Jimmie Johnson is the first driver to win three consecutive spring races at Charlotte. Credit: Autostock

Lap-by-Lap: Charlotte

Highlights of the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway

Jimmie Johnson makes the last-lap pass to beat Bobby Labonte to the stripe by 0.027 seconds and wins the Coca-Cola 600 for the third consecutive year.

Carl Edwards finishes third, Jeremy Mayfield fourth and Ryan Newman fifth.

The rest of the top 10: Greg Biffle, Martin Truex Jr., Dale Jarrett, Ken Schrader and Rusty Wallace.

Johnson now leads Greg Biffle by 71 points in the Cup standings. Edwards jumps five spots to eighth, and 16 cars are within 400 points and eligible for the Chase for the Championship.

Defending Cup champion Kurt Busch plummets five sports to 10th after finishing 43rd.

Jimmie Johnson (48) and Bobby Labonte spent much of Sunday dogging each other around the track. Credit: Autostock

• Lap 398 -- Bobby Labonte and Jimmie Johnson have pulled away and are staging a nip-n-tuck battle.

• Lap 397 -- Jimmie Johnson has moved to second place.

• Lap 396 -- Bobby Labonte takes the green flag on the single-file restart. Carl Edwards is second, Ryan Newman third, Jimmie Johnson fourth and Jeremy Mayfield fifth.

• The rest of the top 10: Martin Truex Jr., Greg Biffle, Kevin Lepage, Dale Jarrett and Ken Schrader.

• 10:48 p.m. -- Race returns to yellow.

• 10:40 p.m. -- At this pace, next on FOX ... your local morning show.

• Lap 392 -- The race has been red-flagged.

• Lap 391 -- Joe Nemechek runs over a piece of debris, blows the right-rear tire entering Turn 3 and crashes. Yellow flag is out.

• Bobby Labonte is now first and Carl Edwards is second and Ryan Newman third. However, lurking -- and moving to the front -- is two-time defending race champion Jimmie Johnson in fourth place.

• Jeremy Mayfield rounds out the top five.

• Lap 390 -- Joe Nemechek continues to lead Bobby Labonte by 0.32 seconds.

• Lap 386 -- More than five hours into the race, Joe Nemechek brings the field to the green flag. Bobby Labonte is second followed by Carl Edwards, Ryan Newman and Martin Truex Jr.

• Lap 377 -- Brian Vickers gets into the back of Bill Elliott, who spins and gathers Jeff Gordon, Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick among others.

• This is the 21st caution -- a record for a Cup Series race.

• "Quickie yellow" allows all cars -- lead-lap and non-lead lap -- to pit. ... Workers are repairing the SAFER barriers.

• Rusty Wallace benefits from the "lucky dog" pass.

• Lap 373 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Joe Nemechek and Bobby Labonte running 1-2. The rest of the top five: Carl Edwards, Jeff Green and Ryan Newman.

The rest of the top 10: Robby Gordon, Jeff Burton, Kevin Lepage, Martin Truex Jr. and Scott Wimmer.

• Lap 368 -- Cup Series record-tying 20th caution as Dave Blaney is stalled at the entrance of pit road.

• Lap 366 -- Joe Nemechek is battling to the inside of Carl Edwards -- and takes the lead.

• Lap 362 -- Racing resumes with Carl Edwards and Joe Nemechek at the front of the pack.

• Lap 357 -- Carl Edwards is first off pit road.

• As the leaders pit, those who had fallen one lap down now move up to the end of the lead lap.

• Lap 355 -- Kasey Kahne blows a right-front tire and slaps the wall with 45 laps to go to bring out the 19th caution.

• Some big names -- Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Mark Martin, Greg Biffle, Rusty Wallace and Elliott Sadler among others -- go a lap down because of the caution.

• Lap 353 -- Jeff Gordon pits; four tires, fuel and a track bar adjustment in 13.5 seconds.

• Lap 352 -- Race leader Brian Vickers comes to pit road; four tires and fuel in 14.3 seconds.

• Lap 350 -- Jeff Gordon's engine temperature is rising, but he's knifing into Brian Vickers' lead, now trailing by 1.820 seconds.

• Lap 345 -- With 55 laps to go, the Hendrick and Roush cars are making their moves. Hendrick's Brian Vickers (first), Jeff Gordon (second) and Jimmie Johnson (third) are running up front, while Roush's Greg Biffle (fifth), Mark Martin (seventh) and Carl Edwards (10th) are moving up.

