# 1997 UAW-GM Quality 500

The 1997 UAW-GM Quality 500 was the 28th stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 38th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, October 5, 1997, in Concord, North Carolina, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent quad-oval. The race took the scheduled 334 laps to complete. In the late stages of the race, Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett, owing to a fallen part from his car according to Jarrett, would help propel Jarrett to the front to capture his 14th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his sixth victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte and Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge, as well as the UAW-GM Quality 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.

### 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 | Spooky Froot Loops, Frankenstein |
| 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 | Melling Racing |
| 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | Tide |
| 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | Brett Bodine Racing |
| 12 | Jeff Purvis | LAR Motorsports | Chevrolet | Opryland USA, Coors Light |
| 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | Burger King |
| 15 | Greg Sacks | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Daytona USA |
| 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 | Rick Wilson | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | David Blair Motorsports |
| 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, RC Cola |
| 40 | Elliott Sadler | 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 |
| 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 Wednesday, October 1. 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 Thursday, October 2. 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.
Geoff Bodine, driving for Geoff Bodine Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 29.307 and an average speed of 184.256 miles per hour (296.531 km/h).
Seven drivers failed to qualify: Rick Mast, Greg Sacks, Mike Skinner, Steve Park, Darrell Waltrip, Elliott Sadler, and Dave Marcis.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 29.307 | 184.256 |
| 2 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 29.389 | 183.742 |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.400 | 183.673 |
| 4 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.447 | 183.380 |
| 5 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 29.490 | 183.113 |
| 6 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 29.525 | 182.896 |
| 7 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 29.530 | 182.865 |
| 8 | 12 | Jeff Purvis | LAR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.604 | 182.408 |
| 9 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 29.679 | 181.947 |
| 10 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 29.680 | 181.941 |
| 11 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 29.705 | 181.788 |
| 12 | 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 29.709 | 181.763 |
| 13 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 29.721 | 181.690 |
| 14 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.728 | 181.647 |
| 15 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 29.756 | 181.476 |
| 16 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 29.765 | 181.421 |
| 17 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.770 | 181.391 |
| 18 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 29.771 | 181.385 |
| 19 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 29.781 | 181.324 |
| 20 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.800 | 181.208 |
| 21 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.807 | 181.165 |
| 22 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 29.816 | 181.111 |
| 23 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 29.822 | 181.074 |
| 24 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 29.833 | 181.008 |
| 25 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 29.845 | 180.935 |
| 26 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 29.739 | 181.580 |
| 27 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 29.904 | 180.578 |
| 28 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 29.912 | 180.530 |
| 29 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.914 | 180.517 |
| 30 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 29.924 | 180.457 |
| 31 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 29.933 | 180.403 |
| 32 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 29.954 | 180.276 |
| 33 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 29.955 | 180.270 |
| 34 | 27 | Rick Wilson | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | 29.955 | 180.270 |
| 35 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 29.960 | 180.240 |
| 36 | 35 | Todd Bodine | ISM Racing | Pontiac | 29.982 | 180.108 |
| 37 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 29.992 | 180.048 |
| 38 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 29.996 | 180.024 |
| Provisionals |||||||
| 39 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 40 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 41 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 42 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Champion's Provisional |||||||
| 43 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 44 | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| 45 | 15 | Greg Sacks | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | -* | -* |
| 46 | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 47 | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 48 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 49 | 40 | Elliott Sadler | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 50 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| Official qualifying results |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 5 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 334 | 85 | running | 180 | $130,000 |
| 2 | 2 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 334 | 141 | running | 180 | $110,900 |
| 3 | 19 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 334 | 31 | running | 170 | $85,650 |
| 4 | 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 334 | 54 | running | 165 | $66,050 |
| 5 | 4 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 334 | 0 | running | 155 | $62,200 |
| 6 | 29 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 334 | 14 | running | 155 | $51,700 |
| 7 | 33 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 333 | 0 | running | 146 | $43,700 |
| 8 | 7 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 333 | 0 | running | 142 | $40,600 |
| 9 | 40 | 44 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 333 | 0 | running | 138 | $30,700 |
| 10 | 15 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 333 | 2 | running | 139 | $38,025 |
| 11 | 43 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 333 | 0 | running | 130 | $44,900 |
| 12 | 25 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 332 | 0 | running | 127 | $39,000 |
| 13 | 17 | 41 | Steve Grissom | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 332 | 2 | running | 129 | $32,100 |
| 14 | 6 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 332 | 0 | running | 121 | $24,500 |
| 15 | 11 | 33 | Ken Schrader | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 332 | 0 | running | 118 | $31,050 |
| 16 | 24 | 42 | Joe Nemechek | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 331 | 0 | running | 115 | $21,200 |
| 17 | 14 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 331 | 0 | running | 112 | $26,800 |
| 18 | 35 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 331 | 0 | running | 109 | $29,800 |
| 19 | 34 | 27 | Rick Wilson | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | 331 | 0 | running | 106 | $14,435 |
| 20 | 21 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 331 | 0 | running | 103 | $32,040 |
| 21 | 41 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 331 | 0 | running | 100 | $28,960 |
| 22 | 10 | 1 | Morgan Shepherd | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 331 | 0 | running | 97 | $24,775 |
| 23 | 31 | 97 | Chad Little | Roush Racing | Pontiac | 331 | 0 | running | 94 | $17,190 |
| 24 | 30 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 91 | $23,915 |
| 25 | 42 | 25 | Ricky Craven | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 330 | 0 | running | 88 | $23,930 |
| 26 | 36 | 35 | Todd Bodine | ISM Racing | Pontiac | 330 | 0 | running | 85 | $13,160 |
| 27 | 39 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 82 | $16,355 |
| 28 | 26 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 330 | 0 | running | 79 | $23,150 |
| 29 | 20 | 29 | Jeff Green (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 328 | 0 | running | 76 | $13,850 |
| 30 | 18 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 328 | 0 | running | 73 | $22,850 |
| 31 | 27 | 96 | David Green (R) | American Equipment Racing | Chevrolet | 313 | 0 | running | 70 | $15,655 |
| 32 | 23 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 300 | 0 | running | 67 | $22,565 |
| 33 | 13 | 36 | Derrike Cope | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 291 | 0 | engine | 64 | $14,995 |
| 34 | 38 | 78 | Gary Bradberry | Triad Motorsports | Ford | 263 | 0 | running | 61 | $12,470 |
| 35 | 37 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 247 | 0 | overheating | 58 | $19,445 |
| 36 | 28 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 247 | 0 | running | 55 | $12,425 |
| 37 | 16 | 46 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | 244 | 0 | running | 52 | $12,410 |
| 38 | 32 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 165 | 0 | engine | 49 | $12,380 |
| 39 | 8 | 12 | Jeff Purvis | LAR Motorsports | Chevrolet | 150 | 1 | crash | 51 | $12,380 |
| 40 | 12 | 91 | Kevin Lepage | LJ Racing | Chevrolet | 119 | 0 | crash | 43 | $12,380 |
| 41 | 22 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 102 | 0 | crash | 40 | $28,880 |
| 42 | 9 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 101 | 0 | crash | 37 | $19,780 |
| 43 | 1 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 100 | 4 | crash | 39 | $42,880 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 44 | | 75 | Rick Mast | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| 45 | | 15 | Greg Sacks | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | | | | | |
| 46 | | 31 | Mike Skinner (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 47 | | 14 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 48 | | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 49 | | 40 | Elliott Sadler | Team SABCO | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 50 | | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||