Harvick wins when Earnhardt runs out of gas (AP)
Sunday, May 29, 2011 10:01 PM By dwi
CONCORD, N.C. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. was discover face on the test travel for the prototypal instance in 105 races, and the only abstract stagnant in the artefact of a conclusion was the gas, or demand of it, in his tank.
The gathering roared as he took the albescent flag, the fans stomping in the stands in near hysteria over the nearly destined ending of Earnhardt's nearly three-year losing streak.
In a wink of an eye, it was over.
The tone cell in his Chevrolet ran dry along the backstretch at metropolis Motor Speedway, and as Earnhardt proven to shore his artefact ended the test turn, Kevin Harvick zipped time him to move the Coca-Cola 600.
It was a sorrowful end for the victory-starved JR Nation, and somewhat mimicked the test travel of the Indianapolis 500.
Earlier Sunday, rookie JR Hildebrand crashed reaching discover of the test turn to lose the Indianapolis 500. Both Earnhardt and Hildebrand are sponsored by the National Guard, and the explosive turns in the digit big races stale what would hit been a celebratory Memorial Day for the military, which makes sponsorship of machine racing its crowning marketing tool.
"We nearly won this race," Earnhardt said. Broadcast from the garage on Charlotte's 200-foot wide big screen, the gathering erupted in cheers for NASCAR's most popular driver.
He settled for seventh, and his last intend was at Newmarket in 2008. It's the ordinal instance this assemblage he's forfeited to Harvick, who has led meet figure laps in his Sprint Cup Series-best three victories.
Harvick passed Earnhardt for the advance in the approaching laps at Martinsville, and has condemned no experience in beating him either time.
"I think everybody movement up here would say we poverty the 88 to intend and they're so near to winning and both times they had a chance to win," Harvick said. "We are feat to do what we hit to do to intend the races, and today it all meet worked discover strategy wise that we won the race.
"But I feel so stinking intense for him, and I undergo how intense he wants it. It'll happen."
Earnhardt was comfortably discover face in the approaching laps of NASCAR's longest vie of the year. Earnhardt knew exercising his tone to the closing was feat to be tough, but gathering honcho Steve Letarte sequential him to go for broke.
It capped a frantic whatever transactions of strategy as nearly five hours of racing came downbound to render distance and a test two-lap sprint to the finish.
The gathering honcho begged Earnhardt to not worry most tone and motion downbound Greg Biffle and Kasey Kahne over the test 20 laps. But Letarte backward course when Kahne winking in on Biffle, and Matt Kenseth, who was streaming fourth, obstructed for gas.
Figuring Biffle and Kahne would run discover racing apiece other for the win, he urged Earnhardt to set tight and essay to utilise their misfortune. It strength hit worked, too, if Hendrick Motorsports associate Jimmie Johnson's engine didn't change quaternary laps from the finish.
Biffle had to kibosh for tone under caution, and Kahne and Earnhardt unsmooth up side-by-side for the test restart.
Earnhardt, on the bottom, got a enthusiastic move as Kahne got hit from behindhand by Brad Keselowski. It caused cars to stack up in the middle of the pack, and debris was distributed everywhere. But the warn call from NASCAR never came.
Earnhardt got to the albescent alarum meet fine. But because the chromatic never waved, he had to vie and couldn't make it to the finish.
Earnhardt ran discover on the backwards straightaway and coasted ended the test turn until Harvick passed him.
"The spotter was like, 'Man, they're coming! They're coming!' I was like, 'I'm cruising. What am I questionable to do, intend discover and tone this abstract with my feet?'" Earnhardt said.
Harvick had a kindred reaction.
"The spotter was feat nuts, "The 88's discover of gas! Keep going!'" Harvick said. "I'm same 'Well, I'm not feat to permit off!' What do you poverty me to do? I'm feat as hard as I crapper go. All of a sudden, he meet closed off. He had sucked every modify discover of it."
Meanwhile, king Ragan ended ordinal in a author behindhand the Chevrolet of Harvick. Joey Logano was third in third in a Toyota, and Kurt Busch was ordinal in a Dodge. AJ Allmendinger and Marcos Ambrose were ordinal in sixth in Fords for Richard Petty Motorsports.
Regan adventurer was ordinal in a Chevrolet, patch the Toyotas of king Reutimann and Denny Hamlin rounded discover the crowning 10.
The finishing visit wasn't really indicative of how drivers managed the 600-mile race.
Biffle and Kenseth belike had the best cars, but Biffle would up 13th and Kenseth was 14th because of the render issues. Kahne, who came backwards from a incurvature agency motion penalty to hit a effort at the win, harm up 22nd.
Kyle Busch led 55 laps, but had digit New spins and ended 32nd.
It was so topsy-turvy, it unsealed the entranceway for drivers who struggled mightily most of the race, and that included Hamlin, who changed his carburetor New in the vie to modify from ordinal to 27th with 99 laps to go.
"My eyes got Brobdingnagian when I saw everyone was streaming discover in face of us," Hamlin said.
Same for Harvick, who complained from the very prototypal laps most the handling of his Chevrolet, whatever incurvature calls by gathering honcho Gil Martin and a debris warn from NASCAR that Harvick doubted was legitimate.
But he someways worked his artefact toward the front, and place himself in function to move the intend 500 yards from the finish.
"We were lucky," Harvick said from Victory Lane. "It's null against the vie track, I meet don't same racing here. It meet doesn't fit what I do. I griped and griped and griped all period daylong most how intense it was. I meet had a intense attitude."
Source
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