2008 AMP Energy 500
Race details[1][2] | ||||||
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Race 30 of 36 in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series | ||||||
Date | October 5, 2008 | |||||
Official name | AMP Energy 500 | |||||
Location | Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Alabama | |||||
Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.66 mi (4.28 km) | |||||
Distance | 190 laps, 505.4 mi (813.362 km) | |||||
Scheduled Distance | 188 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | |||||
Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 82.9 °F (28.3 °C); wind speeds up to 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h)[3] | |||||
Average speed | 140.281 miles per hour (225.760 km/h) | |||||
Pole position | ||||||
Driver | Yates Racing | |||||
Time | 51.109 | |||||
Most laps led | ||||||
Driver | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||||
Laps | 24 | |||||
Winner | ||||||
No. 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||||
Television in the United States | ||||||
Network |
ABC | |||||
Announcers |
Nielsen Ratings |
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The 2008 AMP Energy 500 was the 30th
It was Stewart's first victory of the season, his first at Talladega Superspeedway, and the 33rd of his career. The result advanced him to seventh in the
Background
The 2008 AMP Energy 500 was the 30th of 36 scheduled
Before the race,
Second-place championship driver Edwards said he expected the top three points leaders to remain together during the race, "I'll probably be glued to Jimmie, no matter where he's at. If him and Greg and I can just stay together, and make sure we either all avoid or either all get in the same wrecks, then we'll probably be all right."
There were two changes of driver before the race.
Practice and qualifying
Two practice sessions were held before the Sunday race, both on Friday. The first practice session ran for 75 minutes, the second lasted 45 minutes.[1] Burton was fastest in the first practice session with a time of 48.887 seconds; Elliott Sadler was second, and Brian Vickers third. Robby Gordon was fourth, and Harvick placed fifth. Kasey Kahne, Biffle, Jamie McMurray, Skinner and Ryan Newman rounded out the session's top ten drivers.[16] Earnhardt's engine failed, and his team installed a new one. David Ragan did the same between the two practice sessions.[1] Later that day, Vickers paced the final practice session (where thirty-seven drivers competed) with a time of 49.694 seconds, ahead of Kahne and Bobby Labonte. Casey Mears was fourth-fastest, ahead of Harvick, Scott Riggs and David Gilliland. Earnhardt, a Chase for the Sprint Cup driver, was eighth, with Skinner and Stewart ninth and tenth. Earnhardt's right-rear tire exploded while leading a pack of cars at the exit of turn two, nine minutes after the session started, beginning a chain-reaction accident involving cars driven by Gilliland, Stewart, David Reutimann, Hamlin, Clint Bowyer and Kahne, resulting in the session being stopped for 30 minutes. No drivers were injured, but Earnhardt and Gilliland were checked at the infield medical center and later released.[17] Earnhardt, Bowyer, Kahne, Gilliland and Reutimann switched to back-up cars.[1]
Forty-five cars were entered in the qualifier on Saturday afternoon,
Qualifying results
Grid | Car | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 28 | Travis Kvapil | Yates Racing |
Ford | 51.109 | 187.364 | |
2 | 5 | Casey Mears | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.128 | 187.295 | |
3 | 8 | Aric Almirola | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 51.136 | 187.265 | |
4 | 01 | Regan Smith | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 51.159 | 187.181 | |
5 | 15 | Paul Menard | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 51.170 | 187.141 | |
6 | 33 | Mike Wallace | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 51.213 | 186.984 | |
7 | 78 | Joe Nemechek | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 51.217 | 186.969 | |
8 | 70 | Tony Raines | Haas CNC Racing |
Chevrolet | 51.280 | 186.740 | |
9 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 51.289 | 186.707 | |
10 | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 51.298 | 186.674 | |
11 | 66 | Scott Riggs | Haas CNC Racing | Chevrolet | 51.306 | 186.645 | |
12 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing |
Ford | 51.344 | 186.507 | |
13 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dodge | 51.365 | 186.430 | |
14 | 00 | Kenny Wallace | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 51.365 | 186.430 | |
