Twelve months ago, Kevin Harvick held off a laborious-charging Denny Hamlin at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in a fight that saw the 2 beat and bang by the final lap to total a 21-trudge winless trudge for the driver of the No. 4 Stewart-Haas Racing Ford.
There’s each motive to imagine that followers will seemingly be handled to the identical thrilling dwell again this year between the 2 within the Foxwoods Resort On line casino 301 on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN, PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Harvick and Hamlin were the cream of the chop within the NASCAR Cup Series this season, combining to exhaust nine races – a assortment-main 5 for Hamlin and four for Harvick – out of the 19 contested to date. Hamlin obtained essentially the most most in model trudge at Kansas, whereas Harvick last visited Victory Lane in Indianapolis on the starting of July.
Following the Kansas exhaust, Hamlin mirrored on the rivalry that has developed with Harvick at some stage within the last 12 months.
“What you’ve viewed from us within the last year with the 11 and the 4 is a form of mutual appreciate,” Hamlin acknowledged. “We trudge each diversified with a form of mutual appreciate because we are mindful about it obtained’t be the last time. We aloof possess potentially a few years of battles earlier than us. We’ve been all the scheme by the game a protracted time. We butted heads early in my occupation. He’s completely a man that I personally would take care of to model myself after.”
The duo is gorgeous evenly matched at New Hampshire in terminate to each manner on paper – Harvick leads all stuffed with life drivers in wins at New Hampshire with four whereas Hamlin has three. Harvick is tied with Matt Kenseth for assortment-most high fives among stuffed with life drivers with 12 each; Hamlin is loyal within the relieve of them with 10. And Hamlin leads the assortment in runner-up finishes at New Hampshire with 5 second-predicament outcomes; in conjunction with last year. Harvick has accomplished second or third a total of three times on the “Magic Mile.”
However whereas the concentration goes to undoubtedly be on the 2 drivers who possess dominated the season to date, New Hampshire also places the stress on the postseason push for drivers on the bubble. With handiest seven races to move earlier than NASCAR’s Playoffs begins, 10 drivers are locked into the postseason on wins, leaving six spots up for grabs.
Clint Bowyer, Matt DiBenedetto and William Byron are for the time being striking on to the final three slots based solely totally on facets, but their lead is precarious and they also can also be knocked out if a driver start air of essentially the most in model Playoff 16 wins in an upcoming week. And 7-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson, utilizing in his final fat-time season, is 18 facets to the corrupt start air the Playoff characterize.
Of these combating on the Playoff bubble or sitting on the starting up air looking out in, Johnson, Kenseth and Ryan Newman lead the community with three wins each in Loudon. Bowyer has two wins at New Hampshire.
And even within the occasion that they are both in a stable enlighten within the facets, brothers Kyle Busch and Kurt Busch are aloof making an try to safe their first exhaust of the year and each possess three wins at New Hampshire.
Or might maybe we peep a main-time assortment winner this weekend? It has came about earlier than. New Hampshire is home to 5 first-time Cup winners; in conjunction with Joey Logano’s first assortment occupation victory within the June 2009 trudge in his rookie year.
NASCAR Cup Series
Subsequent Flee: Foxwoods Resort On line casino 301
The Location: New Hampshire Motor Speedway
The Date: Sunday, August 2
The Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV: NBCSN, 2: 30 p.m. ET
Radio: PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio
Distance: 318.46 miles (301 laps); Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 75), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 185), Last Stage (Ends on Lap 301)
2019 Flee Winner: Kevin Harvick
What To Negate about For: New Hampshire Motor Speedway has hosted 48 NASCAR Cup Series races producing 22 diversified pole winners and 24 trudge winners. … The major NASCAR Cup Series trudge at New Hampshire became held on July 11, 1993 and became obtained by NASCAR Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace utilizing the No. 2 Ford for Roger Penske. … Ryan Newman leads the assortment in poles at New Hampshire with seven. … Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick are tied for the assortment-most wins at New Hampshire with four each. … A total of 19 diversified drivers possess made their first NASCAR Cup Series start at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; four of the drivers are stuffed with life – Joey Logano (2008), Corey LaJoie (2014), Ryan Preece (2015), B.J. McLeod (2015). … In total 22 diversified NASCAR Cup Series drivers possess obtained the pole at New Hampshire, and eight are stuffed with life this weekend. … A total of 24 diversified NASCAR Cup Series drivers possess obtained at New Hampshire Motor Speedway; nine are stuffed with life this weekend. … Five NASCAR Cup Series drivers possess posted their first occupation exhaust at New Hampshire Motor Speedway – Joey Logano (2009), Clint Bowyer (2007), Ryan Newman (2002), Robby Gordon (2001), Joe Nemechek (1999). … Six of the 48 (12.5%) NASCAR Cup Series races at New Hampshire were obtained from the pole or first starting enlighten; essentially the most most in model became Kyle Busch in 2017. Ryan Newman is the handiest driver to achieve it better than once (2002, 2011). … The deepest within the discipline that a trudge winner has started at New Hampshire is 38th, by Jeff Burton in 1999.
— NASCAR Wire Carrier —
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