Kevin Harvick might just be one of the very few names in NASCAR who has contributed to the success of all three present manufacturers. While he raced and won a total of 60 races for both Chevrolet and Ford, Harvick is helping Toyota win now in his retirement, as Denny Hamlin recently revealed.

Denny Hamlin reveals secret weapon in Ty Gibbs’ growth

During the latest episode of the Actions Detrimental podcast, Denny Hamlin shared his thoughts on Ty Gibbs’ first Cup win at Bristol. It was there that he revealed how Kevin Harvick has helped the young JGR driver in his racing success this season.

“He’s really been working with Kevin Harvick quite a bit in his sim sessions, and I think Kevin’s a great asset to him to balance his 25 years or more, maybe 30 years actually now of experience that Kevin has in NASCAR,” said Hamlin. “To have someone in your hip pocket like that guiding you through this is very, very valuable.”

Apart from getting his maiden Cup win at Bristol, Ty Gibbs has had a string of positive results after the race in Atlanta, as he hasn’t had a finish worse than 6th since.

There’s no denying that Ty Gibbs getting mentorship from Kevin Harvick would be an immense help for the young JGR driver. After all, the former Cup Series winner had the experience of racing in over 800 races.

In his 23-year-long career in the top flight of NASCAR, Harvick won a total of 60 races, placing him 10th on the all-time win list.

But what’s unique about it is that Harvick’s wins came under different manufacturers. He won 35 races for Chevrolet when he raced for Richard Childress Racing and the first three years of his Stewart-Haas Racing stint. But then SHR switched to Ford, and Harvick won 25 races with them.

Harvick never raced with Toyota at any point in his career, but his affiliation with the company is set to grow years after his retirement, as his son Keelan signed for Toyota’s young driver program.

Kevin Harvick on why his son signed for Toyota Racing

Earlier this year, Keelan Harvick signed a long-term deal with Toyota’s development program, partnering up with RACKLEY W.A.R. and Kevin Harvick, Inc. to compete in Late Model races.

Speaking about Keelan joining Toyota, Harvick said, “It’s just a great group of people with the resources and the structure. Their development program is really unmatched. So I think for Keelan to be able to have that path and for us as parents to be able to have that partnership with a group of people you can work with together is important to us.”

It’s worth mentioning that JGR has historically picked its young drivers from Toyota’s driver program. The latest name from that was Brent Crews, who put on a splendid display at the Bristol race. Other drivers who came through Toyota’s program and went on to race for JGR or JGR-affiliated teams include Erik Jones, Bubba Wallace (23XI Racing), and Ty Gibbs himself.

Therefore, it makes sense that Gibbs is getting mentorship and sim racing wisdom from Kevin Harvick, whose son is in the Toyota racing program.