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18th
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Kevin Harvick is 22nd in the NASCAR Sprint Cup points standings, after eight races, and he's not worried, why?
He's overcoming a feast or famine start consisting of four finishes of 36th or worse.
On the other two wins he's a virtual lock on a Chase berth (under the new rules) and can only solidify his points standing as the year goes on.
In fact it's his best start, going into the Easter off-week since 2011 when he also won two events, in the first eight races, driving for Richard Childress Racing.
After 13 Cup seasons with RCR that's a short period of adjustment in anyone's playbook.
Coincidentally, Matt Kenseth (who left a long term relationship with Jack Roush to go to Joe Gibbs Racing last year) won two races in his first eight with a new team and ranked ninth.
And that knowing that his relationship with crew chief, Rodney Childers, is growing stronger puts Harvick is a good frame of mind.
"I think for me it's the potential, just seeing what's forward," Harvick said.
"I think you look at all the guys, and I've got to know them all pretty well now, so it's a lot of fun to everybody has put the energy into work hard to be a team, and he pushes a lot of that. I feel like we have a great relationship, but I feel like all the guys on the team have a great relationship not only with him or myself but also with each other, and that's important.
"I think as we go through time, there's still a lot of growing pains that we have to work through as far as structure and things at StewartHaas Racing and in general, just as you look at the four teams and how they flow and who does what and how things work.
"There's a lot of things that still need to be worked on, but even on a good team. If you're sitting on your hands, you're getting ready to get passed because this is a competitive garage, and there's a lot of competitive people that push things to the point where they get themselves into victory lane."
You can bet the Childers aren't resting on his laurels.
"Like he (Harvick) said, we've got a lot to learn and a lot to get better at, but like I said at Phoenix, I thought the day I walked in there it was going to be June or July before we could win a race, and we're sitting here now, and without mechanical issues we could have won two or three races, maybe four races, maybe five races. We've had good cars every week."
And while the rest of us are waiting for the Jimmie Johnson Express to leave the station it appears that Kevin Harvick and his Stewart-Haas operation have just the right ticket.
He's overcoming a feast or famine start consisting of four finishes of 36th or worse.
On the other two wins he's a virtual lock on a Chase berth (under the new rules) and can only solidify his points standing as the year goes on.
In fact it's his best start, going into the Easter off-week since 2011 when he also won two events, in the first eight races, driving for Richard Childress Racing.
After 13 Cup seasons with RCR that's a short period of adjustment in anyone's playbook.
Coincidentally, Matt Kenseth (who left a long term relationship with Jack Roush to go to Joe Gibbs Racing last year) won two races in his first eight with a new team and ranked ninth.
And that knowing that his relationship with crew chief, Rodney Childers, is growing stronger puts Harvick is a good frame of mind.
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| Kevin Harvick, winner in Darlington. (Photo: NASCAR) |
"I think for me it's the potential, just seeing what's forward," Harvick said.
"I think you look at all the guys, and I've got to know them all pretty well now, so it's a lot of fun to everybody has put the energy into work hard to be a team, and he pushes a lot of that. I feel like we have a great relationship, but I feel like all the guys on the team have a great relationship not only with him or myself but also with each other, and that's important.
"I think as we go through time, there's still a lot of growing pains that we have to work through as far as structure and things at StewartHaas Racing and in general, just as you look at the four teams and how they flow and who does what and how things work.
"There's a lot of things that still need to be worked on, but even on a good team. If you're sitting on your hands, you're getting ready to get passed because this is a competitive garage, and there's a lot of competitive people that push things to the point where they get themselves into victory lane."
You can bet the Childers aren't resting on his laurels.
"Like he (Harvick) said, we've got a lot to learn and a lot to get better at, but like I said at Phoenix, I thought the day I walked in there it was going to be June or July before we could win a race, and we're sitting here now, and without mechanical issues we could have won two or three races, maybe four races, maybe five races. We've had good cars every week."
And while the rest of us are waiting for the Jimmie Johnson Express to leave the station it appears that Kevin Harvick and his Stewart-Haas operation have just the right ticket.