1997 Goodwrench Service 400 Explained
The 1997 Goodwrench Service 400 was the second stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 32nd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 23, 1997, in Rockingham, North Carolina, at North Carolina Speedway, a 1.017miles permanent high-banked racetrack. The race took the scheduled 393 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to make a late race pass on the dominant driver of the day, Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett to take his 21st career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second victory of the season.[1] [2] To fill out the podium, Jarrett and Roush Racing driver Jeff Burton would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
North Carolina Speedway was opened as a flat, one-mile oval on October 31, 1965. In 1969, the track was extensively reconfigured to a high-banked, D-shaped oval just over one mile in length. In 1997, North Carolina Motor Speedway merged with Penske Motorsports, and was renamed North Carolina Speedway. Shortly thereafter, the infield was reconfigured, and competition on the infield road course, mostly by the SCCA, was discontinued. Currently, the track is home to the Fast Track High Performance Driving School.[3]
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, February 21, at 2:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. 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, February 22, at 11:30 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time.[4] Positions 26-38 would be decided on time, while positions 39-43 would be based on provisionals. Four spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The fifth 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.
Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 23.189 and an average speed of 157.885mph.[5]
Four drivers would fail to qualify: Chad Little, Billy Standridge, Mike Wallace, and Gary Bradberry.
Full qualifying results
Race results
| Fin[6] | St | | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
|---|
| 1 | 4 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 43 | running | 180 | $93,115 |
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| 2 | 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 393 | 323 | running | 180 | $68,760 |
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| 3 | 17 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 393 | 1 | running | 170 | $42,260 |
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| 4 | 10 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 160 | $39,210 |
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| 5 | 8 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 155 | $35,050 |
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| 6 | 23 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 150 | $35,325 |
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| 7 | 15 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 146 | $40,525 |
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| 8 | 5 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 142 | $32,025 |
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| 9 | 32 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 393 | 3 | running | 143 | $36,325 |
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| 10 | 16 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 393 | 0 | running | 134 | $31,575 |
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| 11 | 27 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 130 | $32,000 |
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| 12 | 28 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 127 | $26,600 |
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| 13 | 1 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 392 | 22 | running | 129 | $31,800 |
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| 14 | 2 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 392 | 0 | running | 121 | $30,150 |
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| 15 | 22 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 118 | $27,550 |
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| 16 | 24 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 115 | $18,500 |
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| 17 | 9 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 112 | $25,100 |
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| 18 | 6 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 392 | 0 | running | 109 | $24,800 |
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| 19 | 37 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 106 | $17,450 |
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| 20 | 35 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 392 | 0 | running | 103 | $32,150 |
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| 21 | 38 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 100 | $23,900 |
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| 22 | 43 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 97 | $25,700 |
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| 23 | 11 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 391 | 0 | running | 94 | $16,450 |
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| 24 | 7 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 | running | 91 | $23,250 |
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| 25 | 12 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 | running | 88 | $14,200 |
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| 26 | 39 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 390 | 0 | running | 85 | $22,940 |
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| 27 | 21 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 390 | 0 | running | 82 | $22,740 |
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| 28 | 19 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 390 | 0 | running | 79 | $27,690 |
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| 29 | 20 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 389 | 0 | running | 76 | $12,515 |
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| 30 | 34 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 389 | 0 | running | 73 | $15,465 |
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| 31 | 26 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 388 | 0 | running | 70 | $12,265 |
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| 32 | 30 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 388 | 0 | running | 67 | $14,715 |
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| 33 | 41 | 40 | Robby Gordon (R) | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 388 | 0 | running | 64 | $19,640 |
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| 34 | 25 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 388 | 0 | running | 61 | $19,015 |
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| 35 | 33 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 387 | 0 | running | 58 | $11,915 |
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| 36 | 29 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 379 | 0 | running | 55 | $18,840 |
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| 37 | 18 | 29 | Robert Pressley | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | crash | 52 | $11,800 |
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| 38 | 14 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 303 | 1 | running | 54 | $11,730 |
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| 39 | 36 | 20 | Greg Sacks | Ranier-Walsh Racing | Ford | 271 | 0 | engine | 46 | $11,730 |
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| 40 | 40 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 264 | 0 | overheating | 43 | $19,730 |
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| 41 | 13 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 180 | 0 | engine | 40 | $18,730 |
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| 42 | 31 | 77 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 136 | 0 | engine | 37 | $11,730 |
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| 43 | 42 | 19 | Loy Allen Jr. | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | 68 | 0 | clutch | 34 | $11,730 |
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| Failed to qualify |
|---|
| 44 | | 97 | Chad Little | Mark Rypien Motorsports | Pontiac | |
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| 45 | 78 | Billy Standridge | Triad Motorsports | Ford |
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| 46 | 91 | Mike Wallace | LJ Racing | Chevrolet |
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| 47 | 95 | Gary Bradberry | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet |
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| Official race results | |
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Notes and References
- Web site: Poole . David . February 23, 1997 . Gordon takes the high road . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20000815213619/http://www.thatsracin.com/97/docs/0223.htm . August 15, 2000 . September 22, 2022 . That's Racin' . The Charlotte Observer.
- News: McLaurin . Jim . February 24, 1997 . Gordon is in nice groove . 12 . The State . September 22, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- Web site: Fast Track High Performance Driving School, Inc . July 16, 2012 . Fasttrackracing.com.
- News: February 21, 1997 . Goodwrench 400 . 26 . The Charlotte Observer . September 22, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Harris . Mike . February 22, 1998 . Martin unleashes fury with record lap, pole . 14 . The News Journal . September 22, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- Web site: 1997 Goodwrench Service 400 - The Third Turn . September 21, 2022 . The Third Turn . en.
