Kevin Harvick throughout his years in the Cup Series has been one of the finest drivers out there. But just because he’s retiring from NASCAR after this season, it doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of the Harvick name in the sport. His son, Keelan, has already showcased a keen interest and his prowess in racecar driving. But the thing is, it just hasn’t been in the same format as his father.
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Instead of looking forward to NASCAR, Keelan Harvick is understood to be tilted towards Formula 1. Although considering how hard it is for an American to get into the sport, he still has a long long way to go proving himself along the way. At the moment Keelan races in a go-kart around the European circuits.
And recently, while speaking to the media, Kevin Harvick mentioned how different it felt to see his son’s race in Europe for the first time. He also explained how the racing culture in Europe felt more aggressive than it was back home.
Kevin Harvick talks about watching his son’s first Go-Kart race in Europe
Harvick stated, “I sh*t my pants the first time I saw it. I was like oh my god, they dropped the green flag and I was like Oh my god what did I just get him into?”
“The first go-kart race I saw there just because the starts were very slow here and over there they are full speed. Like you come off the last corner and you just floor it. Everybody goes barreling into turn 1 and as soon as they dropped the green flag, one’s going left, one’s going right, and all the way from every row back. It’s just a different hook.”
Harvick’s surprise is understandable considering most of the folks racing karts in Europe are competing to slowly graduate up the ranks to either reach Formula 1, or the World Endurance champion, among several other formats of racing.
Furthermore, the number of seats in the top flight in open-wheel racing is extremely limited. Hence, aggression is something that is instilled early on, considering how tight the general competitiveness is there at any given time.
Harvick says racing in Europe has a different level of aggression
Later in the interview, one journalist asked Harvick about how different it felt to witness racing Europe in comparison to back home. Answering the question, Harvick mentioned that the racing in Europe was much more aggressive. He also added how Keelan had to learn the rules for both sides of the pond, the since they differed vastly from each other.
Harvick described, “Yeah, Europe is definitely different… It’s just a different set of rules from there to here. It’s very aggressive in a much different way in Europe than it is here. So you have to be aggressive but you have to know the rules on both sides of the pond, just because it’s a different way of officiating.”
With Keelan currently progressing through the karting scene, he still has a long way to go before he can even think of being part of a Formula 1 team. At the moment, it would be the World Karting Championship he should have his eyes on into the immediate future.
That is where it all begins. Then come the several stages of junior formula racing and the rest of the things.
