1995 Brickyard 400
Race details[1][2] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 19 of 31 in the 1995 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||||
Date | August 5, 1995 | ||||
Location | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis, Indiana | ||||
Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.0 km) | ||||
Distance | 160 laps, 400 mi (643 km) | ||||
Weather | Warm with temperatures approaching 79 °F (26 °C); wind speeds up to 14 miles per hour (23 km/h) | ||||
Average speed | 155.206 miles per hour (249.780 km/h) | ||||
Pole position | |||||
Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||||
Most laps led | |||||
Driver | Bill Elliott |
Elliott-Hardy Racing | |||
Laps | 47 | ||||
Winner | |||||
No. 3 | Dale Earnhardt |
Network | ESPN | ||
Announcers |
Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons |
The 1995 Brickyard 400, the 2nd running of the
The popular event returned for a second year, after the tremendous success of the first running. The weekend was expanded by the addition of practice on Wednesday afternoon.
Report
Background
Before the race,
Pole qualifying
Defending champion Gordon won the pole position on Thursday August 3 with a track record speed of 172.536 mph. A hot day saw most speeds down, and Gordon was the only driver to break the existing track record. Bobby Hamilton put the fans on their feet when he put the popular Petty #43 Pontiac car on the outside of the front row with a run of 172.222 mph.
Second round qualifying
On Friday August 4, the remnants of Hurricane Erin overtook the midwest, and rain settled in for two days. Friday morning practice was lost, and second round qualifying was also rained out. As a result, all cars reverted to their time trials speed from the first round, and the field was filled accordingly. Without a chance in second round qualifying, A. J. Foyt notably failed to qualify, the first time he failed to qualify in a race he attempted at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since 1958. The field managed a brief "happy hour" practice late Friday evening, and rain began to fall again.
Race
On Saturday August 5, steady rain fell all morning, and threatened to wash out the day. The forecast was marginal for Sunday as well, threatening to wash out the whole weekend. Many fans left the grounds as local media speculated (and some erroneously reported) that the race would be postponed.[8] In an unexpected turn of events, at approximately 3:30 p.m. EST (4:30 p.m. EDT), the skies suddenly cleared, and track drying efforts began in earnest. The teams scrambled to get their cars prepared, and the field hastily lined up in the garage area. The Chevrolet C/K pace truck led them on to the track and the race began with many fans still scurrying to their seats. Many of the pit crews were also scrambling to get their equipment set up in the pit area. Some fans driving home on the interstate reportedly turned around and drove back to the track when the radio reported the race was starting.
The green flag dropped at 4:25 p.m. EST (5:25 p.m. EDT) with live coverage only on the radio. ABC-TV had already signed off and by then had decided to air the race on ESPN on tape delay on Sunday afternoon.[9] It stands as one of the last NASCAR races not aired live on television (the 1996 DieHard 500 at Talladega, a CBS race, had its broadcast delayed a week, airing after the Brickyard 400, and the 2000 second-tier series Coca-Cola 300 at Texas Motor Speedway, also a CBS race, had its broadcast cancelled, a ploy by MTV Networks). ABC's decision prompted angry phone calls from their affiliate TV stations in North Carolina.[10]
Because of the rain earlier in the day, the starting grid was assembled in the garage area rather than along pit lane or frontstretch as normal. After the command to start engines, the field emerged from behind the pit road grandstands near turn one to begin their pace laps. While this was the only time such a situation occurred, it nevertheless provided for an impromptu, yet dramatic entrance of the cars onto the race track.
