| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 21 of 36 in the2004 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series | |||
 2004 Brickyard 400 program cover | |||
| Date | August 8, 2004 (2004-08-08) | ||
| Official name | Brickyard 400 | ||
| Location | Indianapolis Motor Speedway inSpeedway, Indiana | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.5 miles (4.023 km) | ||
| Distance | 161 laps, 402.5 mi (647.761 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 160 laps, 400 mi (643.738 km) | ||
| Weather | Mild with temperatures approaching 77 °F (25 °C); wind speeds up to 8 miles per hour (13 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 115.037 miles per hour (185.134 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Chip Ganassi Racing | ||
| Time | 48.311 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 124 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | NBC | ||
| Announcers | Allen Bestwick,Wally Dallenbach Jr.,Benny Parsons | ||
The2004 Brickyard 400, the 11th running of theevent, was aNASCARNextel Cup Series race held on August 8, 2004, atIndianapolis Motor Speedway inSpeedway, Indiana. Contested at 161 laps – extended from 160 laps due to agreen–white–checkered finish – on the 2.5-mile (4.0-kilometre) speedway, it was the 21st race of the2004 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season.Jeff Gordon ofHendrick Motorsports won the race.
TheIndianapolis Motor Speedway, located inSpeedway, Indiana, (anenclave suburb ofIndianapolis) in the United States, is the home of theIndianapolis 500 and theBrickyard 400. It is located on the corner of 16th Street and Georgetown Road, approximately 6 miles (9.7 kilometres) west ofDowntown Indianapolis. It is a four-turn rectangular-oval track that is 2.5 miles (4.0 kilometres) long. The track's turns arebanked at 9degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, has no banking. The back stretch, opposite of the front, also has a zero degree banking. The racetrack has seats for more than 250,000 spectators.
For the first time in Nextel Cup Series history, thegreen–white–checkered finish rule caused a race to be extended, in this case for one additional lap. On the extra lap,Casey Mears blew a tire,Ricky Rudd hit the wall, thenMark Martin andDale Earnhardt Jr. suffered tire failures.Jeff Gordon retained the lead to become the first four-time winner of the Brickyard.
Failed to qualify:Kevin Lepage (#51),Hermie Sadler (#02),Morgan Shepherd (#89),Greg Sacks (#13),Andy Hillenburg (#37),Geoffrey Bodine (#34),Kirk Shelmerdine (#72)