| Type: | NASWINSTON |
| First Team: | Penske-Kranefuss Racing |
| Pole Time: | 14.954 |
| Official Name: | 39th Annual Food City 500 |
| Caption: | The 1999 Food City 500 program cover. |
| Season No: | 34 |
| Race No: | 7 |
| Pole Driver: | Rusty Wallace |
| Pole Team: | Penske-Kranefuss Racing |
| Radio: | Performance Racing Network |
| Announcers: | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons |
| Network: | ESPN |
| Avg: | 93.363mph |
| Most Laps: | 425 |
| Most Team: | Penske-Kranefuss Racing |
| First Driver: | Rusty Wallace |
| Location: | Bristol, Tennessee, Bristol Motor Speedway |
| Most Driver: | Rusty Wallace |
| Car: | 2 |
| Scheduled Laps: | 500 |
| Course Km: | 0.858 |
| Distance Laps: | 500 |
| Scheduled Km: | 428.89 |
| Distance Km: | 428.89 |
| Scheduled Mi: | 266.5 |
| Date: | April 11 |
| Course Mi: | 0.533 |
| Race Name: | Food City 500 |
| Year: | 1999 |
| Distance Mi: | 266.5 |
The 1999 Food City 500 was the seventh stock car race of the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 39th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 11, 1999, in Bristol, Tennessee at Bristol Motor Speedway, a 0.533 miles (0.858 km) permanent oval-shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 500 laps to complete. At race's end, Penske-Kranefuss Racing driver Rusty Wallace would dominate most of the race to take home his 49th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only win of the season.[1] [2] To fill out the podium, Roush Racing driver Mark Martin and Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett would finish second and third, respectively.
The Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track venue located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Despite its short length, Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.
The first practice session was held on Friday, April 9, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for two hours and 25 minutes.[3] Bobby Hamilton, driving for Morgan–McClure Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.406 and an average speed of 124.549mph.[4]
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | Bobby Hamilton | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.406 | 124.549 | |
| 2 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 15.483 | 123.929 | |
| 3 | 66 | Darrell Waltrip | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | 15.501 | 123.786 | |
| Full first practice results | |||||||
The second practice session was held on Friday, April 9, at 1:15 PM EST. The session would last for 45 minutes. Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.339 and an average speed of 125.092mph.[5]
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 15.339 | 125.092 | |
| 2 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.399 | 124.605 | |
| 3 | 4 | Bobby Hamilton | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 15.445 | 124.234 | |
| Full second practice results | |||||||
The third practice session was held on Saturday, April 10, at 9:30 AM EST. The session would last for one hour. Joe Nemechek, driving for Team SABCO, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.564 and an average speed of 123.284mph.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 15.564 | 123.284 | |
| 2 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 15.593 | 123.055 | |
| 3 | 91 | Dick Trickle | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 15.598 | 123.015 | |
| Full third practice results | |||||||
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, April 10, after the preliminary 1999 Moore's Snacks 250. The session would last for one hour. Bobby Labonte, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 15.956 and an average speed of 120.255mph.[6]
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 15.956 | 120.255 | |
| 2 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 15.961 | 120.218 | |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 16.046 | 119.581 | |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | |||||||
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, April 9, 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, April 10, at 11:30 AM 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. 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]
Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 15.333 and an average speed of 194.957mph.[8]
Three drivers would fail to qualify: Rich Bickle, Stanton Barrett, and Derrike Cope.