15 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.367 | 186.4231 | |
16 | 6 | David Ragan | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 51.387 | 186.3511 | |
17 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 51.396 | 186.318 | |
18 | 09 | Sterling Marlin | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 51.410 | 186.267 | |
19 | 44 | David Reutimann | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 51.420 | 186.231 | |
20 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.422 | 186.2241 | |
21 | 84 | Mike Skinner | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 51.466 | 186.065 | |
22 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Chevrolet | 51.467 | 186.061 | |
23 | 45 | Terry Labonte | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 51.468 | 186.057 | |
24 | 12 | Ryan Newman | Penske Racing South | Dodge | 51.499 | 185.945 | |
25 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 51.538 | 185.805 | |
26 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.544 | 185.783 | |
27 | 21 | Jon Wood | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 51.544 | 185.783 | |
28 | 26 | Jamie McMurray | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 51.547 | 185.772 | |
29 | 22 | Dave Blaney | Bill Davis Racing | Toyota | 51.556 | 185.740 | |
30 | 41 | Reed Sorenson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dodge | 51.561 | 185.722 | |
31 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 51.570 | 185.689 | |
32 | 43 | Bobby Labonte | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 51.583 | 185.643 | |
33 | 2 | Kurt Busch | Penske Racing South | Dodge | 51.613 | 185.535 | |
34 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 51.628 | 158.481 | |
35 | 07 | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 51.644 | 185.423 | |
36 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 51.658 | 185.373 | |
37 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 51.705 | 185.204 | |
38 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 51.758 | 185.015 | |
39 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 51.760 | 185.008 | |
40 | 19 | Elliott Sadler | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 51.775 | 184.954 | |
41 | 38 | David Gilliland | Yates Racing | Ford | 51.775 | 184.954 | |
42 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | 51.938 | 184.374 | |
43 | 96 | Ken Schrader | Hall of Fame Racing | Toyota | 51.557 | 185.736 | |
Failed to qualify
| |||||||
44 | 77 | Sam Hornish Jr. | Penske Racing South | Dodge | 51.690 | 185.258 | |
45 | 10 | Patrick Carpentier | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 51.702 | 185.215 | |
1 Moved to the back of the field for changing engines (#6,#88) and for adjustments outside of the impound (#48).
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Race
Live television coverage of the race, began at 1:00 p.m.
The race started at 2:23 p.m. Kvapil maintained his pole position advantage on the first lap, as the field ran three and four abreast during the lap. Mike Wallace led the cars on the
Gordon led on the lap-39 restart,[22] followed by Truex and Burton. One lap later, Burton, with assistance from Johnson, passed Gordon for the lead. Kenseth claimed first position on lap 40 after driving on the outside lane. Vickers followed Johnson on the inside line to reclaim the lead on the following lap, before Sadler passed Vickers around the outside for the lead on the 44th lap. On lap 45, Mears led after passing Sadler, and debris was located on the backstretch, triggering a second caution. All drivers, including Mears, elected to make pit stops.[21] Sadler reclaimed first position and led the field back up to speed at the lap-50 restart,[22] ahead of Mears and Kyle Busch. Hamlin and Kyle Busch led the cars driving on the outside lane, with Busch claiming the lead on lap 51, pulling away from the rest of the field. Kurt Busch, with help from Vickers, got ahead of Kyle Busch to move into first place on lap 52.[21]
Jamie McMurray took the lead by the 53rd lap, when a third caution was deployed on lap 54 after Reutimann's right-rear tire blew on the backstretch, causing Gordon to take evasive action by turning right and heavily damaged the nose of his car when he collided with the outside wall. Reutimann's tire broke Johnson's front splitter brace.[21][22][23] All drivers, including McMurray, chose to make pit stops.[21] Vickers elected to stay on the track and led the field at the restart on lap 59,[22] ahead of Kvapil and Skinner. One lap later, Hamlin used the draft to take over the lead, with Labonte moving into second. Kahne used the outside lane to claim first position, before Reed Sorenson also drove on the outside lane to claim first place on the next lap. The pack drove three abreast on lap 63, as Truex moved into first place on the 64th lap. McMurray reclaimed the first position when he got ahead of Truex at the start-finish line on lap 65, and Kahne dropped to 26th position by the same lap. Truex retook the lead from McMurray at the start of the following lap, and Harvick moved into first on lap 67.[21]
