1998 Coca-Cola 600
The 1998 Coca-Cola 600, the 39th running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held on May 24, 1998 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Charlotte, North Carolina. Contested at 400 laps on the 1.5 mile (2.4 km) speedway, it was the 11th race of the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the race.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 11 of 33 in the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
| Date | May 24, 1998 | ||
| Location | Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.4 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures averaging around 72.7 °F (22.6 °C); wind speeds up to 9.2 miles per hour (14.8 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 136.424 mph (219.553 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | |
| Laps | 164 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers | Eli Gold, Ken Squier, Buddy Baker, & Geoff Bodine | ||
Elliott Sadler made his NASCAR Winston Cup Series debut in this event.[2]
Jeff Gordon managed to take over the championship lead from Jeremy Mayfield after the event was resolved.[2]
Background
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States. It is 13 miles away from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing such as the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend, The Winston, and the UAW-GM Quality 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI).
Top 10 results
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 2 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford |
| 3 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac |
| 4 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford |
| 5 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford |
| 6 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet |
| 7 | 43 | John Andretti | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac |
| 8 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford |
| 9 | 26 | Johnny Benson, Jr. | Roush Racing | Ford |
| 10 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet |
Race statistics
- Time of race: 4:23:53
- Average Speed: 136.424 miles per hour (219.553 km/h)
- Pole Speed: 182.976
- Cautions: 8 for 49 laps
- Margin of Victory: 0.41 sec
- Lead changes: 33
- Percent of race run under caution: 12.2%
- Average green flag run: 39 laps