# 1997 NAPA 500

The 1997 NAPA 500 was the 32nd and final stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 38th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, November 16, 1997, in Hampton, Georgia at Atlanta Motor Speedway, a 1.54 miles (2.48 km) permanent asphalt quad-oval intermediate speedway. The race took the scheduled 325 laps to complete. At race's end, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte would manage to dominate a majority of the race to take his fifth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett and Roush Racing driver Mark Martin would finish second and third, respectively.
Needing an 18th-place finish or higher in the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to lock up the championship after staying consistently within the top 18, eventually securing a 17th-place finish to win his second career NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship, finishing 14 points ahead of runner-up Dale Jarrett.

## Background

Atlanta Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta International Raceway) is a 1.54-mile race track in Hampton, Georgia, United States, 20 miles (32 km) south of Atlanta. It has annually hosted NASCAR Winston Cup Series stock car races since its inauguration in 1960.
The venue was bought by Speedway Motorsports in 1990. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track. In 1997, to standardize the track with Speedway Motorsports' other two intermediate ovals, the entire track was almost completely rebuilt. The frontstretch and backstretch were swapped, and the configuration of the track was changed from oval to quad-oval, with a new official length of 1.54-mile (2.48 km) where before it was 1.522-mile (2.449 km). The project made the track one of the fastest on the NASCAR circuit.

### Entry list

* (R) - denotes rookie driver.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 00 | Buckshot Jones | Buckshot Racing | Pontiac | Aquafresh |
| 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | R+L Carriers |
| 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | Miller Lite |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service Plus |
| 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodak |
| 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kellogg's Frosted Flakes |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Valvoline |
| 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | QVC |
| 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | Circuit City |
| 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | Advantage Camo |
| 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | Tide |
| 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | Brett Bodine Racing |
| 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | Burger King |
| 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | PrimeStar, The Family Channel |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | Parts America |
| 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | Interstate Batteries |
| 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | MBNA |
| 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | Camel Cigarettes |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | DuPont |
| 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Budweiser |
| 27 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | G.I. Joe, Winner's Circle |
| 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | Cartoon Network, Tom and Jerry, Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken |
| 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Pennzoil |
| 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | Lowe's |
| 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | Skoal |
| 35 | Todd Bodine | ISM Racing | Pontiac | Tabasco |
| 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | Skittles |
| 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | Kmart |
| 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | Coors Light |
| 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | BellSouth |
| 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | Hot Wheels |
| 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | First Union |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Realtree |
| 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | Remington Arms |
| 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | Jasper Engines & Transmissions, Federal-Mogul |
| 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | Hanes |
| 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | Square D |
| 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Quality Care Service, Ford Credit |
| 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Heilig-Meyers |
| 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | Pionite |
| 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | McDonald's |
| 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | Feed the Children |
| 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | Caterpillar |
| 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | John Deere |
| 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | RCA |
| 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | Exide |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was scheduled to be split into two rounds. If the events had run as scheduled, the first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, November 14, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 25 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, which was scheduled to be held on Saturday, November 15, at 11:00 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. Positions 26-38 would be decided on time, and depending on who needed it, the 39th thru either the 42nd, 43rd, or 44th position would be based on provisionals. Four spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The fifth is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the field would be limited to 42 cars. If a champion needed it, the field would expand to 43 cars. If the race was a companion race with the NASCAR Winston West Series, four spots would be determined by NASCAR Winston Cup Series provisionals, while the final two spots would be given to teams in the Winston West Series, leaving the field at 44 cars.
The first round of qualifying was postponed until Saturday, November 15 due to rain. This would leave only one round of qualifying ran, cancelling the second round.
Geoff Bodine, driving for Geoff Bodine Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.074 and an average speed of 197.478 miles per hour (317.810 km/h).
Seven drivers would fail to qualify: Todd Bodine, Robert Pressley, David Green, Hut Stricklin, Greg Sacks, Ed Berrier, and Dave Marcis.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 28.074 | 197.478 |
| 2 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 28.365 | 195.452 |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 28.414 | 195.115 |
| 4 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.420 | 195.074 |
| 5 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 28.428 | 195.019 |
| 6 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 28.498 | 194.540 |
| 7 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.515 | 194.424 |
| 8 | 27 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | 28.519 | 194.397 |
| 9 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 28.566 | 194.077 |
| 10 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 28.613 | 193.758 |
| 11 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 28.628 | 193.657 |
| 12 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 28.646 | 193.535 |
| 13 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 28.666 | 193.400 |
| 14 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 28.692 | 193.225 |
| 15 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.698 | 193.184 |
| 16 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 28.709 | 193.110 |
| 17 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 28.724 | 193.009 |
| 18 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 28.729 | 192.976 |
| 19 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 28.737 | 192.922 |
| 20 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 28.748 | 192.848 |
| 21 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 28.776 | 192.661 |
| 22 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 28.779 | 192.640 |
| 23 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 28.792 | 192.553 |
| 24 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 28.801 | 192.493 |
| 25 | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 28.825 | 192.333 |
| 26 | 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 28.858 | 192.113 |
| 27 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.861 | 192.093 |
| 28 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 28.868 | 192.047 |
| 29 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 28.895 | 191.867 |
| 30 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 28.903 | 191.814 |
| 31 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 28.913 | 191.748 |
| 32 | 00 | Buckshot Jones | Buckshot Racing | Pontiac | 28.989 | 191.245 |
| 33 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 28.995 | 191.205 |
| 34 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.018 | 191.054 |
| 35 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 29.029 | 190.981 |
| 36 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 29.043 | 190.889 |
| 37 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.076 | 190.673 |
| 38 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 29.086 | 190.607 |
| Provisionals |||||||
| 39 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 40 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 41 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 42 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | -* | -* |
| Champion's Provisionals |||||||
| 43 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 44 | 35 | Todd Bodine | ISM Racing | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 45 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| 46 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 47 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 48 | 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 49 | 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 50 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Official qualifying results |||||||
*Time not available.

