What started out as a tension filled weekend between the likes of Kevin Harvick Inc. and Thorsport Racing ended up turning into a bizarre display of teammate on teammate crime. Hey Harvick, if there is one driver that you can be damn sure isn’t going to pull over for you, it’s Ron Hornaday.
After Thorsport driver Matt Crafton was involved in an incident at Gateway the weekend before that ended with point leader Hornaday in the garage with a destroyed truck, rumors began to circulate about possible payback at New Hampshire. Harvick entered himself into the race in a third truck and proceeded to harass Crafton in both practice and the race. But the big hit never came.
Instead, Harvick and Hornaday battled over the final laps while Kyle Busch ran away with the win. After the race, Harvick expressed his anger over Hornaday not letting him by. Harvick’s rationale was that his truck was faster, as he was on fresher tires, and if he could get by Hornaday he might have something for Busch. But Hornaday stood his ground and Harvick was not able to complete the pass. Harvick couldn’t understand why Hornaday’s spotter (Rick Carelli) and crew chief (Rick Ren) didn’t inform the veteran driver that Harvick wanted by.
You want to know why they didn’t say anything Kevin? Because Hornaday is racing for a championship. Isn’t that what you hired him to do? Win championships? You certainly don’t do that by letting people by.
Team orders don’t normally bear their ugly head in NASCAR, and are more often seen as part of the strategy in series such as Formula One (see Renault). In those cases though, teams have a clear number one driver. In this case, one would think that Hornaday is the number one driver for KHI. Apparently Harvick doesn’t see things that way.
What really shocks me about this whole situation though, is that Harvick really thought Hornaday should pull over for him. But if you know anything about Hornaday, you know that isn’t going to happen. This is a guy that has built his career on rootin’ and gougin’ his way to the front. He would just as soon wreck you as let you pass. He came up on the short tracks of the west and isn’t the most successful Truck Series driver ever for nothing. And Harvick, who followed a very similar path, should understand that better then anyone.
I’m sure the weekend recap meeting at KHI this week was probably an interesting affair. Hopefully though Harvick realized his error in judgement and apologized to Hornaday. But if he didn’t, and I was Ron Hornaday, I would politely (or not so politely) tell my boss to go pound sand.
Related posts:
- Please Tell Me You Saw That Truck Race
- Now Thats What I Call a Championship Race
- Where Will Harvick Be Next Season?
- New Faces Making Truck Series Interesting
- A Truck Series Rebound? And Rick Ren Leaving KHI?
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on Sep 21st, 2009 at 10:43 pm
That I condone this type of dangerous activity….BUT …..maybe, this little side story should DEFINITELY be considered to be part of the treatment for your movie script.
There is nothing like high speedDRAMA combined with intrateamDRAMA combined with interteamDRAMA combined with the DRAMA of racing for the championship, and the evil ( not really
driver coming in to bully the wrecker, (whhhooo hooo !!! makes me hungry for popcorn) …. and the mini plot moral is; This Ain’t Formula One Harvick!!
; )
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 12:12 am
Excellent article. You couldn’t make it any clearer. Now please print out a copy of it and hand deliver it to Harvick the Ferrett. Heaven knows he would never read anything negative about himself. If his ego ever blew, we would have a new hole in the ozone.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 7:16 am
How much did “teammate” Ryan Newman cost Hornaday last year?
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 7:25 am
Harvick’s actions during the race were inexplicable. But as I was watching it occurred to me that perhaps Hornaday’s team sat on the message from Harvick’s team, and never told their driver what Harvick was trying to do. I see now from your piece that I was probably correct.
Even if Harvick’s goal was to run down Busch and give Hornday a chance to make up some ground, it’s hard to justify racing your own teammate so hard, and taking the chance of knocking him from contention. A foolish and selfish strategy.
I really thought that the irrational hothead potion of Harvick’s career was over. Guess not.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 7:34 am
As I said in another Harvick post… Kevin, just go away. You are a no talent little whiner and I am sick of seeing your vampire toothed face on my T.V.
If Harvick really thinks him winning a race in more important than a championship for his team I can’t wait until Hornaday tells him to shove it and goes to another team. Harvick or any other cup driver SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED IN THE TRUCK RACES ANYWAY!!!! Are you listening Nascar? Of course not, I’m just a fan……..
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 8:03 am
I may hate Harvick as a driver; but people are trashing him for the way he approaches the goals of HIS team. He and his wife spent the time, money and effort to star the team from scratch. Why do we get to dictate how he does that? Do you let your neighbors determine what color your house is? If a driver doesn’t like his approach (I wouldn’t), leave! Start your own team. Team orders have always been part of NASCAR, everyone lets teammates pass to lead a lap! Also no mention of sponsor issues, maybe Harvick’s sponsor needed a win to re-up for next year.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 8:31 am
The part I found most desterbing was after the race and watching Hornaday continuing to ask Harvick what he had done wrong!
Very demeaning for a driver of Hornaday’s level of character.
Ok, so Harvick is the team owner, then he should have thought out the possible ways the race could pan out and discussed it with Hornaday before the race. whining after and making Hornaday look like a school kid that had done wrong is so not right.
With owning a team comes responsibility, so Kevin, go out and learn some, because it can’t be bought.
It will be no surprise if Hornaday is in another team next year.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 8:47 am
Team orders have NOT always been a part of NASCAR. Team orders is much more than letting your teammate lead a lap. Team orders, in the F1 sense, means that on a multi-car team, one team is designated as the top team. It is the duty of the 2nd (and 3rd, if applicable) team to do every thing to help the first team one, whether its playing wingman on the track, or voluntarily dropping behind the 1st team to let them win. It would be like JJ and Jr. always having to make sure that Jeff Gordon wins the race, even if it means giving up their own opportunity to finish first.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 9:23 am
For the first time, I felt sorry for Hornaday after the race. Befuddled look on his face. He did what he was supposed to do, Kevie.
I do not like Harvick’s attitude and temper tantrums. How demeaning for all of his employees at the track. These folks have helped him build a team that always competes for the championship. Oops, Peon employees, not professionals.
Do we see a man so desperate for any kind of wind that he would throw all else aside? Not buying your shirts, Jerk!
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 9:46 am
Why doesn’t NASCAR allow just a certain number of Cup drivers in the lesser series races? My # would be five, and the rest of the slower Cup qualifiers could not race. There are alot of good drivers out there who don’t get a chance because of the greedy Cup guys. They also wouldn’t whine like Harvick and some of the rest do. I bet the fields would still fill up.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 10:20 am
Like I said last month on the topic of KH & RCR…..Atlanta ‘01 was a long time ago!
KH’s win in the ex-Dale Sr. Cup car that day “somehow” (lol) established him as a talent for the next 8 years. Amazing!
….and to Tony Dowe. Are you the of the TWR Silk Cut Jaguar fame? If so, my hat is off to you my friend!
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 10:30 am
Side point here. I’m not sure why people complain both about Cup drivers in the lesser series, and start-and-parkers in the lesser series. Face it- there are more spots in the race than there are real (non start-and-park) racers. I’d rather a Kevin Harvick, Boywer, Busch, etc. in a race than someone who just wants to collect a paycheck.
The optimum would be if there was enough talent to fill-out every race in all three series. But that’s just not the case.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 11:26 am
Harvick’s just a big cry baby. He’s an —hole, too.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 11:34 am
“This is a guy that has built his career on rootin’ and gougin’ his way to the front. He would just as soon wreck you as let you pass.”
That is the reason KHR actions should get them banned for Vegas. They can dish it out….can not take it.
Props to Matt Crafton for not sinking to KHR’s level.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 11:51 am
Stupid question. If Harvick had the faster truck, why coudln’t he get by the #33? It looked to me that Hornaday gave him plenty of room & opportunity to pass him, he just didn’t lift & raced Harvick cleanly. I understand getting stuck behind slower traffic but especially with Kevin’s fresher tires, you’d think that he’d really be able to get into the corner deeper & make the pass on the inside of the #33 if he was that much faster.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Ron Hornaday is old school…he isn’t letting anybody pass him even if it’s his boss!! End of discussion..
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 3:35 pm
If KH couldn’t get by RH then he sure as hell wasn’t gonna pass Busch for the win.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 4:27 pm
Neon, Yes, thanks for the complement.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Kevin acted like a selfish little brat throwing a temper tantrum. Too bad his mommy (wife) didn’t tell him to shut up. If he was able to pass Ron, he should have. I was very upset with Kevin’s attitude, as if winning one race, was more important than the championship.
If I were Ron, I’d tell him to stuff it! He hired the best damn truck driver there’s ever been to win races and championships, and that is exactly what Ron was/is trying to do.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Vettesnfrets said what I was thinking: if Harvick couldn’t get by Hornaday — who freely admitted later he backed off early to give Harvick some room — he sure as hell wasn’t going to get by Kyle Busch. Even Hornaday wasn’t catching Busch.
But the one point I think everyone has missed here is that Kevin Harvick is not the owner of the team. Delana is. And from what I gather, she’s the brains of the operation.
I have to wonder if Kevin doesn’t spend a night or two on the couch for embarrassing himself and the team Saturday.
on Sep 22nd, 2009 at 6:44 pm
As I recall, the first time R. Petty thought he’d won a race he was told a protest had been filed – by Lee P. Seems Lee was driving a then current year car and there was a special $100 bonus if a new car won, which it turned out Lee had. Racing is still business and it looked clear that Hornaday could not get to Kyle to try to get the win, but maybe Harvick could have if he’d gotten by Ron. It wasn’t like a 5 point difference was likely to make a difference in Hornaday’s championship chances. I suspect if the places had been switched that Harvick would have let Hornaday by.