The 1997 NAPA 500 was the 32nd and final stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 38th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, November 16, 1997, in Hampton, Georgia at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a 1.54 miles (2.48 km) permanent asphalt quad-oval intermediate speedway. The race took the scheduled 325 laps to complete. At race's end, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte would manage to dominate a majority of the race to take his fifth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett and Roush Racing driver Mark Martin would finish second and third, respectively.

1997 NAPA 500
Race details
Race 32 of 32 in the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1997 NAPA 500 program cover, with artwork by Sam Bass.
The 1997 NAPA 500 program cover, with artwork by Sam Bass.
Date November 16, 1997
Official name 38th Annual NAPA 500
Location Hampton, Georgia, Atlanta Motor Speedway
Course Permanent racing facility
1.54 mi (2.48 km)
Distance 325 laps, 500.5 mi (805.476 km)
Scheduled Distance 325 laps, 500.5 mi (805.476 km)
Average speed 159.904 miles per hour (257.341 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Geoff Bodine Racing
Time 28.074
Most laps led
Driver Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing
Laps 168
Winner
No. 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons
Radio in the United States
Radio Performance Racing Network

Needing an 18th-place finish or higher in the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to lock up the championship after staying consistently within the top 18, eventually securing a 17th-place finish to win his second career NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship, finishing 14 points ahead of runner-up Dale Jarrett.[1][3]

Background

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The layout of Atlanta Motor Speedway, the circuit where the race was held.

Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta International Raceway) is a 1.54-mile race track in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Winston Cup Series stock car races since its inauguration in 1960.

The venue was bought by Speedway Motorsports in 1990. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track. In 1997, to standardize the track with Speedway Motorsports' other two intermediate ovals, the entire track was almost completely rebuilt. The frontstretch and backstretch were swapped, and the configuration of the track was changed from oval to quad-oval, with a new official length of 1.54-mile (2.48 km) where before it was 1.522-mile (2.449 km). The project made the track one of the fastest on the NASCAR circuit.

Entry list

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  • (R) - denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
00 Buckshot Jones Buckshot Racing Pontiac Aquafresh
1 Morgan Shepherd Precision Products Racing Pontiac R+L Carriers
2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford Miller Lite
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service Plus
4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet Kodak
5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Valvoline
7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford QVC
8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford Circuit City
9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford Advantage Camo
10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford Tide
11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford Brett Bodine Racing
14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Burger King
16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford PrimeStar, The Family Channel
17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet Parts America
18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac Interstate Batteries
21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac MBNA
23 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Camel Cigarettes
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont
25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Budweiser
27 Kenny Irwin Jr. David Blair Motorsports Ford G.I. Joe, Winner's Circle
28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet Cartoon Network, Tom and Jerry, Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken
30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac Pennzoil
31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Lowe's
33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Skoal
35 Todd Bodine ISM Racing Pontiac Tabasco
36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac Skittles
37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford Kmart
40 Greg Sacks Team SABCO Chevrolet Coors Light
41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kodiak
42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet BellSouth
43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac Hot Wheels
46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet First Union
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Realtree
75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford Remington Arms
77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions, Federal-Mogul
78 Gary Bradberry Triad Motorsports Ford Hanes
81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford Square D
88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford Quality Care Service, Ford Credit
90 Dick Trickle Donlavey Racing Ford Heilig-Meyers
91 Kevin Lepage LJ Racing Chevrolet Pionite
94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford McDonald's
95 Ed Berrier Sadler Brothers Racing Chevrolet Feed the Children
96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet Caterpillar
97 Chad Little Roush Racing Pontiac John Deere
98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford RCA
99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford Exide

Qualifying

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Qualifying was scheduled to be split into two rounds. If the events had run as scheduled, the first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, November 14, at 3:00 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, which was scheduled to be held on Saturday, November 15, at 11:00 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, and depending on who needed it, the 39th thru either the 42nd, 43rd, or 44th position 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 field would be limited to 42 cars. If a champion needed it, the field would expand to 43 cars. If the race was a companion race with the NASCAR Winston West Series, four spots would be determined by NASCAR Winston Cup Series provisionals, while the final two spots would be given to teams in the Winston West Series, leaving the field at 44 cars.

The first round of qualifying was postponed until Saturday, November 15 due to rain. This would leave only one round of qualifying ran, cancelling the second round.[5]

Geoff Bodine, driving for Geoff Bodine Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.074 and an average speed of 197.478 miles per hour (317.810 km/h).[6]

