Kevin Harvick Surprised by Kyle Busch’s Lackluster Attack on Chase Briscoe’s Darlington Victory

Chase Briscoe‘s dream run at the Darlington Raceway is certainly one for the history books. Ever since its inception in 2008, Stewart Hass Racing has given NASCAR fans similar moments to cherish forever. Tony Stewart’s iconic 2011 playoff run is one such moment. The SHR co-owner won four out of five playoff races and sealed his third Cup Series title. Another moment tailor-made by Stewart Haas Racing is Kevin Harvick’s dominance at the Brickyard 400.

But there were many challenges during these moments, and the regular season finale at Darlington Raceway was no exception. While Chase Briscoe made an intense charge to outshine others at the race, Kyle Busch kept following the 29-year-old. However, Briscoe’s intensity proved unmatched by the Richard Childress Racing ace driver. Consequently, the No. 8 had to settle for a P2 finish in the regular season finale, bringing an end to his Cup Series campaign.

Following the race, Kevin Harvick has praised Chase Briscoe for his emphatic victory, but Kyle Busch’s lack of desperation has shocked him to the core.

Kevin Harvick questions No. 8’s dull finish as Chase Briscoe shines

The Southern 500 had multiple race leaders. It started with Kyle Larson, who emerged ahead of others during the initial parts of the race. Next, Christopher Bell and Ross Chastain took the lead away from Larson. During the final 26 laps, Chase Briscoe outperformed others to lead the race. But Kyle Busch’s P2 was a constant for a very long time. It looked as if the 39-year-old couldn’t transition to defeat the leader of the pack. However, he finished just 0.361 seconds behind Briscoe. The defeat ultimately cost him a playoff spot for the first time in 11 years.

Former NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kevin Harvick, too, couldn’t understand why the Richard Childress Racing ace driver couldn’t convert a solid performance into a victory. Pointing out some reasons for the same in ‘Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour’, the racing legend said, “I was a little surprised honestly at the very end that Kyle Busch didn’t get closer to him with the new tires. I think that was just the difference in where Kyle’s car performance was to him once they got three or four laps on the tires. Those tires start to equalize a little, but the arrow and grip level starts to go down every lap that you run.”

This was Kyle Busch’s second consecutive runner-up finish in the regular season this year. He came second to Harrison Burton at the Daytona International Speedway. Apart from him, several other experienced racers like Ross Chastain, Chris Buescher, and Bubba Wallace are missing out on the playoffs this season.

While it was a disappointing end of the season for Kyle Busch, Chase Briscoe’s season just got a second lease of life with that emphatic win at the Darlington Raceway. Kevin Harvick, the former Stewart Hart Racing driver himself, had heaps of praise for the way Briscoe stood his ground. The 48-year-old exclaimed, “I think when you look at just Chase Briscoe, I mean you could tell that he was just the fire was lit. And he was not messing around on the restarts at the last restart where he took, not the last restart, but when he took the lead to take those guys three wide, he was not giving the lead back.”

With this win, Chase Briscoe becomes yet another SHR driver to have won the race at the iconic Superspeedway. Only time will tell if his win will turn out to be something big for him, like his predecessors.

Darlington Raceway: SHR’s favorite Superspeedway

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Chase Briscoe’s win at the Darlington Raceway adds another chapter in a long history of dominance from the Stewart Haas Racing drivers at the Darlington Raceway. The Southern 500, especially, has been a key race for the SHR racers for some time now. Kevin Harvick has been particularly successful at the Darlington Raceway, securing three wins in his career. His first win came in 2014 when he dominated the race and led for 238 out of the 374 laps. The NASCAR legend ultimately won the championship that year. Apart from this, Harvick won at the venue twice in the pandemic-affected season of 2020.

Not only Harvick, ‘The Lady in Black’ has been particularly kind to Tony Stewart, the co-owner of the team, who has managed to finish third place at Darlington Raceway three times in his coveted career.

Ryan Newman, too, had a decent record at Darlington Raceway. The No. 39 at Stewart Hass Racing has an average finish of 12.8 in Darlington. Josh Berry has impressed at the venue as well. His career-best finish in the Cup Series comes at Darlington Raceway behind Brad Keselowski and Ty Gibbs.