1989 AC Spark Plug 500

File:Pocono Raceway.svg, the venue where the race was held.]]

The race was held at Pocono International Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.

Pocono International Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.

Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

• (R) denotes rookie driver.

Qualifying was originally scheduled to be split into two rounds. The first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, July 21, at 3:00 PM EST. However, due to fog, the first round was cancelled, and qualifying was condensed into one round,{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 22, 1989 |title=Fog Puts Damper On Qualifying For Pocono Race |pages=28 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-fog-puts-damper-o/124622228/ |access-date=May 13, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} which was held on Saturday, July 22, at 8:00 AM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 1–40 would be decided on time,{{Cite news |date=July 21, 1989 |title=NASCAR Today |pages=37 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-nascar-today/124622268/ |access-date=May 13, 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 provisionals were given.

Ken Schrader, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 57.031 and an average speed of {{Convert|157.809|mph|km/h}}.{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 23, 1989 |title=Schrader Leads Lumina Charge In Qualifying |pages=82 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-schrader-leads-lu/124623728/ |access-date=May 13, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}

Four drivers would fail to qualify.

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;Drivers' Championship standings

• Note: Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.

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{{NASCAR next race|Previous_race=1989 Pepsi 400|Next_race=1989 Talladega DieHard 500|Monsteryear=1989|Series=NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}

{{1989 Winston Cup}}

{{NASCAR on ESPN}}

AC Spark Plug 500

Category:NASCAR races at Pocono Raceway

AC Spark Plug 500

AC Spark Plug 500