NASCAR Cup

Brickyard 400 Fast Facts

Brickyard 400 FAST FACTS WHAT: BRICKYARD 400 20th of 34 races in 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series WHERE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile paved oval superspeedway WHEN: ...

Edited: May 8, 2001, 12:19 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Brickyard 400 FAST FACTS

WHAT: BRICKYARD 400 20th of 34 races in 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series WHERE: Indianapolis Motor Speedway 2.5-mile paved oval superspeedway WHEN: 12:15 p.m. (CDT) Saturday, Aug. 7, 1999 DISTANCE: 400 miles/160 laps RACE PURSE: Purse is expected to be one of the three largest in North American motorsports, along with Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500 CARS: Chevrolet, Ford, Pontiac stock cars, Goodyear Eagle radial tires FIELD: 43 cars. Fastest 36 cars through time trials. Six or seven provisional starting positions based on 1999 owner points and possible one past champion provisional. 1998 WINNER: Jeff Gordon 1998 SERIES CHAMP: Jeff Gordon TV: (Race) ABC, 1 p.m. (EDT) Aug. 7 Pre-race show, ESPN, noon-1 p.m. (EDT), Aug. 7 Host: Bob Jenkins Analyst: Benny Parsons Pit Reporters: Ray Dunlap, Jerry Punch, Bill Weber TV: (Qualifying) ESPN, 2:30-4 p.m. (EDT) Aug. 5 ESPN2, 4-5 p.m. (EDT), Aug. 5 ESPN2, 1-2 p.m. (EDT), Aug. 6 "Happy Hour," ESPN2, 6-7 p.m. (EDT), Aug. 6 RADIO: (Race) Indy Racing Radio Network, 1 p.m. (EDT) Aug. 7. Pre-race show starts at 12:30 p.m. (EDT). Anchor: Mike Joy Pit Reporters: Mark Garrow, Doug Rice Turn Announcers: Jerry Baker, Mark Jaynes, Mike King, Vince Welch Race Analyst: Chris Economaki; Garage Reporter: Chris Denari RADIO: (Qualifying) Indy Racing Radio Network, 2-4 p.m. (EDT) Aug. 5. Anchor: Mike Joy Pit Reporters: Mark Garrow, Doug Rice Turn Announcers: Jerry Baker, Mark Jaynes, Mike King, Vince Welch Race Analyst: Chris Economaki Garage Reporter: Chris Denari SCHEDULE (all times local): (Aug. 5) 6 a.m.: Garage opens 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup practice 1:30 p.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup Bud Pole Qualifying (Positions 1-25, one lap) 4-4:45 p.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup practice (Aug. 6) 7 a.m.: Garage opens 9:30 a.m.-noon: NASCAR Winston Cup practice 1 p.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup second-round qualifying (Positions 26-36, one lap) 2:15-3:15 p.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup final practice (Aug. 7) 6 a.m.: Garage opens 11:30 a.m.: NASCAR Winston Cup driver introductions 12:15 p.m.: Brickyard 400 race (400 miles/160 laps)

THE TRACK: 2.5-mile paved oval, with 36-inch strip of the original bricks at start-finish line Front and back straightaways: 5/8-mile each Short straightaways (between Turns 1-2 & 3-4): 1/8-mile each Four turns: 1/4-mile each Width of straightaways: 50 feet; Width of turns: 60 feet Banking: 9 degrees, 12 minutes in all four turns

Facility opened in 1909. The Speedway is the world's largest sports seating facility, with more than 250,000 permanent seats. The track is the site of the Indianapolis 500 and the Brickyard 400.

THE RACE: This is the sixth Brickyard 400 event at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Jeff Gordon won the inaugural in 1994 and in 1998, Dale Earnhardt won in 1995, Dale Jarrett in 1996 and Ricky Rudd in 1997. The inaugural Brickyard 400 in 1994 was the first automobile race to take place at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway besides the Indianapolis 500 since 1911.

This event is sold out for the sixth consecutive year and will have the largest attendance of any NASCAR Winston Cup race. It has been the highest-attended NASCAR Winston Cup race each of the last five years.

This event will have one of the three largest total purses in North American motorsports, along with the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500.

RACE NOTES: Former Indiana resident Jeff Gordon is the only driver to win this event twice. Gordon won the inaugural in 1994 and in 1998.

Jeff Gordon has led a record 253 total laps in his five Brickyard 400 starts. He is the only driver to have led in all five previous Brickyard 400's.

Jeff Gordon has earned both of his Brickyard 400 victories from the No. 3 starting spot, the highest starting spot by any winner in this event's history.

Jeff Gordon and Ernie Irvan each have won the Bud Pole twice at this event. Gordon took the pole in 1995 and 1996; Irvan in 1997 and 1998. Rick Mast won the pole for the inaugural Brickyard 400 in 1994.

Ernie Irvan set an event record in 1998 with his pole-winning speed of 179.394 mph.

Leading rookie Tony Stewart will race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in a NASCAR Winston Cup car for the first time, but Stewart has plenty of experience at this facility in other cars. He has competed in the last four Indianapolis 500's, with a best finish of fifth in 1997. Former Pep Boys Indy Racing League champion Stewart, a native of Rushville, Ind., also drove in the inaugural IROC at Indy event last year at the Speedway, finishing sixth.

Tony Stewart isn't the only driver in this year's Brickyard 400 to have competed in an Indianapolis 500. John Andretti also raced in the "500" from 1988-94, with a best finish of fifth in 1991.

Source: IMS/IRL

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article Erine Irvan Loudon Pre-Race Notes

Next article Watkins Glen Advance Sales End July 12

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

Jimmie Johnson on the NASCAR business world: "It's a war"

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup 3 min

Jimmie Johnson on the NASCAR business world: "It's a war"

David Alonso lashes out at Dani Holgado: "When you’re not a good person, there’s nothing you can do"

Moto2

MOT2 Moto2

Phillip Island

3 min

David Alonso lashes out at Dani Holgado: "When you’re not a good person, there’s nothing you can do"

Super Formula Leader Kaku Ohta targets North American move across IndyCar and IMSA for 2027

IndyCar

Indy IndyCar 5 min

Super Formula Leader Kaku Ohta targets North American move across IndyCar and IMSA for 2027

Spire says Joe Gibbs Racing now seeking nearly $150M in damages

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup 29 min

Spire says Joe Gibbs Racing now seeking nearly $150M in damages

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts