Harvick win gives him NASCAR title shot

KANSAS CITY, Kan. — No matter what kind of misfortune befalls Kevin Harvick in the early rounds of the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship, his team always seems to get things together when it matters. The No. 4 crew did it again Sunday. One week after a mechanical issue doomed him to a lousy finish at Charlotte, and put his hopes of advancing to the round of eight in jeopardy, Harvick roared to the front on the final restart to win at Kansas Speedway and take all of the pressure off next week’s elimination race at Talladega.

“These races are hard to win and these guys are so good at the details,” said Harvick, the 2014 champion, “and when you put their backs against the wall they’re even better. I’m so proud of them.”

Harvick was among the fastest in the final qualifying session, and hung around the front all day while other Chase contenders faltered. He was still at the front when Regan Smith brought out the final caution, and was able to keep Carl Edwards at bay over the final 30 laps.

“I was pretty sure we were in control of the race,” said Edwards, a Missouri native who has yet to win at what he considers his home track. “As much fun as I had running up front, it stings. There’s negative emotions tied up with not winning here with that fast of a car.”

It was the fourth win of the season for Harvick, and his second of the Chase. He rebounded from a poor performance at Chicago to win at New Hampshire and advance from the round of 16.

He joined Jimmie Johnson, the winner at Charlotte, in securing a spot in the next round of NASCAR’s playoffs, while also ramping up the pressure on the other 10 contenders fighting for points.

Johnson was fourth, followed by fellow Chase drivers Kyle Busch and Austin Dillon. Matt Kenseth was ninth after dominating the first half of the race from the pole, giving him a nice points cushion as the series heads to the unpredictable pressure-cooker at Talladega.

Other drivers competing for the championship dealt with trouble all afternoon.

Martin Truex Jr. again found himself at the front at Kansas, only to have issues with the refuelling mechanism that forced him to pit out of sequence. He wound up 11th and now sits seventh in points.