BRISTOL, Tenn. – Kevin Harvick steamrolled his way into the second round of the playoffs by holding off Kyle Busch on Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway for his series-best ninth victory of the season.
Harvick denied the reigning Cup Series champion his first win of the season when he took the lead a little more than 100 laps from the finish and held off every challenge from Busch the rest of the way.
Busch furiously tried to catch him as the two weaved their way through lapped traffic, but Harvick held firm in the No. 4 Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing.
Only six cars finished on the lead lap in a tepid event at the 0.533-mile bullring revered for bumping and banging. Track officials sold all 30,000 tickets allowed — making Bristol one of.