"It's not fair, but it is safer": Kevin Harvick exposes major loophole in NASCAR's pit stop rules after JGR exploit

After a chaotic race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Kevin Harvick questioned the pit rules regarding Christopher Bell pitting his car in another box. In his weekly podcast, Harvick argued that the rules were uneven and favored the bigger teams.

The Pennzoil 400 on Sunday saw nine cautions two wheel detachments and pit crew suspensions for Richard Childress Racing, among other incidents. One that stood out involved Joe Gibbs Racing #20. After pitting in his box, Bell was informed by his crew chief on the radio that he had a loose wheel and had to tighten it. Bell who had just driven from his stall pitted in teammate Chase Briscoe's box ahead on the pit road to tighten the wheel.

Harvick talked about the issue in his Kevin Harvick Happy Hour Podcast as he was joined by NASCAR reporters Kaitlyn Vincie and Mamba Smith. Raising concerns about the matter Harvick said:

"It's within the rules. It's tail end of the longest line for pitting outside the box. But I didn't know that you could have another team actually pit your car and I don't know how I feel about it. I feel like it's better than the wheel falling off but what about the guy who only has one car? Is that fair to the guy that only has one car that doesn't have a teammate to stop in their box? Because I don't think it is...I can't wait to see where this goes because it's not fair but it is safer."

Harvick further argued this kept teams with one or two cars at a disadvantage compared to those like Joe Gibbs Racing who have four entries. He also did not find the rule to be fair for everyone.

"Is it fair that a two-car team only has one choice and a four-car team has three choices well and what if the pit box is already behind you? Well sometimes they don't have the option until you're all the way down pit road so, I don't know, This is a great debate," added Kevin Harvick.

After Bell drove back to the track he restarted at the end and finished the race in 12th place putting an end to his 3-race winning streak. Had he not pitted in Briscoe's #19 box he could have faced a harsher penalty than sitting out for two laps. Additionally, if the tire came off, his jackman and tire changer would've also faced suspensions, as was in the case of Richard Childress Racing's Kyle Busch.

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Kevin Harvick suggests changes to NASCAR’s pit stop regulations

Kevin Harvick speaks to the media during the media scrum at Music City Center - Source: Getty

According to NASCAR, teams are allowed to pit in a teammate's box 'under extenuating circumstances' that are related to the safety of the car. But if drivers have pitted in someone else's stall they are required to restart the race at the back of the field in case of a yellow flag and drive through under a green flag. Kevin Harvick put forth a simple solution in his podcast.

"What's fair is to just say your team can pit your car. That's it because that's who's on your roster. What's the point of having the roster?" questioned Harvick (24:57 onwards).

Harvick was, however, worried that other teams were now going to use this strategy not only for changing tires but also for filling the gas. This tilts the favor towards teams with multiple cars as smaller teams face logistical challenges while acknowledging that the rule improves safety.