Harvick Class of the Field at Phoenix Int’l Raceway

Kevin Harvick left little room for underdogs in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series event at Phoenix International Raceway, as the pre-race favorite and Coors Light Pole Award winner led 224 of 312 laps en route to his fourth straight victory in the desert after holding off Jamie McMurray on a late restart.

The 2014 Sprint Cup champion solidified his record at the track, now boasting a series-best seven wins at the Arizona oval. With another victory under his belt, Harvick — last week’s race winner at Las Vegas — extended his streak of finishing first or second to seven consecutive races dating back to last year.

After his strong final restart, McMurray was not able to keep up with the No. 4 car, settling for a runner-up finish at the 1-mile track.

Richard Childress Racing’s Ryan Newman and Hendrick Motorsports’ Kasey Kahne finished third and fourth, while Stewart-Haas Racing’s Kurt Busch rounded out the top five in fifth. Busch showed plenty of speed during practice this week, topping the leaderboard during the second session before grabbing a top-five finish in his first Sprint Cup race this season.

The 312-mile event saw only four lead changes. In addition to Harvick, Brad Keselowski led 52 laps, Joey Logano paced the field for 35 and McMurray led once while contending for the win in the closing laps.

After a slow start to his final full-time season, Jeff Gordon put his No. 24 ride back on the charts with a ninth-place finish. This marks Gordon’s first top-15 finish of 2015.