1993 SplitFire Spark Plug 500

The 1993 SplitFire Spark Plug 500 was the 24th stock car race of the 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 23rd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, September 19, 1993, before an audience of 86,000 in Dover, Delaware at Dover International Speedway, a 1-mile (1.6 km) permanent oval-shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 500 laps to complete. In a controversial victory, Penske Racing South driver Rusty Wallace would manage to comeback from a one-lap deficit partly caused by a wreck Wallace had caused by hitting back of Hut Stricklin's car, causing a five-car pileup, including driver's championship leader Dale Earnhardt on lap 370. As a result, Wallace would get his lap back and manage to climb to the front and take his 28th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his seventh victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Hendrick Motorsports driver Ken Schrader and owner-driver Darrell Waltrip would finish second and third, respectively.

1993 SplitFire Spark Plug 500
Race details
Race 24 of 30 in the 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1993 SplitFire Spark Plug 500 program cover.
The 1993 SplitFire Spark Plug 500 program cover.
Date September 19, 1993
Official name 23rd Annual SplitFire Spark Plug 500
Location Dover, Delaware, Dover Downs International Speedway
Course Permanent racing facility
1 mi (1.6 km)
Distance 500 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Scheduled Distance 500 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Average speed 100.334 miles per hour (161.472 km/h)
Attendance 86,000
Pole position
Driver Penske Racing South
Time 23.768
Most laps led
Driver Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South
Laps 215
Winner
No. 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South
Television in the United States
Network TNN
Announcers Mike Joy, Buddy Baker, Neil Bonnett
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

Background

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The layout of Dover Downs International Speedway, the venue where the race was held.

Dover Downs International Speedway is an oval race track in Dover, Delaware, United States that has held at least two NASCAR races since it opened in 1969. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosted USAC and the NTT IndyCar Series. The track features one layout, a 1-mile (1.6 km) concrete oval, with 24° banking in the turns and 9° banking on the straights. The speedway is owned and operated by Dover Motorsports.

The track, nicknamed "The Monster Mile", was built in 1969 by Melvin Joseph of Melvin L. Joseph Construction Company, Inc., with an asphalt surface, but was replaced with concrete in 1995. Six years later in 2001, the track's capacity moved to 135,000 seats, making the track have the largest capacity of sports venue in the mid-Atlantic. In 2002, the name changed to Dover International Speedway from Dover Downs International Speedway after Dover Downs Gaming and Entertainment split, making Dover Motorsports. From 2007 to 2009, the speedway worked on an improvement project called "The Monster Makeover", which expanded facilities at the track and beautified the track. After the 2014 season, the track's capacity was reduced to 95,500 seats.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Ford Skoal
2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac Miller Genuine Draft
02 T. W. Taylor Taylor Racing Ford Children's Miracle Network Hospitals
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service Plus
4 Jeff Purvis Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet Kodak
5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Valvoline
7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford The Family Channel
8 Sterling Marlin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford Raybestos
11 Bill Elliott Junior Johnson & Associates Ford Budweiser
12 Jimmy Spencer Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford Meineke
14 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Chevrolet Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
15 Lake Speed Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft
16 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Roush Racing Ford Keystone
17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet Western Auto
18 Dale Jarrett Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet Interstate Batteries
21 Morgan Shepherd Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Bobby Labonte (R) Bill Davis Racing Ford Maxwell House
24 Jeff Gordon (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont
25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kodiak
26 Brett Bodine* King Racing Ford Quaker State
27 Hut Stricklin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford McDonald's
28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac Pennzoil
32 Jimmy Horton Active Motorsports Chevrolet Active Trucking
33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
40 Kenny Wallace (R) SABCO Racing Pontiac Dirt Devil
41 Phil Parsons Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Manheim Auctions
42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac Mello Yello
44 Rick Wilson Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
48 Trevor Boys Hylton Motorsports Pontiac Rumple Furniture
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Ford Hurley Limo
55 Ted Musgrave RaDiUs Motorsports Ford USAir, Jasper Engines & Transmissions
57 Bob Schacht Bob Schacht Motorsports Oldsmobile Queenstown Harbor
66 Mike Wallace Owen Racing Pontiac Duron Paint
68 Greg Sacks TriStar Motorsports Ford Country Time
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Southwest Technical Group
75 Todd Bodine (R) Butch Mock Motorsports Ford Factory Stores of America
84 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Oldsmobile 84 Lumber
90 Bobby Hillin Jr. Donlavey Racing Ford Heilig-Meyers
98 Derrike Cope Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford Bojangles

*Replaced by Dick Trickle due to an injury sustained in the race's first practice session.[3]

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, September 17, at 3:00 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 Saturday, September 18, at 11:30 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-36 would be decided on time,[4] 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.

Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske Racing South, would win the pole, setting a time of 23.768 and an average speed of 151.464 miles per hour (243.758 km/h) in the first round.[5]

Four drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac 23.768 151.464
2 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 23.812 151.184
3 24 Jeff Gordon (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 23.889 150.697
4 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 23.931 150.432
5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 23.940 150.376
6 44 Rick Wilson Petty Enterprises Pontiac 23.968 150.200
7 21 Morgan Shepherd Wood Brothers Racing Ford 23.991 150.056
8 33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet 24.062 149.613
9 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 24.080 149.502
10 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 24.083 149.483
11 22 Bobby Labonte (R) Bill Davis Racing Ford 24.119 149.260
12 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Ford 24.119 149.260
13 11 Bill Elliott Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 24.144 149.105
14 98 Derrike Cope Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 24.187 148.840
15 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac 24.224 148.613
16 27 Hut Stricklin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 24.233 148.558
17 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 24.244 148.490
18 8 Sterling Marlin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford 24.245 148.484
19 12 Jimmy Spencer Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford 24.249 148.460
20 41 Phil Parsons Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 24.267 148.350
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 55 Ted Musgrave RaDiUs Motorsports Ford 23.892 150.678
22 5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 23.931 150.432
23 26 Dick Trickle King Racing Ford 24.062 149.613
24 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 24.163 148.988
25 15 Lake Speed Bud Moore Engineering Ford 24.267 148.350
26 18 Dale Jarrett Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet 24.281 148.264
27 14 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Chevrolet 24.327 147.984
28 75 Todd Bodine (R) Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 24.360 147.783
29 68 Greg Sacks TriStar Motorsports Ford 24.380 147.662
30 32 Jimmy Horton Active Motorsports Chevrolet 24.384 147.638
31 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 24.411 147.474
32 90 Bobby Hillin Jr. Donlavey Racing Ford 24.487 147.017
33 16 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Roush Racing Ford 24.635 146.134
34 57 Bob Schacht Bob Schacht Motorsports Oldsmobile 24.762 145.384
35 4 Jeff Purvis Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 24.826 145.009
36 40 Kenny Wallace (R) SABCO Racing Pontiac 24.856 144.834
Provisional
37 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Ford 25.319 142.186
Failed to qualify
38 48 Trevor Boys Hylton Motorsports Pontiac -* -*
39 84 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Oldsmobile -* -*
40 66 Mike Wallace Owen Racing Pontiac - -
41 02 T. W. Taylor Taylor Racing Ford - -
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 1 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac 500 215 running 185 $77,645
2 10 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 500 127 running 175 $53,115
3 17 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 500 55 running 170 $38,410
4 26 18 Dale Jarrett Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet 500 2 running 165 $31,035
5 8 33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet 500 0 running 155 $27,830
6 19 12 Jimmy Spencer Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford 500 0 running 150 $21,580
7 11 22 Bobby Labonte (R) Bill Davis Racing Ford 500 0 running 146 $16,680
8 27 14 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Chevrolet 500 1 running 147 $17,980
9 7 21 Morgan Shepherd Wood Brothers Racing Ford 499 0 running 138 $17,230
10 13 11 Bill Elliott Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 498 0 running 134 $23,430
11 18 8 Sterling Marlin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford 498 0 running 130 $15,980
12 32 90 Bobby Hillin Jr. Donlavey Racing Ford 498 0 running 127 $9,680
13 35 4 Jeff Purvis Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 497 2 running 129 $18,980
14 15 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac 495 0 running 121 $17,080
15 33 16 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Roush Racing Ford 492 0 running 118 $14,580
16 36 40 Kenny Wallace (R) SABCO Racing Pontiac 489 0 running 115 $11,630
17 37 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Ford 489 0 running 112 $8,530
18 12 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Ford 477 0 running 109 $13,615
19 31 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 470 0 running 106 $8,305
20 29 68 Greg Sacks TriStar Motorsports Ford 462 0 running 103 $8,805
21 22 5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 456 0 handling 100 $13,205
22 30 32 Jimmy Horton Active Motorsports Chevrolet 440 0 crash 97 $8,155
23 24 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 421 0 handling 94 $13,005
24 3 24 Jeff Gordon (R) Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 412 80 handling 96 $11,255
25 23 26 Dick Trickle King Racing Ford 407 0 running 88 $12,755
26 2 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 405 18 running 90 $19,105
27 9 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 404 0 running 82 $14,555
28 21 55 Ted Musgrave RaDiUs Motorsports Ford 402 0 engine 79 $12,955
29 16 27 Hut Stricklin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 368 0 crash 76 $12,380
30 4 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 358 0 crash 73 $17,155
31 5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 237 0 crash 70 $16,705
32 14 98 Derrike Cope Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 232 0 crash 67 $12,205
33 25 15 Lake Speed Bud Moore Engineering Ford 232 0 engine 64 $15,605
34 6 44 Rick Wilson Petty Enterprises Pontiac 117 0 crash 61 $9,080
35 28 75 Todd Bodine (R) Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 60 0 crash 58 $7,505
36 34 57 Bob Schacht Bob Schacht Motorsports Oldsmobile 20 0 rotor 55 $7,480
37 20 41 Phil Parsons Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 10 0 crash 52 $8,980
Failed to qualify
38 48 Trevor Boys Hylton Motorsports Pontiac
39 84 Norm Benning Norm Benning Racing Oldsmobile
40 66 Mike Wallace Owen Racing Pontiac
41 02 T. W. Taylor Taylor Racing Ford
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (September 20, 1993). "Wallace wins, riles rivals". The Anniston Star. p. 14. Retrieved January 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ McKee, Sandra (September 20, 1993). "Wallace runs over Dover field". The Baltimore Sun. p. 73. Retrieved January 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Coon, Charlie (September 19, 1993). "Brett Bodine leaves hospital". Star-Gazette. p. 2. Retrieved January 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. September 17, 1993. p. 14. Retrieved January 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "Wallace races repaired Pontiac to pole at Dover". Messenger-Inquirer. September 18, 1993. p. 32. Retrieved January 16, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
Previous race:
1993 Miller Genuine Draft 400 (Richmond)
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1993 season
Next race:
1993 Goody's 500