Nascar Champion Kevin Harvick Couch Surfed With Jimmy Johnson

Nascar champion Kevin Harvick recalls the time he spent crashing on couches, rooming with fellow driver Jimmy Johnson.

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On Sunday evening, Kevin Harvick won his first NASCAR Sprint Cup championship, though the driver remembers his humble beginnings which ironically featured none other than six-time champion Jimmy Johnson.

Both Harvick and Johnson were relatively unknown to most outside of the inner workings of the sport back in 2001 when they both spent time at “Camp Hornaday”. That was nothing more than the game room of fellow Nascar driver Ron Hornaday who allowed both Kevin Harvick and Jimmy Johnson to crash at his home for a few months.

Johnson would eventually go on to be named Rookie of the Year in 2002 though success took a bit longer to follow for Harvick.

Still, it was Jimmy Johnson who helped push his former roommate to a title on Sunday night according to Harvick.

“Jimmie Johnson was a huge help,” the 2014 champion said, still drenched in beer. “He’d show up in the trailer after every practice and called and texted to Rodney (Childers, Harvick’s crew chief) and myself. You pull the data up, and I was making some pretty huge mistakes. So that eased my mind going into the day.”

If this story sounds familiar, that’s probably because it is – not so much directly involving Jimmy Johnson and Kevin Harvick but sports in genera. So often you hear of players being roommates during the early portion of their careers only to reunite in some strange fashion down the road as both Harvick and Johnson have done.

Johsnon didn’t exactly have a dog in the fight for the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup championship so why not help a friend in his time of need? You can’t get much closer than sharing Cheeto stained coaches during your youth.

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