1988 Champion Spark Plug 400
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Short description|19th race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}
{{Infobox NASCAR race report|Type=NASWINSTON|Location=Brooklyn, Michigan, Michigan International Speedway|Distance_mi=400|Pole_Time=41.157|Scheduled_km=643.737|Distance_km=643.737|Scheduled_laps=200|Distance_laps=200|Course_km=3.2|Scheduled_mi=400|Course_mi=2|Avg={{convert|156.863|mph|km/h}}|Year=1988|Date=August 21|Race_Name=Champion Spark Plug 400|Official_name=19th Annual Champion Spark Plug 400|Caption=The 1988 Champion Spark Plug 400 program cover, featuring Richard Petty.|Radio=Motor Racing Network|Race_No=19|Season_No=29|Car=28|Most_laps=75|Pole_Team=Melling Racing|Pole_Driver=Bill Elliott|First_Driver=Davey Allison|Most_Driver=Rusty Wallace|Most_Team=Blue Max Racing|First_Team=Ranier-Lundy Racing|Network=ESPN|Announcers=Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Gary Nelson|Image=1988 Champion Spark Plug 400.jpeg|Attendance=72,000}}
The 1988 Champion Spark Plug 400 was the 19th stock car race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 19th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, August 21, 1988, before an audience of 72,000 in Brooklyn, Michigan, at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Taking advantage of a misfortunate Bill Elliott, Ranier-Lundy Racing driver Davey Allison would manage to lead the final 23 laps of the race to take his third career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=August 22, 1988 |title=Allison Gets Victory To Dedicate To Dad (Part 1) |pages=17 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-allison-gets-vict/128295643/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=August 22, 1988 |title=Allison Gets Victory To Dedicate To Dad (Part 2) |pages=20 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-allison-gets-vict/128295667/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Clifton |date=August 22, 1988 |title=Davey Allison breaks '88 jinx (Part 1) |pages=41 |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-davey-allison-breaks/128295712/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Clifton |date=August 22, 1988 |title=Davey Allison breaks '88 jinx (Part 2) |pages=48 |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/detroit-free-press-davey-allison-breaks/128295740/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} To fill out the top three, Blue Max Racing driver Rusty Wallace and Melling Racing driver Bill Elliott would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
File:Michigan_International_Speedway_track_map.png, the venue where the race was held.]]
The race was held at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located in Brooklyn, Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is known as a "sister track" to Texas World Speedway as MIS's oval design was a direct basis of TWS, with moderate modifications to the banking in the corners, and was used as the basis of Auto Club Speedway. The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation. Michigan International Speedway is recognized as one of motorsports' premier facilities because of its wide racing surface and high banking (by open-wheel standards; the 18-degree banking is modest by stock car standards).
= Entry list =
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!# !Driver !Team !Make !Sponsor |
| 1 |
| 01
|Ford |
| 2
|Ernie Irvan (R) |
| 3 |
| 4 |
| 5 |
| 6
|Ford |
| 06 |
| 7
|Ford |
| 07 |
| 8 |
| 9
|Ford |
| 10
|Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |
| 11 |
| 12 |
| 15
|Ford |
| 17
|Tide |
| 19
|Ford |
| 21
|Ford |
| 23 |
| 25 |
| 26 |
| 27 |
| 28
|Ford |
| 29 |
| 30 |
| 31 |
| 33 |
| 36 |
| 38 |
| 40 |
| 43
|STP |
| 44 |
| 50 |
| 51 |
| 52 |
| 55 |
| 67
|Ford |
| 68
|Ford |
| 70 |
| 71 |
| 75 |
| 80
|Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford |
| 83 |
| 88 |
| 89 |
| 90
|Ford |
| 95 |
| 96 |
| 97 |
| 98
|Brad Noffsinger (R) |
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Saturday, August 20, at 11:30 AM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, August 20, at 2:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time,{{Cite news |date=August 20, 1988 |title=NASCAR Today |pages=32 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-nascar-today/128295778/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two were given.
