2000 Winston 500

The 2000 Winston 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event held on October 15, 2000, at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama. As one of the final five races of the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, this event turned out to be the "event of the year" as the poetic final six laps of the race would allow Dale Earnhardt to secure an unlikely win during the twilight of his NASCAR Winston Cup career.

2000 Winston 500

Race details[1]
Race 30 of 34 in the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
Layout of Talladega Superspeedway
Date	October 15, 2000
Official name	Winston 500 Presented by UPS
Location	Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Alabama
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.660 mi (4.280 km)
Distance	188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km)
Weather	Warm and sunny with temperatures of 81 °F (27 °C); wind speeds of 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)
Average speed	190.279 miles per hour (306.224 km/h)
Attendance	170,000[2]
Pole position
Driver	Joe Nemechek	Andy Petree Racing
Most laps led
Driver	Bill Elliott	Bill Elliott Racing
Laps	40
Winner
No. 3	Dale Earnhardt	Richard Childress Racing
Television in the United States
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Jerry Punch Benny Parsons Ned Jarrett

Individual race earnings ranged from the winner's share of $135,900 ($201,762 when adjusted for inflation) to the last-place finisher's share of $44,086 ($65,452). A grand total of $2,329,646 was awarded to all the qualifying drivers of this event ($3,458,680).[3] Earnhardt and a fan each won an extra $1 million as part of the Winston No Bull 5 program.[4]

There's a huge difference between gaining a lot of spots early in a race, when drivers are more likely to show some give and take, then at the end when everyone is trying for every position they can get.

Race report

Three different incidents resulted in yellow flags; a stalled vehicle near the start/finish line, debris on the race track, and a four-car accident on the tri-oval. 13 laps were run under a caution flag while the green flag lasted for an average of 44 laps. The first 104 laps proved to be the longest green-flag run. The next longest green lap stretch was from lap 120 to lap 168. Although Bill Elliott ended up leading the most laps with 40, the fastest qualifying speed went to Joe Nemechek, who won the pole position at 190.279 miles per hour (306.224 km/h).[2]

The 188-lap race lasted for three hours and one minute and became the first of only five races to run the roof spoiler package which temporarily dealt with the inconsistencies of restrictor-plate racing. Dale Earnhardt won the race, his second victory of the season and the 76th and final one in his career, beating Kenny Wallace by .119 seconds in front of about 170,000 fans.[2] This race became only the second race in NASCAR history where half the field led.[2]

The final six laps of the race were the definition of poetry as Earnhardt came from 18th place to first to win a feat that NASCAR fans continue to regard as a memorable moment. Kenny Wallace and Nemechek would play a role in Earnhardt's win by holding off most of the competition. Wallace has said that he did not try to pass Earnhardt because he did not recognize his teammate Nemechek car behind him, which had a special Charlie Daniels paint scheme.[5][6] Four months later, Earnhardt would be killed in a crash in the 2001 Daytona 500.

All 43 drivers were born in the United States of America. Chevrolet and Ford vehicles made up 33 of the 43 positions on the starting grid. Chevrolet's sister makes Pontiac made up the remaining 10 positions. Wally Dallenbach, Jr., Blaise Alexander, and Hut Stricklin failed to qualify for the race. Both Earnhardt and his son Dale Earnhardt Jr. participated in this event; the younger Earnhardt finished 14th. Kevin Lepage finished last as a result of problems with his ignition on lap 20.[2] This was indisputably the most exciting race of the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season; with the last five laps being a power struggle between John Andretti, Mike Skinner, and eventual race winner Dale Earnhardt due to his mastery of the draft.[2]

Dave Marcis went from starting in ninth place to leading the second lap. And they ran an extremely manic race with only one major crash happening on lap 169 involving four different drivers.[2] A driver in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series during the early-2000s could gain five or six positions in a lap or lose fifteen in a restrictor-plate race. However, it generally feels more like a traffic jam at 190 miles per hour (310 km/h). The race was televised by ESPN, with pit reporter Jerry Punch (filling in for regular ESPN broadcaster Bob Jenkins, who was at Texas Motor Speedway for the Excite 500 IRL race held that same day), Benny Parsons, and Ned Jarrett commentating. Punch's normal position on pit road was filled by Ray Dunlap.

