2000 Winston 500

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

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval, a {{convert|2.66|mi|km|-long|adj=mid}} tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a {{convert|2.5|mi|km|-long|adj=mid}} tri-oval.

• (R) denotes rookie driver.
• (N) denotes driver eligible for the No Bull 5.

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !# !Driver !Team !Make !Sponsor
1 |Steve Park (N) |Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |Chevrolet |Pennzoil
01 |Ted Musgrave |Team SABCO |Chevrolet |BellSouth
2 |Rusty Wallace |Penske-Kranefuss Racing |Ford |Miller Lite
3 |Dale Earnhardt (N) |Richard Childress Racing |Chevrolet |GM Goodwrench Service
4 |Bobby Hamilton |Morgan–McClure Motorsports |Chevrolet |Kodak
5 |Terry Labonte |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |Kellogg's
6 |Mark Martin (N) |Roush Racing |Ford |Valvoline / Zerex
7 |Michael Waltrip |Mattei Motorsports |Chevrolet |NationsRent
8 |Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) |Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |Chevrolet |Budweiser
9 |Stacy Compton (R) |Melling Racing |Ford |Kodiak
10 |Johnny Benson Jr. |MB2 Motorsports |Pontiac |Aaron's / RCA
11 |Brett Bodine |Brett Bodine Racing |Ford |Ralphs
12 |Jeremy Mayfield |Penske-Kranefuss Racing |Ford |Mobil 1 / 2000 World Series
14 |Rick Mast |A. J. Foyt Enterprises |Pontiac |Conseco
16 |Kevin Lepage |Roush Racing |Ford |FamilyClick
17 |Matt Kenseth (R) |Roush Racing |Ford |DeWalt
18 |Bobby Labonte |Joe Gibbs Racing |Pontiac |Interstate Batteries
20 |Tony Stewart |Joe Gibbs Racing |Pontiac |The Home Depot
21 |Elliott Sadler |Wood Brothers Racing |Ford |Citgo Supergard 1980's Throwback
22 |Ward Burton |Bill Davis Racing |Pontiac |Caterpillar
24 |Jeff Gordon (N) |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |DuPont
25 |Jerry Nadeau |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |Michael Holigan
26 |Jimmy Spencer |Haas-Carter Motorsports |Ford |Big Kmart
27 |Mike Bliss (R) |Eel River Racing |Pontiac |Viagra
28 |Ricky Rudd |Robert Yates Racing |Ford |Texaco / Havoline
31 |Mike Skinner |Richard Childress Racing |Chevrolet |Lowe's
32 |Scott Pruett (R) |PPI Motorsports |Ford |Tide / Alabama Crimson Tide
33 |Joe Nemechek |Andy Petree Racing |Chevrolet |Oakwood Homes / Charlie Daniels Band
36 |Ken Schrader |MB2 Motorsports |Pontiac |M&M's
40 |Sterling Marlin |Team SABCO |Chevrolet |Coors Light
43 |John Andretti |Petty Enterprises |Pontiac |Cheerios
44 |Steve Grissom |Petty Enterprises |Pontiac |Hot Wheels
50 |Ricky Craven |Midwest Transit Racing |Chevrolet |Midwest Transit
55 |Kenny Wallace |Andy Petree Racing |Chevrolet |Square D / Cooper Lighting
60 |Rich Bickle |Joe Bessey Racing |Chevrolet |Power Team
66 |Darrell Waltrip |Haas-Carter Motorsports |Ford |Route 66 / Big Kmart
71 |Dave Marcis |Marcis Auto Racing |Chevrolet |Realtree
75 |Wally Dallenbach Jr. |Galaxy Motorsports |Ford |World Championship Wrestling
77 |Robert Pressley |Jasper Motorsports |Ford |Jasper Engines & Transmissions
88 |Dale Jarrett |Robert Yates Racing |Ford |Quality Care Service / Ford Credit
90 |Hut Stricklin |Donlavey Racing |Ford |Hills Bros. Coffee
91 |Blaise Alexander |LJ Racing |Chevrolet |Ericsson
93 |Dave Blaney (R) |Bill Davis Racing |Pontiac |Amoco
94 |Bill Elliott |Bill Elliott Racing |Ford |McDonald's
97 |Chad Little |Roush Racing |Ford |John Deere
99 |Jeff Burton (N) |Roush Racing |Ford |Exide
colspan="5" |[https://web.archive.org/web/20001213185200/http://www.nascar.com/winstoncup/races00/winston500/entry.html Official entry list]

The first practice session was held on Friday, October 13, at 12:00 PM EST. The session lasted for two hours. Dale Earnhardt, Inc.'s Steve Park set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 50.105 and an average speed of {{Convert|191.119|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.{{Cite web |date= |title=Jayski's Silly Season Site – Talladega 2 Race Info Page |url=http://jayski.com/next/2000-talladega2.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010210013154/http://jayski.com/next/2000-talladega2.htm |archive-date=February 10, 2001 |access-date=September 7, 2023 |website=Jayski's Silly Season Site}}

