LOUDON, N.H. — Kevin Harvick has one final chance to gain sole possession of New Hampshire Motor Speedway’s track record for NASCAR Cup Series wins.
If he takes the checkered flag in the Crayon 301, Harvick will also get to take home the roughly 20-pound lobster awarded to the winner. (His young son once kissed the crustacean in victory lane and also playfully chased a family friend with the claw.)
He might have to surrender his musket, though.
The 47-year-old Stewart-Haas Racing driver was the recipient of a curly ash wood, custom-designed, handmade musket as a final thank-you from the track for all his success before the 2014 Cup Series champion retires from NASCAR at the end of the season. The inscription on the silver plaque reads, in part: “Kevin Harvick. 4X NHMS Winner.”
He’d like to make it five and edit the engraving. Harvick has plenty at stake in Monday’s race at New Hampshire — heavy rain wiped out Sunday’s scheduled start — where he can not only snap a tie with Jeff Burton for the most wins at the Magic Mile, he can, of most importance, end a 31-race winless streak and earn an automatic spot in the playoffs. Including the New Hampshire event, just seven races remain in the regular season, which will set the 16-driver field for the 10-race title chase.