• Lap 340 -- There are nine cars off the track: Ricky Rudd, Michael Waltrip, Matt Kenseth, Terry Labonte, Sterling Marlin, Johnny Sauter, Mike Skinner, Jimmy Spencer and Kurt Busch.

ALSO •   Unofficial Results •   Unofficial Standings Victory LaneJohnson nabs third consecutive Coca-Cola 600 Late wreckVickers spins Elliott, collecting J. Gordon and Martin DEI disasterDale Jr. spins Waltrip setting off a chain reaction on Lap 246 Truex Jr., Busch wreckThe defending Busch, Cup champs struggle Road hazardA piece of the track damages Jeff Gordon's front grille Troubles continueKurt Busch hits the wall hard for the second time Getting ChippyAll three Ganassi drivers wreck within 11 laps Sign up for TrackPass now BUY YOUR NEXTEL DRIVER PHONE

• Lap 335 -- Brian Vickers' lead has expanded to more than 2 seconds over Jeff Gordon. Jimmie Johnson is 3.4 seconds behind.

• Lap 328 -- Dale Jarrett comes to pit road: loose tire. The wheel was cracked.

• Lap 325 -- Brian Vickers continues to pad his lead. He's now up by more than 1.5 seconds over Jeff Gordon. Jimmie Johnson remains third, while Kevin Harvick is fourth and Dale Jarrett fifth.

• Lap 312 -- Racing resumes with Brian Vickers (who now has led a race-high 57 laps), Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Jarrett and Kevin Harvick in the top five.

• Lap 312 -- Racing resumes with Brian Vickers (who now has led a race-high 57 laps), Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Dale Jarrett and Kevin Harvick in the top five.

• The rest of the top 10: Scott Riggs, Greg Biffle, Jeremy Mayfield, Elliott Sadler and Mark Martin.

• The race has been under caution for more than 2 hours and 10 minutes.

• Lap 308 -- Caution is out ... again. For the 18th time -- two short of the Cup Series all-time race record (three times at Bristol, most recently August 2003). ... Ricky Rudd blew an engine.

• Lap 302 -- Brian Vickers takes the lead from Kasey Kahne.

• Lap 300 -- One hundred laps to go! ... Kasey Kahne is being trailed by Hendrick teammates Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson.

• Lap 293 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Kasey Kahne (who did not pit), Jeff Gordon, Scott Riggs, Brian Vickers and Dale Jarrett in the top five.

• Lap 290 -- Leaders come to pit road. Four-tire changes and fuel all around. Jeff Gordon beats Scott Riggs and Brian Vickers off pit road.

• Lap 288 -- Dave Blaney spins; the 17th caution is out.

• Brian Vickers continues to lead Jeff Gordon by more than one-half second. Scott Riggs is third, followed by Dale Jarrett and Greg Biffle.

• Kyle Busch, who has led a race-high 55 laps, has engine trouble but remains on the track.

• Ricky Rudd tells his crew that he has dropped a cylinder.

• Lap 280 -- The top five: Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon, Scott Riggs, Kyle Busch and Dale Jarrett.

• Lap 277 -- Brian Vickers takes the lead from Jeff Gordon.

• Lap 275 -- Brian Vickers is challenging Jeff Gordon for the lead.

• Lap 270 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Jeff Gordon, Brian Vickers, Scott Riggs, Dale Jarrett and Martin Truex Jr. in the top five.

• The rest of the top 10: Greg Biffle, Kyle Busch, Jeff Green, Kevin Harvick and Joe Nemechek.

• Dale Earnhardt Jr. returns to the track, 25 laps down.

• Lap 266 -- Caution is out for debris.

• Leaders come to pit road, giving the lead to Jeff Gordon.

• Elliott Sadler takes four tires and fuel and struggles to get around Kevin Lepage, who pits in the box in front of the No. 38 team.

• Mark Martin takes two tires and fuel.

• Lap 263 -- Elliott Sadler takes the lead from Bill Elliott. Running third is Kasey Kahne, while Jeff Gordon is fourth and Brian Vickers is fifth.

• Lap 260 -- Bill Elliott continues to show the way, but Elliott Sadler is making a move toward the top spot. Remember, Sadler spun on Lap 149 and has battled back.

