Out of nowhere: McMurray nearly topples dominant Harvick
For much of Sunday's CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, it appeared the only drivers able to stay with Kevin Harvick were Team Penske's Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano or Harvick's Stewart-Haas Racing teammate Kurt Busch.
However, as the field bunched up for the final two restarts of the day, it was Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates' Jamie McMurray that lined up alongside Harvick's No. 4 Chevrolet.
When an incident involving Tony Stewart brought out the caution on Lap 288, McMurray stayed on track while other leaders came to pit road. Restarting second, McMurray was able to stay with Harvick on the drop of the green flag, but the driver of the No. 4 was able to get away.
McMurray got another shot at Harvick when the race restarted with 12 laps to go after a Danica Patrick spin brought out the final caution of the day.
Despite another hard charge on the inside of Harvick through turns 1 and 2, McMurray was unable to wrestle the lead from Harvick, who was able to clear McMurray off Turn 4.
Unable to catch Harvick, McMurray crossed the line to finish in the runner-up spot, 1.153 seconds behind.
"We ran fifth and eighth all day long. Matt McCall (crew chief) made a really good decision at the end to stay out and got us on the front row," said McMurray. "That was a fun battle with Kevin. Those are the kinds you wish you could do over again, because I would have slid up earlier."
Earning his best finish of the early 2015 season, McMurray wished he would have listened to his spotter and cleared Harvick at the exit of Turn 2 on the restart.
"Honestly, when I went through (turns) 1 and 2, I felt like I totally missed the corner and I was waiting to hear, 'Three-wide, you're in the middle.' I heard, 'Clear.' I wish I would have moved up immediately," said McMurray. "He had momentum on the outside. I didn't feel like I was clear.
"The cars are kind of like what we have at Daytona," he said. "When you're clear of someone or when someone gets to your quarter panel, you can feel it bog the car down. I didn't feel like I was clear. Hindsight, I would have listened to my spotter a little bit and just moved up. I felt like I missed the corner, so I didn't have any idea how I could be clear."
VIDEO: Highlights from Sunday's CampingWorld.com 500 at Phoenix International Raceway
