NASCAR’s Kevin Harvick – From Boy To Superstar

It is said that Kevin Harvick’s love for the sport started out in 1980 when his parents presented him with a go-kart after his kindergarten graduation. He was born Kevin Michael Harvick on December 8th in 1975 at Bakersfield, California. His father, Mike Harvick, would sometimes apply modifications to his young son’s go-kart which taught young Harvick to always be prepared for any situation. Young Harvick went on to win seven National championships and two Grand National Championships in go carting. It was during that time that the racer, Kevin Harvick, was shaped for his upcoming battles on the race track.

Harvick started racing on a part-time basis in the NASCAR AutoZone elite Division while he was still in high school in 1992. Just as he is aggressive on the racetracks, Harvick would spend his off-season time on the wrestling team at North High School in Oildale. He also managed to win in his weight class during his senior year. Once he graduated from high school, Harvick went on to become a full-time driver and grabbed the Rookie of the Year title in 1995. Although he had an interest in architecture, Harvick decided that racing was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life and chose that over studying architecture.

He went on to the NASCAR Grand National Division, AutoZone West Seriesin 1997 and was crowned champion the next year. He went on to debut in the craftsman Truck Series in 1995 with a best finish of 11th place. He entered full time in 1996 with three top-fives and 17th finish in points. Harvick then started racing in the Busch Series in 1999. Despite the fact that he started 24th, he suffered through some engine failure and only managed to pull the 42nd spot. In 2000, he joined forces with legend Richard Childress. Harvick went on to win the NASCAR Busch Series Rookie of the Year and was able to grab three wins, eight top-five finishes and an impressive 16 top-ten finishes. He also went on to win at the Carquest Auto Parts 250, Bristol Motor Speedway and at Memphis Motorsports Park.

The next year he had five wins, twenty top-five finishes and 24 top-ten finishes. He also brought back the NASCAR Busch Series Championship. It was the same year that Harvick won two Winston Cups, 20 top-five finishes and five wins. He was awarded Rookie of the Year with ninth place in points. The same year, he married his best friend, DeLana Linville. He also became the first NASCAR driver to run full-time both the Busch and Winston Cup which had a total of 70 races in one season. And amazingly the first to have the Rookie of the Year title at the Winston Cup and the Championship at the Busch Series.

Since then, Harvick has gone on to achieve more winnings with his most fruitful year being 2006 where he won his second Busch Series Championship with nine wins, 23 top-fives and 32 top-tens. His Busch win was the earliest ever seen in Busch history as he managed to pull it off with four more races waiting to take off. He had a record number of 824 points during the final standing. He also won the Winston Cup at Watkins Glen International. In 2007, he won the Orbitz 300 which was a first in his career in a restrictor plate race during the start of the season. He also won the camping World 200 and NAPA Auto Parts 200. He made it into the record books again when became the driver with the most NBS wins at the Texas Motor Speedway.

His amazing resume does not stop there as he has gone on to win various more races. It would be an understatement to say that there will be a lot in store for this fierce driver.