CASPER
New member
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP)—They called him “Happy Harvick” at the start of his NASCAR career, when success came so easy that Kevin Harvick had a seemingly perpetual smile.
It’s been quite some time since the nickname fit.
Harvick’s been rather unhappy of late and struggling through the worst slump of his career—a winless streak that dates back 90 points races, to the 2007 season-opening Daytona 500. It’s so bad that his name has been thrown into the rumor mill, with mounting speculation that he’s trying to weasel his way out of Richard Childress Racing.
He’s under contract to Childress through next season, as is sponsor Shell-Pennzoil, and the team owner felt the need last week to stress that both will be back with the No. 29 Chevrolet in 2010. Like the dreaded vote of confidence that generally precedes a firing, Childress’ sharply worded statement could very well mean Harvick is on the move.
Harvick is saying very little publicly, which only feeds the rumors. He’s smart, calculating and sometimes manipulative, and over the course of his career, he’s never held back when voicing his displeasure on a variety of topics.
Because nothing sets him off quite like poor performance, the whole world has been waiting for him to explode as he’s drifted out of contention for the Chase for the championship. Instead, he’s said next to nothing, even biting his tongue when his Kevin Harvick Inc. team accidentally ran him out of gas during Saturday night’s Nationwide Series race in St. Louis. It relegated a potentially race-winning car—he led 105 of the 200 laps—to a 17th-place finish.
It’s been quite some time since the nickname fit.
Harvick’s been rather unhappy of late and struggling through the worst slump of his career—a winless streak that dates back 90 points races, to the 2007 season-opening Daytona 500. It’s so bad that his name has been thrown into the rumor mill, with mounting speculation that he’s trying to weasel his way out of Richard Childress Racing.
He’s under contract to Childress through next season, as is sponsor Shell-Pennzoil, and the team owner felt the need last week to stress that both will be back with the No. 29 Chevrolet in 2010. Like the dreaded vote of confidence that generally precedes a firing, Childress’ sharply worded statement could very well mean Harvick is on the move.
Harvick is saying very little publicly, which only feeds the rumors. He’s smart, calculating and sometimes manipulative, and over the course of his career, he’s never held back when voicing his displeasure on a variety of topics.
Because nothing sets him off quite like poor performance, the whole world has been waiting for him to explode as he’s drifted out of contention for the Chase for the championship. Instead, he’s said next to nothing, even biting his tongue when his Kevin Harvick Inc. team accidentally ran him out of gas during Saturday night’s Nationwide Series race in St. Louis. It relegated a potentially race-winning car—he led 105 of the 200 laps—to a 17th-place finish.
