Harvick wins playoff opener at Darlington

[September 08, 2020]  Kevin Harvick has won a lot of races by being just plain good. On Saturday night, he got a victory by being a little bit lucky.

The Stewart-Haas driver was running third and well off the lead in the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway as the laps wound down to the finish. But with 15 laps to go, the two drivers in front of him -- Martin Truex, Jr. and Chase Elliott -- tangled and hit the wall as they battled for the lead.

Both had to pit, Harvick blew past and went on to collect his eighth victory of the season.

"Any time you can win the Southern 500 is a good day," Harvick said. "This is one of the most prestigious races in our sport. This is one of the most prestigious race tracks in our sport. Man, the Southern 500."

It was a big win as it came in the first race of the first round in the 10-race, 16-driver playoffs. That win guaranteed him a spot the second round -- the Round of 12, the next three-race bracket in the postseason.

"I wound up fighting all night long," said Harvick, who led for just 13 laps.

His car "was not where we wanted it to be," he said. "But the leaders got tangled up there and the next thing you know is we're racing for the win."

Finishing second was Austin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing. The margin of victory was .343 seconds.

Dillon put a drift move on Harvick on the final turn of the final lap in an attempt to get the win but he couldn't get past Harvick.

"I was just trying all I could," Dillon said. "Man, it would have been nice to get that win and lock ourselves into the next round but a heck of a finish for our No. 3 team ... so close.

"We showed up when it mattered," Dillon, a one-race winner and championship dark horse said.

Third was Team Penske's Joey Logano.

Fourth was Erik Jones of Joe Gibbs Racing, who was the highest finisher among non-playoff qualifiers.

Fifth was playoff driver William Byron of Hendrick Motorsports.

NASCAR Truck Series Driver Ben Rhodes (99) races during the South Carolina Education Lottery 200 at Darlington Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The final laps appeared to be shaping up as a fight between Truex and Elliott, who had led 196 and 114 laps respectively.

Then came the wreck.

"It was close but he wasn't all the way clear, obviously," Elliott said of Truex. "I hate it. Obviously, we had a Camaro fast enough to contend."

Taking the blame -- sort of -- was Truex.

"Just not enough room for both of us," Truex said. "Thought I had enough of a run to clear him. It was close obviously. Thought I had enough momentum and distance on him that he would let me in there.

"I hate it for the (number) 9 team. Nothing intentional. Going for the win there."

Also finishing in the top 10 among playoff qualifiers were Alex Bowman (sixth), Kyle Busch (seventh), Kurt Busch (eighth), Aric Almirola (ninth) and Clint Bowyer (10th).

Faring worst among playoffs drivers not name Truex or Elliott, was Team Penske's Ryan Blaney. His team was slapped with a penalty prior to the race after improperly mounted ballast was found in the No. 12 Ford. Blaney was sent to the rear of the field for the start of the race.

In addition, the team was docked 10 driver and owner points and crew chief Todd Gordon was ejected. Early in the second stage, Blaney had to pit under green with a flat tire and fell two laps off the pace.

He finished 24th.

--Field Level Media

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