Harvick zips to win at Zippo 200
Kevin Harvick had victory lane to himself Saturday, using perfect pit strategy to win the Zippo at Watkins Glen International in Watkins Glen, N.Y.
Harvick, the defending Busch Series champion, led 37 laps and beat Jeff Burton by 3.5 seconds for his second consecutive win, fifth this season and 31st of his career. That ties him with Jack Ingram for second all time behind Mark Martin’s 47.
“We’ve won 31 of these races,” Harvick said. “But you don’t get to race against those guys. All you have is the history.”
Polesitter Kurt Busch was third, followed by Paul Menard and rookie Brad Coleman. Juan Pablo Montoya, who started on the front row and was seeking a record third NASCAR road course win of the season, ran up front much of the day but finished 33rd after being caught up in a crash with Jason Leffler on a restart with 14 laps remaining in the 82-lap race.
Points leader Carl Edwards finished 32nd after sway bar problems forced him to the pits for repairs.
NASCAR Trucks
Travis Kvapil led 47 of the final 48 laps to win the NASCAR Trucks Series’ Toyota Tundra 200 at Nashville Superspeedway in Gladeville, Tenn.
Kvapil beat Ron Hornaday, Jr. by 2.403 seconds for his third win in six races and enabled the 2003 series champion to preserve his chances for a second title.
Series leader Mike Skinner was third with David Starr and Todd Bodine rounding out the top five.
“We started the race and the truck was a little bit too tight, but I think that was because I was in traffic,” Kvapil said. “I told (crew chief) Mike Beam what the truck was doing and he made some air pressure adjustments that brought the truck to life.”
Champ Car
Chasing three-time Champ Car World Series champion Sebastien Bourdais may prove to be futile, but Robert Doornbos is giving it a shot.
The Dutch rookie, coming off a victory two weeks ago in San Jose, Calif., trails Bourdais by just 12 points heading into today’s Generac Grand Prix at Road America in Elkhart Lark, Wis.
But Bourdais has dominated so far, leading both rounds of qualifications on the way to his 29th career pole.
After struggling Friday in his first look at Elkhart Lake track, Doornbos made a considerable improvement, jumping from seventh to third.