The 2000 UAW-GM Quality 500 was the 29th stock car race of the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 41st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, October 8, 2000, before an audience of 140,000 in Concord, North Carolina, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent quad-oval. The race took the scheduled 334 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Joe Gibbs Racing's Bobby Labonte managed to make a late-race pass for the lead, assisted by a late four-tire pit stop. The victory was Labonte's 15th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his fourth and final victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Penske-Kranefuss Racing's Jeremy Mayfield and Robert Yates Racing's Ricky Rudd finished second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 29 of 34 in the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 2000 UAW-GM Quality 500 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. | |||
| Date | October 8, 2000 | ||
| Official name | 41st Annual UAW-GM Quality 500 | ||
| Location | Concord, North Carolina, Lowe's Motor Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.41 km) | ||
| Distance | 334 laps, 501 mi (806.281 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 334 laps, 501 mi (806.281 km) | ||
| Average speed | 160.306 miles per hour (257.987 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 140,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Time | 29.101 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Ricky Rudd | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Laps | 98 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers | Allen Bestwick, Buddy Baker, Dick Berggren | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Performance Racing Network | ||
Background
edit
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge, as well as the UAW-GM Quality 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
editFirst practice
editThe first practice session was held on Wednesday, October 4, at 3:00 PM EST. The session would last for three hours. Robert Yates Racing's Ricky Rudd set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.292 and an average speed of 184.351 mph (296.684 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 | Ricky Rudd | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 29.292 | 184.351 |
| 2 | 12 | Jeremy Mayfield | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 29.300 | 184.300 |
| 3 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 29.341 | 184.043 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second practice
editThe second practice session was held on Thursday, October 5, at 2:30 PM EST. The session would last for two hours. Team SABCO's Ted Musgrave set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.962 and an average speed of 180.228 mph (290.049 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 01 | Ted Musgrave | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 29.962 | 180.228 |
| 2 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 29.999 | 180.006 |
| 3 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 30.137 | 179.182 |
| Full second practice results | ||||||
Third practice
editThe third practice session was held on Saturday, October 7, at 9:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour. Hendrick Motorsports' Jerry Nadeau set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.697 and an average speed of 181.837 mph (292.638 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | Jerry Nadeau | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.697 | 181.837 |
| 2 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 29.780 | 181.330 |
| 3 | 4 | Bobby Hamilton | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.801 | 181.202 |
| Full third practice results | ||||||
Final practice
editThe final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, October 7, after the 2000 All Pro Bumper to Bumper 300. The session would last for one hour. Penske-Kranefuss Racing's Jeremy Mayfield set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.093 and an average speed of 179.444 mph (288.787 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Jeremy Mayfield | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 30.093 | 179.444 |
| 2 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 30.159 | 179.051 |
| 3 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 30.162 | 179.033 |
| Full final practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Wednesday, October 4, at 8:00 PM EST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. 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 Thursday, October 5, at 6:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[4] Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be 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.[5]
Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 29.101 and an average speed of 185.561 miles per hour (298.631 km/h) in the first round.[6]
Seven drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editStandings after the race
edit
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Notes
edit- ^ Earnhardt crashed the team's primary car during the second practice session of the race weekend. As a result of the crash, team owner Dave Marcis would replace Earnhardt for second-round qualifying.[3]
References
edit- ^ Poole, David (October 8, 2000). "Labonte rolls to victory with 4 tires". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on February 10, 2001. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
- ^ Long, Dustin (October 9, 2000). "Labonte extends points lead with win". News & Record. pp. C1, C4. Retrieved July 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Poole, David (October 5, 2000). "Starting first helped Stewart finish there". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on April 21, 2001. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e "Jayski's Silly Season Site - Charlotte 2 Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on March 15, 2006. Retrieved July 29, 2023.
- ^ "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.
- ^ Poole, David (October 4, 2000). "Gordon credits teammate after winning pole". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on February 10, 2001. Retrieved July 29, 2023.