By lap 68, Busch had fallen three positions to fifth. On the following lap, Martin passed Gordon for the second position. On lap 72, Edwards returned to the race, only fourteen laps down. One lap later, Martin became the leader ahead of Johnson. Kenseth moved to sixth on the seventy-fourth lap after falling to tenth earlier in the race. Tony Stewart took over the eighth position behind Ryan Newman on lap 78. Kenseth managed to pass Busch for fifth on the following lap. Harvick moved into the eighth position after he passed Newman on lap 82. Eight laps later, Earnhardt Jr. drove to pit road for tires and fuel. Meanwhile, Stewart was able to pass Kenseth for fifth. Afterward, Busch fell two positions to ninth when Harvick and Newman passed him. Hamlin and Jeff Burton made a pit stop on the following lap, two laps ahead of Stewart and Bowyer. On lap 97, the rest of the frontrunners made pit stops, giving the lead to David Gilliland. One lap later, pit stops concluded, as Martin reclaimed the lead, ahead of Johnson, Gordon, Bowyer, and Stewart. Also during the pit stops, Harvick received a drive-through penalty for speeding on pit road. On lap 102, Truex passed Newman for the ninth position. Reutimann passed Kyle Busch for seventh two laps later. On the following lap, Gordon passed Johnson for second, while Martin had a five-second lead. Reutimann took sixth shortly after Gordon passed Johnson. Truex passed Busch for eighth on lap 110. Three laps later, Truex took over seventh, as Martin's lead of five seconds reduced to nothing when debris caused the fourth caution. During pit stops, Gordon claimed the lead, as Martin fell to sixth. The restart happened on lap 119, with Gordon as the leader. After restarting fourth, Bowyer had passed Truex and Stewart to clinch second. On lap 123, Martin had moved up three positions to third, after the recent caution. Afterward, Bowyer moved to the lead, while Martin claimed second position. Stewart passed Gordon for third on lap 131, while Hamlin took over fifth four laps later. On lap 137, the fifth caution was given because Ambrose spun for the second time during the race. All the front runners made pit stops under the caution. Bowyer led on the restart one lap after Travis Kvapil gave up the lead to pit. Four laps after the restart, debris prompted