"I expect them to be strong": Kevin Harvick backs Dale Jr. for enduring Cup success amid Daytona 500 debut as owner

Kevin Harvick recently gave his take on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s upcoming debut as a Cup owner in the Daytona 500. Earlier this year, it was announced that the Earnhardt-owned JR Motorsports would attempt to run the Great American Race in February with its #40 entry driven by Justin Allgaier.

While Dale Jr. has dominated Xfinity Series as an owner in the recent years with three drivers championships since 2017, the team's foray into Cup Series could go either way. However, as per Harvick, the #40 is all set for a solid show for Junior.

"I expect them to be strong in qualifying at Daytona especially when you have the purpose of trying to get that car into the field and make that race," Harvick said on his Happy Hour podcast. [27:30]

He further spoke about how he'd 'love to see' JR Motorsports in the NASCAR Cup Series every week:

"I think having Dale and his team a part of the Cup field would be fantastic. But it's gotta be right for them from a business standpoint. So I'm excited about that."

Harvick revealed that he was 'shocked' when JRM announced its Daytona 500 plans. Having said that, he wishes that the upcoming opportunity motivates the team to have more exposure in NASCAR's highest tier.

"I hope this leads them to headed towards the Cup Series. Cup field gets better if JR Motorsports is on the entry list every week," Kevin Harvick added.

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Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr. reflected on their joint venture as owners of CARS Tour

In January 2023, it was announced that Kevin Harvick and Dale Earnhardt Jr., along with Justin Marks and Jeff Burton, would form the new ownership group of CARS Tour. It's worth mentioning that both Harvick and Junior had ownership experience before with Kevin Harvick Incorporated (KHI) and JRM respectively.

After their first season as owners of the CARS Tour, both NASCAR legends had interesting learnings to share. Junior revealed that while he has been a car owner before, he never really dived 'into the book.' He said that he wasn't aware about the financial challenges and the costs of owning a series which involves 'delicate numbers.'

Harvick mentioned that for a lot of people who race in the CARS Tour, 'it's a business' and something they do after their job, which is why it has to make sense.

"I had no idea before being involved in this what the options were for engines, what the tire compound was, how much it costs to race. And you listen to the team owners and the things they bring up, it’s the simple things," Harvick explained via FloRacing.

As for his and his partners' plans for CARS Tour, Harvick claimed that they want to help grassroots racers in understanding 'what racing is all about at all levels.'

He added that they intend to give the racers a bigger platform to showcase their talents to the world.