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed
1 |1 |Steve Park (N) |Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |Chevrolet |50.105 |191.119
2 |55 |Kenny Wallace |Andy Petree Racing |Chevrolet |50.357 |190.162
3 |8 |Dale Earnhardt Jr. (R) |Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |Chevrolet |50.465 |189.755
colspan="7" |[https://web.archive.org/web/20010218133949/http://racin.net/nascar/cup/races/00/talladega/2/prac1.shtml Full first practice results]

The second practice session was held on Saturday, October 14, at 9:15 AM EST. The session lasted for one hour and 15 minutes. Joe Gibbs Racing's Bobby Labonte set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 48.248 and an average speed of {{Convert|198.475|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed
1 |18 |Bobby Labonte |Joe Gibbs Racing |Pontiac |48.248 |198.475
2 |77 |Robert Pressley |Jasper Motorsports |Ford |48.583 |197.106
3 |1 |Steve Park (N) |Dale Earnhardt, Inc. |Chevrolet |48.683 |196.701
colspan="7" |[https://web.archive.org/web/20010218135039/http://racin.net/nascar/cup/races/00/talladega/2/prac2.shtml Full second practice results]

The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, October 14, at 12:45 PM EST. The session lasted for one hour. Penske-Kranefuss Racing's Rusty Wallace set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 49.693 and an average speed of {{Convert|192.703|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.

class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed
1 |2 |Rusty Wallace |Penske-Kranefuss Racing |Ford |49.693 |192.703
2 |01 |Ted Musgrave |Team SABCO |Chevrolet |49.701 |192.672
3 |10 |Johnny Benson Jr. |MB2 Motorsports |Pontiac |49.875 |192.000
colspan="7" |[https://web.archive.org/web/20010218134625/http://racin.net/nascar/cup/races/00/talladega/2/prac3.shtml Full Happy Hour practice results]

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, October 13, at 4:00 PM EST. Each driver had two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two counted as their official qualifying lap. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round was 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, October 14, at 11:45 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver had two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. Positions 26–36 were decided on time, while positions 37–43 were based on provisionals. Six spots were awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh was awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points was awarded a provisional.{{Cite web |title=Jayski's Silly Season Site – 2000 Provisional Start Status |url=http://www.jayski.com/stats/2000/2000prov.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051123054225/http://www.jayski.com/stats/2000/2000prov.htm |archive-date=November 23, 2005 |access-date=May 4, 2022 |website=Jayski's Silly Season Site}}

Joe Nemechek, driving for Andy Petree Racing, managed to win the pole, setting a time of 50.326 and an average speed of {{Convert|190.279|mph|km/h}} in the first round.{{Cite web |last=Poole |first=David |date=October 13, 2000 |title=Nemechek wins pole, expects fireworks |url=http://www.thatsracin.com/00/1015/1014quallede.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010312232032/http://www.thatsracin.com/00/1015/1014quallede.htm |archive-date=March 12, 2001 |access-date=September 7, 2023 |website=That's Racin' |publisher=The Charlotte Observer}}

Three drivers failed to qualify: Wally Dallenbach Jr., Blaise Alexander, & Hut Stricklin.

The race was aired live on ESPN. Jerry Punch, 1973 Cup Series champion Benny Parsons and two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Ned Jarrett called the race from the broadcast booth. Punch filled in for regular commentator Bob Jenkins, who was covering ABC's coverage of the Excite 500 IndyCar Series race at Texas Motor Speedway. Bill Weber, John Kernan and Ray Dunlap handled pit road for the television side.

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%"
colspan=3 | ESPN
colspan=2 | Booth announcers ! rowspan=2 | Pit reporters
Lap-by-lap ! Color-commentators
Jerry Punch | Ned Jarrett Benny Parsons | Bill Weber John Kernan Ray Dunlap

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

;Drivers' Championship standings

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
! Pos ! Driver ! Points
align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | Bobby Labonte | style="text-align:center;"| 4,537
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | Dale Earnhardt | style="text-align:center;"| 4,327 (-210)
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | Jeff Burton | style="text-align:center;"| 4,229 (-308)
align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | Dale Jarrett | style="text-align:center;"| 4,135 (–402)
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | Ricky Rudd | style="text-align:center;"| 4,102 (–435)
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | Tony Stewart | style="text-align:center;"| 4,064 (–473)
align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | Mark Martin | style="text-align:center;"| 3,999 (–538)
align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | Rusty Wallace | style="text-align:center;"| 3,955 (–582)
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | Jeff Gordon | style="text-align:center;"| 3,729 (–808)
align="left"| 10px 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 10 | Ward Burton | style="text-align:center;"| 3,667 (–870)
class="sortbottom" !colspan="9"|[https://www.newspapers.com/article/tampa-bay-times-winston-cup/131389085/ Official driver's standings]

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

{{col-end}}

{{reflist}}

{{NASCAR next race|Previous_race=2000 UAW-GM Quality 500|Next_race=2000 Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400|Monsteryear=2000|Series=NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}

{{2000 Winston Cup}}

{{NASCAR on ESPN}}

{{authority control}}

Category:2000 in sports in Alabama

Category:2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

Category:Dale Earnhardt

Category:NASCAR races at Talladega Superspeedway

Category:October 2000 sports events in the United States