Kevin Harvick Wins Coca Cola 600, Gains Second in Driver Rankings

Kevin Harvick found another checkered flag Sunday as he won the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Some might find the bigger story to be that Dale Earnhardt Jr. lost the lead on the final lap, though, rather than the fact Harvick came from further back to take the victory.

According to the Associated Press, Earnhardt was leading on the final lap, in line to win his first race in more than 100 straight starts. It just wasn't meant to be, though, as his car ran out of gas just as he was closing in on taking the victory. The streak now reaches 105 straight races that Earnhardt has failed to win in NASCAR; this might have been the toughest one of all.

Though it was an extremely difficult way for Earnhardt to end his day, it was equally jubilant for Harvick, who seemed destined to finish second on the North Carolina track. This turned into Harvick's third win of the season, and a great finish for Richard Childress Racing and the Budweiser car. Maybe there is too much irony involved here -- Earnhardt used to drive the Budweiser car at one point.

During Harvick's 2011 season, he has won three major races, including the race at Charlotte, April 3's race at Martinsville, and the March 27 race at California. After starting back at 28^th in the starting grid, this win might be the most impressive. It garnered him 47 points (four bonus points) for the weekend and places him second overall in the points standings.

Due to Earnhardt finishing back in seventh, he lost ground in the overall standings, watching Harvick zoom past him. Carl Edwards still leads all drivers with 445 points total, followed now by Harvick with 409, Jimmie Johnson at 408, and Earnhardt at 402. Edwards is also still the money leader for the young season, cashing in on just over $4.2 million so far this year. Harvick has earned just over $2.1 million in his races thus far. The second highest earner is Kyle Busch at about $2.4 million. He is just ahead of Matt Kenseth, who has pulled in over $2.3 million for his season.

The next major NASCAR race will take place at 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. ET) Sunday, June 5. This race will be at Kansas Speedway, and will be broadcast live on Fox. Following that race, the drivers will head to Pocono Raceway (June 12), Michigan International Speedway (June 19), and Infineon Raceway (June 26).

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