• Lap 254 -- Racing resumes after a round of pit stops with Bill Elliott (who did pit), Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Martin Truex Jr. and Jeff Gordon in the top five.

• Lap 246 -- Michael Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt Jr., running sixth and seventh, get together as they approach Turn 1. Matt Kenseth and Terry Labonte are caught up in the carnage as the record 15th caution is out.

• "I didn't mean to get into the back of him," Earnhardt said of punting Waltrip.

• Ryan Newman is on pit road with damage to the nose of his No. 12 Dodge.

• Believe it or not: There have been only three green-flag runs of more than eight laps. ... Amazing.

• Lap 243 -- Green flag is flying -- and the countdown to the next caution has begun. ... Jimmie Johnson makes the move past Jeremy Mayfield for third behind race leader Rusty Wallace and second-place Greg Biffle.

• Lap 239 -- And Jamie McMurray spins again! The record-tying 14th caution is displayed.

• Lap 237 -- Yep, yep ... back to green -- aka The Nanoseconds Between Yellow Flags. Rusty Wallace, out front at Charlotte for the first time since Fall 2003, leads Greg Biffle to the stripe.

• Lap 234 -- Robby Gordon spins between Turns 3 and 4 to bring out the 13th caution.

• Race leader Jeff Gordon and teammate Brian Vickers pit.

• Lap 230 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Jeff Gordon, Rusty Wallace and Greg Biffle running 1-3.

• Lap 227 -- Jamie McMurray slams the wall in Turn 2 to bring out the 12th caution.

• Race leader Ryan Newman pits for gas only, handing the lead to Jeff Gordon.

• Lap 225 -- And stop us if you've heard this before, but ... they're back to green-flag racing.

• Ryan Newman and Rusty Wallace are running 1-2 with Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle and Kevin Harvick rounding out the top five. The rest of the top 10: Jeremy Mayfield, Brian Vickers, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Michael Waltrip.

• Lap 221 -- Race for the Chase standings:

Within 400 points ...
1. Jimmie Johnson, --
2. Greg Biffle, -24
3. Jeff Gordon, -97
4. Ryan Newman, -150
5. Elliott Sadler, -177
6. Kevin Harvick, -186
7. Tony Stewart, -190
8. Mark Martin, -240
9. Rusty Wallace, -245
10. Dale Earnhardt Jr., -245
11. Kurt Busch, -264
12. Jamie McMurray, -269
13. Jeremy Mayfield, -298
14. Carl Edwards, -316
15. Dale Jarrett, -329
16. Michael Waltrip, -331
17. Kasey Kahne, -348
18. Jeff Burton, -383

Outside looking in ...
19. Kyle Busch, -467
20. Matt Kenseth, -478

Sterling Marlin couldn't avoid a pile up on Lap 216. Credit: Autostock

• Lap 216 -- Sterling Marlin and Casey Mears tangle to bring out the 11th caution. ... Martin Truex Jr. gets into Casey Mears, who hits the wall and then slides down the track into Marlin.

• Lap 214 -- They're back to racing with Ryan Newman, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle and Kevin Harvick running 1-5.

• Lap 209 -- Travis Kvapil hits the wall to bring out the 10th caution. The track record for yellows is 14 (May 25, 1980).

• Lap 205 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Ryan Newman, Rusty Wallace, Greg Biffle, Jeremy Mayfield and Brian Vickers in the top five.

• The rest of the top 10: Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne, Michael Waltrip and Kasey Kahne.

• Lap 200 -- OK, after about 2 1/2 hours of racing, they're halfway to Victory Lane!

• The top five: Ryan Newman, Brian Vickers, Greg Biffle, Jeremy Mayfield and Rusty Wallace. ... Newman is the 15th race leader; the track record is 18 (May 29, 1988).

• Scott Wimmer spins through Turn 4 as the leaders cross the line. Caution is out for the ninth time.

• Per NASCAR rules, Sterling Marlin is penalized for speeding on pit road after avoiding the spinning car of Wimmer.

• Leaders come to pit road on Lap 201. Ryan Newman wins the race off pit road. Rusty Wallace, who swings wide coming out of his pit to avoid Brian Vickers, forces Greg Biffle into the grass. No damage to any of the cars.

