By
Staff Report NASCAR.com February 27, 2018 at 11:51 am
It was Kevin Harvick leading a veteran-fueled performance at Atlanta Motor Speedway, showing off the tricks and experience he’s gathered over the years to pace the field Sunday.
His first win at Atlanta since 2001, Harvick led 181 of 325 laps as he and his experienced co-workers dominated at the 1.54-mile track. Perhaps equally as impressive, though, was his commentary after the race on the veteran-youth movement budding rivalry.
“For me right now, the sport is what enthuses me,” Harvick said. “(It’s) very intriguing to me because there’s a lot of things that need some help and guidance with so many of the young guys coming up through the ranks, and there’s so much to learn. But we have to teach them about it. Jimmie Johnson and myself have talked about it.
“Somebody has to explain to them how things work and show them the ropes. And that to me is fun. You want to go beat them on the race track still … but it just feels like everybody has kind of forgotten exactly how much fun this is.”
Kind of heady, right? Harvick, 42, is one of the oldest drivers in the garage. He’s a part of the oldest full-time, multi-car team in Stewart-Haas Racing. But he’s at the point in his career where he’s comfortable with the spotlight cast on the young guns … and his role in helping the sport continue to evolve.
“Look, we need to introduce new people and new stars in our sport,” he said. “I don’t have a message other than our sport is great. I love racing cars, and we have to have great competitors to make the diverse fan base have people to root for, and some people like calm, shy Ryan Blaney that knows a lot about the sport, or Chase Elliott, who’s been around racing and has those deep ties to NASCAR and the southern roots of our sport. Those guys are all important.
“And when everybody realizes how important the young guys are to the old guys, and the tweeners have to do the same. There’s not one person. There’s no two young guys that are going to make it, there’s no two old guys that are going to make it. This is all about everybody.” [/B]
