2000 Mall.com 400

2000 Mall.com 400
Race details
Race 5 of 36 in the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 2000 Mall.com 400 program cover, featuring Jeff Burton.
The 2000 Mall.com 400 program cover, featuring Jeff Burton.
Date March 19, 2000
Official name 44th Annual Mall.com 400
Location Darlington, South Carolina, Darlington Raceway
Course Permanent racing facility
1.366 mi (2.198 km)
Distance 293 laps, 400.238 mi (644.12 km)
Scheduled Distance 293 laps, 400.238 mi (644.12 km)
Average speed 128.076 miles per hour (206.118 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 28.481
Most laps led
Driver Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing
Laps 188
Winner
No. 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

The 2000 Mall.com 400 was the fifth stock car race of the 2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 44th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, March 19, 2000, in Darlington, South Carolina, at Darlington Raceway, a 1.366 miles (2.198 km) permanent egg-shaped oval racetrack. The race took the scheduled 293 laps to complete. At race's end, Bill Davis Racing's Ward Burton dominated the late laps of the race to take his second career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory, his only victory of the season, and his first victory in 131 races.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Robert Yates Racing's Dale Jarrett and Richard Childress Racing's Dale Earnhardt finished second and third, respectively.

Background

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The layout of Darlington Raceway, the venue where the race was held.

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Pennzoil
2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford Miller Lite
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service
4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet Kodak
5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kellogg's
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Valvoline / Cummins
7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet NationsRent
8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Budweiser
9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford Kodiak
10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac Lycos
11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford Ralphs Supermarkets
12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford Mobil 1
13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford Menards / Duracell
14 Dick Trickle A. J. Foyt Enterprises Pontiac Conseco
15 Derrike Cope Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford Fenley-Moore Motorsports
16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford Family Click
17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford DeWalt
18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac Interstate Batteries
20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac The Home Depot
21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac Caterpillar
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont Automotive Finishes
25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Michael Holigan
26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Big Kmart
27 Jeff Fuller Eel River Racing Pontiac Viagra
28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco / Havoline
31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Lowe's
32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford Tide
33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Oakwood Homes
36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac M&M's
40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet Coors Light
41 Rick Mast Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce
42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet BellSouth
43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP / Cheerios
44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac Hot Wheels
50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet Midwest Transit
55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Square D
60 Ted Musgrave Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet Power Team
66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Route 66, Big Kmart
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Realtree
75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford Dinner and a Movie / RedCell
77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions
88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford Quality Care Service / Ford Credit
90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford Hills Brothers Coffee
93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac Amoco
94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford McDonald's
97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford John Deere
99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford Exide Batteries
Official entry list

Practice

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First practice

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The first practice session was held on Friday, March 17, at 11:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour and 15 minutes. Roush Racing's Jeff Burton set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.923 and an average speed of 170.024 mph (273.627 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 28.923 170.024
2 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.982 169.678
3 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 29.025 169.426
Full first practice results

Second practice

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The second practice session was held on Friday, March 17, at 1:00 PM EST. The session would last for 45 minutes. Hendrick Motorsports's Jeff Gordon set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.747 and an average speed of 171.065 mph (275.302 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.747 171.065
2 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 28.833 170.555
3 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 28.844 170.490
Full second practice results

Third practice

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The third practice session was held on Saturday, March 18, at 9:30 AM EST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Dale Earnhardt Jr. set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.611 and an average speed of 166.073 mph (267.269 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 29.611 166.073
2 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 29.648 165.866
3 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 29.712 165.508
Full third practice results

Final practice

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The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, March 18, after the 2000 SunCom 200. The session would last for one hour. Roush Racing's Mark Martin set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.516 and an average speed of 166.607 mph (268.128 km/h).[3]

Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 29.516 166.607
2 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 29.565 166.331
3 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 29.571 166.298
Full final practice results

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, March 17, at 3:30 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, March 18, 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.[3] Positions 26–36 would be decided on time, while positions 37–43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots were awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh was 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 was awarded a provisional.[4]

Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.481 and an average speed of 172.662 miles per hour (277.873 km/h) in the first round.[5]