Race results
Pos | SP | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Entrant | Laps | Status |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 13 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | 160 | Running |
2 | 24 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Ford | Penske Racing |
160 | Running |
3 | 26 | 28 | Dale Jarrett | Ford | Robert Yates Racing | 160 | Running |
4 | 4 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Elliott-Hardy Racing |
160 | Running |
5 | 14 | 6 | Mark Martin | Ford | Roush Racing |
160 | Running |
6 | 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 160 | Running |
7 | 3 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Chevrolet | Morgan-McClure Motorsports |
160 | Running |
8 | 9 | 1 | Rick Mast | Ford | Richard Jackson | 160 | Running |
9 | 5 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Chevrolet | Joe Gibbs Racing | 160 | Running |
10 | 33 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Ford | Wood Brothers Racing | 160 | Running |
11 | 2 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Pontiac | Petty Enterprises | 160 | Running |
12 | 23 | 37 | John Andretti | Ford | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | 160 | Running |
13 | 15 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 160 | Running |
14 | 7 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Pontiac | Bahari Racing | 160 | Running |
15 | 25 | 7 | Geoffrey Bodine | Ford | Geoff Bodine Racing | 160 | Running |
16 | 19 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Ford | Roush Racing | 160 | Running |
17 | 20 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | DarWal Inc. | 160 | Running |
18 | 11 | 15 | Dick Trickle | Ford | Bud Moore Engineering | 160 | Running |
19 | 10 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 160 | Running |
20 | 22 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | Rudd Performance Motorsports | 159 | Running |
21 | 34 | 75 | Todd Bodine | Ford | Butch Mock Motorsports | 159 | Running |
22 | 29 | 26 | Hut Stricklin | Ford | King Racing | 159 | Running |
23 | 38 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer
|
Ford | Travis Carter Enterprises | 159 | Running |
24 | 12 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Ford | Junior Johnson & Associates | 159 | Running |
25 | 32 | 42 | Kyle Petty | Pontiac | Team SABCO | 159 | Running |
26 | 40 | 90 | Mike Wallace | Ford | Donlavey Racing | 158 | Running |
27 | 6 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | Chevrolet | NEMCO Motorsports | 158 | Running |
28 | 21 | 33 | Robert Pressley | Chevrolet | Leo Jackson Motorsports | 158 | Running |
29 | 8 | 98 | Jeremy Mayfield | Ford | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | 158 | Running |
30 | 39 | 29 | Steve Grissom | Chevrolet | Diamond Ridge Motorsports
|
158 | Running |
31 | 28 | 41 | Ricky Craven | Chevrolet | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | 158 | Running |
32 | 35 | 22 | Jimmy Hensley | Pontiac | Bill Davis Racing | 158 | Running |
33 | 16 | 32 | Greg Sacks | Chevrolet | Dick Brooks Racing | 157 | Flagged |
34 | 27 | 9 | Lake Speed | Ford | Melling Racing | 157 | Running |
35 | 30 | 31 | Ward Burton | Chevrolet | Bill Davis Racing | 154 | Engine |
36 | 31 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | Ford | FILMAR Racing | 154 | Running |
37 | 36 | 40 | Rich Bickle | Pontiac | Dick Brooks Racing | 152 | Running |
38 | 18 | 8 | Jeff Burton | Ford | Stavola Brothers Racing | 141 | Running |
39 | 17 | 77 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Ford | Jasper Motorsports | 106 | Engine |
40 | 37 | 12 | Derrike Cope | Ford | Bobby Allison Motorsports | 104 | Engine |
41 | 41 | 27 | Elton Sawyer | Ford | Junior Johnson & Associates | 17 | Valve |
Source:[2]
|
Failed to qualify
- 44-Jeff Purvis
- 95-Loy Allen Jr.
- 66-Billy Standridge
- 78-Pancho Carter
- 71-Dave Marcis
- 65-Steve Seligman
- 50-A. J. Foyt
- 80-Joe Ruttman
- 99-Danny Sullivan
- Michigan.
References
- ^ "1995 Brickyard 400 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
- ^ a b "1995 Brickyard 400". Racing-Reference.info. 5 August 1995. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
- ^ "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR. NASCAR Media Group. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
- ^ a b "NASCAR Tracks—The Indianapolis Motor Speedway". NASCAR. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
- ^ "Indianapolis Motor Speedway Fun Facts". Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Archived from the original on October 7, 2014. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
- ^ "Standings – 1995 Official Standings: DieHard 500". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on October 1, 2009. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
- ^ Berres, Mike (August 5, 1999). "Brickyard: Same, but different". Reading Eagle. Reading, Pennsylvania. p. C4. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
- ^ Harris, Mike (August 6, 1995). "Earnhardt takes Brickyard 400". Gadsden Times.
- ^ Raleigh (6 August 1995). "Weather forces ABC to cancel television coverage". The Robesonian. p. 3B.
- ^ "Canceled Coverage Causes Phone Calls". The New York Times. 7 August 1995. Archived from the original on 26 May 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2013.