JOLIET, Ill. — A week before Dale Earnhardt died in a crash at the Daytona 500, team owner Richard Childress introduced the driver he hoped would succeed Earnhardt to an old friend.
"This guy is the real deal," Childress told the man. "He's got the kind of driving ability to be a big success."
Nobody knew how soon Kevin Harvick would have to prove Childress right.
Now, five months and 17 races later, Harvick is proving his boss knew what he was talking about.
A convincing victory on Sunday in the inaugural Tropicana 400 was the second of Harvick's budding Winston Cup career. He also is leading the Busch Series and appears well on his way to top rookie honors in NASCAR's top stock car series.
Harvick got off to a quick start after replacing Earnhardt in the second race of the season. In just his third Winston Cup start, the slim, engaging 25-year-old earned an emotional victory in Atlanta, beating three-time champion Jeff Gordon in a breathtaking last-lap duel.
Since then, though, despite some good showings and a spot in the top 10 in the standings, there was talk that maybe that win was a little premature.
"I think today answers any questions about his driving ability," Childress said Sunday after Harvick held off surprising Robert Pressley for the win.
This win was vindication for Harvick and the rest of his Richard Childress racing team.
After celebrating for the sellout crowd of 85,000 with some doughnuts and a long, billowing, smoky burnout, Harvick scrambled from his white No. 29 Chevrolet — the car that used to be Earnhardt's black No. 3 — and celebrated with his team.
"This means a lot," Harvick said. "When you're stuck on your first win, everybody says 'He's a flash in the pan.' Well, here's our second win now."
Harvick ran strong throughout Sunday's 267-lap race on the new 1 1/2-mile, D-shaped tri-oval. He took the lead for good on lap 242, passing Mark Martin.
The aftermath of the win in Atlanta was a tribute to Earnhardt. This one was more about Harvick, crew chief Kevin Hamlin and his crew. Still, The Intimidator wasn't far from anyone's mind on Sunday.
"Everything we do this year is in memory of Dale Earnhardt," Harvick said. "He is the reason we're racing in both series, and we want to do everything we can for him."
Typically, the racing groove on the new track was narrow, and cars that ventured off that area often paid a price. There were nine caution flags, and two drivers were injured.
Mike Skinner, Harvick's teammate, cut a tire and slammed into the wall at close to 180 mph. He was knocked unconscious for a few moments, but was awake and alert when removed from the car.
Skinner, who also crashed Friday in practice, was limping and was helped to the ambulance by two safety workers. He was transported by ambulance to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with a mild concussion and a fractured left ankle before being treated and released.
Later in the race, Jerry Nadeau, who led several times and appeared to have a good shot at his second win, lost an oil line and Roy "Buckshot" Jones slid through the oil and hit the wall hard.
Jones, who complained of pain in his left knee and took fluids for dehydration on the hot, humid afternoon, was released from the track's infield medical center.
The final caution flag flew on lap 258 when Tony Stewart slowed and was tapped from behind by Sterling Marlin. Stewart, who had been running eighth, spun and hit the wall. He was not injured, but the caution bunched the field for a restart five laps from the end and gave Pressley one last shot at Harvick.
Pressley, whose best previous finish was third place earlier this year in Texas, tried to psyche out Harvick, bumping his rear bumper several times before the green flag came out for the start of lap 263.
"I wanted to just shake him up a little bit and maybe make him run a little wide in turn one," Pressley said. "I thought if I could get my nose under him, I might be able to get by him. I just wanted to rattle his cage."
It didn't work.
"He tried to intimidate me, I guess," Harvick said, grinning.
Once the green flag came out, Pressley was more concerned with keeping Ricky Rudd behind him than pushing Harvick, who won by 0.649 seconds — about five car lengths — over Pressley's Ford. Rudd was third, followed by Dale Jarrett, Jimmy Spencer, Martin, Matt Kenseth and rookie Kurt Busch, all in Fords.
Marlin and Bill Elliott were ninth and 10th in Dodges, while last week's winner, Dale Earnhardt Jr., was next in another Chevy.
Jeff Gordon, who came into the race with a 48-point lead over Jarrett in the season standings, overcame a 28th-place start to become a contender until a late-race engine problem relegated him to 17th, the last car on the lead lap.
With the season at the halfway point, Jarrett moved into a tie with Gordon for the points lead, with Rudd just 18 points behind.