1992 Hooters 500

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The 1992 Hooters 500 was the final race of the 1992 NASCAR season. The race is considered one of the greatest NASCAR races of all-time.^[1] It was held November 15, 1992 at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race marked the final NASCAR start for 7-time champion Richard Petty and the first Winston Cup start for future champion Jeff Gordon.

1 Prerace
2 Race
3 Results
4 Fifteenth Anniversary
5 Additional reading
6 References

[edit] Prerace

Coming into the race six drivers had a mathematical chance to win the title, and the points standings were led by Davey Allison. Allison needed to finish sixth or better to clinch the championship.^[2] Allison led second-place Alan Kulwicki by 30 points, Bill Elliott by 40, Harry Gant by 97 and Kyle Petty by 98.^[2] Mark Martin also had an outside chance.

UNDERBIRD car, after restoration

Kulwicki received approval from NASCAR and Ford to change the "Thunderbird" lettering on his bumper by putting two Mighty Mouse patches on the "TH" in "THUNDERBIRD" because he felt like the underdog for winning the championship, and Kulwicki admired the character, which symbolised he and his team (many of whom later became champions themselves long after his death).

Rick Mast won his first career pole position in the #1 car. His qualifying speed of 180.183 mph was the first-ever NASCAR qualifying speed over 180 mph at an intermediate length circuit. Previously that speed had only been achieved at Daytona and Talladega.

Richard Petty entered the race, his final career start, at the conclusion of his year-long "Fan Appreciation Tour." Facing the intense pressure, Petty barely managed to qualify, posting the 39th fastest speed out of 41 cars. He would not have been eligible for the provisional starting position, and had to qualify on speed.

[edit] Race

A record 160,000 fans arrived at Atlanta Motor Speedway to witness Petty's final ride, and to watch the exciting championship battle. The race was televised live on ESPN. At the start, after winning the pole position, Rick Mast crashed on the second lap, and failed to lead a single lap.

Kyle Petty had engine problems that took him out of contention. Allison was in sixth place until Ernie Irvan's tire blew with around 100 laps left in the event.^[2] Allison T-boned Irvan's spinning car on lap 204. The car had a broken right front tie rod. He lost 40 laps repairing the tie rod, ending his championship hopes.^[3]

Kulwicki and Elliott were left to duel for the title.^[1] During his first pit stop, Kulwicki lost first gear.^[4] Kulwicki was known for being an intelligent driver who thought outside the box, and worked with crew chief Paul Andrews to plot the a major move late in the race. With final pit stops taking place, Kulwicki lead enough laps to ensure the second five-point bonus for leading the most laps would be secured before making his final pit stop on Lap 309. ^[4] Kulwicki's pit crew did a "gas and go" stop.^[4] Not changing tires during the stop allowed the Paul Andrews-led group to help push the car, preventing it from stalling with only one remaining gear.^[4] Elliott won the race, and Kulwicki finished second.^[1] By leading one more lap than Elliott, Kulwicki claimed the 5 bonus points for leading the most laps. Kulwicki became the 1992 Winston Cup Champion by 10 points over Elliott.^[1] The championship would have ended in a tie if Elliott had led more laps than Kulwicki, and Elliott had the tie-breaker. It was the closest title win in NASCAR Cup Series history until the implementation of the Chase for the Cup format 12 years later.^[5] Kulwicki celebrated with his second-ever Polish Victory Lap.^[6]

Richard Petty was caught up in Ken Schrader's wreck on lap 97, and the front end of the car was destroyed.^[3] A fire broke out, but Petty escaped uninjured. The crew worked diligently all afternoon to get the car running again, and with two laps to go in the race, Petty brought out his car with no sheet metal on the front end.^[3] He finished 35th, and was credited as running at the finish in his final race.^[7]

Jeff Gordon's car was loose, and he hit the wall on lap 164. He was unable to continue.^[3]

[edit] Results

11-Bill Elliott, led 102 laps (of 328)^[7]
7-Alan Kulwicki, led 103 laps^[7]
15-Geoff Bodine, led 1 lap
12-Jimmy Spencer
94-Terry Labonte, led 1 lap
2-Rusty Wallace
22-Sterling Marlin
66-Jimmy Hensley
55-Ted Musgrave
18-Dale Jarrett
21-Morgan Shepherd
68-Bobby Hamilton
33-Harry Gant
30-Michael Waltrip
10-Derrike Cope
42-Kyle Petty
9-Chad Little
83-Lake Speed
23-Eddie Bierschwale
88-Mike Wallace
52-Jimmy Means
71-Dave Marcis
17-Darrell Waltrip
32-Jimmy Horton
5-Ricky Rudd
3-Dale Earnhardt, led 26 laps
28-Davey Allison, led 5 laps
1-Rick Mast
4-Ernie Irvan, led 24 laps
90-Bobby Hillin
24-Jeff Gordon
6-Mark Martin, led 47 laps
57-Bob Schacht
45-Rich Bickle
43-Richard Petty
25-Ken Schrader
8-Dick Trickle
16-Wally Dallenbach, Jr.
49-Stanley Smith
26-Brett Bodine, led 1 lap
41-Hut Stricklin

[edit] Fifteenth Anniversary

To commemorate the fifteenth anniversary of the race, Jeff Gordon served as Grand Marshall and Richard Petty the honorary starter for the 2007 Pep Boys Auto 500 that took place on October 28, 2007.