NASCAR on TV this week

Kevin Harvick Running No. 29 at North Wilkesboro for All-Star Race

Kevin Harvick will be running the No. 29 car instead of his normal No. 4 in the NASCAR Cup Series’ All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, he and Stewart-Haas Racing announced Thursday (March 16).

The car will honor Harvick’s first Cup win in his third career start in 2001 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Sponsor Busch Light will adorn the hood and fenders with similar branding as what was used during that time period.

Harvick last drove the No. 29 for Richard Childress Racing in the 2013 season finale, the final time the car number was on track.

“When I sat in the 29 for the first time, it really wasn’t by choice, but I definitely wouldn’t have done it any differently,” Harvick said in a team release. “Dale’s passing changed our sport forever, and it changed my life forever and the direction it took.

“Looking back on it now, I realize the importance of getting in the Cup car, and then I wound up winning my first race at Atlanta in the 29 car after Dale’s death. The significance and the importance of keeping that car on the racetrack and winning that race early at Atlanta – knowing now what it meant to the sport, and just that moment in general of being able to carry on – was so important.

See also
Did You Notice?: Will 100 Points Against Hendrick Be Enough?

“I had a great 13 years at RCR and really learned a lot through the process because of being thrown into Dale’s car, where my first press conference as a Cup Series driver was the biggest press conference I would ever have in my career, where my first moments were my biggest moments.

“With this being my last year as a Cup Series driver, we wanted to highlight a lot of these moments, and many were made at RCR in that 29 car. So, with the All-Star Race going to North Wilkesboro – a place with a ton of history – we thought it made sense in a year full of milestones and moments to highlight where it all started.”

Harvick is set to retire at the end of the 2023 season.

Throughout 794 Cup starts, Harvick has amassed one championship in 2014 as well as 60 victories, 247 top fives and 433 top 10s. Additionally, he won two All-Star Races in 2007 and 2018.

The 2023 All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro is set to run on May 21.

About the author

Joy Tomlinson

Joy joined Frontstretch in 2019 as a NASCAR DraftKings writer, expanding to news and iRacing coverage in 2020. She's currently an assistant editor and involved with photos, social media and news editing. A California native, Joy was raised watching motorsports and started watching NASCAR extensively in 2001. She earned her B.A. degree in Liberal Studies at California State University Bakersfield in 2010.

Sign up for the Frontstretch Newsletter

A daily email update (Monday through Friday) providing racing news, commentary, features, and information from Frontstretch.com
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.


1 Comment
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
RCFX1

How does that work with the Charter system and the use of numbers? Just because it’s the all-star race all rules are thrown out?