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1997 The Winston

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1997 The Winston
Race details[1]
Race 2 of 2 exhibition races in the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Date May 17, 1997 (1997-05-17)
Location Concord, North Carolina
Course Charlotte Motor Speedway
1.5 mi (2.4 km)
Distance 70 laps, 105 mi (169 km)
Weather Temperatures around 78.6 °F (25.9 °C), with winds gusting to 12.6 miles per hour (20.3 km/h)[2]
Average speed 157.895 mph (254.107 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Bill Elliott Racing
Most laps led
Driver Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 17
Winner
No. 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network TNN
Announcers Eli Gold, Buddy Baker, and Dick Berggren

The 1997 edition of The Winston was a stock car racing competition that took place on May 17, 1997. Held at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, the 70-lap race was an exhibition race in the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series. Bill Elliott of Bill Elliott Racing won the pole. Bobby Labonte of Joe Gibbs Racing led the most laps with 17 of the 70 laps. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the race and claimed his second All-Star Race win in a car that was nicknamed "T-Rex" after its Jurassic Park: The Ride paint scheme.[3] The car was deemed controversial at the time due to its dominant performance in the race that NASCAR banned it from being used in further races.[4][5][6][7]

Background

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Charlotte Motor Speedway, the track where the race was held.

The Winston was open to winning drivers and team owners from last season through the 1997 Winston 500 at Talladega Superspeedway and all previous All-Star race winners and NASCAR Winston Cup champions who had attempted to qualify for every race in 1997 were eligible to compete in the All-Star Race. The winner of The Winston Open advanced to complete the starting grid. In order to fill the 20-car field, race winners from previous years were included in the race.

1997 The Winston Select drivers and eligibility

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Race winners in 1996 and 1997

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Previous winners of The Winston

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Previous NASCAR Winston Cup Champions

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Race winners from previous years, not eligible by the above criteria

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The Winston Open winner

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Race summary

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Segment 1

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Bill Elliott won the pole for the all-star event with a lap time of 143.273 mph (230.576 km/h). Rusty Wallace, Mark Martin, Darrell Waltrip, Jeff Gordon, and Elliott served as onboard camera cars throughout the race. Elliott led the field before lap 4, when Martin accidentally spun Bobby Labonte on the frontstretch, triggering a caution that lasted for five laps. When the race returned to green on lap 9, Dale Earnhardt, sporting a special Wheaties paint scheme, took the lead until lap 12, when he and Dale Jarrett fought for the position for the rest of the segment. On lap 18, Bobby Hamilton and Ernie Irvan retired from the race due to engine problems. Jarrett took the lead back from Earnhardt and crossed the finish line on lap 30 to collect the $50,000 bonus while Gordon, who had to start at the back of the field after overshooting pit lane during qualifying,[4] charged forward to a third-place finish.

Segment results
  1. 88-Dale Jarrett ($50,000)
  2. 3-Dale Earnhardt ($15,000)
  3. 24-Jeff Gordon ($7,500)

Segment 2

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During the 10-minute break between segments, the fan balloting on whether or not to invert the field for the second 30-lap segment was unveiled. The fans had spoken and the result flashed on the Winston Cup scoreboard — INVERT!

Jarrett was sent to the rear of the field, while Terry Labonte and Bobby Labonte assumed the front row. By lap 44, Bobby Labonte overtook his brother and held the lead until the end of the caution-free Segment 2 to collect his $50,000 bonus. Terry Labonte crossed the line second and Ricky Craven finished third. Meanwhile, Gordon, who was shuffled toward the back of the field, finished fourth.

Segment results
  1. 18-Bobby Labonte ($50,000)
  2. 5-Terry Labonte ($15,000)
  3. 25-Ricky Craven ($7,500)

Segment 3

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For the final 10-lap shootout, Terry Labonte led the field, but on lap 62, Wallace's day ended after his engine expired. Meanwhile, on the same lap, Gordon overtook Terry Labonte for the lead and kept it to win the caution-free segment and earn $200,000. Bobby and Terry Labonte finished out the top-three.

Race results
Pos Grid Car Driver Owner Manufacturer Laps run Laps led
1 19 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 70 9
2 5 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 70 17
3 11 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 70 14
4 2 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 70 11
5 18 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 70 0
6 8 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 70 0
7 6 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 70 11
8 20 25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 70 0
9 12 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 70 0
10 1 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 70 8
11 10 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 70 0
12 9 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 70 0
13 14 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 70 0
14 15 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 70 0
15 3 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 70 0
16 4 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 70 0
17 17 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 70 0
18 7 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 62 0
19 16 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 18 0
20 13 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 18 0
Source:[1]

Aftermath

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Following the race, NASCAR modified the rule book to ban the "T-Rex" chassis from further competition. Crew chief Ray Evernham had tweaked the car's aerodynamics and unsprung weight, resulting in a very fast car that nevertheless passed inspection. The car is currently on display at the Hendrick Motorsports Museum.[4][5][6]

References

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  1. ^ a b "1997 The Winston". Racing-Reference. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  2. ^ "Weather information for the 1997 The Winston". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  3. ^ Caldwell, Gray (May 16, 2018). "The true story behind the legendary 'T-Rex'". Hendrick Motorsports. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Walters, Shane (August 2, 2020). "T-Rex: The car that was banned by NASCAR; Evernham details why". RacingNews.co. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  5. ^ a b George, Dhruv (January 2, 2022). "How Jeff Gordon's Banned T-Rex Car Was Accidentally Produced by Hendrick Motorsports". Essentially Sports. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Benton, Jack (November 27, 2008). ""Jeff Gordon Flashback": T-Rex Set NASCAR On Its Ear With 1997 "Winston" Win". Bleacher Report. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  7. ^ Jensen, Tom (May 19, 2023). "10 Historic NASCAR All-Star Races". NASCAR Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
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