# 1994 Coca-Cola 600

The 1994 Coca-Cola 600 was the 11th stock car race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 35th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, May 29, 1994, in Concord, North Carolina, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent quad-oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. Gambling with a two-tire stop 20 laps from the end of the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to fend off the field for the final 20 laps of the race to take his first career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Penske Racing South driver Rusty Wallace and owner-driver Geoff Bodine 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 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | Skoal |
| 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | Miller Genuine Draft |
| 02 | Jeremy Mayfield (R) | Taylor Racing | Ford | Children's Miracle Network Hospitals |
| 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 | Exide |
| 8 | Jeff Burton (R) | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | Raybestos |
| 9 | Rich Bickle | Melling Racing | Ford | Orkin |
| 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | Tide |
| 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Budweiser |
| 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | Bobby Allison Motorsports |
| 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | Bryant Heating & Cooling |
| 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Ford Quality Care |
| 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | The Family Channel |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | Western Auto |
| 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | Interstate Batteries |
| 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | Hooters |
| 20 | Randy LaJoie | Moroso Racing | Ford | FINA |
| 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | Maxwell House |
| 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | Smokin' Joe's |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | DuPont |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | Quaker State |
| 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | McDonald's |
| 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 29 | Steve Grissom | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | Diamond Ridge Motorsports |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Pennzoil |
| 31 | Ward Burton | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | Hardee's |
| 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | Active Trucking |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | Skoal Bandit |
| 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Kendall |
| 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Meineke |
| 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Mello Yello |
| 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 44 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Charles Hardy Racing | Ford | Buss Fuses |
| 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | Johnson Standridge Racing |
| 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | Jimmy Means Racing |
| 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | Petron Plus |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Olive Garden |
| 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | Factory Stores of America |
| 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | US Airways |
| 89 | Jim Sauter | Mueller Brothers Racing | Ford | Mueller Brothers Racing |
| 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Heilig-Meyers |
| 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | Fingerhut |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Wednesday, May 25, at 7:00 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 Thursday, May 26, at 2:30 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 26-40 would be decided on time, and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two were given. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.
Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 29.762 and an average speed of 181.439 miles per hour (291.998 km/h) in the first round.
Four drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.762 | 181.439 |
| 2 | 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.958 | 180.252 |
| 3 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 29.994 | 180.036 |
| 4 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.028 | 179.832 |
| 5 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 30.112 | 179.330 |
| 6 | 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | 30.125 | 179.253 |
| 7 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | 30.127 | 179.241 |
| 8 | 31 | Ward Burton (R) | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.225 | 178.660 |
| 9 | 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | 30.245 | 178.542 |
| 10 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.247 | 178.530 |
| 11 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 30.252 | 178.501 |
| 12 | 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 30.255 | 178.483 |
| 13 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 30.268 | 178.406 |
| 14 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 30.269 | 178.400 |
| 15 | 8 | Jeff Burton (R) | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 30.287 | 178.294 |
| 16 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 30.288 | 178.288 |
| 17 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 30.337 | 178.000 |
| 18 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.396 | 177.655 |
| 19 | 02 | Jeremy Mayfield (R) | Taylor Racing | Ford | 30.398 | 177.643 |
| 20 | 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | 30.403 | 177.614 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 30.420 | 177.515 |
| 22 | 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 30.421 | 177.509 |
| 23 | 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 30.442 | 177.387 |
| 24 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 30.457 | 177.299 |
| 25 | 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 30.459 | 177.288 |
| 26 | 9 | Rich Bickle | Melling Racing | Ford | 30.503 | 177.032 |
| 27 | 20 | Randy LaJoie | Moroso Racing | Ford | 30.503 | 177.032 |
| 28 | 29 | Steve Grissom (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.515 | 176.962 |
| 29 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.522 | 176.922 |
| 30 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 30.537 | 176.835 |