Five drivers failed to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.481 172.662
2 16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford 28.552 172.233
3 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 28.557 172.203
4 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.685 171.435
5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 28.729 171.172
6 21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford 28.739 171.112
7 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 28.792 170.797
8 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 28.798 170.762
9 20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 28.832 170.560
10 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 28.839 170.519
11 43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac 28.855 170.425
12 14 Dick Trickle A. J. Foyt Racing Pontiac 28.863 170.377
13 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 28.866 170.360
14 27 Jeff Fuller Eel River Racing Pontiac 28.867 170.354
15 93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 28.874 170.312
16 17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford 28.891 170.212
17 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 28.899 170.165
18 42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 28.902 170.147
19 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 28.902 170.147
20 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 28.915 170.071
21 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 28.916 170.065
22 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 28.938 169.936
23 31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 28.949 169.871
24 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 28.950 169.865
25 55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 28.964 169.783
Failed to lock in the first round
26 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 28.977 169.707
27 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 28.980 169.689
28 40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet 28.988 169.643
29 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac 28.988 169.643
30 33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 28.988 169.643
31 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 28.996 169.596
32 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 29.000 169.572
33 4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 29.003 169.555
34 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.008 169.526
35 7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet 29.020 169.456
36 36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 29.053 169.263
Provisionals
37 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford -* -*
38 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac -* -*
39 60 Ted Musgrave Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet -* -*
40 13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford -* -*
41 41 Rick Mast Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
42 9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford -* -*
43 66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford -* -*
Failed to qualify
44 15 Derrike Cope Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford 29.371 167.430
45 50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet 29.401 167.260
46 32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford 29.494 166.732
47 75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford 29.680 165.687
48 90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford 29.806 164.987
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 3 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 293 188 running 185 $132,725
2 17 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 293 26 running 175 $90,905
3 4 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 293 0 running 165 $68,590
4 9 20 Tony Stewart Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 293 0 running 160 $68,230
5 27 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 293 0 running 155 $65,925
6 16 17 Matt Kenseth (R) Roush Racing Ford 293 3 running 155 $47,575
7 33 4 Bobby Hamilton Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 293 19 running 151 $45,820
8 1 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 293 22 running 147 $56,915
10 2 16 Kevin Lepage Roush Racing Ford 293 1 running 139 $54,630
9 5 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 293 0 running 138 $48,010
11 34 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 293 0 running 130 $47,250
12 6 21 Elliott Sadler Wood Brothers Racing Ford 293 0 running 127 $41,945
13 7 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 292 34 running 129 $48,290
14 23 31 Mike Skinner Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 292 0 running 121 $40,410
15 37 97 Chad Little Roush Racing Ford 292 0 running 118 $43,130
16 20 2 Rusty Wallace Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 292 0 running 115 $45,685
17 22 28 Ricky Rudd Robert Yates Racing Ford 292 0 running 112 $39,440
18 13 77 Robert Pressley Jasper Motorsports Ford 292 0 running 109 $31,020
19 8 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 292 0 running 106 $38,690
20 11 43 John Andretti Petty Enterprises Pontiac 291 0 running 103 $49,220
21 28 40 Sterling Marlin Team SABCO Chevrolet 291 0 running 100 $41,805
22 36 36 Ken Schrader MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 291 0 running 97 $29,790
23 24 26 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 291 0 running 94 $37,975
24 29 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Tyler Jet Motorsports Pontiac 290 0 running 91 $29,160
25 38 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 290 0 running 88 $37,245
26 15 93 Dave Blaney (R) Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 290 0 running 85 $25,435
27 32 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 290 0 running 82 $25,250
28 40 13 Robby Gordon Team Menard Ford 289 0 running 79 $25,095
29 42 9 Stacy Compton (R) Melling Racing Ford 288 0 running 76 $28,590
30 41 41 Rick Mast Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 288 0 running 73 $28,260
31 12 14 Dick Trickle A. J. Foyt Racing Pontiac 287 0 running 70 $24,605
32 35 7 Michael Waltrip Mattei Motorsports Chevrolet 282 0 running 67 $35,475
33 26 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 281 0 running 64 $24,295
34 21 12 Jeremy Mayfield Penske-Kranefuss Racing Ford 281 0 running 61 $34,665
35 25 55 Kenny Wallace Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 255 0 engine 58 $32,035
36 14 27 Jeff Fuller Eel River Racing Pontiac 232 0 running 55 $23,905
37 19 25 Jerry Nadeau Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 232 0 running 52 $31,800
38 18 42 Kenny Irwin Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 219 0 running 49 $31,675
39 31 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 218 0 engine 46 $31,550
40 10 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 213 0 accident 43 $23,375
41 30 33 Joe Nemechek Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 186 0 running 40 $31,250
42 39 60 Ted Musgrave Joe Bessey Racing Chevrolet 135 0 engine 37 $31,125
43 43 66 Darrell Waltrip Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford 116 0 handling 34 $23,271
Failed to qualify
44 15 Derrike Cope Fenley-Moore Motorsports Ford
45 50 Ricky Craven Midwest Transit Racing Chevrolet
46 32 Scott Pruett (R) PPI Motorsports Ford
47 75 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Galaxy Motorsports Ford
48 90 Ed Berrier (R) Donlavey Racing Ford
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Poole, David (March 19, 2000). "W. Burton's patience pays off". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on November 14, 2001. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  2. ^ McLaurin, Jim (March 20, 2000). "A family feud, Darlington-style". The State. pp. C1, C8. Retrieved July 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ a b c d e "Jayski's Silly Season Site – Darlington 1 Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on April 23, 2001. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site – 2000 Provisional Start Status". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on November 23, 2005. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  5. ^ Poole, David (March 17, 2000). "Gordon re-energizes season with Darlington pole". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on May 3, 2001. Retrieved July 30, 2023.


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