The 1994 Save Mart Supermarkets 300 was the 10th stock car race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, the third race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston West Series, and the sixth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, May 15, 1994, at the Grand Prix layout of Sears Point Raceway, a 2.52 miles (4.06 km) permanent road course layout. The race took the scheduled 74 laps to complete. At race's end, Robert Yates Racing driver Ernie Irvan would manage to dominate the race to take his 12th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third and final victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Geoff Bodine, driving for his own Geoff Bodine Racing, and Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would finish second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 10 of 31 in the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1994 Save Mart Supermarkets 300 program cover. | |||
| Date | May 15, 1994 | ||
| Official name | 6th Annual Save Mart Supermarkets 300 | ||
| Location | Sonoma, California, Sears Point Raceway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.52 mi (4.06 km) | ||
| Distance | 74 laps, 186.48 mi (300.11 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 74 laps, 186.48 mi (300.11 km) | ||
| Average speed | 77.458 miles per hour (124.657 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 94,157 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Robert Yates Racing | ||
| Time | 1:39.132 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Laps | 68 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
edit_with_emphasis_on_Long_track.svg)
Sears Point Raceway is one of two road courses to hold NASCAR races, the other being Watkins Glen International. The standard road course at Sears Point Raceway is a 12-turn course that is 2.52 miles (4.06 km) long;[3] the track was modified in 1998, adding the Chute, which bypassed turns 5 and 6, shortening the course to 1.95 miles (3.14 km). The Chute was only used for NASCAR events such as this race, and was criticized by many drivers, who preferred the full layout.[4] In 2001, it was replaced with a 70-degree turn, 4A, bringing the track to its current dimensions of 1.99 miles (3.20 km).[5]
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
editQualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, April 22, at 6:30 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 Saturday, April 23, at 1:00 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,[6] 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; which was two for cars in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series and one extra provisional for the NASCAR Winston West Series. 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.
Ernie Irvan, driving for Robert Yates Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 1:39.132 and an average speed of 91.514 miles per hour (147.278 km/h) in the first round.[7]
12 drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editStandings after the race
edit
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
edit- ^ Schiffmann, William (May 16, 1994). "Irvan's road-racing prowess shows as he dominates, wins". Messenger-Inquirer. p. 18. Retrieved November 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (May 16, 1994). "Irvan speeds to convincing victory in Save Mart 300". Evansville Press. p. 16. Retrieved November 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sears Point". www.gt-racing.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "Passing is tough in Chute | chronicle.augusta.com". 2011-06-07. Archived from the original on 2011-06-07. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "SEARS POINT BREAKS GROUND ON MODIFIED CHUTE - RacingWest". 2007-09-29. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. May 13, 1996. p. 34. Retrieved November 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (May 14, 1994). "Irvan stays course for Sears Point pole". The Charlotte Observer. p. 13. Retrieved November 28, 2022.