Qualifying

Grid	No.	Driver	Manufacturer	Qualifying time[7]	Qualifying Speed	Sponsor
1	33	Joe Nemechek	Chevrolet	50.326	190.279	Oakwood Homes/Charlie Daniels Band
2	94	Bill Elliott	Ford	50.388	190.045	McDonald's/Coca-Cola
3	8	Dale Earnhardt Jr.	Chevrolet	50.562	189.391	Budweiser
4	25	Jerry Nadeau	Chevrolet	50.681	188.947	Michael Holigan Homes
5	20	Tony Stewart	Pontiac	50.713	188.827	The Home Depot
6	18	Bobby Labonte	Pontiac	50.737	188.738	Interstate Batteries
7	55	Kenny Wallace	Chevrolet	50.811	188.463	Square-D Hardware/Cooper Lighting
8	24	Jeff Gordon	Chevrolet	50.817	188.441	DuPont Automotive Finishes
9	71	Dave Marcis	Chevrolet	50.844	188.341	Team Realtree
10	1	Steve Park	Chevrolet	50.934	188.008	Pennzoil Synthetic Motor Oil

Finishing order

Section reference: [2]

1. Dale Earnhardt (No. 3)
2. Kenny Wallace (No. 55)
3. Joe Nemechek (No. 33)
4. Jeff Gordon (No. 24)
5. Terry Labonte (No. 5)
6. Mike Skinner (No. 31)
7. Mark Martin (No. 6)
8. Rusty Wallace (No. 2)
9. Mike Bliss (No. 27)
10. Matt Kenseth (No. 17)
11. Ricky Rudd (No. 28)
12. Bobby Labonte (No. 18)
13. Jerry Nadeau (No. 25)
14. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (No. 8)
15. Dale Jarrett (No. 88)
16. Steve Grissom (No. 44)
17. Elliott Sadler (No. 21)
18. Chad Little (No. 97)
19. Steve Park (No. 1)
20. John Andretti (No. 43)
21. Rich Bickle (No. 60)
22. Ward Burton (No. 22)
23. Stacy Compton (No. 9)
24. Bill Elliott (No. 94)
25. Robert Pressley (No. 77)
26. Brett Bodine (No. 11)
27. Tony Stewart (No. 20)
28. Dave Blaney (No. 93)
29. Jeff Burton (No. 99)
30. Ricky Craven (No. 50)
31. Rick Mast (No. 14)
32. Ted Musgrave* (No. 01)
33. Johnny Benson Jr. (No. 10)
34. Michael Waltrip (No. 7)
35. Darrell Waltrip (No. 66)
36. Bobby Hamilton* (No. 4)
37. Ken Schrader* (No. 36)
38. Jimmy Spencer* (No. 26)
39. Scott Pruett*(No. 32)
40. Dave Marcis* (No. 71)
41. Sterling Marlin* (No. 40)
42. Jeremy Mayfield* (No. 12)
43. Kevin Lepage* (No. 16)

* Driver failed to finish race

Did Not Qualify

1. Blaise Alexander (No. 91) - Ericsson Telecommunications
2. Wally Dallenbach Jr. (No. 75) - WCW World Championship Wrestling/Red Cell Batteries
3. Hut Stricklin (No. 90) - Hills Brothers Coffee

Post-race standings

Pos	Driver	Points[2]	Differential
1	Bobby Labonte	4537	0
2	Dale Earnhardt	4327	-210
3	Jeff Burton	4229	-308
4	Dale Jarrett	4135	-402
5	Ricky Rudd	4102	-435
6	Tony Stewart	4064	-473
7	Mark Martin	3999	-538
8	Rusty Wallace	3955	-582
9	Jeff Gordon	3729	-808
10	Ward Burton	3667	-870

References

1. Weather information for the 2000 Winston 500 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
2. Racing information for the 2000 Winston 500 at Racing Reference
3. Winnings information for the 2000 Winston 500 at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
4. Albert, Zack. "Part 1: The Intimidator's Day at Talladega". NASCAR.com. NASCAR. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
5. Long, Dustin. "Relive history: The behind-the-scenes story of Dale Earnhardt's last win nearly 10 years ago". PilotOnline.com. The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
6. "The man behind Earnhardt's push to victory". YouTube.com. NASCAR. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
7. Qualifying information for the 2000 Winston 500 at Racing Reference