Matt Kenseth got the first win of his career at Charlotte Motor Speedway, winning the 2000 Coca-Cola 600. Saturday, he picked up one of the biggest victories of his career, taking the Bank of America 500 and taking a big step towards pulling himself into contention to win the 2011 NASCAR Sprint Cup title.
Kyle Busch finished second after starting last, while Carl Edwards, Kasey Kahne, and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top-five. Kevin Harvick, A.J. Allmendinger, Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, and Ryan Newman rounded out the top-10 finishers.
Jimmie Johnson's hopes for a sixth-straight title may have come to a halt with possibly the hardest hit of his Sprint Cup career.
Johnson was battling Newman and Kahne for seventh position late when his Chevrolet snapped loose in turn two. He slid down onto the apron before the car snapped back across the track and slammed the wall head-on. The vicious blow lifted the back wheels of Johnson's No. 48 Chevrolet off the track. Johnson took a moment to catch his breath before climbing out of the car.
After two less-than-stellar results opening the Chase, Johnson had finished second at Dover and won at Kansas last week. The accident led to a finish of 35th, drops him a significant amount outside the point lead with only five races remaining after tonight.
Edwards, who led by one point over Harvick entering the night, has a six-point edge.