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Before NASCAR could get the Nationwide Series race at Richmond underway, Mother Nature had other ideas. Rain began to pour shortly after qualifying and as the scheduled start time approached, the rain remained, but it had slowed. The rain shortly stopped and the Air Titans went on track to dry the raceway. Shortly before ten o'clock in the east, the Air Titans had dried the track and the field was getting ready for some Friday night short track racing. Brian Scott started on the pole. It was his first pole of the year in the series and first since Richmond in the fall a year ago. The race went green after a very long wait and Scott took advantage of his first place starting spot to hold the lead. Scott wouldn't get comfortable out front as the first caution of the race waved on lap 4. Tanner Berryhill slowed on track due to a broken drive shaft. A stack up began and Kevin Lepage was bumped in the melee. He slid down the track and slammed into the inside wall hard. His car rolled up the embankment in turn 3 with heavy damage and Lepage's night was done in only a few laps. Jimmy Weller received the lucky dog. After an early crash, the field could begin to move into a rhythm.
The race went back green for the first time and Brian Scott managed to hold onto the lead. Scott began to drive away from the field as drivers behind him looked to advance their positions. Kevin Harvick began to close in on Scott as an impending competition caution approached. Scott held the lead until the second caution waved on lap 41. NASCAR waved a competition caution due to the rain before the start of the event. Derrike Cope received the lucky dog. All the lead lap drivers came to pit road for four tires with Brian Scott coming out as the leader, but the main concern for the teams was tire wear through the early part of the event. For some, it didn't look good. Some tires were cording, which means the rubber comes off in strands almost like a zipper being unzipped systematically over time. With this problem, teams wouldn't be able to go as long on tires and if they did, they could tear up a good bit of equipment and their night would be over. This would be a fantastic story line to follow as the night continued on and a winner was looking to be crowned.
The race went back green after the opening stops and Kevin Harvick was able to make his way around Brian Scott to lead his first laps of the race. Harvick began to drive away as Scott started to contend with the rest of the field behind him. Laps clicked through the night and the race quickly made it to lap 100 with Kevin Harvick still pacing the field. The drivers quickly approached stops for a second time and the field began to trickle down pit road for the first round of green flag pit stops of the race on lap 115. The stops took a few extra laps as each driver had different strategies, but the story was the same. Tires were still cording on track and a few drivers had trouble when they made their stops. The stops eventually cycled through and Kevin Harvick returned to the lead over the field. Harvick continued to pace the field and the laps clicked through the night as the third caution waved on lap 151. Debris was spotted on the race track in turn 2. Brendan Gaughan received the lucky dog. Due to the close proximity to the previous round of green flag pit stops, the drivers stayed on track. The race quickly went back green and Kevin Harvick was able to hold onto the lead, but Harvick wasn't as dominate. His teammate, Chase Elliott, remained close to the lead and the field stayed pretty close to the top two. More laps clicked through the night and Harvick still remained leading with his eighteen year old teammate following close behind. After a rather short run, the fourth caution waved on lap 189.
Ryan Reed bumped Dylan Kwasniewski entering turn 4. Kwasniewski's rear quarter panel wrinkled and cut his left rear tire. Kwasniewski went into an immediate spin and he backed into the outside wall hard. Kwasniewski slid to a stop with a heavily damaged car and his night was over with only about seventy laps to go. Dakoda Armstrong received the lucky dog. The caution brought what turned out to be the final pit stops of the race for the field. All the drivers came to pit road for the money stop of the night. All the stops went well and Kevin Harvick once again came out as the leader. Harvick assumed his spot at the front of the field on the restart and the race went green with Harvick holding onto the lead. Just as Harvick looked to get comfortable, the fifth and final caution waved on lap 197. Regan Smith made contact with Elliott Sadler in turn 1 after a slow restart. Both drivers spun around and up the track. Sadler was able to slow down and stop before hitting the wall while Smith made very slight contact with the outside wall. Both drove away with only slight damage and were forced to come back down pit road for four tires. Mike Bliss received the lucky dog. Now, the race would have a final run to the finish and it would be a hard fought battle.
