- AdvoCare 500
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AdvoCare 500 Venue Atlanta Motor Speedway Sponsor AdvoCare First race 1960 Distance 500.5 miles (805.476 km) Laps 325 Previous names Dixie 300 (1960) Dixie 400 (1961-1966)
Dixie 500 (1967-1979)
Atlanta Journal 500 (1980-1990)
Hardee's 500 (1991)
Hooters 500 (1992-1994)
NAPA 500 (1995-2002)
Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500 (2003-2006)
Pep Boys Auto 500 (2007-2009)
Emory Healthcare 500 (2010)
The AdvoCare 500 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held at Atlanta Motor Speedway in Hampton, Georgia. Prior to its most recent rescheduling the fall Atlanta race was always run during the final stages of the NASCAR season, in either October or November, and was one of the ten races in the Chase for the Sprint Cup from its inauguration in 2004 until 2008. From 1987 until 2001 the race was the last scheduled race on the NASCAR Winston Cup Series calendar.
With the realignment NASCAR returns its Labor Day weekend Cup race to the southern United States for the first time since the 2003 Southern 500.
Contents
Overview
From 1987 until 2001, the race was scheduled as the final race of the NASCAR season, and typically the event in which the champion was decided. Several times, however, the championship was decided prior to this race, or was decided when the points leader simply started the race, clinching enough points simply by finishing last or better.
The 1992 event marked the final race for Richard Petty, and coincidentally, the debut for Jeff Gordon. With six drivers eligible for the Winston Cup Championship, the race is widely regarded as one of the greatest NASCAR races of all time. Alan Kulwicki, who finished second in the race, edged out Bill Elliott, the race winner, by leading one more lap in the race. Kulwicki won the NASCAR Winston Cup title by a then-record margin of only 10 points.
In 2001, the race was scheduled as the season finale, however, it ended up being the second-to-last race. The New Hampshire 300 was postponed from September 16 to the Friday after Thanksgiving, due to 9/11. Beginning in 2002 the race was moved to mid-October as NASCAR elected to hold its final race at Homestead-Miami Speedway instead of Atlanta. The 2003 race started a tradition of night qualifying at Atlanta, which has carried over to the spring race as well.
The 1998 race was run mostly at night after a long rain delay; despite the inexperience with the lights, newly installed for an Indy Racing League race, NASCAR and the teams agreed to attempt finishing the race at night. It was shortened to 221 laps because it was after 11:00 PM and NASCAR wanted to "get the fans out at a decent hour". The 1999 Cracker Barrel 500 also ended at night.
In 2006, the race start time was changed from 12:40 PM to 2:55 PM in order to finish the race at night. Driver complaints erupted because of the track's troublesome situation where the sun can get into the driver's eyes in Turn 1, including leading to a crash during the time the sun sets in that area of the track between Jeff Gordon and Jamie McMurray, led to the abandonment of the 3 PM start after this race.
Beginning in 2009 the race will be run Labor Day weekend as part of a realignment agreement with Auto Club Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway, where Talladega's fall race will move to the Atlanta race weekend and Fontana will get a race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, moving into the date where Talladega's race was.[1] As was the case with the recent Labor Day weekend races run at Fontana the Pep Boys Auto 500 will be run at night, marking the first regularly scheduled Sprint Cup race at Atlanta to start at night.
Past winners
Year Date Driver Car Make Winner's Prize
(USD)Distance
Laps/Miles(Km)Average Speed
(mph)Race Time Dixie 300 1960 July 31 Fireball Roberts Pontiac $10,130 200 / 300 (482.803) 112.652 2:29:47 Dixie 400 1961 September 17 David Pearson Pontiac $9,330 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 125.384 3:11:39 1962 October 28 Rex White Chevrolet $10,315 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 124.74 3:12:24 1963 June 30 Junior Johnson Chevrolet $12,445 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 121.139 3:18:42 1964 June 7 Ned Jarrett Ford $11,500 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 112.535 3:33:32 1965 June 13 Marvin Panch Ford $12,300 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 110.12 3:38:13 1966 August 7 Richard Petty Plymouth $13,525 267 / 400.5 (644.542) 130.244 3:04:30 Dixie 500 1967 August 6 Dick Hutcherson Ford $16,500 334 / 501 (806.281) 132.286 3:47:14 1968 August 4 LeeRoy Yarbrough Ford $17,260 334 / 501 (806.281) 127.068 3:56:34 1969 August 10 LeeRoy Yarbrough Ford $18,620 334 / 501 (806.281) 133.001 3:45:35 1970 August 2 Richard Petty Plymouth $19,600 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 142.712 3:29:53 1971 August 1 Richard Petty Plymouth $20,220 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 129.061 3:52:05 1972 July 23 Bobby Allison Chevrolet $17,955 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 131.295 3:47:08 1973 July 22 David Pearson Mercury $16,650 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 130.211 3:50:01 1974 July 28 Richard Petty Dodge $19,350 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 131.651 3:42:31 1975 November 9 Buddy Baker Ford $18,550 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 130.99 3:48:40 1976 November 7 Dave Marcis Dodge $20,165 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 127.396 3:55:07 1977 November 6 Darrell Waltrip Chevrolet $20,425 268 / 407.896 (656.444) 110.052 3:42:23 1978 November 5 Donnie Allison Chevrolet $19,850 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 