Year in Review: RCR

Richard Childress Racing once was the dominant force in NASCAR Winston Cup racing. RCR, led by Dale Earnhardt, won six championships and 48 races over a nine-year period from 1986-94.

But 2002 looked nothing like that. Perhaps reeling from the death of Earnhardt, RCR slipped. Childress himself admitted the team got behind, and 2002 was a disappointing season, with RCR scoring only one victory and one pole.

None of RCR's three Winston Cup teams finished in the top 15 in points, with the flagship, Kevin Harvick's No. 29, finishing 21st in the points.

	Robby Gordon swept the road courses in 2003. Credit: Autostock

A good team, however, won't stay down long -- 2003 proved that.

And while Childress' No. 30 car slipped to 34th in the car owners' standings with Green and Steve Park driving, RCR's reclamation was never more evident than on the Busch Series.

Childress won the owners' championship with his No. 21 as Harvick and Johnny Sauter split the seat time. And RCR's No. 2 with Ron Hornaday driving finished third in the drivers' standings, a scant 46 away from a championship.

"This sport has the highest and lowest of any sport that I've ever known," Childress said. "You can go to the bottom real quick. You can't figure it out. We kind of got behind with our organization. ... We just kept telling these drivers, 'Believe in us, we're going to get it back.'

"I think that's the thing, is having faith. In my career, I've seen the best go (down) and come back. It's tougher to get back up there. You know, you can get behind in one day, but it may take you months to ever catch that one day up.

"That's the way this sport is. It's a tough sport."

But RCR proved it could handle the tough times, with a few adjustments. Harvick's season began to turn around in March, when he was reunited with his former Busch Series crew chief, Todd Berrier.

	Harvick's win at Indy was RCR's biggest win since the 1998 Daytona 500. Credit: Autostock

Before Berrier took over the No. 29 crew, Harvick was 18th in the points. But after a seventh at Bristol and a second at Talladega, Harvick was off.

By the start of the second half, Harvick was rolling. He led the most laps and finished ninth at Daytona, led 46 laps at Chicago and led 53 laps and finished a strong second at New Hampshire.

Then came the triumphant victory at Indianapolis, when Harvick made a power pass of Jamie McMurray in the late going to roll to Victory Lane. That also put Harvick in the top five in the points and helped him threaten Matt Kenseth in the championship race.

A week later, Harvick was fifth at Watkins Glen, and he then rolled off three consecutive runner-up finishes at Michigan, Bristol and Darlington, leading laps and running up front in all three.

Harvick was headed to another at Richmond until a bump from behind from Ricky Rudd sent him into the wall. Afterward, Harvick hit Rudd's car on pit road, and Harvick and members of his team jumped on Rudd's car, and the two drivers exchanged words.

Harvick recovered and led 133 laps and finished fourth at Dover, moving to second behind Kenseth. He was 436 points back, but Harvick would make it interesting, chopping the lead down to 240 with a seventh-place finish at Martinsville.

	Steve Park signed on to replace Jeff Green in May, but Park won't be back with the team in 2004. Credit: Autostock

That was as close as it would get, as a crash at Phoenix all but ended any title hopes. Still, it was a banner season for Harvick, as no one improved more over 2002, as he went from 21st in the points to fifth.

"We've had a great season," Harvick said. ""The No. 29 GM Goodwrench racing team is going to be one to reckon with. We showed throughout the middle part of the season what we could do.

"It's only a matter of consistency, and I think we are getting closer and closer every year. I'm proud of what we were able to accomplish this season. We've come a long way and I think that will give us an edge next year."

Gordon improved, too, moving from 20th to 16th in the points. But the end of the season was disappointing, as Gordon stood 10th in the standings after the Bristol night race.

Starting with an impressive rally at Richmond, where Gordon made up four laps and finished fourth, the No. 31 team had an impressive string of races, posting eight top-10 finishes in 14 races, including victories at Sonoma and Watkins Glen.

But the best Gordon could do down the stretch was a 12th at Talladega. He was 20th or worse in 12 of the final 13 events.

"Our goal at the beginning of the year was to finish in the top 10 in points, and we looked like we were headed for that for a while," Gordon said. "But we took a wrong turn somewhere in the middle of the summer and never could get back.

Team Page: RCR  Driver Page: Kevin Harvick  Driver Page: Robby Gordon  Driver Page: Steve Park

"We've had some races where we struggled in the beginning and didn't get the car up to par until it was too late, but we've also had some bad luck on the race track. We've gotten wrecked a couple of times when we were running in the top five - wrecks that weren't our fault.

"It's frustrating but that's just racing. You can't control what the other guy does. You can only control your team and your team's efforts each week, and I feel confident that the Cingular team has given 100 percent effort each weekend."

While Harvick and Gordon each got in the top 10 in points and some stage of the season, the No. 30 car struggled all year. Green won the pole for the Daytona 500 but he was gone from the car in early May after a crash at Richmond and publicly criticizing Harvick and Childress.

Park had a few bright moments, like a pole at the July Daytona race and a fifth at Michigan, but Childress announced in October that Park wouldn't be back in the car for 2003.

Still, considering Harvick's solid season, Gordon's two victories and the Busch Series success, it's easy to say RCR is back where it belongs.