Credit: Rusty Jarrett/Getty Images for NASCARKevin Harvick, driver of the No. 29 Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet, celebrates winning back-to-back Budweiser Shootout with a burnout at Daytona International Speedway. via nascar-assets.americaneagle.com
The Bud Shootout: My Take
Another Busch Clash Bud Shootout is in the books and officially it was Kevin Harvick that won, but I also think that the biggest winner was NASCAR.
The ‘have at it boys’ approach NASCAR took to this season regarding bump-drafting played into effect during the shootout as well as the larger restrictor plate change and this is why NASCAR was the biggest winner because the emphasise was on the driver and his abilities rather than the rules - except the gren/white/checkers as there seemed to be some debate after the race as to if the race should have finished under green flag conditions or not.
It would appear that it should have finished under green if it were before 10:00 pm and faster if after 10:00 pm and since it was after 10:00 pm NASCAR ended it as fast as they could with the green/white/checkers with no chance of another restart to end the race.
Race winner Harvick benefitted from the caution coming out just before the scheduled break as he had a rear tire going down and he was able to pit and change his tires without losing positions on the track. In fact the rcr team Twittered, "Crew found hole in @KevinHarvick's right rear tire during break. Caution was good timing for 29!" after Kevin went back out onto the track.
Harvick's wife, Delana, Twittered during the race that, "@kevinharvick says if we get out front the wont get by us" and once he did get out front he was a hard one to catch and pass.
What makes Harvick’s win all the more interesting is that he had no seat time in the car as he was suffering from flu-like symptoms since Thursday and had to rely on his RCR teammates Bowyer and Burton to test and set-up his car for him while he recovered.
Early in the day Harvick Twittered, "feeling alot better now that i am moving around. ready for some racing!" and boy was he ready!
As one Twitter prose whitted fan Spectricide said, "Harvick flu by them all" and that is just what he did to win his second straight Bud Shootout!
What a great start to the year for Harvick and his RCR team - I wonder if this will help him or not for his contract negotiations with RCR - I guess it all depends on how you look at it really as a win looks good for both him and RCR, but on the other hand a win might make him look more desirable to other teams too!
Here is something totally random; Ford only had one car in the top ten finishers of the race. I wouldn’t put anything into that stat as a ton of Fords got caught up in that late wreck and weren’t able to finish. But still its something to look at, especially if you’re a Ford fan!
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