NASCAR Cup Series

Kevin Harvick goes back-to-back with Richmond win

3 Mins read
Credit: Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Discourse surrounding Kevin Harvick for much of the 2022 NASCAR Cup Series season generally questioned when he would finally win a race, which he last achieved in 2020. Now, he is suddenly a potential championship contender.

After riding a winless streak of sixty-five races, Harvick has won the last two races in a row with Michigan and Sunday’s Federated Auto Parts 400 at Richmond Raceway. He took the lead from Denny Hamlin during green-flag pit stops with forty-eight laps remaining and never surrendered it.

He faced a challenge from Chris Buescher but kept the fellow Ford at bay with help from lapped traffic, before Christopher Bell joined the picture and tried to chase him down. However, Bell’s last-ditch effort failed as Harvick held him off to secure his sixtieth career Cup win, fourth at Richmond, and first at the Virginia track since 2013.

“I thought we had fended off the #17 (Buescher) pretty well, and then they told me that the #20 was coming, and I’m like, ‘Oh man, usually when you’re coming on new tyres, there’s no defense for that,'” Harvick said in his post-race press conference. “That’s why I was a little bit frustrated with myself with the not shifting part on the front straightaway because I gave up the big chunk. It should have never been that close, just a lapse in my attention span, I guess, would be the best way to put it.”

Bell settled for second, making for a very memetic finish as numbers 4 and 20 placed 1–2. Such an order has only occurred one other time in Cup Series history with Harvick and Matt Kenseth in the 2016 Bad Boy Off Road 300 at New Hampshire.

“I got held up pretty bad at the beginning of the run by a couple slower cars and that was ultimately the difference when you get beat by a couple car lengths,” commented Bell. “Just really fun and really fun race when you have different strategies and you have guys coming and going. I love whenever the races stay green and you’re able to play your cards a little bit different. Really proud of everyone on this #20 crew to be able to come back from how we started. Very tough weekend for us. We didn’t practice very well and we didn’t qualify very well. And the guys did a really good job getting this Rheem Camry up front and where we needed to be at the end.”

Joey Logano dominated the race by leading 222 laps, but sank to sixth following stops. Ross Chastain led the second most circuits with 80 but once again found himself clashing with his peers after spinning Kyle Busch on lap 240, causing a stack-up that resulted in Erik Jones spinning him.

The wreck ended Jones’ day, and he would be one of two retirements alongside Ty Gibbs. Gibbs, once again filling in for Kurt Busch, exited with an engine failure.

Race results

FinishStartNumberDriverTeamManufacturerLapsStatus
1134Kevin HarvickStewart-Haas RacingFord400Running
22120Christopher BellJoe Gibbs RacingToyota400Running
31817Chris BuescherRFK RacingFord400Running
4311Denny HamlinJoe Gibbs RacingToyota400Running
5239Chase ElliottHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet400Running
61722Joey LoganoTeam PenskeFord400Running
7619Martin Truex Jr.Joe Gibbs RacingToyota400Running
83210Aric AlmirolaStewart-Haas RacingFord400Running
92918Kyle BuschJoe Gibbs RacingToyota400Running
101012Ryan BlaneyTeam PenskeFord400Running
11424William ByronHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet400Running
12332Austin CindricTeam PenskeFord399Running
131123Bubba Wallace23XI RacingToyota399Running
1415Kyle LarsonHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet399Running
1586Brad KeselowskiRFK RacingFord399Running
16123Austin DillonRichard Childress RacingChevrolet399Running
172242Ty DillonPetty GMS MotorsportsChevrolet398Running
1821Ross ChastainTrackhouse Racing TeamChevrolet398Running
192499Daniel SuárezTrackhouse Racing TeamChevrolet398Running
20548Alex BowmanHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet398Running
212731Justin HaleyKaulig RacingChevrolet398Running
222047Ricky Stenhouse JrJTG Daugherty RacingChevrolet398Running
231514Chase BriscoeStewart-Haas RacingFord397Running
241916Noah Gragson*Kaulig RacingChevrolet397Running
253021Harrison BurtonWood Brothers RacingFord397Running
26741Cole CusterStewart-Haas RacingFord397Running
271638Todd GillilandFront Row MotorsportsFord397Running
28317Corey LaJoieSpire MotorsportsChevrolet397Running
293434Michael McDowellFront Row MotorsportsFord395Running
302577Landon Cassill*Spire MotorsportsChevrolet395Running
31268Tyler ReddickRichard Childress RacingChevrolet394Running
323515J.J. Yeley*Rick Ware RacingFord393Running
333678B.J. McLeod*Live Fast MotorsportsFord392Running
342851Cody WareRick Ware RacingFord391Running
35943Erik JonesPetty GMS MotorsportsChevrolet240Accident
361445Ty Gibbs*23XI RacingToyota180Engine
Italics – Competing for Rookie of the Year
* – Ineligible for points
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Justin is not an off-road racer, but he writes about it for The Checkered Flag.
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