Report: Harvick to leave RCR at season’s end to move to Stewart Haas-UPDATE 3
22 Comments Quote selected text Published July 25th, 2009 in NASCAR News
UPDATE 3: Kevin Harvick was asked if he wanted to be at RCR in the future, he said, “Right now, we’re here to race and do what we need to do from a driver’s standpoint and everybody is working well together.”
Team owner Richard Childress has said that both Harvick will drive and Shell will sponsor the No. 29 car next year. So will Harvick drive for RCR in 2010?
“We all want to make things the best that we can, and right now we’re working on Indy,” Harvick said.
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UPDATE 2: Richard Childress Racing driver Kevin Harvick would like to be released from the final year of his contract that expires in 2010, a source close to the situation said on Wednesday. “He’s making that evident,” the source said. The SI.com report said Shell’s contract expires after this season, but multiple sources told ESPN.com the deal runs through 2010. Sources added that it is unlikely RCR owner Richard Childress would let both the driver and sponsor go, particularly in today’s economic climate. A spokesman for Harvick had no comment when contacted by ESPN.com.
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UPDATE: Richard Childress racing just released this statement today regarding the reports of Kevin Harvick and shell:
“Richard Childress Racing has a multi-year contract with Shell-Pennzoil that includes the 2010 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. Shell-Pennzoil remains a great partner for RCR and Kevin Harvick as well as our sport overall. RCR also has a multi-year contract with Kevin Harvick that includes the 2010 season. That said, Shell will be the sponsor and Kevin will be the driver of RCR’s No. 29 Shell-Pennzoil Chevrolet Impala SS in 2010.”
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Kevin Harvick has told Richard Childress he would like to leave after this season, according to multiple sources. Harvick has one year remaining on his contract with RCR, but the Shell/Pennzoil sponsorship deal on the No. 29 ends at the end of this season, and Harvick is trying to move with it to Stewart-Haas.
Tony Stewart has said his team is interested in running a third car in Sprint Cup in 2010. Adding Harvick in a package with a strong sponsor would be a masterstroke.
Childress is in a tough spot. He could hold Harvick to the contract and try to re-sign Shell/Pennzoil, but in a performance-based business, the Stewart-Haas option, undoubtedly, is more appealing to the gas and oil company. If Shell/Pennzoil decides to leave, Childress has to find $15 million to $20 million in sponsorship to replace it — a very difficult prospect in this economy.
With Tony Stewart’s leadership and ability to add sponsorship, as well as the chassis-and-engine partnership with Hendrick Motorsports and the infrastructure investment made in the team by Gene Haas, Stewart-Haas has become one of the two or three best teams in Sprint Cup in less than a year. Stewart leads the points, Hendrick’s Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson are second and third, respectively, Stewart-Haas’ Ryan Newman is seventh and Mark Martin is 11th (his four wins lead the season).
Okay, let’s pretend this is for real, just for the hell of it.
From a business point of view this makes perfect sense for Harvick, and since SHR doesn’t have a Nationwide or Truck team (yet), this would allow KHI to continue in those series. And Kevin could certainly use a change of scene; look how new surroundings have helped Ryan Newman this year.
One can’t help but feel badly for Childress. Nothing has gone right this year, and losing both Harvick and Shell would be a major blow. One wonders if Harvick would feels any sense of guilt for abandoning the only team he’s worked for in Cup.
A few years ago Toyota was courting Kevin and now this rumor because RCR is having problems. RCR might want some compensation to release him early. Kevin would not be a bad pick and he (at this time) prefers Chevies.
RCR really hasn’t performed for Kevin lately, could be a good reason he is leaving…
This wouldn’t surprise me at all. Kevin and Tony are very close and Ryan also seems to have a good relationship with Kevin driving his trucks etc. RCR is struggling and I hate to say this but if Kevin leaves it will be another team of whiners. Jeff Burton has become a big whiner. Clint also whines before he thinks and needs his foot removed from his mouth often. Casey is a nice kid and don’t hear too much whining from him but it’s bound to happen. Loosing Kevin would be very sad for RC as he is the man who held that 3 team together when we lost Dale and would hurt RC deeply.
NOT TRUE, This is just a rumor. I talked to several key peoplke at RCR last week about this very subject and said Kevin will be with RCR in 2010.
Erin wrote:
Clint should whine, because of Casey he is not in the Chase for the first time and Jack Daniels is thinking of leaving. I would say hiring Casey was the worst move in NASCAR besides Hendrick getting rid of Kyle for Dale. And Casey is 31, you call that a kid?
Its kinda funny that when Earnhardt Sr. or Tony Stewart complain/complained about Nascar , Goodyear , other drivers, etc. that everyone thinks thats great. But let any other driver complain about something and they get labeled a whiner. Its pretty stupid. Some guys do complain more than others, but that doesnt make them a whiner.
Howie, you just mentioned a few has beens/never weres riding out their family’s good names.
harvick going to SHR is a GREAT idea, rite now shr is one of the best teams and they can give harvick and his own race team some help that rcr could not!
I think that there’s a huge possibility that this could become a reality. I’ve been hoping for this all along. I’d much rather see him at SHR than Brad K or Danica. There are strong rumors that RCR might scale back to two cars, because Jack Daniels and Shell are both up for renewal. Since Hendrick has a strong affiliation with Quaker State… who owns Shell, it would make sense for Shell to sponsor Kevin at SHR since they are affiliated with HMS. When I started thinking about a third team at SHR, I thought that Bass Pro would be the primary sponsor. Shell sounds good to me though!
Harvick is about the same quality driver as Bobby Hamilton Jr, nothing great, but just very very slightly above average.
Fisha: You have GOT to be kidding me. Hamilton Jr is not even AVERAGE. You are comparing a 99cent McDonald’s burger to a 16 oz Ribeye! Harvick’s stats:
Sprint Cup Series:
261 Starts
11 Wins
51 Top-Five Finishes
106 Top-10 Finishes
Five Poles
Nationwide Series:
201 Starts
32 Wins*
103 Top-Five Finishes
147 Top-10 Finishes
17 Poles
2 Championship Titles*****
*Second on all-time NBS wins list
Don’t even get me started on his stats as an owner. You must root for someone who drives for Hendrick?
Tonya14 wrote:
I’m well aware of his stats, but when you look at stats you have to decode them. You could but a blind Frenchman in the EQ he’s had all his career and that guy will do just about as well as Kevin did. That doesn’t mean the Blind Frenchman has talent, it means he has EQ.
As far as owners stats. Owners stats mean nothing more then the depth of the owners pocket. Give Bobby Jr the money that Kevin has and he’ll have the resources to get the EQ the same level that Harvick had and his owners stats would be very very similar too.
AS far as the Hendrick thing, what would that have to do with anything? Personally I don’t cheer for any driver in any form of motorsports (besides the ones that I currently work for). Yes I may kinda pull a bit more for the ones that I actually know in real life, but I don’t overtly cheer for them or any other driver. I’m not a racer fan, I’m a race fan.
Tonya14 wrote:
Only in your dreams maybe
Fisha, you were joking about the Harvick-Pugsley hamilton comparisions weren’t you?
gigolo george wrote:
I’m like the CIA you’ll never know the truth… l0l
Fisha695 wrote:
True I wouldnt say harvick is a great driver but he’s far better than hamilton jr.
Howie Motorsports Photography wrote:
I could see Bass Pro Shops sponsoring 1 of tony’s cars in the future because of his friendship with Johnny Morris but I agree with Howie I dont think Harvick is leaving RCR.
Brad would be the best pick for him making a stupid mistake
Again not true, I just got a message from RC on y facebook and he said that Kevin and Shell is commited thru the end of 2010. RUMORs that all this is.
I figured as much, it’s hard to leave a top race affiliation…
Tony George wiggled for a few weeks after rumors said he was out too. Who can you belive in a sport that was started by illegal booze runners/moonshiners? I still think there is some truth to it.