Earnhardt moved back into the lead on lap 68, when Vickers' right-front tire blew in the tri-oval on the same lap, starting a multi-car accident involving Gilliland, Truex, Kahne, Skinner, McMurray, Terry Labonte, Raines and Almirola. A fourth caution was triggered initially because of the accident before a red-flag was shown shortly afterward to stop the race to allow officials to clear the track of debris. The race resumed seventeen minutes later as the field elected to make pit stops.[21][24] Earnhardt led on the lap-72 restart, followed by Menard, Burton, Harvick and Montoya. By lap 74, Montoya had the lead before Hamlin passed him at the start-finish line to lead the lap. Johnson moved to the front of the field two laps later, before losing the lead to teammate Earnhardt on lap 78 as the pack ran three abreast at the start-finish line.[21]
Johnson moved back into the lead on lap 78, after receiving assistance from Earnhardt, before losing it to Stewart around the inside two laps later after Stewart was helped by Mike Wallace. On the 81st lap, Mike Wallace's right-rear tire blew causing a fifth caution to be displayed;[21][24] Wallace regained control of his car but his tire struck Michael Waltrip's car forcing him to pit for repairs. Most of the field, including Stewart, elected to make pit stops for tires and fuel.[21] Kyle Busch gained the lead after the pit stops, and led the field back up to speed at the lap-87 restart,[22] followed by Earnhardt. On lap 89, Labonte led the outside lane after he was helped by Earnhardt. Hamlin, Earnhardt and Kenseth traded the first position over the next seven laps. Hamlin's right-front tire exploded in turn two on lap 99 and struck the turn two outside wall, triggering a sixth caution. The leaders, including Kyle Busch, who took the lead before the caution, made pit stops for tires and fuel.[21][24]
Hamlin was extracted from his car, and placed on a stretcher and transported to a local hospital for further evaluation.[21] Riggs led the field back up to speed at the restart on lap 105, ahead of Menard.[22] On the same lap, Riggs lost the draft allowing Menard to move into the lead. The field went three abreast, as Menard lost the lead to Stewart on the 107th lap, but Menard reclaimed the position one lap later. Stewart retook the lead on lap 112 after he received assistance from Montoya. Burton challenged Stewart for the lead on lap 115 as both drivers ran side by side at the start-finish line, before Burton moved in front of Stewart two laps later. Harvick moved back into the lead on lap 120, after running on the inside lane. Harvick, Ragan and Stewart formed a single line, as the rest of the field ran in double-file.[21]
A seventh caution was triggered on lap 138 when Gordon had smoke and fluid coming out of his car, ending his race. Most of the field, including Harvick, elected to pit under caution. Edwards spun after he left pit road but avoided damage to his car.[21][24] During the pit stop period, the record for the most leaders in a Sprint Cup Series race was broken when Nemechek led one lap (the 27th race leader) before pitting.[21][n 1] Kyle Busch led on the lap-145 restart,[24] followed by Ragan, Kvapil, Stewart and Johnson. Four laps later, Johnson dropped from fifth to the rear of the field, as part of a strategy to run at the rear until the race ended. Kyle Busch lost the draft on lap 151, allowing Earnhardt to retake first place. Burton, with assistance from Richard Childress Racing teammates Bowyer, Harvick and Mike Wallace, moved back into the lead on lap 156. Ragan took over the lead on lap 160, after he was helped by Earnhardt.[21]