• Lap 185 -- There have been 14 race leaders: Kyle Busch (55 laps), Jeff Gordon (32), Travis Kvapil (23), Brian Vickers (23), Terry Labonte (17), Jimmie Johnson (10), Ryan Newman (9), Ken Schrader (6), Martin Truex Jr. (4), Kyle Petty, Michael Waltrip, Casey Mears, Kasey Kahne and Ricky Rudd.

• Lap 175 -- Brian Vickers continues to show the way with Ryan Newman and Greg Biffle within 1.2 seconds of the leader. Rounding out the top five are Kevin Harvick and Jeremy Mayfield.

• The rest of the top 10: Rusty Wallace, Scott Wimmer, Michael Waltrip, Sterling Marlin and Scott Riggs.

• Lap 168 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Brian Vickers running in front.

• Lap 162 -- Running 135 laps down, Kurt Busch has brought out the caution again.

• Leaders come to pit road. Brian Vickers, Ryan Newman, Greg Biffle, Jeremy Mayfield and Kevin Harvick are shown in the top five.

• As of now, Kurt Busch has dropped to 10th in the point standings -- a five-spot fall.

• Lap 155 -- Racing resumes under green with Travis Kvapil on point.

• Lap 149 -- Elliott Sadler spins coming out of Turn 4 to bring out the caution. He doesn't hit the wall -- or another car.

• Dale Earnhardt Jr., running in 31st place, gets the "lucky dog" pass.

• Lap 145 -- Green-flag racing resumes. Travis Kvapil, Brian Vickers, Mark Martin, Ricky Rudd and Scott Riggs are in the top five. The rest of the top 10: Terry Labonte, Ryan Newman, Joe Nemechek, Kyle Busch and Greg Biffle.

• There are 30 cars on the lead lap -- and Kurt Busch has returned to the track, 133 laps down.

• Lap 139 -- Johnny Sauter cuts a left-front tire to bring out the caution.

• Leaders come to pit road. Brian Vickers picks up 11 spots (two-tire change) and returns to the track in second place behind Travis Kvapil, who did not pit.

• Lap 125 -- Terry Labonte (the fifth Hendrick car to lead the race), Scott Riggs and Ricky Rudd are running 1-3. The rest of the top five: Mark Martin and Ryan Newman.

• Lap 122 -- Green flag flies with Ken Schrader in the lead.

• Lap 116 -- Race for the Chase standings:

Within 400 points ...
1. Jimmie Johnson, --
2. Greg Biffle, -58
3. Elliott Sadler, -118
4. Ryan Newman, -151
5. Jeff Gordon, -154
6. Tony Stewart, -194
7. Mark Martin, -217
8. Jamie McMurray, -219
9. Kevin Harvick, -236
10. Kurt Busch, -250
11. Rusty Wallace, -251
12. Kasey Kahne, -291
13. Jeremy Mayfield, -292
14. Dale Earnhardt Jr., -294
15. Carl Edwards, -296
16. Dale Jarrett, -324
17. Michael Waltrip, -363

Outside looking in ...
18. Jeff Burton, -402
19. Sterling Marlin, -456
20. Brian Vickers, -472

• Lap 115 -- Caution is out again. Jeff Gordon has a chunk missing out of the front valence of his car. A piece of the track flew up and ripped through the valence -- just like at Martinsville last year.

• Lap 108 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Kyle Busch giving up the point to two-time defending race winner Jimmie Johnson.

• Lap 101 -- Wreck in Turn 2; caution is out.

• Mike Skinner, Robby Gordon, Scott Riggs, Jimmy Spencer involved. The nose of Michael Waltrip's car is smashed.

• Jeff Gordon pits with a flat right-rear tire.

• Workers are repairing cracks in the track in Turn 1, reminiscent of the spring race at Martinsville last year.

• Lap 98 -- After a round of pit stops, the green flag flies. Kyle Busch is the lead, followed by Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, Brian Vickers and Greg Biffle.

• Lap 93 -- Caution for debris.

• Lap 90 -- Yeah, it's still early ... but Hendrick's stable continues to dominate. Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers and Jimmie Johnson are running 1-4. The rest of the top 10: Dale Jarrett, Travis Kvapil, Ricky Rudd, Greg Biffle, Mark Martin and Kevin Harvick.

