansas.
• Almirola finished sixth in Stage 1 to earn five bonus points and sixth in Stage 2 to earn an additional five bonus points.
• Harvick’s victory in the KC Masterpiece 400 marked the 49^th overall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s 45^th points-paying Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win and its third at Kansas.
• Saturday’s win marked SHR’s sixth victory in the first 12 races of the 2018 season.
• This was SHR’s ninth Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Martin Truex Jr., was .390 of a second.
• There were six caution periods for a total of 31 laps.
• Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the KC Masterpiece 400 finished on the lead lap.

Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“It was a good night. I’m glad that we keep scoring these top-10s. I’m really proud of everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing. We had a really good car tonight. I’m really proud of all the effort and the work that is going in. Obviously, congrats to my teammate Kevin Harvick. We continue to rack up wins at Stewart-Haas Racing, but tonight we definitely had a top-five car without a doubt. We had a car capable of running in the top-five and we just didn’t execute. We were a little behind on pit road, and we made a mistake there at the end of the race that really cost us and got us behind. I had one restart where I didn’t get a good launch and got put in the middle three-wide. We just didn’t execute properly, and at this level when you get up inside the top-10 if you want to go run top-five and you want to have a shot to win races, you’ve got to be perfect, you’ve got to do everything right.  Unfortunately, we had a top-five car tonight, and we finished ninth.”

Next Up:

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the non-points Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race on Saturday, May 19 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with liver coverage by FS1 beginning at 5 p.m.

Date:                 May 12, 2018
Event:               KC Masterpiece 400 (Round 12 of 36)
Series:               Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Kansas Speedway in Kansas City (1.5-mile oval)
Format:             267 laps, broken into three stages (80 laps/80 laps/107 laps)
Start/Finish:      33^rd/ 15^th (Running, completed 267 of 267 laps)
Point Standing: 6^th with 386 points, 117 points out of first

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner: Ryan Blaney of Team Penske (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner: Kyle Larson of Chip Ganassi Racing (Chevrolet)

Stage 1 Recap (Ended on Lap 80):

• Clint Bowyer started 33^rd and finished 10^th.
• Bowyer moved to 16th in the first 10 laps of the race.
• Moved to 12th by the competition caution at lap 30.
• Told the crew his car was getting loose longer into the runs.

Stage 2 Recap (Ended on Lap 160):

• Bowyer started 11th and finished eighth.
• Crew made adjustments to cool Bowyer’s brakes, which were glowing from the heat.
• Continued to tell the No. 14 crew that his car was more loose the longer it ran.

Final Stage Recap (Ended on Lap 267):

• Bowyer started ninth and finished 15th.
• Moved to seventh in the opening laps of the stage before falling back to 13th by lap 200 because his car was loose.
• Bowyer started creeping back up the scoring pylon late in the race, climbing to 11th with 40 to go.
• Restarted in 10th with 15 laps remaining. Six cars ahead of Bowyer took no tires, and William Byron took two.
• When the green flag fell, Bowyer raced with eventual winner Kevin Harvick until Byron triggered a six-car accident that severely damaged the No. 14 and brought out a red flag.
• The No. 14 crew made repairs after NASCAR lifted the red flag and managed to keep Bowyer on the lead lap but with a 15th-place finish.

Notes:

• Harvick’s margin of victory over second-place Martin Truex Jr., was .390 of a second.
• There were six caution periods for a total of 31 laps. Only 15 of the 38 drivers in the race finished on the lead lap.
• Bowyer finished 10^th in Stage 1 to earn one bonus point and eighth in Stage 2 to earn an additional three bonus points.
• Harvick’s victory marked the 49^th overall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s 45^th points-paying Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win and its third at Kansas.
• Saturday’s win marked SHR’s sixth victory in the first 12 races of the 2018 season.
• This was SHR’s ninth Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.

Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 Haas Automation VF-1 Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing:

“It was a solid run. All weekend long it was just not our weekend. We had tech issues and didn’t get to qualify. We started in the back and got up through there pretty good, but then kind of stalled out. We got wrecked there. I was trying to get us up in the top-five and got wrecked there. That’s just part of it, I guess.”

Next Up:

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series All-Star Race on Saturday, May 19 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 beginning with a prerace show at 6 p.m.