124.312 4:00:43 1979 November 4 Neil Bonnett Mercury $20,050 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 140.12 3:33:46 Atlanta Journal 500 1980 November 2 Cale Yarborough Chevrolet $31,600 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 131.19 3:48:19 1981 November 8 Neil Bonnett Ford $31,500 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 130.391 3:49:43 1982 November 7 Bobby Allison Buick $45,500 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 130.884 3:48:51 1983 November 6 Neil Bonnett Chevrolet $36,975 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 137.643 3:37:37 1984 November 11 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet $40,610 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 134.61 3:42:31 1985 November 3 Bill Elliott Ford $57,650 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 139.597 3:34:34 1986 November 2 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet $67,950 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 152.523 3:15:22 1987 November 22 Bill Elliott Ford $74,200 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 139.047 3:35:25 1988 November 20 Rusty Wallace Pontiac $87,575 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 129.024 3:52:09 1989 November 19 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet $81,700 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 140.229 3:33:36 1990 November 18 Morgan Shepherd Ford $62,250 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 140.911 3:32:34 Hardee's 500 1991 November 17 Mark Martin Ford $88,950 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 137.968 3:37:06 Hooters 500 1992 November 15 Bill Elliott Ford $93,600 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 133.322 3:44:20 1993 November 14 Rusty Wallace Pontiac $93,100 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 125.221 3:59:12 1994 November 13 Mark Martin Ford $104,200 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 148.982 3:21:03 NAPA 500 1995 November 12 Dale Earnhardt Chevrolet $141,850 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 163.633 3:03:03 1996 November 10 Bobby Labonte Chevrolet $274,900 328 / 499.216 (803.41) 134.661 3:39:13 1997 November 16 Bobby Labonte Pontiac $158,600 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 159.904 3:07:48 1998 November 8 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet $164,450 221 / 340.34 (547.724) 114.915 2:57:42 1999 November 21 Bobby Labonte Pontiac $174,300 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 137.932 3:37:43 2000 November 20 Jerry Nadeau Chevrolet $180,550 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 141.296 3:32:32 2001 November 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac $233,227 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 151.756 3:17:53 2002 October 27 Kurt Busch Ford $212,100 248 / 381.92 (614.64) 127.519 2:59:42 Bass Pro Shop MBNA 500 2003 October 26/27 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet $249,978 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 127.769 3:55:02 2004 October 31 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet $298,250 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 145.847 3:25:54 2005 October 30 Carl Edwards Ford $314,700 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 146.834 3:24:31 2006 October 29 Tony Stewart Chevrolet $373,286 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 143.421 3:29:23 Pep Boys Auto 500 2007 October 28 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet $349,561 329 / 506.66 (815.39) 135.26 3:44:45 2008 October 26 Carl Edwards Ford $357,800 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 134.272 3:43:39 2009 September 6 Kasey Kahne Dodge $363,073 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 134.033 3:44:03 Emory Healthcare 500 2010 September 5 Tony Stewart Chevrolet $357,198 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 129.041 3:52:43 AdvoCare 500 2011 September 6 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet $329,786 325 / 500.5 (805.476) 124.623 4:00:58 Notable races
- 1971: Richard Petty became the first stock car driver to reach $1 million in career earnings after a race-long duel with Bobby Allison.
- 1976: Dave Marcis took his final superspeedway win. Driving Harry Hyde's famous #71 Dodge, Marcis engaged in a nose-to-nose battle for most of the first 64 laps with Buddy Baker, Cale Yarborough, and David Pearson. Part-time racer Dale Earnhardt survived a huge crash with some 60 to go when Dick Brooks hit the wall in Three and slid into Earnhardt's path; Earnhardt tumbled to the fourth turn.
- 1977: The race shortened due to rain/darkness. Darrell Waltrip took advantage of the lapped car of James Hylton to storm past Donnie Allison on the last lap; Allison crashed with Cale Yarborough coming to the stripe.
- 1978: A scoring breakdown led to an embarrassing change of the declared winner. Manual scoring ruled that Richard Petty had edged Dave Marcis at the stripe, but a recheck hours later proved that Donnie Allison, who finished two lengths ahead of Petty and Marcis, had indeed won.
- 1980: A multicar wreck in the first 20 laps eliminated the Allison brothers and other contenders, leaving Cale Yarborough to breeze all but uncontested to the win; the win helped him close to within 29 points of leader Dale Earnhardt with one race left in the 1980 title chase.
- 1981: ESPN televised the race live, the first such telecast for the third-year cable network. The race turned into a spirited affair as Neil Bonnett and Richard Petty fought back and forth for the lead amid bids by Darrell Waltrip, Joe Ruttman, and Harry Gant. The final two laps were a fierce duel won by Bonnett over Waltrip and Cale Yarborough.
