At the end of the 2023 season, Kevin Harvick — one of the best NASCAR drivers of all time — will retire, per multiple reports. His departure will have ripple effects throughout the NASCAR industry.
Harvick, 47, first broke into the sport in 1995 in the Truck Series. After finding success in the lower levels of racing, he was tabbed the replacement for Dale Earnhardt Sr. after his death in the 2001 season opener.
More than two decades later, Harvick can best be described in one word: winner.
Overall, Harvick has 60 wins, including in the Daytona 500, Coca Cola 600 and Brickyard 400, as well as a Cup Series championship and two Xfinity Series trophies.
Who will replace him in the No. 4 car in 2024? Many drivers are without rides locked in for that season.
Trackhouse Racing will face pressure to lock up Ross Chastain and/or Daniel Suarez, who are not under contract past the upcoming season.
Chastain would be a prime candidate for Stewart Haas Racing to bring aboard, so the time is ideal for Trackhouse to strike a longterm deal with “The Watermelon Man” before he heads elsewhere.
Other drivers without rides locked for 2024 include Corey LaJoie, Aric Almirola, Chase Briscoe, Martin Truex Jr., Harrison Burton, Denny Hamlin, Justin Haley, Michael McDowell, Todd Gilliland, Ryan Preece, Noah Gragson, Alex Bowman and Ty Dillon.
Of that bunch, Hamlin seems likely to stay where he’s at until he retires, and Almirola and Truex could be nearing the end of their careers. Neither is guaranteed to even be racing in 2024.
As for Harvick, he eager to be a full-time dad for his children.
“It’s great to be able to go out on your own terms and plan it how you want it to go, but the biggest thing that sticks out to me is my kids,” Harvick told The Associated Press. “Being home with them and seeing the impact that you have with them when you are home, being able to be part of that daily process and be that father figure, it’s just time.”