Event:               AAA 400 Drive for Autism(Round 11 of 36)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Dover (Del.) International Speedway (1-mile, concrete oval)
Format:            400 laps, broken into three stages (120 laps/120 laps/160 laps)
Start/Finish:      2^nd/ 1^st(Running, completed 400 of 400 laps)
Point Standing:  3^rd(426 points, 40 out of first) 

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-120): 

• Harvick started second and finished first. Scored 10 bonus points and a playoff point for winning the stage.
• Harvick led twice for 34 laps in this stage, including the first 21 laps and the final 13 laps.
• A caution on lap 22 allowed Harvick to bring his No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford into the pits for four tires and fuel.
• Some drivers who elected to pit earlier during a caution on lap five, and others who took only two tires, restarted ahead of Harvick.
• After restarting fifth on lap eight, Harvick worked his way back into the lead on lap 108.
• The No. 4 Ford came to pit road at the conclusion of the stage for four tires and fuel.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 121-240): 

• Started first and finished first. Earned 10 more bonus points and another playoff point for winning the stage.
• Pitted on lap 154 while the race was under caution. Grabbed four fresh tires and fuel.
• Restarted in second place behind Brad Keselowski on lap 159.
• Harvick doggedly pursued Keselowski, eventually retaking the lead on lap 200.
• The Jimmy John’s Ford led the final 41 laps in Stage 2. Even so, Harvick said he needed his car to turn better.
• Harvick brought the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford in at the end of the stage for four tires, fuel and a right-rear wedge adjustment. 

Final Stage Recap (Laps 241-400): 

• Started first and finished first.
• Led 29 laps before caution on lap 273 allowed Harvick to pit for four tires and fuel.
• Two cars stayed out during this caution (Ricky Stenhouse Jr., and Jamie McMurray), and two cars took two tires (Keselowski and Joey Logano). This put Harvick fifth for the restart on lap 281.
• After momentarily dropping to sixth, Harvick returned to the top-five with 100 laps to go after passing Keselowski.
• Harvick passed Martin Truex Jr., for fourth on lap 310, and then passed Logano for third on lap 312.
• Harvick got by Stenhouse on lap 315 to take second, and slotted in just behind teammate Clint Bowyer, who was leading.
• A brief rain shower on lap 316 halted the race, eventually leading to a red flag that lasted for 41 minutes.
• Before the race went back to green, Harvick pitted for four tires and fuel and a right-rear wedge adjustment.
• When the race restarted on lap 326, Bowyer and Harvick were first and second, respectively.
• Harvick passed Bowyer for the lead on lap 338 off turn three of the 1-mile, concrete oval.
• Once he was back in front, Harvick never looked back. He cruised to victory by 7.45 seconds over Bowyer. 

Notes:

• Harvick’s victory in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism marked the 48^thoverall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s 44^thpoints-paying Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win and its third at Dover.
• Sunday’s win marks SHR’s fifth victory in the first 11 races of the 2018 season. This is the earliest in the season SHR has ever had five wins.
• This was SHR’s eighth Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when Kurt Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
• Bowyer finished second in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism to secure the fourth 1-2 finish in SHR history. Its last 1-2 finish came on June 25, 2017 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway when Harvick beat Bowyer.
• This was Harvick’s 41^stcareer NASCAR Cup Series win, giving him sole possession of 18^thon the all-time Cup Series win list.

• This was Harvick’s 18^thCup Series victory since joining SHR in 2014.
• This was Harvick’s series-leading fourth victory of the season, and his eighth top-five and ninth top-10 of 2018.
• Harvick’s four wins in 2018 is tied for his second most wins in a season, behind only 2014 when he won five races.
• This is the sixth time Harvick has scored at least four wins in a season.
• This is the first time Harvick has won four races in the first 11 races of a season. The last time a driver had four wins in the first 11 races of a season was Jimmie Johnson in 2007, who won 10 times that year.
• Harvick earned his second victory, sixth top-five and 16^thtop-10 in 35 career Cup Series starts at Dover.
• Harvick led six times for a race-high 201 laps to increase his laps-led total at Dover to 1,156.
• Harvick has led the most laps in four of the last eight races at Dover, and has won two of them (October 2015 and May 2018).
• There were eight caution periods for a total of 48 laps.
• Only 13 of the 38 drivers in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism finished on the lead lap. 

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Jimmy John’s Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

“The first thing I’ve got to do is just thank everybody on my team – everybody at Stewart-Haas Racing, Roush Yates Engines, everybody from Ford for just continuing to put the effort that they put into these cars. Three cars in the top-five says a lot about where we are as a company, but everybody from Jimmy John’s and Busch and Ford, Fields, Haas Automation, Mobil 1, Morton Buildings, Textron Off-Road, Liftmaster and the fans, especially. It was great to see those fans stick around for the finish. It’s fun racing your teammate. That says a lot about our company and one of your good friends, as well. I just want to say hi to DeLana, Keelan, and Piper at home.

