# 1997 AC Delco 400

The 1997 AC Delco 400 was the 30th stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 33rd iteration of the event. The race was originally scheduled to be held on Sunday, October 26, 1997, but was postponed to Monday, October 27, due to rain. The race was held in Rockingham, North Carolina, at North Carolina Speedway, a 1.017 miles (1.637 km) permanent high-banked racetrack. The race took the scheduled 393 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Petty Enterprises driver Bobby Hamilton would manage to make a late-race charge to lead to take his second 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 Hendrick Motorsports driver Ricky Craven would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

North Carolina Speedway was opened as a flat, one-mile oval on October 31, 1965. In 1969, the track was extensively reconfigured to a high-banked, D-shaped oval just over one mile in length. In 1997, North Carolina Motor Speedway merged with Penske Motorsports, and was renamed North Carolina Speedway. Shortly thereafter, the infield was reconfigured, and competition on the infield road course, mostly by the SCCA, was discontinued. Currently, the track is home to the Fast Track High Performance Driving School.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 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 | Nerf, 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 |
| 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | Skittles |
| 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | Kmart, RC Cola |
| 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 |
| 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 split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, October 24, at 2:00 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, held on Saturday, October 25, at 9:45 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.
Bobby Labonte, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 23.365 and an average speed of 156.696 miles per hour (252.178 km/h).
Four drivers would fail to qualify: Brett Bodine, Dave Marcis, Ed Berrier, and Kenny Irwin Jr.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 23.365 | 156.696 |
| 2 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 23.391 | 156.522 |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 23.423 | 156.308 |
| 4 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 23.499 | 155.802 |
| 5 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 23.539 | 155.538 |
| 6 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.541 | 155.524 |
| 7 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 23.542 | 155.518 |
| 8 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 23.548 | 155.478 |
| 9 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.551 | 155.458 |
| 10 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 23.553 | 155.445 |
| 11 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 23.563 | 155.379 |
| 12 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 23.575 | 155.300 |
| 13 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 23.585 | 155.234 |
| 14 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 23.589 | 155.208 |
| 15 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 23.596 | 155.162 |
| 16 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 23.606 | 155.096 |
| 17 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 23.611 | 155.063 |
| 18 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 23.616 | 155.030 |
| 19 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 23.618 | 155.017 |
| 20 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 23.621 | 154.998 |
| 21 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 23.621 | 154.998 |
| 22 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 23.622 | 154.991 |
| 23 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 23.642 | 154.860 |
| 24 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 23.646 | 154.834 |
| 25 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 23.650 | 154.808 |
| 26 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 23.676 | 154.638 |
| 27 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 23.683 | 154.592 |
| 28 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 23.686 | 154.572 |
| 29 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.697 | 154.501 |
| 30 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 23.700 | 154.481 |
| 31 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 23.710 | 154.416 |
| 32 | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 23.724 | 154.325 |
| 33 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.746 | 154.182 |
| 34 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 23.765 | 154.058 |
| 35 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.767 | 154.046 |
| 36 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 23.814 | 153.741 |
| 37 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.824 | 153.677 |
| 38 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 23.870 | 153.381 |
| Provisionals |||||||
| 39 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 40 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | -* | -* |
| 41 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| 42 | 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Champion's Provisional |||||||
| 43 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 44 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 45 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 46 | 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 47 | 27 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| Official qualifying results |||||||
*Time not available.

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 28 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 393 | 37 | running | 180 | $89,150 |
| 2 | 2 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 393 | 73 | running | 175 | $65,175 |
| 3 | 9 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 139 | running | 175 | $45,625 |
| 4 | 6 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 23 | running | 165 | $41,150 |
| 5 | 12 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 155 | $30,800 |
| 6 | 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 150 | $32,400 |
| 7 | 33 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 1 | running | 151 | $38,400 |
| 8 | 26 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 142 | $32,800 |
| 9 | 35 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 138 | $32,200 |
| 10 | 19 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 393 | 0 | running | 134 | $22,625 |
| 11 | 1 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 392 | 93 | running | 135 | $36,875 |
| 12 | 8 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 127 | $26,575 |
| 13 | 27 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 124 | $14,975 |
| 14 | 17 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 121 | $26,075 |
| 15 | 24 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 392 | 0 | running | 118 | $19,675 |
| 16 | 16 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 391 | 0 | running | 115 | $18,475 |
| 17 | 30 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 391 | 0 | running | 112 | $18,175 |
| 18 | 18 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 391 | 0 | running | 109 | $30,975 |
| 19 | 7 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 391 | 4 | running | 111 | $24,575 |
| 20 | 14 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 391 | 0 | running | 103 | $19,175 |
| 21 | 29 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 | running | 100 | $17,775 |
| 22 | 5 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 391 | 2 | running | 102 | $16,475 |
| 23 | 10 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 | running | 94 | $16,275 |
| 24 | 37 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 | running | 91 | $23,075 |
| 25 | 23 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 390 | 0 | running | 88 | $22,875 |
| 26 | 4 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 390 | 0 | running | 85 | $22,675 |
| 27 | 15 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 390 | 0 | running | 82 | $15,475 |
| 28 | 39 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 389 | 0 | running | 79 | $27,375 |
| 29 | 43 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 389 | 0 | running | 76 | $22,275 |
| 30 | 38 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 389 | 0 | running | 73 | $21,675 |
| 31 | 41 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 389 | 0 | running | 70 | $21,050 |
| 32 | 34 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 388 | 0 | running | 67 | $18,950 |
| 33 | 32 | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 387 | 0 | running | 64 | $11,850 |
| 34 | 31 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 387 | 0 | running | 61 | $18,750 |
| 35 | 21 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 386 | 0 | running | 58 | $11,650 |
| 36 | 20 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 384 | 0 | running | 55 | $18,625 |
| 37 | 25 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 379 | 0 | engine | 52 | $18,600 |
| 38 | 11 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 365 | 21 | running | 54 | $30,050 |
| 39 | 42 | 40 | Greg Sacks | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 365 | 0 | handling | 46 | $18,550 |
| 40 | 13 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 241 | 0 | crash | 43 | $26,550 |
| 41 | 36 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 239 | 0 | crash | 40 | $11,550 |
| 42 | 22 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 178 | 0 | camshaft | 37 | $18,550 |
| 43 | 40 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 111 | 0 | crash | 34 | $18,550 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 44 | | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 45 | | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 46 | | 95 | Ed Berrier | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 47 | | 27 | Kenny Irwin Jr. | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||