Getty Kevin Harvick arrives for the race at Talladega Superspeedway.
The No. 4 Ford Mustang will once again have Busch Light as the primary sponsor for the trip to Martinsville Speedway. However, it will have a Halloween scheme as Kevin Harvick pursues another win.
Stewart-Haas Racing showed off the special scheme on October 25 ahead of the penultimate Cup Series race. The No. 4 will have an orange and black scheme that features a cemetery on the sides. Instead of the standard Busch Light logos, there will be alternate versions that say “BOOSCH” to add some extra “spooky flair.
Beware of the No. 4 at Martinsville.
There’s nothing scarier when @KevinHarvick and @BuschBeer team up.
The scheme will be fitting considering that there is one thing about Martinsville that “scares” Harvick. He explained in a release from the team that the racing could suffer if it’s anything like the spring race.
“What scares me about Martinsville is if it races like it did the first time and it becomes increasingly difficult to pass,” Harvick said. “When we went there the first time, it didn’t lay any rubber, we shifted a ton, and it was just extremely difficult to pass. That lessens your opportunity to have a good-handling car and do the things that you need to do to have the best car to win the race.
“When that happens, people start taking chances, whether it be no tires, left-side tires, and then the restarts become incredibly mixed up and rough, and there are things you can get caught up in.”
Harvick Has Mixed Results at Martinsville Speedway
GettyKevin Harvick has a previous win at Martinsville Speedway.
The trip to Martinsville Speedway will mark Harvick’s 43rd Cup Series start at the short track. It will give him another opportunity to add to his stat line at the track, which features mixed results.
On paper, Harvick has been one of the most consistent drivers at Martinsville Speedway. He has 20 top-10 finishes, which is third among active drivers behind Kyle Busch (21) and Denny Hamlin (22). He also has a win from the 2011 season.
While Harvick has an average finish of 14.7, he also has some races where he struggled to finish inside the top 20. This includes a 32nd in 2005, a 31st in 2002, a 32nd in 2012, and a 33rd in 2014. Harvick also finished 17th in the 2020 cutoff race. Though that was only after he tried to spin Busch on the final turn.
“Martinsville has a deep history in our sport,” Harvick added. “It’s a place that’s just a part of NASCAR racing and I think you have to respect that. But I definitely would tell you it’s not a racetrack that I would say, ‘This is where I want to go.’ It’s just not been a place where I’ve had streaks of success.”
Qualifying Will Be All-Important
There has been a common sentiment in the NASCAR garage during the playoffs. The drivers expect the race at Martinsville Speedway to unfold without many passes on the track.
Denny Hamlin, in particular, said that the race could just be a “ring around the Rosie” if the drivers can’t get to the bumpers of the cars in front of them and use some aggressive moves to gain spots.
If the race plays out as many expect, it means that there will be an emphasis on track position. Securing a spot near the front of the pack during qualifying will be all-important as it will provide an opportunity to control the field and lead hundreds of laps.
William Byron and Chase Elliott dominated during the spring race at Martinsville Speedway. The driver of the No. 9 started from the pole, swept the first two stages, and led 185 laps. Byron finished second in the first two stages after starting fifth, but he ultimately captured the win after leading 212 laps of his own.