Kevin Harvick is unbothered by the disqualification his Stewart-Haas Racing team was handed last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway for unsecured windshield fasteners.
“Obviously, you don’t want to be in the middle of those situations, but I don’t really have an opinion one way or the other,” Harvick said Saturday. “I can see it both ways. I did my job. I don’t know any other way to say that. I did my job, and the rest of it is open for debate as to who did what and [if] the rule is good or bad.”
The No. 4 crossed the finish line at Talladega side-by-side with Ryan Blaney and came up 0.012s short of the victory. In his final season as a full-time driver, Harvick was leading going down the backstretch before Blaney pulled a crossover move to the left that set the two up to fight to the finish.
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As his career winds down, Harvick, who was eliminated from the postseason in the first round, came the closest he’s been to a victory last weekend before the disqualification. He and his team were last victorious in the summer of 2022.
NASCAR found that seven of the eight top windshield fasteners on Harvick’s No. 4 Ford were either missing or loose when going through post-race inspection. Cup Series managing director Brad Moran explained it was visible to the naked eye, and the rule states all windshield fasteners must be secure throughout the entire event.
“I don’t know all the scenarios from either side, so I hear it from both sides and can see it from both sides in some way, shape or form,” Harvick said. “But I didn’t dig deep into whether it was just or unjust. I just went home and heard the news like everybody else, and I went on with my week.”