for him in the stands Sunday. "Its normal to exp
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for him in the stands Sunday. "Its normal to exp
CONCORD, N.C. -- Kevin Harvick isnt done surprising people at Charlotte Motor Speedway or Richard Childress Racing. Closing a bizarre night in NASCARs longest event, Harvick pulled away from Kasey Kahne on a restart Sunday with 11 laps left to win the Coca-Cola 600 for the second time in three seasons to The race was stopped nearly 30 minutes at one point when a TV camera support rope snapped and landed on the track and in the grandstands. There were 10 people hurt, according to Charlotte Motor Speedway. Three were taken to hospitals, and have been treated and released. Its Harvicks final season at RCR -- the only team hes known since filling the seat of the late Dale Earnhardt in 2001 -- before he swifts to Stewart-Haas Racing in 2014. Harvicks already shown with a victory at Richmond this year he wouldnt coast through the year and proved that again as he made it through the broken rope, several crashes and Kahnes dominant machine that led a race-high 156 laps. There was no other course for Harvick than giving his all, saying he and Childress "have really focused on whats most important for our sponsors and the guys on this team and this organization." Harvicks pulled off an unlikely win here in 2011, sweeping past an out-of-fuel Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final lap. "Last race (2011) we came off turn two in third and by the time we got to the start-finish line we had won the race," he said. "It was one of those nights," he said, "where you have to grind it out and keep yourself on the lead lap." Especially when you dont know what youll face. The race stopped suddenly a little over a quarter of the way into the long event after the nylon rope snapped in the first turn. The cars were brought into the pits and cleanup crews coiled up the long sections of rope as if they were putting away a garden hose. Drivers were allowed back to their pit stalls and crews given 15 minutes to assess and fix damage caused by the failure. Fox Sports announcer Chris Myers apologized to fans and drivers several times for the delay and problems. In a statement, Fox said it had suspended use of the overhead camera indefinitely. It said drive rope that moves the camera back and forth failed and it had no immediate reason why. "A full investigation is planned," the statement said. Harvick couldnt believe hed seen the cable along the track and did his best to avoid problems. And Harvick wasnt the only one surprised. "I came off turn four," Kahne said, "and I saw it wrapped around Kyles car and it hit mine and I thought I had to be seeing things because theres no way there could be a cable on the race track." Kahne finished second, Kurt Busch third and polesitter Denny Hamlin was fourth in his second full race since returning from injury. Harvicks win was almost as big a surprise as it was in 2011 when the crowd anticipated Earnhardt ending what was then a long, long victory drought. Kahne had the strongest car, quickly moving back to the front each time he fell back. He had a large lead and lots of open track when the final caution flag came out with 16 laps remaining. But Kahne remained on the track while Harvick pitted for two fresh tires. On the restart, Harvick quickly took control and Kahne couldnt catch up. Ryan Newman was sixth followed by Tony Steward, Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr. and Marcos Ambrose. Harvicks victory ended a long, strange day of racing in the biggest motorsports weekend. Tony Kanaan took a crowd-pleasing win at the Indianapolis 500 before one of NASCARs showcase events was marred by the rope problems. Childress said he texted Chevrolets vice-president of motorsports, Jim Campbell, to congratulate him on Kanaans win in Indy. "I texted him back and said, Well win for you tonight. We kept our word," Childress said. The race stopped suddenly a little over a quarter of the way into the long event after the nylon rope snapped in the first turn. The cars were brought into the pits and cleanup crews coiled up the long sections of rope as if they were putting away a garden hose. Drivers were allowed back to their pit stalls and crews given 15 minutes to assess and fix damage caused by the failure. Fox Sports announcer Chris Myers apologized to fans and drivers several times for the delay and problems. In a statement, Fox said it had suspended use of the overhead camera indefinitely. It said drive rope that moves the camera back and forth failed and it had no immediate reason why. "A full investigation is planned," the statement said. Kyle Busch might want to look into why he cant seem to win a Sprint Cup race in Charlotte. He entered a favourite after winning the Truck Series event last week and powering to a Nationwide victory Saturday. He was in the lead, though, when the nylon guide rope snapped and ran smack over it. Busch heard a "thunk" and knew he had problems. "It did have an effect of slowing my car down and I could feel it like, Whoa," he said. "Thats weird and I dont know that anybody has ever seen that." Buschs team got the car back in winning shape and he continued near the front. However, his race ended for good on lap 257 when his engine failed. "Catastrophic engine failure. Seems to be that time of year," said Busch, who has yet to win a Sprint Cup event at the track he calls his favourite. Busch did praise NASCAR for halting the race and allowing teams to repair damage, which he said was unrelated to his engine problems. About the same time Buschs engine failed, Earnhardts race concluded with a similar problem. Earnhardt had smoke and oil pouring out on lap 257. Greg Biffle slipped into the wall, sending him to the garage, and Dave Blaney and Travis Kvapil collided. "We didnt have a really good car," Earnhardt said. "We know why. We can go back and feel like we can rebound from this real quick." That started of series of incidents that ended things for some of NASCARs most popular and successful drivers. Defending series champion Brad Keselowski and Danica Patrick saw their chances end on lap 319 when they collided on a restart. It appeared that Patricks boyfriend, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., forced her car up the track and she clipped Keselowski, who began his day in the Penske pits at the Indianapolis 500. Keselowski took the blame for the wreck and apologized to Patrick, in her second Coca-Cola 600. On the following restart, Mark Martin clipped Aric Almirola and set off a six-car wreck that caught up four-time Sprint Cup champion Jeff Gordon and Stenhouse. Kurt Busch, leading at the time, suddenly lost power and needed a wrecker to push him along into the pits to change the battery. He returned to the track in 15th. And the problems werent over, either. Truex Jr. brushed series points leader Jimmie Johnson on the next restart to send the five-time champion skidding sideways and collected Matt Kenseth, who leads the series with three victories this year and led 112 laps at Charlotte. Johnson remained the points leader while Harvick improved from 10th to seventh with his second victory this season. NASCAR, as usual, did its best to honour the military and those whove served their country on Memorial Day weekend. Busloads of troops were brought to the track and retired Lt. Col. Oliver North gave a pre-race speech. There were massive American flags, several flyovers and even an eagle named Challenger who swept down from the top of the race track. Stitched Soccer Jerseys Ireland .Y. -- Injured Buffalo Sabres forward Marcus Foligno did not practice with the team Monday and head coach Ron Rolston said its unlikely hell play in Wednesdays season opener in Detroit. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Ireland Free Shipping . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. http://www.cheapsoccerjerseysireland.com/ . "Hes going to have hip surgery on Jan. 7, and hell be expected to rehabilitate for four to six months beyond that," Canucks general manager Mike Gillis said Friday in an interview. Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Ireland . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Clearance Soccer Jerseys Ireland . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. LONDON -- Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray are building their own Grand Slam rivalry, one that perhaps someday will merit mention alongside Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal, or Djokovic vs. Nadal. When the No. 1-ranked Djokovic faces No. 2 Murray to determine Wimbledons champion Sunday, it will be their fourth meeting in a major final -- and third in less than a year. Djokovic beat Murray at the Australian Open in 2011. Murray beat Djokovic at the U.S. Open last September. Djokovic beat Murray at the Australian Open this January. Thats not yet quite up to the lofty standard set by Federer and Nadal, who played each other in eight Grand Slam title matches from 2006-11. Djokovic and Nadal have contested five major finals since 2010, including a stretch of four in a row. While part of the appeal of the Federer-Nadal matchup lies in their vastly contrasting games -- all the way down to the most basic level, righty vs. lefty -- Djokovic-Murray features two guys who employ rather similar styles. They are improving servers and fantastic returners who managed to silence big hitters in the semifinals Friday: Tough to decide whether it was more surprising that Djokovic had a 22-4 edge in aces during his 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-7 (6), 6-3 victory over No. 8 Juan Martin del Potro, or that Murray had a 20-9 edge in aces during his 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 victory over No. 24 Jerzy Janowicz. They also are cover-everything hustlers who can switch from defence to offence, quick as can be. "There is some similarities there, in terms of if you look at stats and stuff. I mean, both of us return well. Thats probably the strongest part of our games. Both play predominantly from the baseline," said Murray, who is aiming to become the first British man to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936. "We both move well, but a different sort of movement," Murray continued. "Hes extremely flexible and he slides into shots, even on the courts here. He slides more. Hes quite a bit lighter than me. So Id say I probably move with more power, and hes much more flexible than me." In the womens final Saturday, 15th-seeded Marion Bartoli of France won her first Grand Slam title, beating 23rd-seeded Sabine Lisicki of Germany 6-1, 6-4. Djokovic, the 2011 Wimbledon champion, is seeking his seventh Grand Slam title overall and will be playing in his 11th major final. Murray is 1-5 in major finals. He has reached the championship matches at each of the last four Grand Slam tournaments he entered; he skipped this years French Open because of a bad back. Murray didnt need to expend too much energy to get past Janowicz, but Djokovics win against del Potro was physically and emotionally sapping. It lasted 4 hours, 43 minutes, a record for a Wimbledon semifinal, and was filled with intense points. "I did play a very long match, but I had situations before where I had to recover even just in 24 hours for the match the next day," Djokovic said Saturday. "I kind of got used to it and I know my body. I have a great team of people around me that make sure that we respect everything that we usually do. Im confident Ill be ready for tomorrow." Del Potros take about how much Djokovic will have left for Sunday: "He will be OK." Djokovic and Murray have put up remarkably close numbers over this fortnight. Djokovic has lost two sets, Murray three. Djokovic has dropped 80 games through six matches, Murray 82. Djokovic has won 95 of 101 service games, Murray 95 of 103. Djokovic has 76 aces and only seven double-faults; Murray has 80 aces and 11 double-fauults.dddddddddddd Born a week apart in May 1987, Djokovic and Murray first met as junior players. "We know each other since we were 11 years old. On and off the court, we have lots of respect for each other. Always very fair, very honest relationship," Djokovic said. "Now we are big rivals and its difficult. ... So we dont get together and have dinners and parties, but we definitely always chat and remember the fun days we had as juniors." The two men get along well enough that when both were at the semifinal stage of last years U.S. Open, they sat in front of a computer together and watched online while Murrays Scotland and Djokovics Serbia played to a 0-0 draw in a qualifying match for the World Cup. "We have a professional friendship, I think, now. When we were younger, it was more friendly," Murray said. "Weve spent a lot of time discussing various issues within tennis and doing what I think sometimes what was best for the sport. But I dont think it goes more than that right now. I would hope when we finish playing, it will be different," Murray added. "But its just hard, because playing in big, big matches with a lot on the line, you cant be best of friends when thats happening." Djokovic leads the head-to-head series 11-7, including winning their most recent three matches. While this is their first Wimbledon encounter, they did play on the All England Clubs grass in the semifinals of last years London Olympics, and Murray won 7-5, 7-5 on his way to a gold medal. Thats part of year-plus stretch in which Murray has won 17 consecutive matches on grass, and 23 of 24. His victory over Federer in the Olympic final, four weeks after losing to the 17-time major title winner on the same court in the Wimbledon final, gave Murray a real boost of confidence. Theres a tremendous amount of pressure and expectations heaped on Murray every year at this time, because of the considerable wait for a British champion. He knows that, of course. So does Djokovic, who is aware there will not be many people pulling for him in the stands Sunday. "Its normal to expect, in a way, that most of the crowd will be on his side. Hes a local hero," Djokovic said. Murray says he thrives with the backing of 15,000 or so flag-waving, top-of-their-lungs-yelling spectators every time he plays on Centre Court. "Theres that extra bit of pressure that probably Novak doesnt have," said Murrays older brother, Jamie, who won the 2007 mixed doubles title at the All England Club. "If (Andy) deals with that well, then Im sure he can perform in the final. Whether he wins or not I dont know, but theyre two evenly matched guys, and theyve had a lot of great matches in the past. Hopefully Sunday will be another one." Instead of another Federer vs. Nadal, No. 1 vs. No. 2, match on the last Sunday, this time itll be Djokovic and Murray. In as unpredictable a Wimbledon as anyone can recall, Nadal lost in the first round, and Federer exited in the second, both against men ranked outside the top 100. Murray was asked how his mindset might be different in his second Wimbledon final than it was in his first, 12 months ago. "Ill be probably in a better place mentally. I would hope so, just because Ive been there before. I won a Grand Slam. I would hope I would be a little bit calmer going into Sunday," Murray said. "But you dont know. You dont decide that. I might wake up on Sunday and be unbelievably nervous, more nervous than I ever have been before. But I wouldnt expect to be." China NFL Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap Basketball Jerseys Online Stitched Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Baseball Jerseys Football Jerseys Outlet College Jerseys For Sale Cheap MLB Jerseys Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys For Sale Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '