Lap-by-Lap: Darlington

Lap 367 -- CHECKERED FLAG: Kyle Busch wins the Dodge Challenger 500 at Darlington Raceway.

Lap 366 -- WHITE FLAG: Kyle Busch has one lap to go.

Lap 362 -- Kyle Busch continues to sail with a 3.340-second lead on Carl Edwards.

Lap 357 -- With 10 laps to go, Kyle Busch leads Carl Edwards by 3.588 seconds.

Lap 350 -- Jimmie Johnson has lost the handling of his racecar and has fallen to 10th with Jeff Burton on his tail.

Lap 345 -- Leader Kyle Busch's team reports they can make it the rest of the way on fuel. So can second-place Carl Edwards.

Lap 342 -- Four of the five Roush Fenway cars are running in the top 10. The fifth, Greg Biffle, is out of the race.

Lap 334 -- Kurt Busch is the first Dodge in the running order. He is 15th.

Lap 329 -- Kyle Busch continues to lead by nearly two seconds as pit strategy continues to be a debate on who can make it, who can't, and who will gamble.

Lap 318 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. reports his front wheels are chattering.

Lap 317 -- Carl Edwards says he is trying to save his car for one final run. He is also trying to conserve fuel.

Lap 313 -- Kasey Kahne nearly wrecks coming off Turn 4, with his car turning left, then back to the right. He gets it straight and continues on.

Lap 309 -- David Ragan becomes the fifth Roush Fenway driver to report having a vibration. He loses fourth place to Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Lap 307 -- GREEN FLAG: Kyle Busch gets the race back under way.
1. Kyle Busch
2. Carl Edwards
3. Jeff Gordon
4. David Ragan
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Lap 304 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch gets the lead after winning the battle off pit road.

Lap 303 -- LEAD CHANGE: Due to his position on pit road, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is scored as the leader.

Lap 302 -- Leaders head to pit road:
• Kyle Busch wants grip and gets a slight chassis adjustment
• Carl Edwards gets a slight round of wedge out of his car
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets a small air-pressure adjustment
• David Ragan is out fourth after gaining two spots
• Bobby Labonte is out seventh after gaining 10 spots

Lap 301 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 8: Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. touch in Turn 4, and Hamlin goes for a spin. Both cars continue.

Lap 300 -- With 67 laps to go, Kyle Busch continues to set the pace and has the fastest lap this time by.

Lap 289 -- Leader Kyle Busch bounces off the wall and sparks fly, but Busch continues on.

Lap 287 -- Jeff Gordon has fallen from the lead to fourth on the restart. David Ragan bounces off the wall but continues.

Lap 285 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch gets around Jeff Gordon to take the top spot.

Lap 283 -- GREEN FLAG: Jeff Gordon leads the field to green.
1. Jeff Gordon
2. Kyle Busch
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
4. Carl Edwards
5. David Ragan

Lap 281 -- LEAD CHANGE: Jeff Gordon is the new leader after winning the race off pit road.

Lap 280 -- Leaders head to pit road:
• Kyle Busch needs help turning and gets a wedge adjustment
• Carl Edwards gets four tires and is tight
• Dave Blaney gets adjustments in a 15.5-second stop
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. still needs his car to turn better
• Jeff Gordon is out first with an air-pressure adjustment
• Clint Bowyer gains 11 spots on pit road.

Lap 279 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 7: Debris is on the track from A.J. Allmendinger's car after he hit the wall.

Lap 276 -- Jimmie Johnson has fallen from fourth to eighth in the last six laps.

Lap 271 -- Casey Mears slows after hitting the wall and getting a flat left-front tire. Patrick Carpentier heads to the garage with engine problems.

Lap 270 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch gets the lead by moving around Jeff Gordon.

Lap 267 -- With 100 laps to go, Jeff Gordon leads Kyle Busch by 0.800 seconds.

Lap 260 -- Kyle Busch gets by Jimmie Johnson, then moves past Dale Earnhardt Jr. to take second position.

Lap 259 -- David Gilliland swipes the wall and collects some damage.

Lap 257 -- Carl Edwards reports he may have a loose wheel. He is the third Roush Fenway driver to have this issue.

Lap 255 -- Kyle Busch moves around Dave Blaney to take fourth position.

Lap 252 -- GREEN FLAG: Jeff Gordon gets the race back under way as the top seven cars stayed out.
1. Jeff Gordon
2. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Dave Blaney
5. Kyle Busch

Lap 251 -- Michael Waltrip is penalized for speeding on pit road. He will restart at the tail of the longest line.

Lap 250 -- LEAD CHANGE: Jeff Gordon takes the top spot by staying out.

Lap 249 -- Some of the leaders head to pit road:
• Martin Truex Jr. gets four tires and an air-pressure adjustment
• Kurt Busch gets fuel only and is out quickly
• Denny Hamlin gets right-side tires only

Lap 248 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 6: Brian Vickers gets loose in Turn 3 and spins around coming out of Turn 4.

Lap 246 -- Kurt Busch gets around Dale Earnhardt Jr. to take fourth place. Eighth-place Matt Kenseth is concerned about a tire rub.

Lap 242 -- Greg Biffle is officially out of the race.

Lap 240 -- GREEN FLAG: Denny Hamlin gets the race back under way.
1. Denny Hamlin
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
5. Kurt Busch

Lap 239 -- Ryan Newman is behind the wall after making contact with Brian Vickers as both cars tried to get onto pit road.

Lap 238 -- Greg Biffle takes his car to the garage. Oil was under his car on pit road, and the team thinks the night may be over.

Lap 237 -- LEAD CHANGE: Denny Hamlin takes the lead by winning the race off pit road.

Lap 236 -- Leaders head to pit road.
• Martin Truex Jr. gets a half-turn on the track bar and four tires
• Dave Blaney gets four tires and a minor chassis adjustment
• Denny Hamlin gets four tires and slight adjustments and is out first
• Jeff Gordon gets a big adjustment and tires

Lap 235 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 5: Debris is on the track from Greg Biffle's car. Biffle is stopped on pit road with the window net down.

Lap 234 -- LEAD CHANGE: Martin Truex Jr. is the new leader as Greg Biffle heads to pit road. He thinks he has either a wheel issue or a carburetor problem.

Lap 233 -- Leader Greg Biffle says all four wheels are vibrating now.

Lap 228 -- Dave Blaney drives around Jeff Gordon for fourth position and sets his sights on third-place Denny Hamlin.

Lap 226 -- Matt Kenseth does not have a cut tire as he thought earlier, but feels there is still a wheel problem.

Lap 223 -- Leader Greg Biffle is still concerned about a wheel vibration and says he may not be able to make it to his next scheduled pit stop.

Lap 221 -- Paul Menard is on pit road and stopped. His crew pushes the car to the garage.

Lap 220 -- Matt Kenseth has slowed and loses 10th place to Travis Kvapil. He thinks he has a cut tire.

Lap 211 -- Greg Biffle leads by 3.005 seconds.
1. Greg Biffle
2. Martin Truex Jr.
3. Denny Hamlin
4. Jeff Gordon
5. Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Lap 210 -- Kevin Harvick came back onto the track, did one lap, and returned to the garage.

Lap 209 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle is the new leader when Jamie McMurray and Paul Menard complete green-flag stops. Biffle's crew is not sure there is a transmission problem now after the pit stop. His right-rear tire may have been loose.

Lap 206 -- LEAD CHANGE: Jamie McMurray is the leader when David Ragan finally gets back to pit road. Patrick Carpentier is penalized for a pit-road violation.

Lap 205 -- LEAD CHANGE: David Ragan is the leader when Matt Kenseth makes his pit stop. Ragan tries to get onto pit road, but he misses the cone.

Lap 203 -- LEAD CHANGE: Matt Kenseth leads when Dale Earnhardt Jr. makes his stop. His car won't turn off Turn 2. Kyle Busch is in for his stop and the crew is careful to get all lug nuts on.

Lap 202 -- LEAD CHANGE: Dale Earnhardt Jr. takes the lead when Martin Truex Jr. makes his stop. Dave Blaney and Jimmie Johnson are in for their stops.

Lap 201 -- Jeff Gordon is on pit road for his scheduled stop. Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart are in.

Lap 200 -- Martin Truex Jr. leads new second-place driver Denny Hamlin by 4.245 seconds.

Lap 196 -- Greg Biffle is back on the track after changing four tires. He is in 28th.

Lap 195 -- Travis Kvapil slaps the wall hard during his top-10 run. He drops from sixth back to ninth.

Lap 194 -- LEAD CHANGE: Martin Truex Jr. goes around Greg Biffle as he slows and hits pit road earlier than planned. Biffle thinks the transmission is broken.

Lap 192 -- There are 22 cars on the lead lap, the last one being Scott Riggs.

Lap 186 -- Dave Blaney continues his strong run and sits eighth.

Lap 181 -- Leader Greg Biffle is slightly concerned about a bad vibration in the car.

Lap 174 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. loses third position to Jeff Gordon when he slaps the wall hard in the corner.

Lap 173 -- Kyle Busch has rebounded all the way to 10th position.

Lap 168 -- Jimmie Johnson's team is concerned the car is having an alternator problem. Crew chief Chad Knaus has ordered Johnson to shut off all electrical outlets, and he will attempt to switch ignition boxes soon.

Lap 163 -- Kyle Busch keeps charging back from his pit-road mishap and is now running 12th after passing Matt Kenseth.

Lap 160 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle moves around Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the straightaway to take the top spot. Martin Truex Jr. follows to take second.

Lap 158 -- Greg Biffle is on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s bumper and challenging for the lead.

Lap 151 -- GREEN FLAG: Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets the race going again.
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Greg Biffle
3. Martin Truex Jr.
4. Jeff Gordon
5. Travis Kvapil

Lap 149 -- Kevin Harvick's crew pushes the car to the garage.

Lap 148 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 4: Debris is on the track from Kevin Harvick hitting the wall two laps earlier.

Lap 146 -- Kevin Harvick hits the wall hard coming off Turn 2 and has major damage. He keeps going and heads straight to the garage.

Lap 144 -- GREEN FLAG: Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets the race back under way. Kyle Busch restarts 23rd.
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Greg Biffle
3. Jeff Gordon
4. Martin Truex Jr.
5. Travis Kvapil

Lap 142 -- LEAD CHANGE: Due to winning the race off pit road, Dale Earnhardt Jr. is the new leader. Kyle Busch is forced to come back to pit road because of a loose lug nut.

Lap 141 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle is credited with the lead due to his pit-road location.

Lap 140 -- Leaders head to pit road:
• Kyle Busch is loose but not loose enough; track-bar adjustment
• Travis Kvapil needs rear grip and gets an air-pressure adjustment
• Kevin Harvick's team reverses the changes made on the last stop
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. gets two tires and is out first with a minor adjustment
• Tony Stewart's crew goes to work under the right-front wheel

Lap 139 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 3: Debris is on the front straightaway.

Lap 136 -- Leader Kyle Busch is complaining about his brakes and how they are "the most pathetic he's seen in his life."

Lap 130 -- After pit stops, Kyle Busch holds a slight 0.899-second lead. Elliott Sadler and Kyle Petty are back on the track after earlier incidents.
1. Kyle Busch
2. Greg Biffle
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
4. Martin Truex Jr.
5. Travis Kvapil

Lap 128 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch gets the lead back from Greg Biffle in the ongoing battle. Just a few laps ago during pit stops, Busch got Biffle loose as he passed him.

Lap 126 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle speeds by Kyle Busch after green-flag stops.

Lap 125 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch is the new leader when Patrick Carpentier makes his stop. He gets tires and fuel in 15.3 seconds.

Lap 124 -- LEAD CHANGE: Patrick Carpentier is the leader when Denny Hamlin makes his stop. Tony Stewart misses the pit road entrance and is forced to go back around.

Lap 123 -- LEAD CHANGE: Denny Hamlin is the new leader when Jeff Gordon pits. His car is "not bad" but tight in some of the corners. He gets an air-pressure adjustment in 13.1 seconds.

Lap 122 -- LEAD CHANGE: Jeff Gordon is the leader when Greg Biffle makes his stop. Biffle's team removes a spring rubber from the left-rear, delaying his stop.

Lap 121 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. gives up third for his pit stop of adjustments. He's tight in some areas of the track and loose in others. He gets an air-pressure adjustment.

Lap 120 -- Kyle Busch is on pit road with a tight car. He said his right-front tire was "done." Kevin Harvick is also in for a stop.

Lap 118 -- Scott Riggs and Martin Truex Jr. come to pit road. Jimmie Johnson is also in for a pit stop. Air-pressure adjustment for Truex. Johnson gets track-bar and wedge adjustments in 19.0 seconds.

Lap 116 -- Dave Blaney comes to pit road from 11th position. A.J. Allmendinger joins him for a stop.

Lap 114 -- Jeff Burton is on pit road and having a hard time coming off the corner. His crew makes a chassis adjustment and gives him four tires.

Lap 113 -- Brian Vickers and Michael Waltrip are on pit road for scheduled pit stops. Four tires for both cars.

Lap 112 -- Robby Gordon is on pit road with a battery problem. His crew goes under the hood to work.

Lap 110 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle finally catches Kyle Busch and takes the top spot.

Lap 100 -- Kyle Busch has led 52 laps in the race. Prior to this race, he had led one lap at Darlington.

Lap 97 -- Sam Hornish Jr. has returned to the track after his early crash.

Lap 94 -- David Reutimann had the fastest lap this time by and is running in 14th.

Lap 88 -- Travis Kvapil is having a strong run and is hanging in 10th.

Lap 82 -- Jeff Gordon has cracked the top five, although he is 10 seconds behind leader Kyle Busch.

Lap 72 -- Kyle Busch's lead is 0.501 seconds after pit stops.
1. Kyle Busch
2. Greg Biffle
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
4. Kevin Harvick
5. Jeff Burton

Lap 71 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch is back out front when David Gilliland makes his pit stop. Reed Sorenson is also in to complete green-flag pit stops.

Lap 70 -- LEAD CHANGE: David Gilliland is the new leader when Patrick Carpentier slows and gets onto pit road for service.

Lap 68 -- Ryan Newman is penalized for a tire violation during his pit stop. As he tries to get onto pit road, he misses the commitment and has to drive another lap around.

Lap 67 -- LEAD CHANGE: Patrick Carpentier is the new leader when J.J. Yeley makes his stop.

Lap 66 -- LEAD CHANGE: J.J. Yeley is the leader when Kasey Kahne makes his pit stop. Denny Hamlin is also on pit road for a chassis adjustments and tires.

Lap 65 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kasey Kahne takes the lead as Matt Kenseth dives onto pit road. He gets no adjustments and four tires.

Lap 63 -- LEAD CHANGE: Matt Kenseth is the new leader when Travis Kvapil pits. Kvapil slides a little getting onto pit road but is OK.

Lap 61 -- LEAD CHANGE: Travis Kvapil takes the lead when Kurt Busch makes his pit stop for adjustments and tires.

Lap 60 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kurt Busch gets the lead when Greg Biffle makes his pit stop. He gets an air-pressure adjustment. Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Jeff Gordon are also on pit road for adjustments. Junior is tight.

Lap 58 -- Jimmie Johnson gives up his third place spot to pit. Kyle Busch is in and is tight off both turns. Both get four tires.