Waltrip took the lead on lap 163, and an eighth caution was necessitated on lap 165 when Biffle made contact with Ragan, who hit Harvick, who spun heading into turn three but avoided hitting the barriers or other cars. Some drivers, including Waltrip, chose to pit for fresh tires and fuel during the caution.[21][24] Montoya elected not to pit, and led the field at the restart on lap 170.[22][24] The top six drivers quickly began to pull away from the rest of the field, as Stewart ran fourth and Harvick 16th by lap 172. Stewart and Montoya ran alongside each other at the line on lap 173, before Stewart moved in front for the lead one lap later. On the same lap, a second multi-car accident occurred necessitating a ninth caution when Edwards made contact with teammate Biffle going into turn three, and collected, Earnhardt, Harvick, Kyle Busch, Nemechek, Sorenson, Kenseth, Kvapil, Watrip, Dave Blaney and Montoya.[21][24] The second red-flag of the race was shown shortly afterward to allow officials to clear debris from the track. The race was restarted twelve minutes later, as some drivers made pit stops.[21][27]
Stewart led the field back up to speed at the lap-179 restart,
Post-race comments
Stewart, who earned $270,136 for the victory,[29] appeared in victory lane to celebrate his first win of the season, and his first at Talladega Superspeedway,[30] in front of a crowd of 145,000.[2] He was delighted to take the victory: "It's one thing to get back to Victory Lane, but to do it at Talladega wow."[31] Stewart continued, "I've wanted to win here for so long. This hasn't been one of my favorite places on the fan side. People haven't always liked me here. But this was for those guys up in the stands today."[32] Second-place finisher Menard was pleased with his result, saying he had a good car throughout the duration of the race: "Car had speed in it all day. Didn't make any chassis adjustments, just did a little bit of air pressure after the first run to free it up. It was just all track position really."[33] In the post-race press conference, third-place finisher Ragan said that he felt that he had a car which could have secured the victory under the right circumstances, but believed it was a good day for his team: "We always seem to be pretty fast here on the superspeedway track, so that just goes to show you how much effort our Roush Fenway team is putting into this program."[34]
NASCAR officials reviewed video evidence of Smith's pass of Stewart on the final lap with Smith and Dale Earnhardt, Inc. president Max Siegel in attendance, and declared the manoeuvre illegal; Smith was issued a pass-through penalty which dropped him from second to 18th.[35] Smith argued that he was forced down below the yellow line: "I was always told that the rule is if you get forced down there, then you are the winner of the race, and on the last lap, anything goes. That’s what I was going with. I had a nose inside of him and I could have piled up the whole field."[30] Ninth-place finisher Johnson said there were rumors that drivers were allowed to go below the yellow line on the last lap of the previous day's Craftsman Truck Series race which were circulated on the day of the AMP Energy 500: "I didn’t know what to really think about it, or understood it, or had seen it. It’s ironic how it played out today.”[25]
NASCAR spokesperson Jim Hunter however insisted Smith was not forced below the yellow line, and stated drivers were warned beforehand in the pre-race drivers' meeting about gaining a position illegally.[36] Earnhardt said he felt Smith deserved to win, saying there was a lack of clarity over what going below the yellow line meant.[37] Smith stated he did not ask for clarification of the rule because of his low-profile status.[35] NASCAR president Mike Helton stated that race officials had correctly awarded the penalty to Smith, and clarified that no driver would be allowed to advance their position by going below the yellow line at any time during a race.[38] Similarities were made between Smith's overtake, and Earnhardt's pass of Kenseth below the yellow line at Talladega at the 2003 Aaron's 499.[36]
Hamlin was kept in hospital overnight for further evaluation, but complained of a headache and favored his right foot after exiting his car. His crew chief Mike Ford revealed Hamlin's right-rear tire had been cut on the run before his crash which Hamlin later attributed to running over debris on track.[39] Vickers described his right-front tire failure saying: "It sounded like a bomb exploded."[31] Goodyear's product manager Rick Heinrich said the tires used in the race were the same from the Aaron's 499, and conducted an analysis of the tire failures at their plant in Akron, Ohio.[39] Edwards admitted he was at fault for causing the crash between himself and teammate Biffle on lap 174, and apologized to the drivers caught up in the incident. Biffle revealed he was unable to steer his Ford away from the incident.[35]