| 31 | 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 30.537 | 176.835 |
| 32 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.571 | 176.638 |
| 33 | 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 30.594 | 176.505 |
| 34 | 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | 30.617 | 176.373 |
| 35 | 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 30.644 | 176.217 |
| 36 | 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.661 | 176.120 |
| 37 | 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | 30.663 | 176.108 |
| 38 | 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | 30.660 | 176.074 |
| 39 | 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 30.670 | 176.068 |
| 40 | 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 30.710 | 175.838 |
| Provisionals |||||||
| 41 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 42 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| Champion's Provisional |||||||
| 43 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | -* | -* |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 44 | 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| 45 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 46 | 44 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Charles Hardy Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 47 | 89 | Jim Sauter | Mueller Brothers Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 16 | running | 180 | $196,500 |
| 2 | 21 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 400 | 187 | running | 180 | $88,075 |
| 3 | 3 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 400 | 101 | running | 170 | $75,500 |
| 4 | 16 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 9 | running | 165 | $54,600 |
| 5 | 14 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 23 | running | 160 | $47,800 |
| 6 | 13 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 400 | 10 | running | 155 | $28,700 |
| 7 | 18 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 | running | 146 | $32,500 |
| 8 | 31 | 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 398 | 0 | running | 142 | $26,400 |
| 9 | 24 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 397 | 0 | running | 138 | $37,950 |
| 10 | 30 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 397 | 0 | running | 134 | $26,800 |
| 11 | 37 | 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | 397 | 0 | running | 130 | $22,700 |
| 12 | 40 | 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 127 | $18,700 |
| 13 | 20 | 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 124 | $22,600 |
| 14 | 39 | 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 121 | $24,500 |
| 15 | 32 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 395 | 0 | running | 118 | $23,850 |
| 16 | 42 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 395 | 0 | running | 115 | $18,950 |
| 17 | 23 | 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 394 | 0 | running | 112 | $17,900 |
| 18 | 22 | 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 394 | 0 | running | 109 | $13,040 |
| 19 | 33 | 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 394 | 0 | running | 106 | $12,300 |
| 20 | 27 | 20 | Randy LaJoie | Moroso Racing | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 103 | $9,815 |
| 21 | 19 | 02 | Jeremy Mayfield (R) | Taylor Racing | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 100 | $9,300 |
| 22 | 43 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 97 | $14,950 |
| 23 | 35 | 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 390 | 0 | running | 94 | $10,525 |
| 24 | 4 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 388 | 0 | running | 91 | $16,620 |
| 25 | 12 | 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 384 | 0 | running | 88 | $9,800 |
| 26 | 41 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 379 | 0 | running | 85 | $18,400 |
| 27 | 6 | 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | 378 | 0 | running | 82 | $7,950 |
| 28 | 17 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 354 | 0 | running | 79 | $17,110 |
| 29 | 15 | 8 | Jeff Burton (R) | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 349 | 0 | running | 76 | $13,080 |
| 30 | 29 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 336 | 0 | running | 73 | $12,850 |
| 31 | 7 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | 276 | 46 | vibration | 75 | $13,350 |
| 32 | 11 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 270 | 0 | handling | 67 | $18,450 |
| 33 | 2 | 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 261 | 0 | accident | 64 | $13,050 |
| 34 | 26 | 9 | Rich Bickle | Melling Racing | Ford | 235 | 0 | handling | 61 | $6,500 |
| 35 | 10 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 220 | 0 | accident | 58 | $16,750 |
| 36 | 9 | 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | 220 | 0 | crankshaft | 55 | $11,050 |
| 37 | 8 | 31 | Ward Burton (R) | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 189 | 0 | accident | 52 | $6,850 |
| 38 | 36 | 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 186 | 0 | accident | 49 | $6,325 |
| 39 | 28 | 29 | Steve Grissom (R) | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 174 | 0 | accident | 46 | $6,300 |
| 40 | 25 | 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 156 | 0 | rear end | 43 | $10,275 |
| 41 | 38 | 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | 148 | 0 | rocker arm | 40 | $6,275 |
| 42 | 5 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 147 | 8 | accident | 42 | $8,975 |
| 43 | 34 | 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | 126 | 0 | overheating | 34 | $6,275 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 44 | | 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| 45 | | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 46 | | 44 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Charles Hardy Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 47 | | 89 | Jim Sauter | Mueller Brothers Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Ernie Irvan | 1,799 |
| | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | 1,737 (-62) |
| 3 | 3 | Rusty Wallace | 1,470 (-329) |
| | 4 | Ken Schrader | 1,440 (–359) |
| 2 | 5 | Mark Martin | 1,436 (–363) |
| 1 | 6 | Morgan Shepherd | 1,374 (–425) |
| 1 | 7 | Ricky Rudd | 1,370 (–429) |
| 1 | 8 | Lake Speed | 1,346 (–453) |
| 1 | 9 | Ted Musgrave | 1,301 (–498) |
| 2 | 10 | Michael Waltrip | 1,297 (–502) |
| Official driver's standings ||||