1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer

The 1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 22, 1999, at Michigan Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. This was the twenty-second race in the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series schedule.

1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer

Race details
Race 22 of 34 in the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer program cover
Date	August 22, 1999 (1999-08-22)
Location	Michigan Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan, U.S.
Course length	2.0 miles (3.219 km)
Distance	200 laps, 400 mi (643.738 km)
Average speed	144.332 miles per hour (232.280 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Ward Burton	Bill Davis Racing
Time	38.127
Most laps led
Driver	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports
Laps	73
Winner
No. 18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing
Television in the United States
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Bob Jenkins, Benny Parsons, and Ned Jarrett

Background

The Michigan Speedway is a 2-mile tri-oval built in 1969. The frontstretch is 3,600 feet while the backstretch is 2,242 feet. The track features 18 degrees in the corners, 12 degrees in the frontstretch, and 5 degrees in the backstretch.^[1]

Ernie Irvan suffered head and lung injuries in a Busch Series practice session the previous day.^[2] His #36 M&Ms Pontiac was relieved by Dick Trickle for this race. Ernie would later announce his retirement from racing two weeks later.^[2]

Future 2000 Winston Cup rookies and then-Busch Series championship contenders Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Matt Kenseth made one of their pre-rookie season starts in this race.

Entry list

Car[3]	Driver	Team	Manufacturer	Sponsor	Hometown
1	Steve Park	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	Pennzoil
2	Rusty Wallace	Penske-Kranefuss Racing	Ford	Miller Lite
3	Dale Earnhardt Sr.	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	GM Goodwrench Service Plus
4	Bobby Hamilton	Morgan-McClure Motorsports	Chevrolet	Kodak
5	Terry Labonte	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	Kellogg's, Rice Krispies Treats
6	Mark Martin	Roush Racing	Ford	Valvoline, Cummins
7	Michael Waltrip	Mattei Motorsports	Chevrolet	Philips Electronics
8	Dale Earnhardt Jr	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	Chevrolet	Budweiser
9	Jerry Nadeau	Melling Racing	Ford	WCW
10	Ricky Rudd	Rudd Performance Motorsports	Ford	Tide Hydrogen Peroxide Bubbles
11	Brett Bodine	Brett Bodine Racing	Ford	Paychex
12	Jeremy Mayfield	Penske-Kranefuss Racing	Ford	Mobil 1
16	Kevin Lepage	Roush Racing	Ford	TV Guide, NFL '99
17	Matt Kenseth	Roush Racing	Ford	DeWalt
18	Bobby Labonte	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	Interstate Batteries
19	Tom Hubert	Roehrig Motorsports	Pontiac	Bradford White Corp.
20	Tony Stewart	Joe Gibbs Racing	Pontiac	Home Depot
21	Elliott Sadler	Wood Brothers Racing	Ford	Citgo
22	Ward Burton	Bill Davis Racing	Pontiac	Caterpillar
23	Jimmy Spencer	Travis Carter Enterprises	Ford	Team Winston
24	Jeff Gordon	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	DuPont Automotive Finishes
25	Wally Dallenbach Jr.	Hendrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	Budweiser
26	Johnny Benson Jr.	Roush Racing	Ford	Frosted Cheerios
28	Kenny Irwin Jr.	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	Texaco, Havoline
30	Derrike Cope	Bahari Racing	Pontiac	Jimmy Dean / Sara Lee
31	Mike Skinner	Richard Childress Racing	Chevrolet	Lowe's
33	Ken Schrader	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	Skoal
36	Dick Trickle	MB2 Motorsports	Pontiac	M&M's
40	Sterling Marlin	SABCO Racing	Chevrolet	Coors Light, Brooks & Dunn
41	David Green	Larry Hedrick Motorsports	Chevrolet	Kodiak
42	Joe Nemechek	SABCO Racing	Chevrolet	BellSouth
43	John Andretti	Petty Enterprises	Pontiac	STP
44	Kyle Petty	Petty Enterprises	Pontiac	Hot Wheels
45	Rich Bickle	Tyler Jet Motorsports	Pontiac	10-10-345
50	Ricky Craven	Midwest Transit Racing	Chevrolet	Midwest Transit
55	Kenny Wallace	Andy Petree Racing	Chevrolet	Square D
58	Hut Stricklin	SBIII Motorsports	Ford	Turbine Solutions
60	Geoff Bodine	Joe Bessey Motorsports	Chevrolet	Power Team
66	Darrell Waltrip	Haas-Carter Motorsports	Ford	Big Kmart / Route 66
71	Dave Marcis	Marcis Auto Racing	Chevrolet	Realtree
75	Ted Musgrave	Butch Mock Motorsports	Ford	Remington Arms
77	Robert Pressley	Jasper Motorsports	Ford	Jasper Engines & Transmissions
88	Dale Jarrett	Robert Yates Racing	Ford	Quality Care, Ford Credit
90	Stanton Barrett	Donlavey Racing	Ford	Hills Brothers / Nestle / Carnation
94	Bill Elliott	Bill Elliott Racing	Ford	McDonald's
97	Chad Little	Roush Racing	Ford	John Deere
98	Rick Mast	Cale Yarborough Motorsports	Ford	Woody Woodpecker
99	Jeff Burton	Roush Racing	Ford	Exide Batteries

