There were two other noteworthy stories from the race, both involving rookie drivers. After winning several races in the Busch Series for his father’s team, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. made his Winston Cup debut in the #8 Budweiser Chevrolet Monte Carlo. He finished the race in sixteenth place. Another rookie, Tony Stewart, participated in both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 in the same day. At Indianapolis, he ran ninth driving the #22 car for Tri-Star Motorsports. After the race he flew to Charlotte and started the #20 Home Depot Pontiac Grand Prix for Joe Gibbs Racing, bringing it home in fourth place. He was the third driver after John Andretti in 1994 and Robby Gordon in 1997 to do so; he repeated this feat in 2001 and ran the entire distance of both events.