Bill Elliott, driving for Melling Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 41.157 and an average speed of {{Convert|174.940|mph|km/h}} in the first round.{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=August 21, 1988 |title=Winston Cup Front-Runners To Duel At Michigan Today |pages=138 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-winston-cup-front/128295858/ |access-date=July 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}
Nine drivers would fail to qualify.
= Full qualifying results =
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed |
| 1
|9 |Ford |41.157 |174.940 |
|---|
| 2
|5 |41.289 |174.381 |
| 3
|25 |41.295 |174.355 |
| 4
|28 |Ford |41.342 |174.157 |
| 5
|3 |41.343 |174.153 |
| 6
|15 |Ford |41.434 |173.770 |
| 7
|27 |41.449 |173.707 |
| 8
|7 |Ford |41.472 |173.611 |
| 9
|88 |41.520 |173.410 |
| 10
|26 |41.617 |173.006 |
| 11
|1 |41.738 |172.505 |
| 12
|12 |41.745 |172.476 |
| 13
|55 |41.752 |172.447 |
| 14
|44 |41.769 |172.377 |
| 15
|17 |41.779 |172.335 |
| 16
|83 |41.805 |172.228 |
| 17
|68 |Ford |41.814 |172.191 |
| 18
|71 |41.844 |172.068 |
| 19
|75 |41.881 |171.916 |
| 20
|11 |41.884 |171.903 |
| colspan="7" |Failed to lock in Round 1 |
| 21
|90 |Ford |41.885 |171.899 |
| 22
|21 |Ford |41.911 |171.793 |
| 23
|4 |41.924 |171.739 |
| 24
|43 |41.931 |171.711 |
| 25
|97 |41.941 |171.670 |
| 26
|6 |Ford |41.947 |171.645 |
| 27
|33 |41.991 |171.465 |
| 28
|30 |42.002 |171.420 |
| 29
|23 |42.003 |171.416 |
| 30
|52 |42.080 |171.103 |
| 31
|50 |42.082 |171.095 |
| 32
|01 |Ford |42.086 |171.078 |
| 33
|96 |42.152 |170.810 |
| 34
|19 |Ford |42.153 |170.806 |
| 35
|29 |42.182 |170.689 |
| 36
|89 |42.217 |170.547 |
| 37
|10 |Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |42.225 |170.515 |
| 38
|36 |42.225 |170.515 |
| 39
|8 |42.259 |170.378 |
| 40
|2 |Ernie Irvan (R) |42.362 |169.964 |
| colspan="7" |Provisionals |
| 41
|31 |42.373 |169.920 |
| 42
|98 |Brad Noffsinger (R) |42.775 |168.323 |
| colspan="7" |Failed to qualify |
| 43
|51 |42.718 |168.547 |
| 44
|40 |42.719 |168.543 |
| 45
|80 |Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford |42.867 |167.961 |
| 46
|67 |Ford |43.017 |167.376 |
| 47
|95 |43.033 |167.313 |
| 48
|38 |43.362 |166.044 |
| 49
|70 |43.650 |164.948 |
| 50
|06 |44.078 |163.347 |
| 51
|07 | - | - |
| colspan="7" |[https://www.newspapers.com/article/poughkeepsie-journal-nascar-champion-400/128281790/ Official starting lineup] |
Race results
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!Fin !St !# !Driver !Team !Make !Laps !Led !Status !Pts !Winnings |
| 1
|4 |28 |Ford |200 |38 |running |180 |$60,475 |
|---|
| 2
|7 |27 |200 |75 |running |180 |$37,250 |
| 3
|1 |9 |Ford |200 |36 |running |170 |$31,775 |
| 4
|9 |88 |200 |6 |running |165 |$19,600 |
| 5
|16 |83 |200 |0 |running |155 |$14,650 |
| 6
|6 |15 |Ford |200 |0 |running |150 |$18,425 |
| 7
|28 |30 |200 |0 |running |146 |$12,365 |
| 8
|22 |21 |Ford |200 |0 |running |142 |$14,365 |
| 9
|23 |4 |200 |0 |running |138 |$8,910 |
| 10
|2 |5 |200 |0 |running |134 |$12,705 |
| 11
|14 |44 |200 |0 |running |130 |$9,750 |
| 12
|3 |25 |200 |1 |running |132 |$11,695 |
| 13
|20 |11 |199 |1 |running |129 |$12,190 |
| 14
|25 |97 |199 |0 |running |121 |$4,860 |
| 15
