Kevin Harvick circles four drivers in trouble four races into NASCAR season

The young NASCAR season is beginning to take shape, with the standings starting to fill out a bit. And some drivers are in trouble early on.

Kevin Harvick broke down which drivers he thinks should be in the panic zone right now. He outlined them on the Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour podcast.

“There’s some people, I wrote down some people that I thought were in trouble,” Harvick said. “41 car of Cole Custer. He’s in big trouble. 54 car of Ty Gibbs, he’s probably in the biggest trouble with his points position. (Brad) Keselowski, they’ve been OK but nothing to really brag about. But he’s in big trouble points wise. And Austin Cindric.”

Each of those drivers has had their own unique issues, so let’s dive into some of them below. First off, Cindric ran afoul of NASCAR when he right-rear hooked Ty Dillon during the race at COTA.

For that, Cindric was penalized with a 50-point deduction and a $50,000 fine. Even with the point penalty he’s in a better position than the other drivers, though they’re all right next to each other in the standings.

Cindric currently checks in 32nd. He has 52 points but has led an impressive 112 laps and was competitive before wrecks at Daytona and Atlanta.

The others haven’t really shown signs of life yet. Almost at all.

Keselowski is next on the list of NASCAR drivers in trouble, checking in with 47 points. There hasn’t been much to note on him; he hasn’t necessarily had major penalty or mechanical issues but just has not turned in good results.

Gibbs, on the other hand, has had some mechanical issues. His day at Phoenix was ended by a brake rotor going out on him. Not that he was having a race to remember anyway.

One NASCAR insider, Jeff Gluck of The Athletic, had some especially harsh things to say. He was blunt.

“Ty Gibbs is on like a historic run of crappiness right now,” Gluck said. “Just like unbelievably. His results have been just horrible. Absolutely horrible. And (at Phoenix) apparently they had a brake rotor that went bad and caused that last caution there.”

Finally, Custer has also had it rough in NASCAR so far this season. Full time in the Cup Series again after a two-year absence, Custer has finished 21st (Daytona), 23rd (COTA), 32nd (Phoenix) and 36th (Atlanta).

So, yeah, it’s hard to argue with Harvick’s picks for struggling NASCAR drivers right now. But every week is a chance to change fortunes, and all four will be looking for a better result at Las Vegas this weekend.