1997 DieHard 500
Race details | |||
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Race 29 of 32 in the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
The 1997 DieHard 500 program cover, featuring Jeff Gordon. | |||
Date | October 12, 1997 | ||
Official name | 29th Annual DieHard 500 | ||
Location | Lincoln, Alabama, Talladega Superspeedway | ||
Course | Permanent racing facility 2.66 mi (4.28 km) | ||
Distance | 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km) | ||
Scheduled Distance | 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km) | ||
Average speed | 156.601 miles per hour (252.025 km/h) | ||
Pole position | |||
Driver |
| Robert Yates Racing | |
Time | 49.547 | ||
Most laps led | |||
Driver | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | |
Laps | 70 | ||
Winner | |||
No. 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | |
Television in the United States | |||
Network | CBS | ||
Announcers | Mike Joy, Ned Jarrett, Buddy Baker | ||
Radio in the United States | |||
Radio | Motor Racing Network |
The 1997 DieHard 500 was the 29th stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 38th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, October 12, 1997, in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 188 laps to complete. In the final three laps of the race, with help from brother Bobby Labonte, Hendrick Motorsports driver Terry Labonte would make a late-race charge through the field to take his 19th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, the aforementioned Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte and Cale Yarborough Motorsports driver John Andretti would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4 km) tri-oval.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, October 10, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, October 11, at 10:45 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time.[3] Positions 26-38 would be decided on time, and depending on who needed it, the 39th thru either the 42nd, 43rd, or 44th position would be based on provisionals. Four spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The fifth is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the field would be limited to 42 cars. If a champion needed it, the field would expand to 43 cars. If the race was a companion race with the NASCAR Winston West Series, four spots would be determined by NASCAR Winston Cup Series provisionals, while the final two spots would be given to teams in the Winston West Series, leaving the field at 44 cars.
Ernie Irvan, driving for Robert Yates Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 49.547 and an average speed of 193.271 miles per hour (311.040 km/h).[4]
Five drivers would fail to qualify: Ward Burton, Hut Stricklin, Gary Bradberry, Jeff Green, and Ed Berrier.
Full qualifying results
*Time not available.
Race results
Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 188 | 70 | running | 185 | $116,725 |
2 | 7 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 5 | running | 175 | $76,670 |
3 | 2 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 188 | 1 | running | 170 | $58,530 |
4 | 14 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 188 | 6 | running | 165 | $53,715 |
5 | 1 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 188 | 11 | running | 160 | $57,275 |
6 | 15 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 188 | 0 | running | 150 | $41,500 |
7 | 42 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 188 | 0 | running | 146 | $32,700 |
8 | 25 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 188 | 2 | running | 147 | $38,050 |
9 | 23 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 138 | $36,920 |
10 | 9 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 188 | 2 | running | 139 | $42,900 |
11 | 39 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 130 | $38,080 |
12 | 29 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 0 | running | 127 | $35,025 |
13 | 10 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 124 | $35,280 |
14 | 4 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 121 | $39,410 |
15 | 35 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 118 | $36,760 |
16 | 37 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 188 | 0 | running | 115 | $28,600 |
17 | 38 | 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 188 | 0 | running | 112 | $23,835 |
18 | 5 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 188 | 0 | running | 109 | $27,280 |
19 | 19 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 187 | 0 | running | 106 | $33,950 |
20 | 34 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 187 | 0 | running | 103 | $39,460 |
21 | 18 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 187 | 13 | running | 105 | $39,930 |
22 | 17 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 187 | 0 | running | 97 | $33,300 |
23 | 21 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 187 | 0 | running | 94 | $26,290 |
24 | 3 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 187 | 11 | running | 96 | $32,940 |
25 | 32 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 187 | 0 | running | 88 | $22,460 |
26 | 40 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 184 | 0 | handling | 85 | $25,360 |
27 | 11 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 178 | 0 | running | 82 | $22,240 |
28 | 27 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 172 | 0 | running | 79 | $32,170 |
29 | 12 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 167 | 25 | running | 81 | $48,500 |
30 | 31 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 167 | 5 | running | 78 | $37,030 |
31 | 13 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 165 | 0 | running | 70 | $24,440 |
32 | 22 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 163 | 0 | running | 67 | $28,870 |
33 | 16 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 159 | 1 | running | 69 | $21,790 |
34 | 41 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 153 | 0 | running | 61 | $36,745 |
35 | 8 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 153 | 3 | running | 63 | $38,915 |
36 | 20 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 153 | 0 | running | 55 | $21,670 |
37 | 33 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 147 | 0 | crash | 52 | $28,660 |
38 | 30 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 139 | 27 | crash | 54 | $37,500 |
39 | 28 | 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 139 | 5 | crash | 51 | $28,500 |
40 | 36 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 139 | 0 | crash | 43 | $21,525 |
41 | 24 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 99 | 1 | crash | 45 | $21,500 |
42 | 26 | 47 | Billy Standridge | Standridge Motorsports | Ford | 51 | 0 | oil cooler | 37 | $21,500 |
Failed to qualify | ||||||||||
43 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | ||||||
44 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | ||||||
45 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | ||||||
46 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | ||||||
47 | 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | ||||||
Official race results |
References
- ^ Poole, David (October 12, 1997). "Labonte Bros. win for Terry". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on November 18, 2000. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ "Big crash punctuates Terry Labonte's win". The Dispatch. October 13, 1997. p. 32. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "DieHard 500". The Charlotte Observer. October 10, 1997. p. 17. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Ford, Tom (October 11, 1997). "Irvan's pole position a tribute". The Tampa Tribune. p. 36. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
Previous race: 1997 UAW-GM Quality 500 | NASCAR Winston Cup Series 1997 season | Next race: 1997 AC Delco 400 |
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