Kevin Harvick began racing go-karts at age five. He captured seven national titles and two Grand National championships at that level before moving on to late models. He captured the 1993 late model title at Mesa Marin Raceway and was crowned rookie of the year in the Featherlite Southwest Series in 1995.
Harvick then captured the 1998 NASCAR Winston West championship, and also spent a couple winless seasons in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
Harvick was part of the three-rookie onslaught that stormed the top-10 in the Nationwide Series in 2000, but the Bakersfield, Calif. driver's impact was the most dramatic. Harvick enjoyed one of the best rookie seasons in Nationwide Series history, posting three wins and earning rookie-of-the-year honors while finishing third in the standings.
He garnered worldwide attention when he was named to drive the No. 29 GM Goodwrench Service Plus Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing following the death of Dale Earnhardt in the 2001 season opening Daytona 500.
Harvick was named to drive the car beginning with the second race of the season at Rockingham and he continued his quest for the NASCAR Nationwide Series championship at the same time. Harvick proved he was special, by winning in only his third Cup start, and he put the exclamation point to that statement with the Nationwide Series title in only his second season.
Harvick also won the 2001 Cup Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award and finished ninth in the point standings after winning another race, the Chicagoland Speedway inaugural, and posting six top-five and 16 top-10 finishes. He had only one DNF in 35 starts.
The 2002 season did not bring Harvick the same amount of accolades. He finished 21st in the standings. A win at Chicagoland was one of eight top-10 finishes, but six DNFs, including two in the first four races of the season, eliminated him from contention.
He did, however, win his first Camping World Truck Series race at Phoenix in November, where he started third.
Harvick finished fifth in the Cup series points in 2003. His season was highlighted by being the first driver to win the pole and the race in the 10th anniversary of the Brickyard 400. He also helped Richard Childress win the NASCAR Nationwide Series owners' championship in 2003.
2004 was a rough year for Harvick. It marked the first year he went winless in the Cup Series to that point and he finished 14th in the standings. He posted 14 top 10s that year and five top fives.
He was able to bounce back a little in 2005, although he didn't finish any better in the final standings. That year, Harvick scored his first NASCAR sweep at Bristol Motor Speedway, in April 2005, winning the NASCAR Nationwide Series race and the NASCAR Cup Series race on the same weekend. That marked his only Cup win that season.
In 2006, Harvick won his second NASCAR Nationwide Series championship by a record margin of 824 points on the strength of nine wins, one pole, 23 top-five and 32 top-10 finishes in his first full time season in the series since 2001. At the same time Harvick made the Chase in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for the first time in his career. Harvick finished fourth in the standings after posting his best Cup season to date with five victories, 15 top fives and 20 top 10s.
Harvick's only win of the 2007 NASCAR Cup season came when he perservered to the very end and slipped by Mark Martin to win his first Daytona 500. Harvick finished the 2007 season in 10th place, gaining four top-fives, and 15 top-10s in addition to his dramatic victory at Daytona in February. He also won the All-Star race, which was his first ever non-points victory.
Harvick finished his 2007 Nationwide Series season fourth in final standings running a partial season. In the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Harvick and his wife DeLana won their first championship as owners with driver Ron Hornaday Jr.
Harvick made the Chase for a third consecutive year in 2008 but continued a winless streak that had lasted since the previous year's season opener. His solid season that resulted in him finishing fourth in the points for the second time in his career saw him post seven top fives and 19 top 10s.
He also went winless in 22 starts in the Nationwide Series. But, Harvick was able to get a taste of victory lane when he won the Phoenix Camping World Truck Series race driving his own truck. It marked his first victory in that series since 2003.