The result kept Johnson in the lead of the Drivers' Championship, seventy-two points ahead of Edwards. Biffle and Burton maintained third and fourth positions, while Bowyer moved up to fifth. Harvick moved up into sixth, with Stewart's victory advancing him from eleventh to seventh place. Gordon, Kenseth, Earnhardt, Kyle Busch and Hamlin rounded out the top twelve.[40] In the Manufacturers' Championship, Toyota extended their lead over Ford to twelve points. Chevrolet remained in third with 165, 41 points ahead of Dodge.[8] The race attracted a television audience of 7.44 million people.[4] It took three hours, thirty-six minutes and ten seconds to complete the event, and the margin of victory was 0.052 seconds.[2]
Race results
Pos | Grid | Car | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps Run | Points | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 34 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 190 | 1952 | |
2 | 5 | 15 | Paul Menard | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 190 | 1751 | |
3 | 16 | 6 | David Ragan | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 190 | 1701 | |
4 | 17 | 31 | Jeff Burton | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 190 | 1651 | |
5 | 35 | 07 | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 190 | 155 | |
6 | 32 | 43 | Bobby Labonte | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 190 | 150 | |
7 | 11 | 66 | Scott Riggs | Haas CNC Racing | Dodge | 190 | 1511 | |
8 | 42 | 7 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Dodge | 190 | 142 | |
9 | 20 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 190 | 1431 | |
10 | 40 | 19 | Elliott Sadler | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 190 | 1391 | |
11 | 7 | 78 | Joe Nemechek | Furniture Row Racing | Chevrolet | 190 | 1351 | |
12 | 14 | 00 | Kenny Wallace | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 190 | 1321 | |
13 | 3 | 8 | Aric Almirola | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 190 | 1291 | |
14 | 2 | 5 | Casey Mears | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 190 | 1261 | |
15 | 37 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 190 | 1231 | |
16 | 43 | 96 | Ken Schrader | Hall of Fame Racing | Toyota | 190 | 115 | |
17 | 23 | 45 | Terry Labonte | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 190 | 112 | |
18 | 4 | 01 | Regan Smith | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 190 | 1093 | |
19 | 25 | 55 | Michael Waltrip | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 187 | 1111 | |
20 | 39 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 179 | 1081 | |
21 | 33 | 2 | Kurt Busch | Penske Racing South | Dodge | 177 | 1051 | |
22 | 29 | 22 | Dave Blaney | Bill Davis Racing | Toyota | 176 | 97 | |
23 | 30 | 41 | Reed Sorenson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dodge | 175 | 991 | |
24 | 22 | 16 | Greg Biffle | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 174 | 961 | |
25 | 13 | 42 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dodge | 173 | 931 | |
26 | 31 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 173 | 901 | |
27 | 1 | 28 | Travis Kvapil | Yates Racing | Ford | 173 | 871 | |
28 | 15 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 173 | 841 | |
29 | 12 | 99 | Carl Edwards | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 173 | 811 | |
30 | 6 | 33 | Mike Wallace | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 169 | 73 | |
31 | 21 | 84 | Mike Skinner | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 160 | 70 | |
32 | 28 | 26 | Jamie McMurray | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 159 | 721 | |
33 | 27 | 21 | Jon Wood | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 154 | 64 | |
34 | 8 | 70 | Tony Raines | Haas CNC Racing | Chevrolet | 148 | 61 | |
35 | 9 | 83 | Brian Vickers | Red Bull Racing Team | Toyota | 134 | 631 | |
36 | 38 | 9 | Kasey Kahne | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 112 | 601 | |
37 | 19 | 44 | David Reutimann | Michael Waltrip Racing | Toyota | 110 | 52 | |
38 | 26 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 104 | 541 | |
39 | 36 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 98 | 511 | |
40 | 41 | 38 | David Gilliland | Yates Racing | Ford | 68 | 43 | |
41 | 10 | 1 | Martin Truex Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 68 | 451 | |
42 | 18 | 09 | Sterling Marlin | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 68 | 37 | |
43 | 24 | 12 | Ryan Newman | Penske Racing South | Dodge | 48 | 34 | |
1 Includes five bonus points for leading a lap
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2 Includes ten bonus points for leading the most laps
