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Rodney Childers Interview

Kevin Harvick's Happy Hour presented by NASCAR on FOX Sep 11, 2025 34 min

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About this episode

Rodney Childers shares insights on his transition from Cup crew chief to working with late model stock cars, highlighting the competitiveness and growth of the Cars Tour. He discusses the evolving role of crew chiefs with the Gen 7 car, emphasizing leadership and detailed engineering work. Childers critiques current NASCAR car design, suggesting narrower tires and more power to improve racing quality. He reflects on the challenges of the Cup garage, his future ambitions, and offers thoughts on the playoff format and championship contenders, favoring Christopher Bell as a top pick.

Topics: late model stock racing cars tour crew chief role gen 7 car nascar car design simulator use nascar playoffs championship predictions team leadership racing competitiveness

Kevin Harvick sits down with his longtime former crew chief, Rodney Childers, for an in-depth and candid conversation on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour. Rodney shares what life has been like since parting ways with Spire Motorsports, including his hands-on work with Cars Tour late model teams and why that experience has reignited his passion for racing. The two also dive into what makes Childers more motivated than ever to return to the pit box and chase wins at NASCAR’s top level. From breaking down the challenges of the Next Gen car to the differences in crew chief responsibilities compared to the previous generation, this interview gives fans an unfiltered look at one of the sport’s most respected minds. 0:00 - Intro 0:31 - Rodney Childers Joins The Show! 4:45 - Up-And-Coming Drivers 6:36 - Childers’ Future In Motorsports 9:41 - Adjusting To The Next Gen Car 18:31 - Improvements To The Next Gen Car 27:59 - NASCAR Playoff System 30:42 - Championship Predictions Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices