# 2021 Coca-Cola 600

The 2021 Coca-Cola 600, the 62nd running of the event, was a NASCAR Cup Series race held at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Contested over 400 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.42 km) asphalt speedway, it was the 15th race of the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season, as well as the third of the four crown jewel races.

## Report
### Background

The race was held at Charlotte Motor Speedway, located in Concord, North Carolina. The speedway complex includes a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) quad-oval track that was utilized for the race, as well as a dragstrip and a dirt track. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams based in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith serving as track president.
Similar to the Daytona 500, which was a four-stage race (with the first stage being the qualifying heat race), the Coca-Cola 600 is a four-stage race, with this the only race where all four stages are in the main race itself. All four stages are scheduled to consist of 100 laps. The race is official after the second stage.

#### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
* (i) denotes driver who are ineligible for series driver points.
| No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
| 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet |
| 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford |
| 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford |
| 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford |
| 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota |
| 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford |
| 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford |
| 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota |
| 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford |
| 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford |
| 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet |
| 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet |
| 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford |
| 53 | Cody Ware (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet |
| 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota |
| 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford |
| 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet |
| Official entry list ||||

## Practice

Austin Dillon was the fastest in the practice session with a time of 29.845 seconds and a speed of 180.935 mph (291.187 km/h).

### Practice results

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 29.845 | 180.935 |
| 2 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.861 | 180.838 |
| 3 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.866 | 180.838 |
| Official practice results |||||||

## Qualifying

Kyle Larson scored the pole for the race with a time of 29.953 and a speed of 180.282 mph (290.136 km/h).

### Qualifying results

| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.953 |
| 2 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 29.960 |
| 3 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.969 |
| 4 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.970 |
| 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 29.993 |
| 6 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 30.029 |
| 7 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.045 |
| 8 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.064 |
| 9 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet | 30.069 |
| 10 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 30.072 |
| 11 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 30.090 |
| 12 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 30.090 |
| 13 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 30.111 |
| 14 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.112 |
| 15 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 30.143 |
| 16 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 30.146 |
| 17 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.159 |
| 18 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 30.207 |
| 19 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.231 |
| 20 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 30.241 |
| 21 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 30.270 |
| 22 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 30.274 |
| 23 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 30.298 |
| 24 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 30.323 |
| 25 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 30.325 |
| 26 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.330 |
| 27 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 30.336 |
| 28 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 30.402 |
| 29 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 30.415 |
| 30 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.708 |
| 31 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 30.834 |
| 32 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 30.939 |
| 33 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford | 30.952 |
| 34 | 53 | Cody Ware (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 30.971 |
| 35 | 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 31.493 |
| 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 31.499 |
| 37 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 31.569 |
| 38 | 66 | David Starr | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 33.071 |
| Official qualifying results ||||||

## Race
### Stage Results

Stage One Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 7 |
| 5 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 5 |
| 7 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage one results ||||||
Stage Two Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 8 |
| 4 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 |
| 8 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 3 |
| 9 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results ||||||
Stage Three Laps: 100
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 10 |
| 2 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 9 |
| 3 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 8 |
| 4 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 4 |
| 8 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 2 |
| 10 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 1 |
| Official stage three results ||||||

### Final Stage Results

Stage Four Laps: 100
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
| 1 | 1 | 5 | Kyle Larson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 70 |
| 2 | 3 | 9 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 60 |
| 3 | 20 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 54 |
| 4 | 4 | 24 | William Byron | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 58 |
| 5 | 7 | 48 | Alex Bowman | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 43 |
| 6 | 6 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 41 |
| 7 | 14 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 400 | 36 |
| 8 | 27 | 17 | Chris Buescher | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 400 | 32 |
| 9 | 15 | 8 | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 42 |
| 10 | 5 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 400 | 40 |
| 11 | 13 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 26 |
| 12 | 2 | 47 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 27 |
| 13 | 11 | 12 | Ryan Blaney | Team Penske | Ford | 400 | 24 |
| 14 | 18 | 23 | Bubba Wallace | 23XI Racing | Toyota | 400 | 25 |
| 15 | 9 | 99 | Daniel Suárez | Trackhouse Racing Team | Chevrolet | 398 | 22 |
| 16 | 19 | 43 | Erik Jones | Richard Petty Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 21 |
| 17 | 16 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 398 | 20 |
| 18 | 22 | 21 | Matt DiBenedetto | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 398 | 19 |
| 19 | 26 | 7 | Corey LaJoie | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 18 |
| 20 | 24 | 34 | Michael McDowell | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 398 | 17 |
| 21 | 23 | 41 | Cole Custer | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 397 | 16 |
| 22 | 31 | 10 | Aric Almirola | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 397 | 15 |
| 23 | 21 | 14 | Chase Briscoe (R) | Stewart-Haas Racing | Ford | 397 | 14 |
| 24 | 17 | 20 | Christopher Bell | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 397 | 13 |
| 25 | 29 | 38 | Anthony Alfredo (R) | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 397 | 12 |
| 26 | 28 | 37 | Ryan Preece | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 397 | 11 |
| 27 | 25 | 6 | Ryan Newman | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 396 | 10 |
| 28 | 30 | 77 | Justin Haley (i) | Spire Motorsports | Chevrolet | 395 | 0 |
| 29 | 8 | 19 | Martin Truex Jr. | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 391 | 12 |
| 30 | 34 | 53 | Cody Ware (i) | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 389 | 0 |
| 31 | 33 | 78 | B. J. McLeod (i) | Live Fast Motorsports | Ford | 389 | 0 |
| 32 | 32 | 00 | Quin Houff | StarCom Racing | Chevrolet | 389 | 5 |
| 33 | 35 | 15 | James Davison | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 388 | 4 |
| 34 | 36 | 51 | Garrett Smithley (i) | Petty Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 387 | 0 |
| 35 | 37 | 52 | Josh Bilicki | Rick Ware Racing | Ford | 382 | 2 |
| 36 | 38 | 66 | David Starr (i) | MBM Motorsports | Toyota | 369 | 0 |
| 37 | 10 | 42 | Ross Chastain | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 359 | 1 |
| 38 | 12 | 1 | Kurt Busch | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 139 | 1 |
| Official race results ||||||||

### Race statistics

* Lead changes: 23 among 13 different drivers
* Cautions/Laps: 4 for 26
* Red flags: 0
* Time of race: 3 hours, 58 minutes and 45 seconds
* Average speed: 150.785 miles per hour (242.665 km/h)

## Media
### Television

Fox Sports televised the race in the United States for the 21st consecutive year. Mike Joy was the lap-by-lap announcer, while three-time Coca-Cola 600 winner, Jeff Gordon and 2012 Fall Charlotte winner Clint Bowyer were the color commentators. Jamie Little, Regan Smith and Vince Welch reported from pit lane during the race. Larry McReynolds provided insight from the Fox Sports studio in Charlotte.
Fox :
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters | In-race analyst |
| Lap-by-lap: Mike Joy Color-commentator: Jeff Gordon Color-commentator: Clint Bowyer | Jamie Little Regan Smith Vince Welch | Larry McReynolds |

### Radio

Radio coverage of the race was broadcast by the Performance Racing Network (PRN), and was simulcasted on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio. Doug Rice and Mark Garrow called the race in the booth when the field raced through the quad-oval. Rob Albright called the race from a billboard in turn 2 when the field was racing through turns 1 and 2 and halfway down the backstretch. Pat Patterson called the race from a billboard outside of turn 3 when the field raced through the other half of the backstretch and through turns 3 and 4. Brad Gillie, Brett McMillan and Wendy Venturini were the pit reporters during the broadcast.
PRN Radio :
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Doug Rice Announcer: Mark Garrow | Turns 1 & 2: Rob Albright Turns 3 & 4: Pat Patterson | Brad Gillie Brett McMillan Wendy Venturini |

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Denny Hamlin | 633 |
| 1 | 2 | Kyle Larson | 557 (–76) |
| 1 | 3 | William Byron | 557 (–76) |
| 1 | 4 | Chase Elliott | 541 (–92) |
| 1 | 5 | Joey Logano | 506 (–127) |
| | 6 | Martin Truex Jr. | 486 (–147) |
| | 7 | Ryan Blaney | 482 (–151) |
| 2 | 8 | Kyle Busch | 476 (–157) |
| 1 | 9 | Kevin Harvick | 468 (–165) |
| 1 | 10 | Brad Keselowski | 448 (–185) |
| | 11 | Austin Dillon | 407 (–226) |
| | 12 | Alex Bowman | 405 (–224) |
| 2 | 13 | Tyler Reddick | 376 (–257) |
| 1 | 14 | Chris Buescher | 370 (–263) |
| 1 | 15 | Christopher Bell | 350 (–383) |
| | 16 | Michael McDowell | 346 (–287) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
| Pos | Manufacturer | Points |
| 1 | Chevrolet | 547 |
| 2 | Ford | 523 (–24) |
| 3 | Toyota | 513 (–34) |