Seven drivers would fail to qualify: Todd Bodine, Robert Pressley, David Green, Hut Stricklin, Greg Sacks, Ed Berrier, and Dave Marcis.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 28.074 197.478
2 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 28.365 195.452
3 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 28.414 195.115
4 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.420 195.074
5 42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet 28.428 195.019
6 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.498 194.540
7 29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet 28.515 194.424
8 27 Kenny Irwin Jr. David Blair Motorsports Ford 28.519 194.397
9 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 28.566 194.077
10 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 28.613 193.758
11 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 28.628 193.657
12 30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac 28.646 193.535
13 33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 28.666 193.400
14 36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 28.692 193.225
15 41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.698 193.184
16 75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 28.709 193.110
17 78 Gary Bradberry Triad Motorsports Ford 28.724 193.009
18 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 28.729 192.976
19 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 28.737 192.922
20 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 28.748 192.848
21 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 28.776 192.661
22 90 Dick Trickle Donlavey Racing Ford 28.779 192.640
23 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 28.792 192.553
24 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Pontiac 28.801 192.493
25 14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 28.825 192.333
26 91 Kevin Lepage LJ Racing Chevrolet 28.858 192.113
27 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 28.861 192.093
28 31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.868 192.047
29 9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford 28.895 191.867
30 46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 28.903 191.814
31 98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 28.913 191.748
32 00 Buckshot Jones Buckshot Racing Pontiac 28.989 191.245
33 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 28.995 191.205
34 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford 29.018 191.054
35 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 29.029 190.981
36 1 Morgan Shepherd Precision Products Racing Pontiac 29.043 190.889
37 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.076 190.673
38 37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 29.086 190.607
Provisionals
39 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford -* -*
40 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac -* -*
41 25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
42 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford -* -*
Champion's Provisionals
43 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
Failed to qualify
44 35 Todd Bodine ISM Racing Pontiac -* -*
45 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford -* -*
46 96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet -* -*
47 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford -* -*
48 40 Greg Sacks Team SABCO Chevrolet -* -*
49 95 Ed Berrier Sadler Brothers Racing Chevrolet -* -*
50 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet -* -*
Official qualifying results

*Time not available.

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 21 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 325 168 running 185 $158,600
2 3 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 325 5 running 175 $79,600
3 9 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 325 52 running 170 $60,300
4 7 29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet 325 0 running 160 $43,475
5 14 36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 325 2 running 160 $38,100
6 20 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 324 5 running 155 $34,075
7 40 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 324 0 running 146 $43,030
8 5 42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet 324 41 running 147 $35,950
9 2 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 323 13 running 143 $39,425
10 12 30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac 323 0 running 134 $38,950
11 27 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 323 0 running 130 $41,975
12 23 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 323 4 running 132 $41,050
13 35 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 322 0 running 124 $38,425
14 22 90 Dick Trickle Donlavey Racing Ford 322 0 running 121 $28,975
15 25 14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 322 0 running 118 $25,650
16 6 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 322 24 running 120 $43,075
17 37 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 322 0 running 112 $41,155
18 24 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Pontiac 321 7 running 114 $27,440
19 38 37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 321 0 running 106 $27,100
20 13 33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 321 0 running 103 $33,685
21 4 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 321 0 running 100 $44,470
22 31 98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 320 0 running 97 $33,055
23 28 31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 320 0 running 94 $25,740
24 42 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 320 0 running 91 $32,425
25 8 27 Kenny Irwin Jr. David Blair Motorsports Ford 320 0 running 88 $21,910
26 29 9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford 317 0 running 85 $24,995
27 36 1 Morgan Shepherd Precision Products Racing Pontiac 317 0 running 82 $31,780
28 15 41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 317 0 running 79 $31,565
29 26 91 Kevin Lepage LJ Racing Chevrolet 317 0 running 76 $21,505
30 19 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 317 0 running 73 $31,430
31 34 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford 315 0 running 70 $30,865
32 33 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 314 0 running 67 $38,300
33 1 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 314 4 running 69 $43,735
34 39 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 313 0 running 61 $36,170
35 16 75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 302 0 running 58 $28,105
36 10 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 274 0 clutch 55 $28,040
37 11 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 242 0 handling 52 $36,030
38 30 46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 231 0 running 49 $20,875
39 41 25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 173 0 handling 46 $27,875
40 43 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 114 0 ignition 43 $27,875
41 18 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 57 0 handling 40 $29,375
42 17 78 Gary Bradberry Triad Motorsports Ford 50 0 crash 37 $20,875
43 32 00 Buckshot Jones Buckshot Racing Pontiac 38 0 crash 34 $20,875
Failed to qualify
44 35 Todd Bodine ISM Racing Pontiac
45 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford
46 96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet
47 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford
48 40 Greg Sacks Team SABCO Chevrolet
49 95 Ed Berrier Sadler Brothers Racing Chevrolet
50 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet
Official race results

References

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  1. ^ a b Poole, David (November 16, 1997). "Just what they needed". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on November 18, 2000. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
  2. ^ Strubin, John (November 17, 1997). "Labonte repeats to save season". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. p. 42. Retrieved October 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Harris, Mike (November 17, 1997). "Gordon wins championship; Labonte wins race". Citizens' Voice. p. 47. Retrieved October 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ "NAPA 500". The Charlotte Observer. November 14, 1997. p. 30. Retrieved October 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "Rain is only story at Atlanta - again". Daily Press. November 15, 1997. p. 15. Retrieved October 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ "Geoff takes pole, but run for Cup takes center stage". Star-Gazette. November 16, 1997. p. 7. Retrieved October 7, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
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NASCAR Winston Cup Series
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