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After the former NASCAR driver, Kevin Harvick parted ways with the sport, his son Keelan Paul Harvick has followed in his father's footsteps and garnered adoration for his racing prowess, as legendary driver Mark Martin sang high praise for the 11-year-old.
Before driving in his final race for Stewart Haas Racing at the 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race, Kevin Harvick competed in the sport for a staggering 23 years, amassing the 2001 and 2006 Xfinity Series and 2014 Cup Series championships.
As the dust of the 48-year-old's dominance settled, Keelan held the baton of his father's legacy and churned a remarkable debut run at the New River All-American Speedway. After bagging the Legends feature win under his name, Keelan came home with a P2 finish at the Street Stock racing.
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The Californian's 30-lap battle with Jacob Staten witnessed multiple track position changes before Harvick's son ultimately took the lead, bagging a 1-2 double-duty finish on his maiden Street Stock stint. Several drivers including the 40x Cup Series race winner Martin lauded Harvick Jr.'s domitable run on the asphalt.
Renowned for having an eagle eye for spotting a championship material driver, Martin's picks have a proven record of superiority in the realm of motorsports racing, and two-time Cup Series champion Joey Logano is a testament to it. Impressed by Keelan's run, Martin lauded the boy, highlighting his capabilities to claim a NASCAR title one day.
He said (via Rubbin is Racing on X):
"I saw Joey race the first time in Atlanta. When he was 10 years old, he had already graduated to racing with adults in a legend car...it's the hardest car they've [drivers] tried to race in. I said that night he [Logano] would be a NASCAR champion."
Martin added:
"I see some young guys I'm still watching...I'm not gonna go out on a limb and say, 'You know this is the one until we drop down to Keelan Harvick.' I really believe Keelan Harvick is gonna do it."
Check out Mark Martin's comments below:
Kevin Harvick left impressed by Keelan's never seen before display at his Street Stock debut
Post etching the Legends feature run under his name, Keelan Paul Harvick eyed another victory at his Street Stock racing debut. The odds of another triumph were highly in favor of the 11-year-old, but after missing a shift on the final restart Keelan had to settle for the runner-up spot.
Nevertheless, despite missing out on the double-duty win, Kevin Harvick's son maneuvered impressively on the track, where he was seen battling with Jacob Staten and rushed toward the checkered flag, swooping past Aiden McConaughey and clinching the win.
The domitable run of the young boy scared his mom DeLana, but impressed Kevin Harvick as the latter has "not seen him race like that before," following which the proud father shed light on his son's outing, saying at Harvick's Happy Hour podcast:
“I've not seen him race like that before. I've seen him do a lot of great things, but to put together the last five laps like he did, I was pretty proud of him.”