Qualifying

Pos.[4]	Driver	Car	Manufacturer	Time	Speed (mph)
1	Ward Burton	22	Pontiac	38.127	188.843
2	Mike Skinner	31	Chevrolet	38.298	187.999
3	Dale Jarrett	88	Ford	38.382	187.588
4	Geoffrey Bodine	60	Chevrolet	38.387	187.563
5	Jeremy Mayfield	12	Ford	38.430	187.354
6	Ricky Rudd	10	Ford	38.464	187.188
7	Mark Martin	6	Ford	38.482	187.100
8	John Andretti	43	Pontiac	38.482	187.100
9	Jeff Gordon	24	Chevrolet	38.500	187.013
10	Rusty Wallace	2	Ford	38.512	186.955
11	Ted Musgrave	75	Ford	38.525	186.892
12	Steve Park	1	Chevrolet	38.540	186.819
13	Hut Stricklin	58	Ford	38.565	186.698
14	Bill Elliott	94	Ford	38.630	186.384
15	Ernie Irvan	36	Pontiac	38.687	186.109
16	Chad Little	97	Ford	38.696	186.066
17	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	8	Chevrolet	38.701	186.042
18	Sterling Marlin	40	Chevrolet	38.715	185.974
19	Bobby Labonte	18	Pontiac	38.732	185.893
20	Michael Waltrip	7	Chevrolet	38.754	185.787
21	David Green	41	Chevrolet	38.823	185.457
22	Ricky Craven	50	Chevrolet	38.834	185.405
23	Kenny Wallace	55	Chevrolet	38.863	185.266
24	Wally Dallenbach, Jr.	25	Chevrolet	38.864	185.261
25	Matt Kenseth	17	Ford	38.886	185.157
26	Jeff Burton	99	Ford	38.867	185.247
27	Robert Pressley	77	Ford	38.889	185.142
28	Ken Schrader	33	Chevrolet	38.931	184.943
29	Jerry Nadeau	9	Ford	38.942	184.890
30	Kenny Irwin, Jr.	28	Ford	38.966	184.776
31	Rick Mast	98	Ford	38.984	184.691
32	Elliott Sadler	21	Ford	38.992	184.653
33	Kevin Lepage	16	Ford	39.044	184.407
34	Joe Nemechek	42	Chevrolet	39.045	184.403
35	Dave Marcis	71	Chevrolet	39.058	184.341
36	Jimmy Spencer	23	Ford	39.069	184.289
Provisionals
37	Tony Stewart	20	Pontiac	0.000	0.000
38	Dale Earnhardt	3	Chevrolet	0.000	0.000
39	Terry Labonte	5	Chevrolet	0.000	0.000
40	Bobby Hamilton	4	Chevrolet	0.000	0.000
41	Johnny Benson, Jr.	26	Ford	0.000	0.000
42	Kyle Petty	44	Pontiac	0.000	0.000
43	Rich Bickle	45	Pontiac	0.000	0.000
Failed to qualify
44	Derrike Cope	30	Pontiac	39.117	184.063
45	Stanton Barrett	90	Ford	39.136	183.974
46	Darrell Waltrip	66	Ford	39.302	183.197
47	Brett Bodine	11	Ford	39.458	182.473
48	Tom Hubert	19	Pontiac	40.613	177.283

Failed to qualify: Derrike Cope (#30), Stanton Barrett (#90), Darrell Waltrip (#66), Brett Bodine (#11), Tom Hubert (#19)^[5]

Race recap

The race was very competitive with 24 lead changes among 11 drivers. Many underdog drivers ran very well throughout the race, including Chad Little, Jimmy Spencer, and the underfunded Hut Stricklin in the unsponsored SBIII Motorsports Ford. It was the only top 10 for the SBIII team.

