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2000 DieHard 500

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2000 DieHard 500
Race details
Race 9 of 34 in the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 2000 DieHard 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
The 2000 DieHard 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
Date April 16, 2000
Official name 31st 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 161.157 miles per hour (259.357 km/h)
Attendance 185,000
Pole position
Driver Penske-Kranefuss Racing
Time 51.217
Most laps led
Driver Mark Martin Roush Racing
Laps 98
Winner
No. 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network ABC
Announcers Bob Jenkins, Benny Parsons, Ray Evernham
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

The 2000 DieHard 500 was the ninth stock car race of the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 31st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 16, 2000, before an audience of 185,000 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 a late race charge, Hendrick Motorsports' Jeff Gordon made a pass for the lead with five laps left in the race, defending the lead to take his 50th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Mike Skinner and Dale Earnhardt, both drivers from Richard Childress Racing, finished second and third, respectively.

Background

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The layout of Talladega Superspeedway, the venue where the race was held.

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

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Pennzoil
2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford Miller Lite
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service
4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet Kodak
5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kellogg's
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Eagle One
7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet NationsRent
8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Budweiser
9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford Kodiak
10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac Lycos
11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford Ralphs Supermarkets
12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford Mobil 1
13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford Menards / Duracell
14 Rick Mast A. J. Foyt Enterprises Pontiac Conseco
15 Ted Musgrave Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford Fenley-Moore Motorsports Throwback
16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford Family Click
17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford DeWalt 24 Volt
18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac Interstate Batteries
20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac The Home Depot
21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac Caterpillar
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont Automotive Finishes
25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Michael Holigan
26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Big Kmart
27 Mike Bliss (R) Eel River Racing Pontiac Viagra
28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco / Havoline
31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Lowe's
32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford Tide
33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Oakwood Homes
36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac M&M's
40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet Coors Light
41 Gary Bradberry Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce
42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet BellSouth
43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP / Cheerios
44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac Hot Wheels
50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet Midwest Transit
55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Square D
60 Dick Trickle Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet Power Team
66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Route 66 / Big Kmart
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Realtree
75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford RedCell
77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions
88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford Quality Care Service / Ford Credit
90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford Hills Bros. Coffee
93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac Amoco
94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford McDonald's
97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford John Deere
99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford Exide Batteries
Official entry list

Practice

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First practice

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The first practice session was held on Friday, April 14, at 12:15 PM EST. The session lasted for two hours. Roush Racing's Chad Little set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 50.946 and an average speed of 187.964 mph (302.499 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford 50.946 187.964
2 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 51.167 187.152
3 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 51.205 187.013
Full first practice results

Second practice

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The second practice session was held on Saturday, April 15, at 9:15 AM EST. The session lasted for one hour and 15 minutes. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Steve Park set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 49.389 and an average speed of 193.889 mph (312.034 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 49.389 193.889
2 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 49.399 193.850
3 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 49.414 193.791
Full second practice results

Final practice

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The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, April 15, at 2:00 PM EST. The session lasted for one hour. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Steve Park set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 49.231 and an average speed of 194.512 mph (313.037 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 49.231 194.512
2 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 49.436 193.705
3 42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 49.475 193.552
Full Happy Hour practice results

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, April 14, at 4:00 PM EST. Each driver had two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two counted as their official qualifying lap. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round was 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, April 15, at 11:45 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver had two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 26–36 was decided on time, while positions 37–43 was based on provisionals. Six spots were awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh was awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points was awarded a provisional.[4]

Jeremy Mayfield, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, managed to win the pole, setting a time of 51.217 and an average speed of 186.969 miles per hour (300.897 km/h) in the first round.[5]

