1997 The Bud at The Glen

The 1997 The Bud at The Glen was the 20th stock car race of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 12th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, August 10, 1997, at the shortened layout of Watkins Glen International, a 2.45 miles (3.943 km) permanent road course layout. The race took the scheduled 90 laps to complete. At race's end, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to dominate the late stages of the race to take his 27th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his eighth victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Geoff Bodine Racing driver Geoff Bodine and Penske Racing South driver Rusty Wallace would finish second and third, respectively.

1997 The Bud at The Glen
Race details
Race 20 of 32 in the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1997 The Bud at The Glen program cover, featuring Geoff Bodine.
The 1997 The Bud at The Glen program cover, featuring Geoff Bodine.
Date August 10, 1997
Official name 12th Annual The Bud at The Glen
Location Watkins Glen, New York, Watkins Glen International
Course Permanent racing facility
2.45 mi (3.943 km)
Distance 90 laps, 220.5 mi (354.86 km)
Scheduled Distance 90 laps, 220.5 mi (354.86 km)
Average speed 91.294 miles per hour (146.923 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Team 34
Time 1:13.192
Most laps led
Driver Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 32
Winner
No. 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
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
 
The layout of Watkins Glen International NASCAR uses.

Watkins Glen International (nicknamed "The Glen") is an automobile race track located in Watkins Glen, New York at the southern tip of Seneca Lake. It was long known around the world as the home of the Formula One United States Grand Prix, which it hosted for twenty consecutive years (1961–1980), but the site has been home to road racing of nearly every class, including the World Sportscar Championship, Trans-Am, Can-Am, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, the International Motor Sports Association and the IndyCar Series.

Initially, public roads in the village were used for the race course. In 1956 a permanent circuit for the race was built. In 1968 the race was extended to six hours, becoming the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen. The circuit's current layout has more or less been the same since 1971, although a chicane was installed at the uphill Esses in 1975 to slow cars through these corners, where there was a fatality during practice at the 1973 United States Grand Prix. The chicane was removed in 1985, but another chicane called the "Inner Loop" was installed in 1992 after J.D. McDuffie's fatal accident during the previous year's NASCAR Winston Cup event.

The circuit is known as the Mecca of North American road racing and is a very popular venue among fans and drivers. The facility is currently owned by International Speedway Corporation.

Entry list

edit
  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Lance Hooper Precision Products Racing Pontiac R+L Carriers, Cruisin' America Phone Card
2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford Miller Lite
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 QVC
8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford Circuit City
10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford Tide
11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford Close Call Phone Card
14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet Burger King
16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford PrimeStar, The Family Channel
17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet Parts America
18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac Interstate Batteries
21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac MBNA
23 Jimmy Spencer Haas-Carter Motorsports Ford Camel Cigarettes
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont
25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Budweiser
28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet Cartoon Network, Tom and Jerry, Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken
30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac Pennzoil
31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Lowe's
33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet Skoal
34 Todd Bodine Team 34 Chevrolet Hardinge Machine Tools
36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac Skittles
37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford Kmart, RC Cola
40 Robby Gordon (R) Team SABCO Chevrolet Coors Light
41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kodiak
42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet BellSouth
43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac Hot Wheels
46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet First Union
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Realtree
75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford Remington Arms
77 Morgan Shepherd Jasper Motorsports Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions, Federal-Mogul
78 Bobby Hillin Jr. Triad Motorsports Ford Hanes
81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford Square D
88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford Quality Care Service, Ford Credit
90 Dorsey Schroeder Donlavey Racing Ford Heilig-Meyers
94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford McDonald's
96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet Caterpillar
97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac John Deere
98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford RCA
99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford Exide

Qualifying

edit

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, August 8, at 2:00 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 Saturday, August 9, at 10:45 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time.[3] Positions 26-38 would be decided on time, and depending on who needed it, the 39th thru either the 42nd, 43rd, or 44th position would be based on provisionals. Four spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The fifth is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the field would be limited to 42 cars. If a champion needed it, the field would expand to 43 cars. If the race was a companion race with the NASCAR Winston West Series, four spots would be determined by NASCAR Winston Cup Series provisionals, while the final two spots would be given to teams in the Winston West Series, leaving the field at 44 cars.

Todd Bodine, driving for Team 34, would win the pole, setting a time of 1:13.192 and an average speed of 120.505 miles per hour (193.934 km/h).[4]

Three drivers would fail to qualify: Bobby Hillin Jr., Morgan Shepherd, and Dave Marcis.