|21 |90 |Ford |199 |0 |running |118 |$8,935 |
| 16
|10 |26 |198 |3 |engine |120 |$7,895 |
| 17
|15 |17 |198 |1 |running |117 |$11,085 |
| 18
|35 |29 |198 |0 |running |109 |$5,175 |
| 19
|36 |89 |198 |0 |running |106 |$3,665 |
| 20
|13 |55 |198 |0 |running |103 |$7,205 |
| 21
|27 |33 |197 |0 |running |100 |$6,320 |
| 22
|18 |71 |197 |0 |running |97 |$6,160 |
| 23
|12 |12 |197 |0 |running |94 |$10,075 |
| 24
|29 |23 |197 |0 |running |91 |$2,965 |
| 25
|37 |10 |Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |196 |0 |running |88 |$3,710 |
| 26
|42 |98 |Brad Noffsinger (R) |196 |0 |running |85 |$3,030 |
| 27
|34 |19 |Ford |195 |0 |running |82 |$2,725 |
| 28
|38 |36 |195 |0 |running |79 |$2,670 |
| 29
|5 |3 |194 |39 |running |81 |$14,315 |
| 30
|33 |96 |193 |0 |running |73 |$2,535 |
| 31
|32 |01 |Ford |186 |0 |running |70 |$2,490 |
| 32
|26 |6 |Ford |162 |0 |engine |67 |$3,295 |
| 33
|40 |2 |Ernie Irvan (R) |157 |0 |engine |64 |$2,400 |
| 34
|17 |68 |Ford |127 |0 |engine |61 |$5,080 |
| 35
|41 |31 |114 |0 |engine |58 |$3,000 |
| 36
|8 |7 |Ford |104 |0 |engine |55 |$4,955 |
| 37
|39 |8 |94 |0 |engine |52 |$4,915 |
| 38
|30 |52 |72 |0 |spindle |49 |$4,870 |
| 39
|24 |43 |68 |0 |distributor |46 |$4,825 |
| 40
|19 |75 |51 |0 |engine |43 |$9,210 |
| 41
|11 |1 |50 |0 |oil pan |40 |$2,210 |
| 42
|31 |50 |21 |0 |ignition |37 |$2,710 |
| colspan="11" |Failed to qualify |
| 43
! rowspan="9" | |51 ! colspan="5" rowspan="9" | |
| 44
|40 |
| 45
|80 |Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford |
| 46
|67 |Ford |
| 47
|95 |
| 48
|38 |
| 49
|70 |
| 50
|06 |
| 51
|07 |
| colspan="11" |[https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-sundays-results/128281178/ Official race results] |
Standings after the race
{{col-start}}
{{col-2}}
;Drivers' Championship standings
| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |
| ! Pos
! Driver ! Points |
|---|
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,873 |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,852 (-21) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,716 (-157) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,602 (–271) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,552 (–321) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,470 (–403) |
| align="left"| 10px 1
| style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,417 (–456) |
| align="left"| 10px 1
| style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,405 (–468) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,353 (–520) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 10 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,235 (–638) |
| class="sortbottom"
!colspan="9"|[https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-courier-journal-nascar-statistics/128294822/ Official driver's standings] |
- Note: Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.
{{col-end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{NASCAR next race|Previous_race=1988 The Budweiser at The Glen|Next_race=1988 Busch 500|Monsteryear=1988|Series=NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}
{{1988 Winston Cup}}
{{NASCAR on ESPN}}
Category:1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Category:NASCAR races at Michigan International Speedway