Kevin Harvick looks to pass the baton of his experience and learning to the next generation 

2014 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kevin Harvick is a force to be reckoned with on and off the race track.

The 47-year-old NASCAR veteran, who has been driving in the highest echelon of stock car racing for more than 20 years, has come across as someone who does not want to be taken advantage of and will go to any lengths to sway the competition in his favor.

Such was the Bakersfield, California driver's desire to win that he became known for playing controversial mind games off the track, and while racing as well. Kevin Harvick self-admittedly became the pot-stirrer, stirring up situations in order to sway the situation in his and his team's favor, such was the determination behind the #14 Ford Mustang driver's determination to win.

Having announced his retirement from the sport after the 2023 season, however, Kevin Harvick opened up about how his on-track shenanigans were always separate from how he tried to mentor drivers around him throughout his career.

As the younger generation spoke about Harvick reaching out to them in scenarios outside of the public eye, he elaborated on the process and said:

"I would prefer to keep it as private as possible because I don’t want them to ever think it’s so that I can talk to (the media) about it. When they speak about it, I’m OK with it, but I just have a real interest in trying to share the things that I’ve been able to experience and make mistakes, there’s so few guys that drive these cars, that you can really have more conversations with them and just reach out."

He added:

"I guess being a father has given (me) some sort of idea of what is happening with some of the kids and what they’re up against and trying to understand that."

Going into the final season of his illustrious career, Kevin Harvick will surely be aiming to finish off on a high.

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Bubba Wallace Jr. shares story about Kevin Harvick reaching out to the 23XI Racing driver

The driver of the #23 Toyota Camry TRD, Bubba Wallace Jr., was amongst several other drivers who backed Kevin Harvick's claims of guiding the younger generation by sharing stories of their own. Wallace Jr. recalled one such instance when the Stewart-Haas Racing driver invited him to dinner and said:

“I’ll always remember that moment of him just wanting to help, just knowing that ‘Happy’ has an actual nice side to him was pretty cool to see, and from the moments that we’ve had our run-ins on track, we still race each other with respect and treat each other with respect. So I’ll always remember that moment.”

Watchout for the #14 Busch Light Ford Mustang making its way through the 2023 Daytona 500 field one last time on February 19, 2023.