1999 NAPA Autocare 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 28 of 34 in the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1999 NAPA Autocare 500 program cover. | |||
| Date | October 3, 1999 | ||
| Official name | 51st Annual NAPA Autocare 500 | ||
| Location | Ridgeway, Virginia, Martinsville Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.526 mi (0.847 km) | ||
| Distance | 500 laps, 263 mi (423.257 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 500 laps, 263 mi (423.257 km) | ||
| Average speed | 72.347 miles per hour (116.431 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Team SABCO | ||
| Time | 19.886 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Mike Skinner | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 138 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The 1999 NAPA Autocare 500 was the 28th stock car race of the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 51st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, October 3, 1999, before an audience of 62,000 in Martinsville, Virginia at Martinsville Speedway, a 0.526 miles (0.847 km) permanent oval-shaped short track. The race took the scheduled 500 laps to complete. Within the final laps of the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon was able to hold off the field on the final restart with 19 to go to take his 48th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory, his sixth victory of the season and it marked Gordon's first race & win without Ray Evernham as his crew chief.[1][2][3] To fill out the top three, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt and Joe Bessey Racing driver Geoff Bodine would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
Martinsville Speedway is an NASCAR-owned stock car racing track located in Henry County, in Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (0.847 km) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. It is also the only remaining race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, October 1, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for two hours and 30 minutes.[4] Joe Nemechek, driving for Team SABCO, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 19.924 and an average speed of 95.041 mph (152.954 km/h).[5]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 19.924 | 95.041 |
| 2 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 19.944 | 94.945 |
| 3 | 55 | Kenny Wallace | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 19.967 | 94.836 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second practice
The second practice session was held on Saturday, October 2, at 9:40 AM EST. The session would last for 50 minutes. Kenny Wallace, driving for Andy Petree Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 20.150 and an average speed of 93.975 mph (151.238 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 55 | Kenny Wallace | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 20.150 | 93.975 |
| 2 | 20 | Tony Stewart (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 20.154 | 93.956 |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 20.194 | 93.770 |
| Full second practice results | ||||||
Final practice
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, October 2, after the preliminary 1999 Goody's Body Pain 200 NASCAR Featherlite Modified Series race. The session would last for one hour.[4] Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 20.399 and an average speed of 92.828 mph (149.392 km/h).[6]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 20.399 | 92.828 |
| 2 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 20.416 | 92.750 |
| 3 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 20.446 | 92.614 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, October 1, at 3:00 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 Saturday, October 2, at 11:15 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 are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is 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 will be awarded a provisional.[7]
Joe Nemechek, driving for Team SABCO, would win the pole, setting a time of 19.886 and an average speed of 95.223 miles per hour (153.247 km/h).[8]
Four drivers would fail to qualify: Ron Hornaday Jr., Dick Trickle, Tim Fedewa, and Morgan Shepherd.
Full qualifying results
Race results
References
- ^ Poole, David (October 3, 1999). "No. 24 team finds a way to win again". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on December 13, 2000. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ White, Ben (October 3, 1999). "Gordon's new chapter has happy ending". NASCAR. Archived from the original on October 13, 1999. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ Svrluga, Barry (October 4, 1999). "New chief, old result: Gordon wins Napa 500". The Cincinnati Post. p. 23. Retrieved October 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 1999 Martinsville 2 Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on October 13, 1999. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ "Winston cup practice speeds". That's Racin'. October 1, 1999. Archived from the original on January 26, 2001. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ "Happy Hour practice speeds". That's Racin'. October 2, 1999. Archived from the original on January 26, 2001. Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 1999 Provisional Start Status". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on April 18, 1999. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
- ^ Poole, David (October 1, 1999). "Fresh faces appear amid first-round qualifiers". That's Racin'. Archived from the original on January 26, 2001. Retrieved October 5, 2022.