Lap 57 -- Jeff Burton is on pit road for a scheduled stop. He gets four tires and fuel. Brian Vickers follows him, as do A.J. Allmendinger and Joe Nemechek.

Lap 55 -- Greg Biffle's lead on Kyle Busch is now 3.917 seconds as pit stops approach.

Lap 49 -- After attempting to make repairs to his machine, Tony Stewart is still mired in 37th position, the final car on the lap.

Lap 40 -- LEAD CHANGE: Greg Biffle takes the lead as Kyle Busch gets loose and scrapes the Turn 4 wall.

Lap 34 -- After building a 3.5-second lead, Kyle Busch's advantage has now dwindled to 0.835 seconds as he works through lapped traffic.

Lap 27 -- Scott Riggs is maintaining his solid qualifying run. He started ninth and now runs eighth.

Lap 18 -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. loses second and third to Greg Biffle and Kurt Busch, respectively.

Lap 17 -- LEAD CHANGE: Kyle Busch moves around Dale Earnhardt Jr. to take the lead.

Lap 16 -- Kyle Busch moves by Greg Biffle for second. Kyle Petty heads to the garage.

Lap 15 -- GREEN FLAG: Dale Earnhardt Jr. leads the field to green.
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Greg Biffle
3. Kyle Busch
4. Kurt Busch
5. Jimmie Johnson

Lap 12 -- A handful of cars near the back of the pack dive onto pit road for service. Sam Hornish Jr. heads to the garage.

Lap 11 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 2: Sam Hornish Jr. tags the wall and brings out the yellow. He has major damage on the right side.

Lap 9 -- Kyle Petty brushes the wall and has a good amount of damage. He heads to pit road.

Lap 8 -- Tony Stewart is still on the track with several cosmetic issues. He's running 35th.

Lap 5 -- GREEN FLAG: Greg Biffle gets the race going once again.
1. Dale Earnhardt Jr.
2. Greg Biffle
3. Jimmie Johnson
4. Kurt Busch
5. Kyle Busch

Lap 4 -- Elliott Sadler heads to the garage with significant damage.

Lap 2 -- YELLOW FLAG NO. 1: Elliott Sadler and Tony Stewart make contact in Turn 1 and crash into the wall. Sadler got loose and slid up the track into Stewart. Sadler has right-rear damage, Stewart has left-front. Kyle Petty and Reed Sorenson get damage behind the crash.

Lap 2 -- LEAD CHANGE: Dale Earnhardt Jr. edges ahead of Greg Biffle.

Lap 1 -- Greg Biffle pulls ahead by a nose to lead the first lap.

7:38 p.m. -- GREEN FLAG: Greg Biffle and Dale Earnhardt Jr. get the Dodge Challenger 500 under way from Darlington Raceway.

7:35 p.m. -- Robby Gordon and Kasey Kahne are going to the back of the grid for starting the race in backup cars.

7:32 p.m. -- Cars are rolling onto the new racing surface.

7:27 p.m. -- Mothers of Sprint Cup drivers deliver the command on the start/finish line: "Sons, start your engines!"

7:21 p.m. -- Julie Roberts performs the national anthem.

7:20 p.m. -- Harold King, Darlington Raceway chaplain, delivers the invocation and a moment of silence for the victims of the Charleston fire.

7 p.m. -- FOX's pre-race coverage is on the air.

6:45 p.m. -- An hour until the green flag and it's clear skies over Darlington Raceway.

WEEKEND HEADLINES
• Darlington founder still NASCAR's unsung pioneer
• Biffle earns pole as track record falls at Darlington
• Darlington not kind despite newer, faster race surface
• Notes: Darlington claims its victims in Friday practice
• Bowyer, Childress just fine with being overshadowed
• Ragan wants reputation to not include word 'wrecker'
• Biffle says new Darlington surface should lead to fun
• Fast track puts Darlington records in crosshairs
• Cup rookies quickly learn the nuances of Darlington
• Questions remain as teams ready for 'new' Darlington