The leaders stayed on track after the final caution as Kevin Harvick remained the race leader. The race went back green and Harvick was able to hold onto the lead as Chase Elliott fell into line behind his teammate in second. As the time approached midnight in the east, Harvick looked great. He was running well and the laps were clicking down throughout the night. Behind the leaders, Regan Smith and Elliott Sadler were charging through the field, but Harvick still maintained the lead. Soon, only twenty five laps remained. The distance between Harvick and Elliott was the same as it was after the restart. Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson were running behind them and hoping for a mistake, but no mistakes were coming. Soon, only fifteen laps remained. No cautions were in sight as Harvick maintained the advantage. Five laps remaining clicked on the board as the time had just crossed midnight. Harvick cruised around to the white flag with no trouble in sight. He made it through all four turns cleanly and walked away with the win after a long night. Harvick was standing on top for the first time this year in the Nationwide Series and JR Motorsports continued to dominate.
Kevin Harvick has undergone a complete transformation this season. He moved to Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and he already has two wins to guarantee a Chase spot. Also, he has been running well for JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Nationwide Series to help build the team up and he has now given the team their third straight win. Chase Elliott continued his streak of good finishes with a second place finish to give JR Motorsports a one-two finish for the first time in the team's history. Kyle Busch battled the entire night and he managed to take a third place finish. Kyle Larson struggled early, but he walked away fourth to continue his streak of good finishes. Brian Scott continued his recent success at Richmond with a fifth place finish to go along with a second from last fall. Elliott Sadler and Regan Smith battled back from their spins to take sixth and eighth, respectively. Trevor Bayne tried hard for a top ten, but he could only muster an eleventh place finish. Because of Regan Smith's struggles, Chase Elliott was able to extend his points lead over the field. The problem for Elliott is that the series is headed to an unpredictable beast: Talladega Superspeedway. Elliott has never been there in Nationwide competition and he will have his hands full. Will Regan Smith manage to win back-to-back races at Talladega, will Chase Elliott overcome his rookie status and take a win at Talladega, will an underdog driver manage to take the win, or will another driver take the win away? We will have to wait until next Saturday to find this out and a whole lot more.
(More Stats Down Below!)
Cautions:
1st Caution: Lap 4- Kevin Lepage slammed the inside wall hard on the backstretch after the field stacked up in front of him.
2nd Caution: Lap 41- Competition caution due to rain before at the track before the race.
3rd Caution: Lap 151- Debris was spotted on the track in turn 2.
4th Caution: Lap 189- Ryan Reed bumped Dylan Kwasniewski in turn 4 and Kwasniewski backed into the outside wall after he blew a tire.
5th Caution: Lap 197- Regan Smith bumped Elliott Sadler in turn 1 and both went for spins that did not cause damage.
Lucky Dogs:
1st Caution: Jimmy Weller
2nd Caution: Derrike Cope
3rd Caution: Brendan Gaughan
4th Caution: Dakoda Armstrong
5th Caution: Mike Bliss
Top 5 Finishers:
1st: Kevin Harvick
2nd: Chase Elliott
3rd: Kyle Busch
4th: Kyle Larson
5th: Brian Scott
Notables Not in Top 5:
6th: Elliott Sadler
8th: Regan Smith
9th: Ryan Blaney
11th: Trevor Bayne
14th: Ty Dillon
20th: Brendan Gaughan
32nd: Dylan Kwasniewski
Credits:
-My Own Notes
-Statistics:
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/leaderboard/leaderboard-live.html
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/lapbylap/view-all-laps.html?intid=lapbylap_lapbylapleaderboard_08292013
http://www.nascar.com/en_us/nationwide-series/live-standings.html
http://racing-reference.info/race/2014_ToyotaCare_250/B
-Image:
http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/128553856100c2b0c63cc38439f9db1e1c4db2d2/c=59-0-967-682&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/USATODAY/USATODAY/2014/04/26//1398518367000-harvick.jpg
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