The final 20 laps featured a fierce battle between the sport's then-current stars of Bobby Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, Tony Stewart, Dale Jarrett, and Jeff Gordon. At the end, it was Bobby Labonte who prevailed with his third win at Michigan and fourth of the 1999 season.

Timeline

• Start: Ward Burton leads the field to the green flag.
• Lap 48: First caution is out for debris on pit road. The outside pole-sitter Mike Skinner broke a pinion gear while trying to leave his pit box during the first caution flag stop of the day.
• Lap 54: The pole-sitter Ward Burton got loose underneath Bobby Labonte and crashed hard into turn 3, causing the second caution.
• Lap 130: Robert Pressley crashed in turn 4, causing the third caution.
• Lap 141: Metal debris spotted in turn 1 causes the fourth caution.
• Lap 150: Dick Trickle, Ricky Rudd, and Kevin Lepage crashed in the frontstretch, causing the fifth caution.
• Lap 163: Tony Stewart made a move on Jeff Burton, made contact when coming up the track on the frontstretch, and sent Jeff Burton into the wall, causing the sixth caution.
• Lap 184: Bobby Labonte took the lead for the final time after a fierce battle with Dale Earnhardt and Jeff Gordon.
• Lap 200: Bobby Labonte takes the checkered flag.

Results

Fin[6][7]	St	#	Driver	Sponsor	Make	Team	Laps	Led	Status	Pts	Winnings
1	19	18	Bobby Labonte	Interstate Batteries	Pontiac	Joe Gibbs Racing	200	45	running	180	121320
2	9	24	Jeff Gordon	DuPont Automotive Finishes	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports	200	73	running	180	83030
3	37	20	Tony Stewart	Home Depot	Pontiac	Joe Gibbs Racing	200	4	running	170	60505
4	3	88	Dale Jarrett	Quality Care, Ford Credit	Ford	Robert Yates Racing	200	27	running	165	57650
5	38	3	Dale Earnhardt	GM Goodwrench Service Plus	Chevrolet	Richard Childress Racing	200	27	running	160	51005
6	16	97	Chad Little	John Deere	Ford	Roush Racing	200	0	running	150	43790
7	7	6	Mark Martin	Valvoline, Cummins	Ford	Roush Racing	200	4	running	151	47065
8	36	23	Jimmy Spencer	Team Winston	Ford	Travis Carter Enterprises	200	0	running	142	52590
9	13	58	Hut Stricklin	Turbine Solutions	Ford	SBIII Motorsports	200	0	running	138	32140
10	8	43	John Andretti	STP	Pontiac	Petty Enterprises	200	0	running	134	46590
11	32	21	Elliott Sadler	Citgo	Ford	Wood Brothers Racing	200	0	running	130	39980
12	31	98	Rick Mast	Woody Woodpecker	Ford	Cale Yarborough Motorsports	200	0	running	127	33140
13	20	7	Michael Waltrip	Philips Electronics	Chevrolet	Mattei Motorsports	200	3	running	129	35640
14	25	17	Matt Kenseth	DeWalt	Ford	Roush Racing	200	0	running	121	25040
15	18	40	Sterling Marlin	Coors Light, Brooks & Dunn	Chevrolet	SABCO Racing	200	0	running	118	36190
16	10	2	Rusty Wallace	Miller Lite	Ford	Penske-Kranefuss Racing	200	0	running	115	39190
17	4	60	Geoffrey Bodine	Power Team	Chevrolet	Joe Bessey Motorsports	199	0	running	112	27065
18	5	12	Jeremy Mayfield	Mobil 1	Ford	Penske-Kranefuss Racing	199	0	running	109	37740
