| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 23 of 34 in the1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 Map of the Bristol Motor Speedway | |||
| Date | August 28, 1999 (1999-08-28) | ||
| Location | Bristol Motor Speedway,Bristol, Tennessee | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.5 miles (0.8 km) | ||
| Distance | 500 laps, 266.5 mi (428.89 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 84.2 °F (29.0 °C); wind speeds of 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 91.276 miles per hour (146.894 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 140,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Joe Gibbs Racing | ||
| Time | 124.589 miles per hour (200.507 km/h) | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 225 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Play-by-play:Bob Jenkins Color:Benny Parsons Color:Ned Jarrett Pits:Jerry Punch Pits:John Kernan Pits:Bill Weber | ||
| Nielsen ratings | N/A | ||
The1999 Volunteer 500 (known as theGoody's Headache Powder 500 for commercial reasons) was aNASCARWinston Cup Series racing event that took place August 28, 1999, atBristol Motor Speedway inBristol,Tennessee.
The race was the 23rd of the1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Thepole position was held byJoe Gibbs Racing'sTony Stewart, who also led the most laps with 225. The race winner wasDale Earnhardt ofRichard Childress Racing, who started 26th, the lowest starting position for a winner at Bristol.[3]
The early part of the race was primarily dominated byTony Stewart. On lap 410, the caution flew afterDave Marcis' car stopped against the turn-2 wall. Upon the caution flag-waving, Marcis proceeded to drive away, and as Marcis was frequently aided byRichard Childress Racing, suspicions arose over whether or not Marcis intentionally caused a caution.[citation needed] NASCAR then penalized Marcis, and made him stay in pit road for a lap; NASCAR stated that Marcis claimed he could not reach pit road, and had to stop. However, NASCAR said Marcis had a chance to reach pit road on the two laps he was driving slowly before stopping. On the restart,Terry Labonte led the race, and on lap 435, Earnhardt passed Labonte for the lead. However, Labonte then passed Earnhardt with 57 laps left, but on lap 490, Labonte slowed down and was spun byDarrell Waltrip, giving the lead back to Earnhardt.
Labonte then pitted for new tires, and eventually, with five laps remaining, Labonte contested Earnhardt for the lead, setting up the finish. Terry Labonte was leading on the last lap, but he was spun by Earnhardt in turn 2, and Earnhardt secured his ninth victory at Bristol.Jimmy Spencer finished second, followed byRicky Rudd,Jeff Gordon, and Stewart.[4] Labonte finished in 8th, and one lap down. Earnhardt's victory was subsequently met by boos and obscene gestures from the crowd. NASCAR officials reviewed the pass but decided to let Earnhardt keep the victory. Earnhardt later stated, "I didn’t mean to wreck him, I just wanted to rattle his cage a bit."[5]
A similar incident between Earnhardt and Labonte had occurred four years prior, at the1995 Goody's 500; Earnhardt turned Labonte sideways, and Labonte was pushed by Earnhardt past the finish line sideways, giving Labonte the win.[6]
| Pos | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Laps led | Points | Time/Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | 500 | 46 | 180 | 2:55:11 |
| 2 | 24 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Ford | 500 | 0 | 170 | +0.189 seconds |
| 3 | 35 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | 500 | 0 | 165 | Flagged |
| 4 | 4 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | 500 | 48 | 165 | Flagged |
| 5 | 1 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Pontiac | 500 | 225 | 165 | Flagged |
| 6 | 7 | 6 | Mark Martin | Ford | 500 | 0 | 150 | Flagged |
| 7 | 10 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Chevrolet | 500 | 0 | 146 | Flagged |
| 8 | 9 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | 499 | 115 | 147 | Crash damage |
| 9 | 5 | 22 | Ward Burton | Pontiac | 499 | 0 | 138 | -1 Lap |
| 10 | 13 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Chevrolet | 499 | 0 | 134 | -1 Lap |
Source:[2]
| Pos | Driver | Points | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Jarrett | 3573 | 0 |
| 2 | Mark Martin | 3360 | -213 |
| 3 | Bobby Labonte | 3262 | -311 |
| 4 | Jeff Gordon | 3222 | -351 |
| 5 | Tony Stewart | 3196 | -377 |
| 6 | Jeff Burton | 3107 | -466 |
| 7 | Dale Earnhardt | 3044 | -529 |
| 8 | Rusty Wallace | 2740 | -833 |
9 | Terry Labonte | 2740 | -833 |
| 10 | Mike Skinner | 2660 | -913 |