Full qualifying results

edit
Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 34 Todd Bodine Team 34 Chevrolet 1:13.192 120.505
2 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 1:13.253 120.405
3 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1:13.254 120.403
4 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 1:13.308 120.314
5 46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 1:13.308 120.314
6 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 1:13.346 120.252
7 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 1:13.393 120.175
8 42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet 1:13.403 120.159
9 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 1:13.413 120.142
10 40 Robby Gordon (R) Team SABCO Chevrolet 1:13.420 120.131
11 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:13.472 120.046
12 14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 1:13.548 119.922
13 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 1:13.602 119.834
14 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 1:13.618 119.808
15 33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 1:13.634 119.782
16 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:13.654 119.749
17 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 1:13.748 119.596
18 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 1:13.787 119.533
19 90 Dorsey Schroeder Donlavey Racing Ford 1:13.818 119.483
20 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 1:13.911 119.333
21 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 1:13.930 119.302
22 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 1:13.977 119.226
23 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 1:14.042 119.122
24 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 1:14.054 119.102
25 30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac 1:14.121 118.995
26 31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1:13.870 119.399
27 97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac 1:13.953 119.265
28 37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 1:14.139 118.966
29 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford 1:14.199 118.870
30 98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 1:14.199 118.870
31 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 1:14.216 118.842
32 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 1:14.256 118.778
33 41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:14.267 118.761
34 1 Lance Hooper Precision Products Racing Pontiac 1:14.279 118.742
35 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 1:14.339 118.646
36 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 1:14.375 118.588
37 36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 1:14.392 118.561
38 96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet 1:14.491 118.404
Provisionals
39 25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
40 75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford -* -*
41 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford -* -*
42 29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
Failed to qualify
43 78 Bobby Hillin Jr. Triad Motorsports Ford -* -*
44 77 Morgan Shepherd Jasper Motorsports Ford -* -*
45 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet -* -*
Official qualifying results

*Time not available.

Race results

edit
Fin[5] St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 11 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 90 32 running 185 $139,120
2 7 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 90 18 running 175 $71,895
3 13 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 90 2 running 170 $43,810
4 10 40 Robby Gordon (R) Team SABCO Chevrolet 90 0 running 160 $39,200
5 9 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 90 0 running 155 $36,700
6 29 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford 90 0 running 150 $31,500
7 4 94 Bill Elliott Bill Elliott Racing Ford 90 4 running 151 $28,080
8 16 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 90 1 running 147 $37,505
9 33 41 Steve Grissom Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 90 0 running 138 $26,575
10 5 46 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Team SABCO Chevrolet 90 0 running 134 $16,585
11 25 30 Johnny Benson Jr. Bahari Racing Pontiac 90 6 running 135 $25,355
12 8 42 Joe Nemechek Team SABCO Chevrolet 90 10 running 132 $18,015
13 6 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 90 0 running 124 $29,725
14 15 33 Ken Schrader Andy Petree Racing Chevrolet 90 0 running 121 $24,485
15 28 37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 90 0 running 118 $17,995
16 3 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 90 0 running 115 $29,575
17 39 25 Ricky Craven Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 90 0 running 112 $23,755
18 32 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 90 3 running 114 $23,535
19 26 31 Mike Skinner (R) Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 90 0 running 106 $16,780
20 30 98 John Andretti Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 90 0 running 103 $24,885
21 22 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 90 0 running 100 $24,455
22 38 96 David Green (R) American Equipment Racing Chevrolet 90 0 running 97 $12,335
23 40 75 Rick Mast Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 90 0 running 94 $22,540
24 34 1 Lance Hooper Precision Products Racing Pontiac 90 0 running 91 $22,380
25 17 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 90 0 running 88 $22,245
26 35 44 Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 90 0 running 85 $15,085
27 23 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 89 0 out of fuel 82 $21,972
28 24 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 89 0 accident 79 $26,915
29 36 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 89 0 running 76 $26,855
30 42 29 Jeff Green (R) Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet 89 0 running 73 $14,295
31 19 90 Dorsey Schroeder Donlavey Racing Ford 89 0 running 70 $11,630
32 2 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 89 14 running 72 $28,365
33 12 14 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Chevrolet 88 0 running 64 $11,515
34 21 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 88 0 running 61 $18,490
35 1 34 Todd Bodine Team 34 Chevrolet 87 0 engine 58 $16,465
36 41 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford 77 0 oil leak 55 $18,415
37 14 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac 65 0 engine 52 $26,390
38 37 36 Derrike Cope MB2 Motorsports Pontiac 64 0 running 49 $11,365
39 20 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 56 0 rear end 46 $18,365
40 31 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 24 0 transmission 43 $27,865
41 18 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 14 0 engine 40 $18,365
42 27 97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac 8 0 engine 37 $11,365
Failed to qualify
43 78 Bobby Hillin Jr. Triad Motorsports Ford
44 77 Morgan Shepherd Jasper Motorsports Ford
45 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet
Official race results

References

edit
  1. ^ Bonnell, Rick (August 10, 1997). "Jeff Gordon gets one for the road". That's Racin'. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
  2. ^ Harris, Mike (August 11, 1997). "Gordon gets 1st road course win". The Stuart News. p. 13. Retrieved September 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ "Glen Calendar". Press and Sun-Bulletin. August 8, 1997. p. 42. Retrieved September 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Johnson, James (August 9, 1997). "Another Bodine drives to success". Democrat and Chronicle. p. 26. Retrieved September 30, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "1997 The Bud at The Glen - The Third Turn". The Third Turn. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
Previous race:
1997 Brickyard 400
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1997 season
Next race:
1997 DeVilbiss 400