Race Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 2 Winner: Martin Truex Jr., of Joe Gibbs Racing (Toyota)
Stage 1 Recap (Laps 1-90):
● Kevin Harvick started fourth and finished fifth, earning six bonus points.
● Harvick put the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang into the lead after only five tours around the 1.366-mile oval, passing polesitter Brad Keselowski
● Kyle Busch passed Harvick for the lead on lap 14 and then Martin Truex Jr., got by to take second on lap 18.
● “The front doesn’t turn and I have zero rear grip,” said Harvick after dropping to third.
● Caution on lap 23 allowed Harvick to pit for four tires, fuel and a right-rear chassis adjustment.
● Lined up third for lap-29 restart and quickly regained second place.
● Tyler Reddick passed Harvick for second on lap 41, whereupon Harvick keyed his mic and said, “You gotta take a big swing at the loose.”
● Harvick fell to fourth on lap 45 as Denny Hamlin got by. “Like, I mean, a big swing,” said Harvick again about addressing the loose-handling condition of his racecar.
● Made scheduled, green flag pit stop on lap 59 for four tires and fuel with another right-rear chassis adjustment.
● After pit stops cycled through by lap 75, Harvick was back in third place.
● Fell to fifth place by the end of the stage. “Front doesn’t turn,” said Harvick. “It runs five laps and then just gives up and we’re sideways.”
● Pitted for four tires and fuel with another right-rear chassis adjustment upon the conclusion of the stage.
Stage 2 Recap (Laps 91-185):
● Harvick started fourth and finished 12th.
● A flurry of cautions kept the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang in fifth at the beginning of the stage. “Tight in traffic,” said Harvick.
● Harvick took advantage of a caution and pitted for four tires and fuel on lap 111. Lined up 10th for lap-115 restart as not everyone opted to pit.
● “Literally plowing,” said Harvick about his racecar before dropping to 13th on lap 119.
● Made scheduled, green flag pit stop on lap 147 for four tires and fuel with a track bar adjustment.
● “It’s gotten really loose,” said Harvick while running 14th on lap 166.
● Picked up two spots at the end of the stage to finish 12th.
● “When I try to run high, I can’t put the power down because I’m too loose,” said Harvick upon the conclusion of the stage.
● Pitted for four tires and fuel with a right-rear wedge adjustment at the end of the stage.
Final Stage Recap (Laps 186-293):
● Harvick started 10th and finished sixth.
● Harvick held the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang steady in 10th until making a scheduled, green flag pit stop on lap 225.
● The No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang took on four fresh tires, fuel and a right-rear wedge adjustment during that stop.
● Harvick returned to 10th place once pit stops had cycled through.
● “Won’t turn and need rear grip on exit,” said Harvick on lap 251 while running 10th.
● Made scheduled, green flag pit stop for four tires and fuel with another right-rear chassis adjustment on lap 256.
● Picked up two spots on pit road to return to the track in eighth and picked up another two positions in final 30 laps to finish sixth.
Notes:
● Harvick earned his ninth top-10 of the season and his 16th top-10 in 27 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Darlington.
● This was Harvick’s third straight top-10. He finished fourth on April 25 at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway and second in the series’ prior race at Kansas Speedway in Kansas City.
● This was Harvick’s 11th straight top-10 at Darlington.
● Since joining Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014, Harvick has never finished outside the top-10 at Darlington. He also scored two of his three Darlington wins during this time.
● Harvick led twice for 10 laps to increase his laps led total at Darlington to 792.
● Harvick has now led 11,178 laps since joining SHR in 2014. He has led 15,604 laps in his entire NASCAR Cup Series career.
● Martin Truex Jr., won the Goodyear 400 to score his 30th career NASCAR Cup Series victory, his series-leading third of the season and his second at Darlington. His margin over second-place Kyle Larson was 2.571 seconds.
● There were six caution periods for a total of 36 laps.
● Only nine of the 37 drivers in the Goodyear 400 finished on the lead lap.
● Denny Hamlin remains the championship leader after Darlington with a 75-point advantage over second-place Truex.
Next Up:
The next event on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule is the Dover 400 on Sunday, May 16 at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. The race begins at 2 p.m. EDT with live coverage provided by FS1 and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
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