Harvick

MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- Since moonshine runners whose love of the chase gave birth to NASCAR, stock car racing's top series never forced a driver to skip a race because of rough driving.

That was before Kevin Harvick.

The series' emerging bad boy made history Sunday, barred by NASCAR from racing in the Virginia 500 at Martinsville Speedway in a move that drivers and owners alike hailed as one that was a long time coming.

"He's lost the respect of a lot of people just from his childish behavior," Daytona 500 winner Ward Burton said. "I'm not going to sit here and say I'm perfect by any means and that I haven't made mistakes and I haven't lost my temper, but hell, he loses his every week."

Harvick's penalty, finalized by NASCAR early Sunday, came after he clashed several time with Coy Gibbs during the Advance Auto Parts 250 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at the .526-mile track on Saturday.

Harvick finally rammed Gibbs' truck from behind on the 188th lap, causing Gibbs to spin out while Harvick drove on, and Harvick was quickly told by race officials to park his truck for the rest of the afternoon.

On Sunday, just before the Winston Cup race, NASCAR announced that Harvick was "parked" for the afternoon, the first time such a penalty had been imposed.

NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter said the governing body was attempting to "maintain order on the racetrack."

"I think this is NASCAR's way of saying here is another option that we have available and will use to maintain some level of professionalism," Hunter said, adding that fines and point penalties don't always work.

Ray Evernham, former crew chief for Jeff Gordon and now the owner of two Dodge teams, said the severe penalty came as no surprise at all.

"I think Kevin Harvick is a great driver, but there comes a time when you've got to respect the sport and the competitors," Evernham said. "I think Kevin reached that time and NASCAR had to take a stand, and I'm glad they did because we can't be knocking people off the racetrack."

Jack Roush, who owns four teams of cars, agreed but said he was still somewhat surprised.

"He's been out there pretty much trying to make a statement for himself," Roush said of Harvick. "I'm a little surprised that NASCAR stood him down for a Winston Cup race over something he did in a truck race, but they must have thought it was pretty bad."

Richard Childress, who owns the No. 29 Chevrolet that Harvick normally drives, was able to get Kenny Wallace behind the wheel Sunday, but disputed the fairness of penalizing Harvick for something done in another series.

"This should be Kevin's punishment only, but what NASCAR is doing is punishing the tens of thousands of race fans who probably didn't know until they got to the track this morning that Kevin won't be allowed to race today," Childress said. "NASCAR is also punishing the entire No. 29 team and all of Richard Childress Racing for one person's actions."

Harvick, already on probation through Aug. 28 because of a skirmish with Greg Biffle during and after a Busch race at Bristol, Tenn., in March, was driving a truck owned by his wife, DeLana, in Saturday's race.

According to NASCAR rules, when a driver is on probation, the penalty means his actions in all sanctioned series will be scrutinized.

Wallace, one of the first drivers at the track Sunday, said he didn't know the whole story and wanted to stay neutral in the matter, but "I know NASCAR's pretty darn lenient, so whatever happened, it was big."

Wallace said the penalty "is probably one of the biggest technical things that has happened, probably in the history of our sport. It's probably even bigger than a rules change.

"We've all been teasing NASCAR lately that this has been the WWF (World Wrestling Federation), and this sends a message that it's not," Wallace said. "I think that NASCAR is probably testing us to see how good we're listening and if we're paying attention and if we respect them."

The one-race absence will mark the second year in a row that Harvick will compete in the Winston Cup schedule without driving in every race. Last season, he made his debut for Childress in the second race of the season, after Dale Earnhardt was killed in the season-opening Daytona 500.