1996 Brickyard 400
The 1996 Brickyard 400, the 3rd running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held on August 3, 1996, at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The race was the nineteenth of the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the pole position with a speed of 176.419 miles per hour (283.919 km/h),[3] while Robert Yates Racing's Dale Jarrett won the race.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 19 of 31 in the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 Basic layout of Indianapolis Motor Speedway | |||
| Date | August 3, 1996 | ||
| Location | Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, Indiana | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.023 km) | ||
| Distance | 160 laps, 400 mi (643.74 km) | ||
| Weather | Warm with temperatures approaching 82.9 °F (28.3 °C); wind speeds up to 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 139.508 mph (224.516 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Johnny Benson, Jr. | Bahari Racing | |
| Laps | 70 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Announcers | Paul Page, Bob Jenkins and Benny Parsons | ||
| Nielsen Ratings | 4.3/-[2] | ||
The track had been repaved, and speeds had been reported to have increased by 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h).[4]
Race
Five laps into the race, the first caution flew for a crash involving Greg Sacks, Robert Pressley, Ricky Craven, Dave Marcis, and Bobby Hillin, Jr.[5] On lap 27, pole-sitter Jeff Gordon cut his right-front tire and hit the wall;[4] Gordon finished 37th.[5] Subsequently, Johnny Benson, Jr. took the lead, and led a race-high 79 laps.[5] Ernie Irvan took the lead from Benson on lap 108, and on lap 125, an error made during a pit stop dropped Benson to 13th.[4] Meanwhile, Dale Jarrett took the lead from his Robert Yates Racing teammate Irvan, who reclaimed the lead on lap 139 after passing Jarrett in turn 3. Jarrett managed to pass Irvan in turn 2[6] of lap 154,[5] and kept the lead after the race ended under caution due to Pressley crashing in turn 4 on lap 158.[6] Irvan finished second, followed by Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, Morgan Shepherd, Ricky Rudd, Rusty Wallace, Benson, Rick Mast and Bill Elliott.[5]
Afterwards, Jarrett and crew chief Todd Parrott kissed the yard of bricks at the start/finish line, a practice that has continued to be performed in NASCAR,[7] and was eventually also done by Gil de Ferran after his win in the Indianapolis 500 in 2003.[8]
In the points standings after the race, Terry Labonte led with 2792 points, Dale Earnhardt trailed with 2731 points; Jarrett (2729), Jeff Gordon (2688), and Ricky Rudd (2415) rounded out the Top 5.[5]
Results
Qualifying
Race results
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Terry Labonte | 2792 |
| 2 | Dale Earnhardt | 2731 |
| 3 | Dale Jarrett | 2729 |
| 4 | Jeff Gordon | 2688 |
| 5 | Ricky Rudd | 2415 |
| 6 | Rusty Wallace | 2393 |
| 7 | Ernie Irvan | 2363 |
| 8 | Mark Martin | 2357 |
| 9 | Ken Schrader | 2336 |
| 10 | Sterling Marlin | 2336 |
References
- "1996 Brickyard 400 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
- "Brickyard 400 shoots a brick". SportsMediaWatch.com. July 29, 2009. Retrieved October 3, 2013.
- "Daily Trackside Report". The Auto Channel. August 2, 1996. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- "Countdown To The 20th Running: The 1996 Brickyard 400". Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- "1996 Brickyard 400". Racing-Reference. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- Oreovicz, John (July 29, 2011). "Dale Jarrett remembers a great day". ESPN. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- "KISSING THE BRICKS, A NASCAR-INDY TRADITION". NASCAR. July 22, 2013. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- Caldwell, Dave (May 26, 2003). "AUTO RACING; De Ferran Dethrones Castroneves at Indy 500". The New York Times. Retrieved September 28, 2013.
- "1996 Brickyard 400: Starting Lineup". The Auto Channel. August 2, 1996. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
- "1996 Brickyard 400: Daily Trackside Report". The Auto Channel. August 2, 1996. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
- "1996 Official Race Results : Brickyard 400". NASCAR.com. Turner Sports. Archived from the original on 2004-04-10. Retrieved 2013-10-03.
| Preceded by 1996 DieHard 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1996 |
Succeeded by 1996 The Bud At The Glen |