Hendrick Motorsports rides high on positivity after last Sunday’s race in Martinsville. The celebrations for the team’s 40th year anniversary reached a fresh peak after its drivers presented a 1-2-3 finish on the short track race. Talking about the achievement on his podcast, racing icon Kevin Harvick spoke about Rick Hendrick’s obsession with success.
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Harvick raced against Hendrick Motorsports cars throughout his career and generally made life very difficult for Rick Hendrick. Now that the former Stewart-Haas Racing man has retired and is out of the race track, he is able to express long-withheld praise for the opposition’s character. “Those are the moments you live for as a driver,” he said about the 1-2-3 finish.
He continued, “To be able to go out there and perform under all the circumstances. Have all your people there and get the W. Not only a W, but a 1-2-3.” Clad in ruby red shirts, 1500 employees of the Hendrick organization were at the Martinsville Speedway to celebrate the anniversary. The impact that the drivers left on the crowd appears to have struck a deep chord with Harvick.
Despite his admiration, he was also wary of the fact that neither Hendrick nor his wife Linda would be satisfied with the result. He funnily noted how Linda would ask why it wasn’t a 1-2-3-4 finish. The fourth Hendrick car, driven by Alex Bowman, ended up in 8th place. Continuing, Harvick explained the key reason behind the incomparable endurance of Hendrick Motorsports over the years.
Kevin Harvick details Hendrick’s mentality and obsession with success
Noting how Linda had mentioned on the Netflix show “Full Speed” that she expected all four of her team’s cars to be on the Championship 4, Harvick broke down the expectations that the HMS top brass have. “Those are the expectations that they quietly have,” he said. “The expectation from Hendrick Motorsports or the Hendrick Automotive Group is to be the best.”
“When you get in those private meetings with Rick, that’s what he talks about. He talks about what we need to win and when we are winning, what do we need to do to win more?” Harvick said that Hendrick goes out and finds the right people to fulfill his requirements before giving them all the tools that they need to succeed. It is with this DNA in it that HMS stands tall as the most successful operation in NASCAR today.
