Harvick Sizzles In Bud Shootout
by Joe Jennings
2/6/2010

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Daytona Beach, Fla. - Kevin Harvick overcame the flu bug and 23 energized NASCAR drivers to win the 22nd Budweiser Shootout before a chilled crowd under the lights at the Daytona International Speedway.

Taking the lead for the final time on the 74th lap, Harvick survived a green-white-checkered flag finish to become the fourth two-time winner of the intensely competitive race. A last lap crash ended the race under the yellow flag after 76 laps were run. According to the rules, the field had one chance to finish the race.

Harvick drove the Shell/Pennzoil Chevrolet and gave owner Richard Childress his sixth Bud Shootout victory.

"It was a lot of fun to win," the victor said. "To go out and start that car cold without taking a (practice) lap was good."

Addressing the closing laps, he stated, "I needed to go at the end, and I thought I could get by one of the guys (Greg Biffle) on old tires, and I did. And we had our best restart at the end, which carried our momentum into turn 1. When I got to the backstretch, I got a good push, which was all I needed."

Said Childress, "My team put so much effort into this race, and I think we have some good cars. Kevin Harvick made the right move at the right time, and he just seems to know how to do it right."

Driving the Budweiser Ford, Kasey Kahne finished second. He started 19th and quickly advanced to reign in the leaders. From that point, he was in contention until the end.

"The Roush-Yates engine was something new to me, and I enjoyed it," he said. "It ran perfectly, and the race was a lot of fun, although there are a few things we can improve upon for next weekend."

Regarding the competition, he said, "I thought there was more competition than usual and we were two and three-wide from the start."

Jamie McMurray made his comeback race with Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing and barged into third place in a Chevrolet. A year ago he was runner-up in a Ford.

Said McMurray, "It was a great way to start my new relationship with Earnhardt-Ganassi Racing. After unloading the car, we didn't change anything on it. But we did get caught up on the practice crash, and had to change to the back-up car, which may have been the better of the two. In the race, I never let up and the bigger restrictor plate may have made the difference."

Kyle Busch raced to a fourth place finish in a Toyota with teammate Denny Hamlin securing fifth in an identical Toyota.

Joey Logano, the third member of the Joe Gibbs Racing team, took sixth and he was trailed by Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart and Juan Pablo Montoya.

Crashes, including a multi-car accident on the final lap, tore up several cars and ended the race for eight drivers.

In the final skirmish, Gordon got into Greg Biffle, turning the latter around in traffic resulting in several cars banging into each other. Biffle had taken the lead during a caution flag period starting on lap 70.

Biffle and Kahne stayed on the track while the rest of the field darted into the pits for two tires, except for Montoya who got four tires. The pit strategy worked for Kahne but not for Biffle.

Carl Edwards led 42 laps and dominated the first half of the race until his Ford slowed for an unexplained reason. He eventually returned to speed and was in the front mix of cars until getting caught in the last lap incident.





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