A fight does not properly end when both sides are equally matched in strength. In 2025, Kevin Harvick had a fair share of battles with his son, Keelan Harvick. The father-son duo had a schedule of racing each other 8 times in the CARS Tour, and Keelan bested his father a whopping 5 times. However, the 2014 Cup Series champion got awakened by this string of losses. And Kevin Harvick answered in kind in the first duel of 2026.

Kevin Harvick gets the upper hand this time

“How fun is that? I thought I wrecked him there, which I would have been okay with, too. At that point, I was just going for the win. I knew I had a lot of drive up off the corner, and that’s what we worked for in practice,” Kevin Harvick enthusiastically stated after defeating his son at Tucson Speedway. “Yeah, I wouldn’t get pushed out of the way today. So I figured, you push me out of the way, I’ll push you out of the way.”

The 2026 Spears CARS Tour West season kicked off its schedule with the SoundGear 125 race. It marked the Southwest Pro Late Models making their series debut at Tucson, with a stout 40-car field. Although FloRacing had its cameras on a horde of other drivers, Kevin Harvick and Keelan made sure to dominate the spotlight, wheeling the No. 29 and the No. 62, respectively. And dad was triumphant this time.

In the final laps, Kevin Harvick harnessed his past NASCAR energy. He turned a bit ruthless when Keelan traded paint with the No. 29 a number of times. Harvick Sr. responded in kind, getting aggressive with his 13-year-old son’s car. The broadcasters were starry-eyed to witness this duel, as Kevin shoved into Keelan’s bumper to zoom past for the victory.

Despite the overt aggression on Kevin Harvick’s part, this is all part of honing his son’s already remarkable skills. His pride was no secret when Keelan Harvick dominated a horde of races in 2025. And trading blows on the racetrack is all part of the process for Keelan to upgrade to NASCAR someday in the future.

“It’s definitely not become easier because as he gets more experienced and gets used to things, there isn’t a lot of learning curve left in getting up to speed. It definitely hasn’t become easier at home or in practice or after the race, because all I do is hear about how he’s whipped my butt,” Kevin Harvick said last year.

And despite losing to his father this time, Keelan Harvick has plenty of potential to get back at him.

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Garnering faith in his talents

In early December 2025, Keelan Harvick clinched the Snowflake 125 victory at Five Flags Speedway. With 45 laps remaining, a bad restart seemed to seal Keelan’s chances. However, Keelan smoothly tackled rivals like Tristan McKee and reigning Snowball Derby winner Kaden Honeycutt. What’s more, he became the youngest Snowflake 125 winner at 13, surpassing the record previously established by a 14-year-old Hunter Robbins in 2005.

This elicited a shower of praises from NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace. “This kid is a child. But he’s already a man,” he said. “And at 13 years old, what does he do in Pensacola, Florida? He wins the Snowflake. The Snowflake has as many entries as the Snowball Derby does. It is a tough a** sanctioning division. He starts mid-pack, and I watched it. He came through that field so beautifully. Even Kevin Harvick said that he made some great moves.”

Clearly, Keelan Harvick’s training is happening in the correct form. Let’s wait and see when he gets back at his legendary father’s aggressive moves.