Kevin Harvick and the crew of Harvick’s Happy Hour are locking in their predictions for the USA Today 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
First, Harvick decided to admittedly get a little sentimental with his pick, predicting Martin Truex Jr. to repeat in Loudon after the No. 19 wheelman announced he’ll be retiring at the end of the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series campaign.
“I think that there are those tracks where people know that they want to put on a show, and you get prepared for them. With his recent retirement, I mean, we can all go with Truex. We can. I mean, the guy — he’s the sentimental pick. How could we go against Martin Truex Jr. for New Hampshire, right? If you’re going to win, what a better storybook way to win for Martin Truex, in his final year, to go to New Hampshire and win the dang race,” Harvick explained. “He’s going to be highly motivated. Pressure is going to be off him, because he finally made the decision, announced it, it’s over.
“Yeah, he’s going to have to answer some questions in the media center, but it’s all going to be happy-go-lucky from here on out for Truex, because he doesn’t have to worry about it anymore. So, what a better way to do it. He’s got the cars to do it. He’s got the team to do it. He’s got the talent to do it. I think he goes up there and makes it happen.”
Harvick’s co-host Kaitlyn Vincie agreed, also picking Truex Jr. to get the win: “That was also my pick, so I’m just going to piggyback off that,” she proclaimed.
While Harvick’s other co-host in Mamba Smith was originally going to roll with Truex Jr. as well, he opted to go elsewhere when the rest of the panel picked the No. 19, choosing Josh Berry and the No. 4 team to get the win.
“Okay, I was going to pick him, but because we know how bad my picks have been this year, I don’t want to put that on him, at all, and I do think Josh Berry in the No. 4, at places where there’s a lot of off-throttle time, the short tracks. I think, coming off of Iowa, where he was really strong, they have momentum,” Smith elaborated. “At a place like this, I think Josh Berry might be the pick.”
Following an awesome run at Iowa, Harvick is a fan of the pick, as Berry has been putting together some strong ones in Harvick’s old No. 4, with his former crew chief in Rodney Childers.
“I like that pick,” Harvick responded. “Those guys are highly motivated. Obviously, I have some good communication with Rodney still, and seeing everything that they’ve gone through, and are going through and are going to have to go through for the rest of the year, both of them looking to figure out where they’re going to go, I think they’re both highly motivated, and I think he had a chance to win at Iowa, if he doesn’t crash under caution.”
Alas, it’s anyone’s guess who will come out on top in New Hampshire, but it should be an entertaining race regardless, with a ton on the line moving forward in the NASCAR Cup Series.
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