• Lap 80 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. falls one lap behind race leader Jeff Gordon. There now are 27 cars on the lead lap.

• Lap 71 -- Jeff Gordon resumes the lead with Kyle Busch and Brian Vickers rounding out the top three.

• Lap 70 -- Green-flag pit stops have cycled through. The race leader now is Martin Truex Jr.

• There have been nine leaders: Kyle Busch (43 laps), Ryan Newman (9), Jeff Gordon (7), Martin Truex Jr. (4), Jimmie Johnson (2), Kyle Petty, Travis Kvapil, Casey Mears, Michael Waltrip.

• Lap 60 -- Kyle Busch has led 43 laps. Green-flag pit stops have begun.

• Jimmy Spencer and Kevin Lepage penalized for speeding on pit road.

• Lap 50 -- Hey, they're 1/8th of the way through! ... Race leader Kyle Busch has begun lapping cars, including Robby Gordon, Jeff Burton, Kevin Lepage, Mike Skinner and most recently Joe Nemechek.

• Lap 40 -- Running his first race with Steve Hmiel as crew chief, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is running 29th. He qualified 15th.

• Lap 30 -- Hendrick Motorsports continues to flex its muscle early in the race with Kyle Busch, Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson running 1-4. The rest of the top 10: Dale Jarrett, Ryan Newman, Ricky Rudd, Rusty Wallace, Travis Kvapil and Tony Stewart.

• Each of the Penske cars also are in the top 10: Newman (sixth), Wallace (eighth) and Kvapil (ninth).

• Lap 25 -- Kyle Busch continues to show the way with Brian Vickers, Jeff Gordon and Jimmie Johnson in pursuit.

• Lap 17 -- Kyle Busch makes the pass on Jeff Gordon for the lead. Four Hendrick Motorsports cars are in the top five: Busch, Gordon, Brian Vickers (fourth) and Jimmie Johnson (fifth).

• Lap 15 -- They're back under green with Jeff Gordon on point. The rest of the top 10: Ryan Newman, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson, Matt Kenseth, Brian Vickers, Dale Jarrett, Tony Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Mike Bliss.

Kurt Busch crashed twice and ultimately finished 43rd. Credit: Autostock

• Lap 10 -- Green-flag racing resumes with Ryan Newman and Jeff Gordon running 1-2 -- and Gordon passes for the lead.

• Kurt Busch skids, slides up the track and slams the wall coming into Turn 2 to bring out the second caution. ... Walking back to his trailer, Busch puts a shoulder into a cameraman, who gives Busch a harsh look.

• Robby Gordon black-flagged during the caution to check for a fluid leak.

• Lap 6 -- Martin Truex Jr. gets into the wall coming out of Turn 1 to bring out the first caution.

• Rusty Wallace is moving up fast; he's picked up seven spots from 20th to 13th.

• Lap 5 -- Ryan Newman continues to show the way with Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, Jimmie Johnson and Matt Kenseth rounding out the top five.

• 5:33 p.m. -- Pole-sitter Ryan Newman -- who opted to start from the outside of Row 1 -- takes the green flag with Jeff Gordon to the inside.

• Bobby Labonte, who qualified 34th, goes to the rear of the field for the start. The team changed the transmission in the No. 18 car.

• 5:23 p.m. -- Gentlemen, start your engines.

• 5:15 p.m. -- Ryan Seacrest introduces the American Idol finalists to sing the national anthem. ... Well, it couldn't be worse than Anthony Hamilton's new-fangled rendition during last week's all-star ceremonies.

• 5:12 p.m. -- Is there a sweeter song than Amazing Grace? ... And the 21-gun salute followed by Taps. ... Chilling. ... Our heartfelt appreciation to the nation's servicemen as we remember those who died in defense of this country.

• 5:08 p.m. -- Jeff Gordon (51 percent) edges Jamie McMurray in the latest Sexiest Driver poll. ... So, whaddya think about that, Brooke?

• Happy birthday, Ken Schrader. A veteran of 21 full Cup seasons, Schrader turned 50 on Sunday. He's the first fiftysomething Cup driver since ... ol' DW and Dave Marcis in 2000.

• We wonder ... if Dan Wheldon's victory in the Indianapolis 500 shoots down Robby Gordon's theory of a 100-pound chick having an advantage at the Brickyard?

(Check back Wednesday for more of our wonderings.)

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