NASCAR Cup Series

Harvick sees business side of Indy move

Published Jul. 7, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Kevin Harvick appreciates NASCAR history as much as anyone and understands the implications of adding the Nationwide Series to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway schedule.

So while he appreciates the tradition of the series racing at nearby Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis each year, he sees the benefits of moving that race to IMS in 2012.

Harvick, a part-time competitor and full-time owner in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, sees the move as an opportunity.

First, the cars are moving to the storied track for the first time next season, running the day before the Brickyard 400. But, second, there’s some business savvy for teams like his Kevin Harvick Inc. in the move.

The Camping World Truck Series, in which KHI also fields a team, traditionally runs on the same weekend, but the track has already announced the race will not be placed on that date, either. Harvick hopes that series does stay put.

“(Lucas Oil Raceway) has been a huge part of the series up until this point,” Harvick said Thursday at Kentucky Speedway. “I think when you look at the opportunity to go to the Brickyard with the Nationwide Series, that is an opportunity that probably hasn’t been there like it’s going to be.

"It hasn’t been there in the past like it is going to be from an owner’s standpoint. You don’t have to put somebody else in your car if you aren’t racing for a driver’s championship. You would love to see it get worked out to have the Truck series stay there, or have the ARCA Series come there.”

Still, as a businessman, Harvick sees the positives of the move — and supports NASCAR mixing up the venues at which teams compete.

“When you have the opportunity to go to the Brickyard and we can put our normal drivers in there and you can sell the sponsorship,” he said. “That has always been a tough race to sell. You just have a lot of opportunities that are going to be new. The enthusiasm is going to be up. It is going to be a new venue for the Nationwide Series. It is going to be new for the fans. There are going to be a lot of new things that go with that.

“ . . . Change is good. I have been preaching that we needed to go to different racetracks for a long time because you can see, the enthusiasm and the excitement and the publicity and everything that comes with a new venue; that lasts for several years. I hate to see (that track) go, but, things change. This is no different than any other business; you have to keep up with the times.”