NASCAR Cup Series

31 Moments: No. 6 -- Kevin Harvick's walk-off win in Phoenix

Published Dec. 26, 2014 10:30 a.m. ET

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Tom Jensen

Editor's note: For the month of December, FOXSports.com will count down 31 moments that defined the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season. This is No. 6.

With a shot at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship on the line, Kevin Harvick came up huge to win the Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, the penultimate race of the 2014 season.

With the victory, Harvick locked himself into the season-ending Championship Round of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Harvick scored his fourth race victory of the season and 27th of his career, as he won at his favorite track for the fourth time in the last five races. Harvick led 264 of the 312 laps to triumph over Jeff Gordon, Matt Kenseth and Brad Keselowski.

"I guess that it's what it feels like to hit a walkoff in extra innings," said Harvick.

The pressure was high for Harvick, who would not have advanced to the Championship Round without a victory.

"I could tell that we were probably have to win, because everybody was running up at the front of the pack that we were racing against," said Harvick. "And that's really the goal every time we come to Phoenix for me personally, and this team."

With his victory, Harvick knocked out Gordon and Keselowski, two drivers expected to contend for the title.

Instead, Denny Hamlin, Joey Logano and Ryan Newman locked themselves into the Championship Round. On the last lap of the race, Newman shoved Kyle Larson into the wall to finish 11th and eliminate Jeff Gordon from title contention by a single point.

"That was about as clean as I could race," said Newman. "I wasn't proud of it."

It was a tough blow for Gordon, who had five top-two finishes in the nine Chase races but didn't advance to the title round. "I really thought second would get it done, but obviously, it didn't," Gordon said.

There was much at stake in this duel in the desert.

Pole-sitter Hamlin took the lead at the start, with Harvick in second before Logano moved to the runner-up spot on Lap 19.

After a spirited dice for the lead with Hamlin for several laps, Logano took the point on Lap 28.

An errant spring rubber brought out a caution on Lap 30 and sent the field down pit road for the first time. Hamlin had to make a second pit stop after getting a flat right-rear tire because of a broken valve stem and he fell all the way to 39th.

After the restart, Harvick passed Logano on Lap 44, taking his first lead of the day.

At Lap 100, the order was Harvick, Logano, Kurt Busch, Keselowski and Matt Kenseth.

After a caution on Lap 124 for debris on the frontstretch, Logano dragged his fuel can out of his pit box and was penalized, dropping from second to 29th.

Harvick continued to lead after the restart and at Lap 156, the midpoint of the race, he had a 5.538-second lead over Kurt and Kyle Busch and Keselowski.

Deeper in the pack, Hamlin and Logano both struggled, with Logano getting lapped on Lap 182, two circuits before a caution for a tire failure on Austin Dillon's car.

Logano got back on the lead lap thanks to a debris caution on Lap 202.

The next caution flew at Lap 207, putting Hamlin back on the lead lap.

Then, Kyle Busch went around on the Lap 212 restart in Turn 2, sending the track yellow again. At the same time, Logano and Danica Patrick made contact, causing a tire rub on Logano's car. But it was quickly repaired under yellow.

On Lap 289, the caution waved for debris on the frontstretch, specifically another spring rubber.

Under caution Harvick, Gordon, Keselowski, Kenseth, Newman and Biffle stayed out, with the other lead-lap cars pitted.

After another caution, the race restarted and Harvick drove off to an easy victory.

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