- 1982: The race set a track record for lead changes at 45, among 14 drivers. Blistered tires ruined a victory bid by Richard Petty as Bobby Allison outdueled Darrell Waltrip and Harry Gant for the win. This would be the final start for Country Music singer Marty Robbins, who would die in December of that year.
- 1984: Driver Terry Schoonover was killed in the race after crashing into the barrier in turn two.
- 1986: Dale Earnhardt wrapped up his second career title by completely dominating the Dixie 500. The rest of the top five was a list of NASCAR luminaries - Richard Petty, Bill Elliott, Tim Richmond, and Buddy Baker.
- 1987: For the first time, this race was scheduled as the final race of the NASCAR season.
- 1989: In this race, independent driver Grant Adcox was killed in a crash.
- 1990: With cars packed tightly together for late-race pitstops under yellow (the result of NASCAR's rule closing pit road when the yellow comes out instead of letting cars pit before taking the yellow), one of Bill Elliott's crew members was killed when Ricky Rudd was coming into the pits for service and lost control of his car. This led to NASCAR mandating a speed limit on pit road for crew members safety.
- 1992: Widely considered one of the most dramatic NASCAR races of all time. See 1992 Hooters 500
- 1993: Race winner Wallace, and Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt circled the track in a Polish Victory Lap, carrying #7 and #28 flag to honor Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison who were both killed in aviation accidents during the season. Both Kulwicki and Allison were key fixtures exactly one year earlier at the classic 1992 race.
- 1995: Dale Earnhardt drove his #3 to victory at the race time of 3 hours, 3 minutes, and 3 seconds.
- 1996: Bobby Labonte took the win, the first for Joe Gibbs Racing building its own engines after four seasons running Rick Hendrick engines. Terry Labonte clinched the 1996 Winston Cup Championship driving for Hendrick Motorsports. The two made a victory lap together and celebrated together in victory lane.
- 1997: 325 laps / 500.5 miles with new configuration. Bobby Labonte won in JGR's first win with Pontiac; Pontiacs dominated the top ten at the finish
- 1998: Race shortened due to rain and darkness. Rain delays throughout the day made the race go into midnight, and track officials wanted the fans to get home at a decent hour. First night Cup race.
- 2000: Race postponed from Sunday to Monday due to rain. Final career start for Darrell Waltrip. It would be the final time the event would be the last race of the NASCAR season.
- 2001: Was scheduled to be the final race of the 2001 season, but Loudon was moved to the weekend after due to 9/11. That instead made this the second-to-last race of the season.
- 2002: Race shortened due to rain. Moved from November to October, such that the race will no longer be the final race of the NASCAR season.
- 2003: Race started on Sunday but was finished on Monday due to rain.
- 2007: Race extended due to a Green-white-checker finish.
- 2009: Race moved from October to Labor Day weekend, marking the first regularly scheduled Sprint Cup race at Atlanta to start at night. Kasey Kahne took the win, the second of the year for the team now under the aegis of Richard Petty Motorsports.
- 2011: Race postponed from Sunday Night to Tuesday Afternoon due to rain from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee. Jeff Gordon's win is his milestone 85th Cup win, giving him sole possession of third on the all time wins list. This was only the second time in NASCAR's Modern Era (1972-) that a race was postponed to a Tuesday, the other time coming in August 2007 at Michigan (also for rain).
Realignment
Main article: NASCAR Realignment#Realignment 2009This race, Atlanta's second of the season, had been rumored to be either eliminated or moved several times in recent years. Most recently, track owner Bruton Smith, president of Speedway Motorsports, Inc., was talking with International Speedway Corporation about a possible date switch with one of its tracks. On February 29, 2008, Smith proposed a move that involved the fall Atlanta race and the Pepsi 500, the Labor Day weekend race held at Auto Club Speedway.[2] Doing so gave the Fontana, California track a race in the Chase for the Sprint Cup as well as return the Labor Day weekend race to the southern U.S. for the first time since the second-to-last Southern 500 was run. It also makes the three races that precede the beginning of the Chase closer to each other geographically. Prior to the realignment, the teams raced in the Sharpie 500 at Bristol the week before Labor Day, then traveled cross country for the Pepsi 500, then came back across the country to run the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond the following Saturday.
Ultimately, NASCAR adjusted the schedule as announced on August 19, 2008 to allow the fall race at Atlanta and the Chase event to Fontana to be swapped, but also in the process moved the AMP Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway to Atlanta's old date — usually the last weekend in October — and the aforementioned Pepsi 500 was placed in the old Talladega date, the first weekend in October beginning in 2009.
Television broadcasters
- The 2003 race was ultimately bounced over to TNT after it was rained out and run on Monday.
References
- ^ http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/nascar/cup/news/story?id=3543062
- ^ NASCAR.COM - Smith proposes date swap between California, Atlanta - Feb 29, 2008
External links
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