Five drivers failed to qualify - Brett Bodine, Kevin Lepage, Gary Bradberry, Rick Mast, & Elliott Sadler.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 51.217 186.969
2 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 51.226 186.936
3 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 51.278 186.747
4 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 51.341 186.518
5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 51.386 186.354
6 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 51.436 186.173
7 40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet 51.454 186.108
8 31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 51.473 186.039
9 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 51.481 186.010
10 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 51.490 185.978
11 7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet 51.497 185.953
12 42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 51.499 185.945
13 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac 51.519 185.873
14 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford 51.527 185.844
15 32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford 51.577 185.664
16 93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 51.583 185.643
17 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 51.603 185.571
18 27 Mike Bliss (R) Eel River Racing Pontiac 51.603 185.571
19 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 51.638 185.445
20 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 51.639 185.441
21 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 51.647 185.413
22 9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford 51.655 185.384
23 90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford 51.671 185.326
24 33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 51.734 185.101
25 43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac 51.736 185.094
Failed to lock in the first round
26 55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 51.666 185.344
27 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 51.742 185.072
28 4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 51.760 185.008
29 15 Ted Musgrave Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford 51.832 184.751
30 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.865 184.633
31 60 Dick Trickle Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet 51.890 184.544
32 50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet 51.902 184.502
33 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 51.927 184.413
34 13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford 51.976 184.239
35 75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford 51.981 184.221
36 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 52.005 184.136
Provisionals
37 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 52.625 181.967
38 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford - -
39 20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 52.325 183.010
40 36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 52.055 183.959
41 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 52.111 183.762
42 17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford 52.006 184.133
43 66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 52.456 182.553
Failed to qualify
44 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 52.143 183.649
45 16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford 52.202 183.441
46 14 Rick Mast A. J. Foyt Racing Pontiac 52.233 183.332
47 21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford 52.603 182.043
48 41 Gary Bradberry Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 53.003 180.669
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 36 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 188 25 running 180 $159,755
2 8 31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 188 0 running 170 $115,680
3 4 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 188 5 running 170 $92,630
4 12 42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 188 0 running 160 $86,280
5 20 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 188 14 running 160 $76,665
6 5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 188 98 running 160 $79,905
7 33 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 188 0 running 146 $69,450
8 7 40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet 188 21 running 147 $59,930
9 21 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 188 0 running 138 $57,580
10 9 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 188 0 running 134 $72,480
11 25 43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac 188 0 running 130 $60,375
12 38 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 188 14 running 132 $65,445
13 13 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac 188 0 running 124 $44,465
14 1 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 188 4 running -25 $56,685
15 2 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 188 0 running 118 $53,655
16 35 75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford 188 0 running 115 $42,915
17 3 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 187 4 running 117 $63,300
18 42 17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford 187 2 running 114 $50,260
19 30 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 187 0 running 106 $48,870
20 15 32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford 187 0 running 103 $41,260
21 37 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 187 0 running 100 $57,470
22 24 33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 187 0 running 97 $47,950
23 19 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 186 0 running 94 $39,640
24 18 27 Mike Bliss (R) Eel River Racing Pontiac 186 0 running 91 $36,010
25 14 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford 185 0 running 88 $47,505
26 43 66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 185 0 running 85 $38,825
27 10 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 182 0 running 82 $46,570
28 23 90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford 178 0 running 79 $35,315
29 32 50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet 173 0 engine 76 $35,160
30 16 93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 151 0 accident 73 $35,005
31 11 7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet 148 0 running 70 $46,350
32 41 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 145 0 running 67 $45,695
33 22 9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford 140 0 accident 64 $37,665
34 39 20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 138 0 accident 61 $53,835
35 29 15 Ted Musgrave Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford 137 0 accident 58 $34,305
36 40 36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 137 0 accident 55 $34,175
37 34 13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford 136 0 accident 52 $34,015
38 27 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 136 0 accident 49 $33,675
39 31 60 Dick Trickle Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet 135 0 accident 46 $41,475
40 26 55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 130 0 engine 43 $41,750
41 17 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 116 1 engine 45 $51,050
42 6 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 113 0 engine 37 $42,850
43 28 4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 110 0 engine 34 $40,656
Failed to qualify
44 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford
45 16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford
46 14 Rick Mast A. J. Foyt Racing Pontiac
47 21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford
48 41 Gary Bradberry Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Poole, David (April 16, 2000). "Gordon ends winless streak, becomes 9th winner in 9 races". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on May 2, 2001. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  2. ^ Tudor, Philip (April 17, 2000). "It's a nifty 50 for Gordon". The Anniston Star. pp. 3C, 5C. Retrieved August 17, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b c d "Jayski's Silly Season Site – Talladega 1 Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on August 16, 2000. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  4. ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site – 2000 Provisional Start Status". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on November 23, 2005. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  5. ^ Poole, David (April 14, 2000). "Mayfield wins 2nd Talladega pole". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on May 2, 2001. Retrieved August 17, 2023.


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