NASCAR star Kevin Harvick recalls $50,000 brawl with Greg Biffle at Bristol in 2002

Ahead of NASCAR's visit to Bristol Motor Speedway, Kevin Harvick took a trip down memory lane as he reflected on his brawl with Greg Biffle that took place more than two decades ago.

The duo were racing each other in an Xfinity event at the half-mile oval when Biffle wrecked Harvick, who was forced to retire his #29 Richard Childress Racing Chevy. Following the incident, the young Kevin Harvick climbed atop a pit box, scheming his next move as he patiently waited for Biffle to finish the race.

As soon as Greg Biffle was on the pit road, he launched a surprise attack jumping over his rival's car, landing into a scrum and lunging at Biffle's throat. The sequence unfolded in front of the media.

Two decades later, as Kevin Harvick reflected on the incident, he revealed that he had bad influences early in his career, who encouraged him to take such actions. The 48-year-old said in the latest episode of his Happy Hour podcast:

"At that particular time, I had a lot of bad influences around me at that time, really that would egg me on to do stuff like that. It was definitely one of those moments I planned that out for hundreds of laps... very premeditated."

"I don't know that I actually planned on jumping over the car like that. So it was just kind of run down there and that was the avenue that was open to get to him. Luckily I was somewhat agile, I wouldn't say athletic, I would just say agile."

Kevin Harvick explained that the incident put a $50,000 dent in the team's budget. He said:

"I was always in trouble and I think that one probably cost me. That's when we started having a slush fund for penalties. The financial guys would just budget a $100,000 a year to give away to NASCAR and now I think that one cost me 50 [grand]."

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Kevin Harvick expands on his early tenure in NASCAR Cup Series

Following the death of NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt, Kevin Harvick was thrust into the limelight, trying to fill the shoes of the seven-time champion. He proved his mettle in the 2001 season and has now claimed that he learned a lot about the "show" the following year.

Elaborating on his scuffle with Greg Biffle and his sophomore season, Harvick said in the aforementioned podcast:

"I would call that some of the learning moments of my career. Trying to worry more about the show than actually what you were supposed to be doing in the car," he said.

"It is a balance... because it is a show. In some ways you are responsible for your own brand and the messaging. So it wasn't all bad, when you did stuff like that, to be able to jump over the car and cause some chaos."