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 21 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 325 | 168 | running | 185 | $158,600 |
| 2 | 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 325 | 5 | running | 175 | $79,600 |
| 3 | 9 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 325 | 52 | running | 170 | $60,300 |
| 4 | 7 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 325 | 0 | running | 160 | $43,475 |
| 5 | 14 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 325 | 2 | running | 160 | $38,100 |
| 6 | 20 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 324 | 5 | running | 155 | $34,075 |
| 7 | 40 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 324 | 0 | running | 146 | $43,030 |
| 8 | 5 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 324 | 41 | running | 147 | $35,950 |
| 9 | 2 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 323 | 13 | running | 143 | $39,425 |
| 10 | 12 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 323 | 0 | running | 134 | $38,950 |
| 11 | 27 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 323 | 0 | running | 130 | $41,975 |
| 12 | 23 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 323 | 4 | running | 132 | $41,050 |
| 13 | 35 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 322 | 0 | running | 124 | $38,425 |
| 14 | 22 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 322 | 0 | running | 121 | $28,975 |
| 15 | 25 | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 322 | 0 | running | 118 | $25,650 |
| 16 | 6 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 322 | 24 | running | 120 | $43,075 |
| 17 | 37 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 322 | 0 | running | 112 | $41,155 |
| 18 | 24 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 321 | 7 | running | 114 | $27,440 |
| 19 | 38 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 321 | 0 | running | 106 | $27,100 |
| 20 | 13 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 321 | 0 | running | 103 | $33,685 |
| 21 | 4 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 321 | 0 | running | 100 | $44,470 |
| 22 | 31 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 320 | 0 | running | 97 | $33,055 |
| 23 | 28 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 320 | 0 | running | 94 | $25,740 |
| 24 | 42 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 320 | 0 | running | 91 | $32,425 |
| 25 | 8 | 27 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | 320 | 0 | running | 88 | $21,910 |
| 26 | 29 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 317 | 0 | running | 85 | $24,995 |
| 27 | 36 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 317 | 0 | running | 82 | $31,780 |
| 28 | 15 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 317 | 0 | running | 79 | $31,565 |
| 29 | 26 | 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 317 | 0 | running | 76 | $21,505 |
| 30 | 19 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 317 | 0 | running | 73 | $31,430 |
| 31 | 34 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 315 | 0 | running | 70 | $30,865 |
| 32 | 33 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 314 | 0 | running | 67 | $38,300 |
| 33 | 1 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 314 | 4 | running | 69 | $43,735 |
| 34 | 39 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 313 | 0 | running | 61 | $36,170 |
| 35 | 16 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 302 | 0 | running | 58 | $28,105 |
| 36 | 10 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 274 | 0 | clutch | 55 | $28,040 |
| 37 | 11 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 242 | 0 | handling | 52 | $36,030 |
| 38 | 30 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 231 | 0 | running | 49 | $20,875 |
| 39 | 41 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 173 | 0 | handling | 46 | $27,875 |
| 40 | 43 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 114 | 0 | ignition | 43 | $27,875 |
| 41 | 18 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 57 | 0 | handling | 40 | $29,375 |
| 42 | 17 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 50 | 0 | crash | 37 | $20,875 |
| 43 | 32 | 00 | Buckshot Jones | Buckshot Racing | Pontiac | 38 | 0 | crash | 34 | $20,875 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 44 | | 35 | Todd Bodine | ISM Racing | Pontiac | | | | | |
| 45 | | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| 46 | | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 47 | | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 48 | | 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 49 | | 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 50 | | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||