The retired Stewart-Haas Racing superstar Kevin Harvick is one of the most well-known faces in North American motorsports. And yet, even he goes unrecognized at times on the race track. In a recent interview with Jeff Gluck, the IndyCar Series driver Conor Daly narrated a 2023 incident during which he mistook Harvick for the 2009 Formula 1 World Champion, Jenson Button.
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Daly, Harvick, and Button were all at the Circuit of the Americas to contest in a Cup Series race in the March of 2023. Daly had walked up to Harvick, who was clad in the same Mobil 1 racing suit as Button, trying to get a picture of the F1 Champion for his sponsor. He called out with excitement, “JB!”, getting within distance.
Clueless as to who Daly or JB was, Harvick gave him the strangest of looks and asked, “Who is JB?” Retelling the story to Gluck, the IndyCar driver facepalmed that it was one of his most embarrassing moments. He’d later figured out that Harvick’s Mobil 1 suit was white and Button’s was black.
“Kevin already doesn’t know who I am, I assume, and he’s probably wondering why I’m in a race suit in the first place,” he said. “But they were literally wearing the same sponsor suit and I just messed it up.” The race was just Daly’s third time contesting in the Cup Series. He finished in 36th place. Button came in 18th and Harvick 13th. At 32, Daly is currently seeking his first Indy 500 win.
Conor Daly aspires to win the 2024 Indy 500 later this month
Daly will race in the #24 Polkadot-sponsored car for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing in the upcoming Indy 500 on May 26. Of his ambitions, he said to Gluck that winning the race would solve all the problems that he has in life. “An Indy 500 win,” he quipped dreamily. “That solves probably all problems in life and maybe solves more problems outside of that. That’s why we show up this month. That’s why we’ve been putting in the work.”
Pretty interesting day overall for us. Felt pretty decent in traffic and enjoyed some good long runs. Can’t believe how quick this week has flown by through. Survived a RF Upright failure on the last lap of the day. Definitely sketchy! We’ll be all set for tomorrow #indy500 pic.twitter.com/0IbRYPR5Uq
— Conor Daly (@ConorDaly22) May 16, 2024
Despite the goal and the optimism to achieve it, things might not come his way very easily. There are cars far superior than his on the Indy 500 field and one of them is the Arrow McLaren ride of Hendrick Motorsports star Kyle Larson. With threats from outside his home world, Daly will face quite the task in realizing his dreams. Qualifying for the Indy 500 will take place over this weekend.