“I feel like when you come to Dover, I feel like Clint is going to be one of the people that you have to beat just because of the fact that he’s been so good for so many years here. To be able to race with Clint for a win is – for me, like I told him, I said, if I’m not going to win this race today, you need to win this race, so get up there and go after it because at that point we didn’t know what was going to happen during the pit stop. To be able to race with him is a lot of fun, and I’d much rather keep it within the house than racing with somebody else.It was fun with Clint, and I had a really good battle there with Brad (Keselowski) for about 50 laps at the end of the second stage. We went back and forth and, finally, were able to get by him, but that was a lot of fun.”

Next Up: 

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the KC Masterpiece 400 on Saturday, May 12 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 beginning with a pre-race show at 7 p.m.

Event:               AAA 400 Drive for Autism (Round 11 of 36)
Series:               Monster EnergyNASCAR Cup Series
Location:          Dover (Del.) International Speedway (1-mile, concrete oval)
Format:            400 laps, broken into three stages (120 laps/120 laps/160 laps)
Start/Finish:      12^th/2^nd(Running, completed 400 of 400 laps)
Point Standing:4^thwith 380 points, 86 out of first

Race Winner:    Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 1 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)
Stage 2 Winner:Kevin Harvick of Stewart-Haas Racing (Ford)

Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-120):

• Clint Bowyer started 12^thand finished seventh to earn four bonus points.
• Bowyer endured a loose wheel after pitting for a lap-20 caution and restarted at the rear of the field.
• Despite noting loose-handling conditions, he drove his way back into the top-10 before the stage concluded.
• Pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments at the end of Stage 1.

Stage 2 Recap (Laps 121-240:

• Bowyer started fifth and finished fifth to earn six bonus points.
• Pitted during a lap-153 caution for four tires, fuel and air pressure adjustments.
• Bowyer kept the Haas Automation Demo Days Ford inside the top-10 during Stage 2.
• He pitted for four tires, fuel and adjustments to correct loose-handling conditions after the stage ended. 

Final Stage Recap (Laps 241-400):

• Bowyer started fourth and finished second.
• He gained the lead on lap 297 and held it until the red flag waved for inclement weather on lap 316.
• Bowyer maintained the lead until lap 337, when he was passed by teammate Kevin Harvick.
• He drove the Haas Automation Demo Days Ford in second place for the remainder of the race. 

Notes:

• Harvick won the AAA 400 Drive for Autism marked the 48^thoverall win for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR). It was the organization’s 44^thpoints-paying Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series win and its third at Dover.
• Sunday’s win marks SHR’s fifth victory in the first 11 races of the 2018 season.
• This was SHR’s eighth Cup Series victory with Ford. The team won its first race with Ford when Busch captured the 2017 Daytona 500.
• Bowyer finished second in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism to secure the fourth 1-2 finish in SHR history. Its last 1-2 finish came on June 25, 2017, at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway when Harvick beat Bowyer.
• This marks the first time SHR has had three cars finish among the top-five.
• This was Bowyer’s third top-five and seventh top-10 finish of 2018.
• Bowyer earned his third top-five and 14^thtop-10 in 25 career Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series starts at Dover.
• Bowyer finished seventh in Stage 1 to earn four bonus points and fifth in Stage 2 to earn an additional six bonus points.
• Bowyer led three times for 40 laps to increase his total at Dover to 82.
• There were eight caution periods for a total of 48 laps.
• Only 13 of the 38 drivers in the AAA 400 Drive for Autism finished on the lead lap.

Clint Bowyer, driver of the No. 14 Haas Automation Demo Days Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing: 

“Kevin was up front and was the car to beat most of the day. It was our first shot at tires and taking off in clean air. It makes a big difference. When you’re back in dirty air in traffic like we were most of the day it’s tough. Hats off to everyone at Stewart-Haas Racing. These Ford Fusions are fun to drive. The Haas Automation Demo Day was fun to drive. We won with this paint scheme in Martinsville and thought we were going to win with it again today. With Mobil 1 under the hood of mine and the No. 4 car, it’s hard to beat. If we keep knocking on the door like today, we’ll get another win.”

Next Up: 

The next event on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the KC Masterpiece 400 on Saturday, May 12 at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City. The race starts at 8 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 beginning with a prerace show at 7 p.m.