1993 Mello Yello 500 Explained

Type:NASWINSTON
Date:October 10
Scheduled Km:806.281
Distance Km:806.281
Avg:154.537mph
Pole Team:Hendrick Motorsports
Network:TBS
Most Driver:Ernie Irvan
Radio:Performance Racing Network
Announcers:Ken Squier, Neil Bonnett
Most Team:Robert Yates Racing
First Driver:Ernie Irvan
First Team:Robert Yates Racing
Most Laps:328
Season No:30
Location:Concord, North Carolina, Charlotte Motor Speedway
Pole Time:30.391
Attendance:110,000
Scheduled Mi:501
Distance Laps:334
Scheduled Laps:334
Course Km:2.41
Course Mi:1.5
Race No:27
Official Name:34th Annual Mello Yello 500
Car:28
Race Name:Mello Yello 500
Year:1993
Distance Mi:501
Pole Driver:Jeff Gordon

The 1993 Mello Yello 500 was the 27th stock car race of the 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 34th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, October 10, 1993, before an audience of 110,000 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. At race's end, Robert Yates Racing driver Ernie Irvan would complete a dominant performance, leading 328 laps to take his ninth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third and final victory of the season.[1] [2] To fill out the top three, Roush Racing driver Mark Martin and Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would finish second and third, respectively.

Background

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

DriverTeamMakeSponsor
1Rick MastPrecision Products RacingFordSkoal
2Rusty WallacePenske Racing SouthPontiacMiller Genuine Draft
02T. W. TaylorTaylor RacingFordChildren's Miracle Network Hospitals
3Dale EarnhardtRichard Childress RacingChevroletGM Goodwrench Service Plus
4Joe NemechekMorgan–McClure MotorsportsChevroletKodak
5Ricky RuddHendrick MotorsportsChevroletTide
6Mark MartinRoush RacingFordValvoline
7Geoff BodineGeoff Bodine RacingFordThe Family Channel
8Sterling MarlinStavola Brothers RacingFordRaybestos
11Bill ElliottJunior Johnson & AssociatesFordBudweiser
12Jimmy SpencerBobby Allison MotorsportsFordMeineke
14Terry LabonteHagan RacingChevroletKellogg's Frosted Flakes
15Lake SpeedBud Moore EngineeringFordMotorcraft
16Wally Dallenbach Jr.Roush RacingFordKeystone
17Darrell WaltripDarrell Waltrip MotorsportsChevroletWestern Auto
18Dale JarrettJoe Gibbs RacingChevroletInterstate Batteries
19Chad LittleMark Rypien MotorsportsFordKleenex
20Bobby HamiltonMoroso RacingFordFINA
21Morgan ShepherdWood Brothers RacingFordCitgo
22Bobby Labonte (R)Bill Davis RacingFordMaxwell House
24Jeff Gordon (R)Hendrick MotorsportsChevroletDuPont
25Ken SchraderHendrick MotorsportsChevroletKodiak
26Brett BodineKing RacingFordQuaker State
27Hut StricklinJunior Johnson & AssociatesFordMcDonald's
28Ernie IrvanRobert Yates RacingFordTexaco, Havoline
29Andy HillenburgDiamond Ridge MotorsportsChevroletDiamond Ridge Motorsports
30Michael WaltripBahari RacingPontiacPennzoil
33Harry GantLeo Jackson MotorsportsChevroletSkoal Bandit
35Bill VenturiniVenturini MotorsportsChevroletRain-X
37Loy Allen Jr.TriStar MotorsportsFordNaturally Fresh Foods
40Kenny Wallace (R)SABCO RacingPontiacDirt Devil
41Dick TrickleLarry Hedrick MotorsportsChevroletManheim Auctions
42Kyle PettySABCO RacingPontiacMello Yello
44Rick WilsonPetty EnterprisesPontiacSTP
45Rich BickleTerminal Trucking MotorsportsFordKraft, Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
47Billy StandridgeJohnson Standridge RacingFordJohnson Standridge Racing
52Mike WallaceJimmy Means RacingFordDuron Paint
55Ted MusgraveRaDiUs MotorsportsFordUSAir, Jasper Engines & Transmissions
58Jeff McClureMcClure RacingChevroletMcClure Racing
63Norm BenningO'Neil RacingOldsmobileO'Neil Racing
65Jerry O'NeilO'Neil RacingChevroletO'Neil Racing
68Greg SacksTriStar MotorsportsFordCountry Time
71Dave MarcisMarcis Auto RacingChevroletJ.A. Jones Construction
72John AndrettiTex RacingChevroletTex Racing
75Todd Bodine (R)Butch Mock MotorsportsFordFactory Stores of America
85Jim SauterMansion MotorsportsFordBurger King "I Love This Place!"
90Bobby Hillin Jr.Donlavey RacingFordHeilig-Meyers
95Jeremy MayfieldSadler Brothers RacingFordMac Tools
98Derrike CopeCale Yarborough MotorsportsFordBojangles
99Brad TeagueBall MotorsportsChevroletBall Motorsports

Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Wednesday, October 6, at 4:45 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 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 7, at 12:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time,[3] and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two were given. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.

Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 30.391 and an average speed of 177.684mph in the first round.[4]

Eight drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

Pos.DriverTeamMakeTimeSpeed
124Jeff Gordon (R)Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet30.391177.684
228Ernie IrvanRobert Yates RacingFord30.424177.491
37Geoff BodineGeoff Bodine RacingFord30.427177.474
425Ken SchraderHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet30.508177.003
511Bill ElliottJunior Johnson & AssociatesFord30.570176.644
668Greg SacksTriStar MotorsportsFord30.584176.563
76Mark MartinRoush RacingFord30.599176.476
85Ricky RuddHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet30.644176.217
93Dale EarnhardtRichard Childress RacingChevrolet30.647176.200
1026Brett BodineKing RacingFord30.657176.142
114Joe NemechekMorgan–McClure MotorsportsChevrolet30.725175.753
121Rick MastPrecision Products RacingFord30.730175.724
1333Harry GantLeo Jackson MotorsportsChevrolet30.789175.387
1498Derrike CopeCale Yarborough MotorsportsFord30.805175.296
1512Jimmy SpencerBobby Allison MotorsportsFord30.827175.171
1621Morgan ShepherdWood Brothers RacingFord30.850175.041
1775Todd Bodine (R)Butch Mock MotorsportsFord30.857175.001
1844Rick WilsonPetty EnterprisesPontiac30.898174.769
1945Rich BickleTerminal Trucking MotorsportsFord30.913174.684
2030Michael WaltripBahari RacingPontiac30.943174.514
Failed to lock in Round 1
212Rusty WallacePenske Racing SouthPontiac30.950174.475
2214Terry LabonteHagan RacingChevrolet30.981174.300
2327Hut StricklinJunior Johnson & AssociatesFord30.994174.227
2417Darrell WaltripDarrell Waltrip MotorsportsChevrolet31.009174.143
2529Andy HillenburgDiamond Ridge MotorsportsChevrolet31.016174.104
2655Ted MusgraveRaDiUs MotorsportsFord31.073173.784
2741Dick TrickleLarry Hedrick MotorsportsChevrolet31.076173.768
2820Bobby HamiltonMoroso RacingFord31.110173.578
2985Jim SauterMansion MotorsportsFord31.159173.305
3095Jeremy MayfieldSadler Brothers RacingFord31.187173.149
3142Kyle PettySABCO RacingPontiac31.193173.116
3265Jerry O'NeilO'Neil RacingChevrolet31.221172.961
3316Wally Dallenbach Jr.Roush RacingFord31.244172.833
348Sterling MarlinStavola Brothers RacingFord31.263172.728
3552Mike WallaceJimmy Means RacingFord31.267172.706
3615Lake SpeedBud Moore EngineeringFord31.268172.701
3790Bobby Hillin Jr.Donlavey RacingFord31.275172.662
3818Dale JarrettJoe Gibbs RacingChevrolet31.314172.447
3919Chad LittleMark Rypien MotorsportsFord31.314172.447
4072John AndrettiTex RacingChevrolet31.359172.199
Provisionals
4122Bobby Labonte (R)Bill Davis RacingFord31.367172.155
4240Kenny Wallace (R)SABCO RacingPontiac31.398171.985
Failed to qualify
4371Dave MarcisMarcis Auto RacingChevrolet-*-*
4447Billy StandridgeJohnson Standridge RacingFord-*-*
4537Loy Allen Jr.TriStar MotorsportsFord-*-*
4635Bill VenturiniVenturini MotorsportsChevrolet-*-*
4763Norm BenningO'Neil RacingOldsmobile-*-*
4899Brad TeagueBall MotorsportsChevrolet-*-*
4958Jeff McClureMcClure RacingChevrolet-*-*
5002T. W. TaylorTaylor RacingFord-*-*
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

FinStDriverTeamMakeLapsLedStatusPtsWinnings
1228Ernie IrvanRobert Yates RacingFord334328running185$146,450
276Mark MartinRoush RacingFord3342running175$67,900
393Dale EarnhardtRichard Childress RacingChevrolet3343running170$56,900
4212Rusty WallacePenske Racing SouthPontiac3340running160$42,950
5124Jeff Gordon (R)Hendrick MotorsportsChevrolet3341running160$56,875
61512Jimmy SpencerBobby Allison MotorsportsFord3340running150$32,750
73142Kyle PettySABCO RacingPontiac3340running146$28,500
885Ricky RuddHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet3330running142$24,500
9425Ken SchraderHendrick MotorsportsChevrolet3320running138$25,400
10511Bill ElliottJunior Johnson & AssociatesFord3320running134$29,050
113615Lake SpeedBud Moore EngineeringFord3320running130$20,200
121333Harry GantLeo Jackson MotorsportsChevrolet3310running127$20,425
1337Geoff BodineGeoff Bodine RacingFord3310running124$23,150
141621Morgan ShepherdWood Brothers RacingFord3310running121$15,050
151026Brett BodineKing RacingFord3310running118$14,800
162214Terry LabonteHagan RacingChevrolet3310running115$13,025
17348Sterling MarlinStavola Brothers RacingFord3310running112$12,200
18121Rick MastPrecision Products RacingFord3310running109$11,600
192417Darrell WaltripDarrell Waltrip MotorsportsChevrolet3300running106$16,625
203790Bobby Hillin Jr.Donlavey RacingFord3300running103$6,650
212655Ted MusgraveRaDiUs MotorsportsFord3290running100$10,800
222741Dick TrickleLarry Hedrick MotorsportsChevrolet3290running97$7,575
232327Hut StricklinJunior Johnson & AssociatesFord3290running94$10,310
243316Wally Dallenbach Jr.Roush RacingFord3280running91$10,050
25114Joe NemechekMorgan–McClure MotorsportsChevrolet3260running88$14,880
263818Dale JarrettJoe Gibbs RacingChevrolet3250running85$13,160
272030Michael WaltripBahari RacingPontiac3240running82$9,645
284122Bobby Labonte (R)Bill Davis RacingFord3240running79$7,010
293095Jeremy MayfieldSadler Brothers RacingFord3240running76$4,830
303552Mike WallaceJimmy Means RacingFord3230running73$4,745
314072John AndrettiTex RacingChevrolet3230running70$4,630
32668Greg SacksTriStar MotorsportsFord3140running67$5,250
333919Chad LittleMark Rypien MotorsportsFord3140running64$4,475
343265Jerry O'NeilO'Neil RacingChevrolet3110oil pressure61$4,450
354240Kenny Wallace (R)SABCO RacingPontiac3040running58$5,975
361844Rick WilsonPetty EnterprisesPontiac3020running55$5,925
372820Bobby HamiltonMoroso RacingFord2990running52$4,390
382985Jim SauterMansion MotorsportsFord2650engine49$4,380
391498Derrike CopeCale Yarborough MotorsportsFord2530engine46$8,870
401945Rich BickleTerminal Trucking MotorsportsFord2520handling43$4,365
412529Andy HillenburgDiamond Ridge MotorsportsChevrolet2420fatigue40$4,365
421775Todd Bodine (R)Butch Mock MotorsportsFord1400crash37$5,365
Failed to qualify
4371Dave MarcisMarcis Auto RacingChevrolet
4447Billy StandridgeJohnson Standridge RacingFord
4537Loy Allen Jr.TriStar MotorsportsFord
4635Bill VenturiniVenturini MotorsportsChevrolet
4763Norm BenningO'Neil RacingOldsmobile
4899Brad TeagueBall MotorsportsChevrolet
4958Jeff McClureMcClure RacingChevrolet
5002T. W. TaylorTaylor RacingFord
Official race results

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
PosDriverPoints
1Dale Earnhardt4,047
2Rusty Wallace3,965 (-82)
13Mark Martin3,702 (-345)
14Dale Jarrett3,656 (–391)
5Morgan Shepherd3,475 (–572)
6Kyle Petty3,436 (–611)
7Ken Schrader3,422 (–625)
8Ernie Irvan3,377 (–670)
9Bill Elliott3,284 (–763)
110Jeff Gordon3,209 (–838)
Official driver's standings

Notes and References

  1. News: Higgins . Tom . October 11, 1993 . Irvan right at home with first win on home track . 25 . The Charlotte Observer . January 17, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
  2. News: Harris . Mike . October 11, 1993 . Irvan far from mellow following victory in 500 . 12 . The Tribune . January 17, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
  3. News: October 5, 1993 . Race Week Schedule . 11 . . January 17, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
  4. News: Harris . Mike . October 7, 1993 . Gordon wins Mello Yello 500 pole . 30 . The Anniston Star . January 17, 2023 . Newspapers.com.