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3 Demoted from second to eighteenth for passing below the yellow line
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Standings after the race
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Notes and references
Notes
- ^ The previous record was 26 leaders jointly held by the 1986 Talladega 500 and the 2001 Talladega 500.[25] It was further surpassed with 29 leaders at the 2010 Aaron's 499.[26]
References
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- ^ "Weather Information for Talladega, Alabama". Old Farmer's Almanac. Yankee Publishing. Archived from the original on July 6, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
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- ^ "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on October 12, 2010. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
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- ^ a b c "2008 Manufacturers Championship Standings". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on November 30, 2008. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
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- ^ Sporting News Wire Service (October 3, 2008). "Chasers dreading the dangers of big Talladega". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the originalon December 18, 2008. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
- ^ Courchsene, Shawn (September 30, 2008). "The Need For Speed: Scott Speed To Attempt Final Six Sprint Cup Events For Red Bull Racing". Hartford Courant. Tribune Publishing. Archived from the original on October 1, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
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- ^ a b Fryer, Jenna (October 5, 2008). "Kvapil gets first career pole". The Tuscaloosa News. New Media Investment Group, Inc. p. 13C. Archived from the original on February 16, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
- ^ "Practice One Speeds". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
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- ^ a b c d e f g h i Finnegan, Mike (October 5, 2008). "Stewart's Hot – Roush Not". SpeedwayMedia. Archived from the original on December 8, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2021.
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- ^ a b c d e f g h Jensen, Tom (October 5, 2008). "CUP: Stewart Tames Talladega". Speed. p. 2. Archived from the original on October 9, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ a b Johnson, Jon (October 6, 2008). "Stewart finally breaks through at Talladega". The Corner News. Media General. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- Cowles Publishing Company. Archived from the originalon September 26, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
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- ^ Jensen, Tom (October 5, 2008). "CUP: Stewart Tames Talladega". Speed. p. 3. Archived from the original on October 9, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ a b "2008 Official Race Results : Amp Energy 500". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ a b Associated Press (October 5, 2008). "With Help of Ruling, Stewart Ends Drought". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 5, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ^ a b Coble, Don (October 6, 2008). "Stewart wins a wild one at Talladega". The Florida Times-Union. Morris Communications. Archived from the original on December 3, 2008. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
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- ^ Gannett Company. Archived from the originalon January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ^ a b Meija, Diego (October 6, 2008). "Smith penalised for last lap pass". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on October 9, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- ^ Demmons, Doug (October 10, 2008). "Dale Earnhardt Jr. says Regan Smith should have won at Talladega". The Birmingham News. Advance Publications. Archived from the original on November 19, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
- Time, Inc. Archived from the originalon January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
- ^ a b Fryer, Jenna (October 6, 2008). "Denny Hamlin taken to Hospital after Hard Wreck". WIBW. Gray Television. Archived from the original on January 9, 2016. Retrieved January 8, 2016.
- ^ a b "2008 Official Driver Standings: Amp Energy 500". NASCAR. Turner Sports Interactive. Archived from the original on March 4, 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2016.