19	14	94	Bill Elliott	McDonald's	Ford	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	199	0	running	106	34180
20	12	1	Steve Park	Pennzoil	Chevrolet	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	199	0	running	103	35140
21	41	26	Johnny Benson, Jr.	Frosted Cheerios	Ford	Roush Racing	199	0	running	100	34655
22	34	42	Joe Nemechek	BellSouth	Chevrolet	SABCO Racing	199	0	running	97	32490
23	24	25	Wally Dallenbach, Jr.	Budweiser	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports	199	3	running	99	32265
24	17	8	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Budweiser	Chevrolet	Dale Earnhardt, Inc.	199	0	running	91	21765
25	28	33	Ken Schrader	Skoal	Chevrolet	Andy Petree Racing	199	0	running	88	31915
26	39	5	Terry Labonte	Kellogg's, Rice Krispies Treats	Chevrolet	Hendrick Motorsports	199	0	running	85	36415
27	23	55	Kenny Wallace	Square D	Chevrolet	Andy Petree Racing	199	0	running	82	25140
28	43	45	Rich Bickle	10-10-345	Pontiac	Tyler Jet Motorsports	199	0	running	79	24690
29	29	9	Jerry Nadeau	WCW	Ford	Melling Racing	199	0	running	76	24190
30	22	50	Ricky Craven	Midwest Transit	Chevrolet	Midwest Transit Racing	198	0	running	73	21365
31	42	44	Kyle Petty	Hot Wheels	Pontiac	Petty Enterprises	198	0	running	70	23965
32	21	41	David Green	Kodiak	Chevrolet	Larry Hedrick Motorsports	197	0	running	67	23415
33	35	71	Dave Marcis	Realtree	Chevrolet	Marcis Auto Racing	197	0	running	64	21365
34	30	28	Kenny Irwin, Jr.	Texaco, Havoline	Ford	Robert Yates Racing	195	0	engine	61	28215
35	40	4	Bobby Hamilton	Kodak	Chevrolet	Morgan-McClure Motorsports	192	0	engine	58	35765
36	2	31	Mike Skinner	Lowe's	Chevrolet	Richard Childress Racing	192	12	running	60	33040
37	26	99	Jeff Burton	Exide Batteries	Ford	Roush Racing	188	0	running	52	41715
38	6	10	Ricky Rudd	Tide Hydrogen Peroxide Bubbles	Ford	Rudd Performance Motorsports	186	0	running	49	27640
39	33	16	Kevin Lepage	TV Guide, NFL '99	Ford	Roush Racing	183	0	engine	46	27630
40	15	36	Dick Trickle	M&M's	Pontiac	MB2 Motorsports	178	0	running	43	27620
41	11	75	Ted Musgrave	Remington Arms	Ford	Butch Mock Motorsports	147	0	running	40	20610
42	27	77	Robert Pressley	Jasper Engines & Transmissions	Ford	Jasper Motorsports	127	1	crash	42	20800
43	1	22	Ward Burton	Caterpillar	Pontiac	Bill Davis Racing	52	1	crash	39	33090
Failed to qualify or driver change
44		30	Derrike Cope	Jimmy Dean / Sara Lee	Pontiac	Bahari Racing
45		90	Stanton Barrett	Hills Brothers / Nestle / Carnation	Ford	Donlavey Racing
46		66	Darrell Waltrip	Big Kmart / Route 66	Ford	Haas-Carter Motorsports
47		11	Brett Bodine	Paychex	Ford	Brett Bodine Racing
48		19	Tom Hubert	Bradford White Corp.	Pontiac	Roehrig Motorsports
DC		36	Ernie Irvan	M&M's	Pontiac	MB2 Motorsports

Post-Race Championship Standings

Pos[5]	Driver	Points	Differential
1	Dale Jarrett	3524	--
2	Mark Martin	3210	- 314
3	Bobby Labonte	3177	- 347
4	Jeff Gordon	3057	- 467
5	Tony Stewart	3031	- 493
6	Jeff Burton	2995	- 529
7	Dale Earnhardt	2864	- 660
8	Rusty Wallace	2626	- 898
9	Terry Labonte	2593	- 931
10	Mike Skinner	2566	- 958