The 1990 Miller Genuine Draft 500 was the 13th stock car race of the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the ninth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, June 17, 1990, before an audience of 80,000 in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. In the final laps, Leo Jackson Motorsports driver Harry Gant mounted a late-race charge, passing for the lead with 12 laps to go in the race to take his 11th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season.[1][2][3] To fill out the top three, Blue Max Racing driver Rusty Wallace and Junior Johnson & Associates driver Geoff Bodine would finish second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 13 of 29 in the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1990 Miller Genuine Draft 500 program cover, featuring Rusty Wallace. Artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. | |||
| Date | June 17, 1990 | ||
| Official name | 9th Annual Miller Genuine Draft 500 | ||
| Location | Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Pocono Raceway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.0 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Average speed | 120.6 miles per hour (194.1 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 80,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Morgan-McClure Motorsports | ||
| Time | 56.693 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | |
| Laps | 31 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Viewer's Choice (PPV) | ||
| Announcers | Dave Despain, Lyn St. James, Phil Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
edit
The race was held at Pocono International Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.
Pocono International Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.
Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
editQualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, June 15, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 15 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, June 16, at 10:30 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 16-40 would be decided on time,[4] 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 provisionals were given.
Ernie Irvan, driving for Morgan–McClure Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 56.693 and an average speed of 158.750 miles per hour (255.483 km/h) in the first round.[5][6]
Mike Potter was the only driver to fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
edit| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 200 | 15 | running | 180 | $54,350 |
| 2 | 24 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 200 | 19 | running | 175 | $37,307 |
| 3 | 4 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 200 | 31 | running | 175 | $30,750 |
| 4 | 20 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 200 | 12 | running | 165 | $19,850 |
| 5 | 12 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 155 | $20,700 |
| 6 | 21 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 200 | 0 | running | 150 | $11,425 |
| 7 | 5 | 18 | Greg Sacks | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 29 | running | 151 | $11,050 |
| 8 | 9 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | running | 142 | $15,925 |
| 9 | 7 | 94 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 200 | 0 | running | 138 | $10,675 |
| 10 | 14 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 200 | 12 | running | 139 | $15,350 |
| 11 | 29 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 200 | 18 | running | 135 | $9,850 |
| 12 | 17 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 3 | running | 132 | $10,550 |
| 13 | 6 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 3 | running | 129 | $14,150 |
| 14 | 11 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 200 | 4 | running | 126 | $13,150 |
| 15 | 8 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | running | 118 | $12,525 |
| 16 | 3 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 115 | $13,450 |
| 17 | 1 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 200 | 18 | running | 117 | $15,125 |
| 18 | 35 | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 109 | $4,650 |
| 19 | 19 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 200 | 1 | running | 111 | $8,425 |
| 20 | 27 | 1 | Terry Labonte | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 200 | 0 | running | 103 | $8,975 |
| 21 | 33 | 47 | Jack Pennington (R) | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | 200 | 1 | running | 105 | $4,925 |
| 22 | 31 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | running | 97 | $7,675 |
| 23 | 26 | 98 | Butch Miller | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | running | 94 | $5,775 |
| 24 | 34 | 38 | Jim Sauter | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford | 199 | 0 | running | 91 | $3,925 |
| 25 | 2 | 66 | Dick Trickle | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 198 | 0 | accident | 88 | $7,075 |
| 26 | 36 | 54 | Tommy Riggins | Hakes–Welliver Racing | Oldsmobile | 196 | 0 | running | 85 | $3,825 |
| 27 | 38 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 194 | 0 | running | 82 | $3,775 |
| 28 | 40 | 70 | J. D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 0 | running | 79 | $3,725 |
| 29 | 25 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 180 | 0 | engine | 76 | $6,675 |
| 30 | 23 | 57 | Jimmy Spencer | Osterlund Racing | Pontiac | 172 | 1 | accident | 78 | $6,575 |
| 31 | 13 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 171 | 0 | accident | 70 | $6,425 |
| 32 | 15 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 169 | 0 | running | 67 | $6,275 |
| 33 | 28 | 13 | Randy LaJoie | Linro Motorsports | Buick | 167 | 0 | accident | 64 | $3,450 |
| 34 | 10 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 165 | 29 | accident | 66 | $6,850 |
| 35 | 18 | 75 | Rick Wilson | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 150 | 0 | engine | 58 | $6,025 |
| 36 | 30 | 20 | Rob Moroso (R) | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 134 | 4 | accident | 60 | $4,950 |
| 37 | 39 | 2 | Troy Beebe | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 119 | 0 | accident | 0 | $5,875 |
| 38 | 22 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 94 | 0 | accident | 49 | $3,825 |
| 39 | 32 | 80 | Jimmy Horton | S&H Racing | Ford | 65 | 0 | engine | 46 | $3,200 |
| 40 | 37 | 53 | Jerry O'Neil (R) | Aroneck Racing | Oldsmobile | 22 | 0 | crank | 43 | $3,150 |
| Failed to qualify | ||||||||||
| 41 | 74 | Mike Potter | Wawak Racing | Pontiac | ||||||
| Official race results | ||||||||||
Standings after the race
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References
edit- ^ Higgins, Tom (June 18, 1990). "One For The Ages: Gant Wins At Pocono (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 9. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (June 18, 1990). "One For The Ages: Gant Wins At Pocono (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 11. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Fitzpatrick, Frank (June 18, 1990). "Gant surprises with Pocono win". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 57. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. June 15, 1990. p. 23. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (June 16, 1990). "Irvan Takes Pole; It's Almost A Record (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 29. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (June 16, 1990). "Irvan Takes Pole; It's Almost A Record (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 33. Retrieved March 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
