The 2004 Pepsi 300 was the seventh stock car race of the 2004 NASCAR Busch Series and the fourth iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, April 10, 2004, in Gladeville, Tennessee at Nashville Superspeedway, a 1.333 miles (2.145 km) permanent D-shaped racetrack. The race took its scheduled 225 laps to complete. With two laps to go, the four leaders in the race, Kyle Busch, Clint Bowyer, Johnny Benson Jr., and Robby Gordon were involved in an accident when Bowyer tapped Busch exiting turn two. At the last second before the caution, then sixth-place driver, Michael Waltrip Racing driver Michael Waltrip, would pass then fifth-place driver, Brewco Motorsports driver Johnny Sauter, to take the lead when the caution was thrown by NASCAR. NASCAR would hand Waltrip the victory, and Sauter would earn second place.[1][2] The win was Waltrip's 11th and to date, final career NASCAR Busch Series win and his only win of the season. To fill out the podium, Kasey Kahne, driving for Akins Motorsports, would finish third.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 7 of 34 of the 2004 NASCAR Busch Series | |||
| Date | April 10, 2004 | ||
| Official name | 4th Annual Pepsi 300 | ||
| Location | Nashville Superspeedway, Gladeville, Tennessee | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.333 mi (2.145 km) | ||
| Distance | 225 laps, 299.925 mi (482.682 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 225 laps, 299.925 mi (482.682 km) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Chance 2 Motorsports | ||
| Time | 28.819 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Clint Bowyer | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Winner | |||
| No. 99 | Michael Waltrip | Michael Waltrip Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | FX | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
edit
Nashville Superspeedway is a motor racing complex located in Gladeville, Tennessee, United States (though the track has a Lebanon postal address), about 30 mi (48 km) southeast of Nashville. The track was built in 2001 and is currently hosting the Ally 400, a NASCAR Cup Series regular season event, the Tennessee Lottery 250, and the Rackley Roofing 200.[3]
It is a concrete oval track 11⁄3 miles (2.145 km) long. Nashville Superspeedway is owned by Speedway Motorsports, which acquired the track's previous owner Dover Motorsports in December 2021. Nashville Superspeedway is the longest concrete oval in NASCAR. Current permanent seating capacity is approximately 25,000, but will reach up to 38,000 for the NASCAR Cup Series event in 2021.[4] Additional portable seats are brought in for some events, and seating capacity can be expanded to 150,000.[5] Infrastructure is in place to expand the facility to include a short track, drag strip, and road course.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
editFirst practice
editThe first practice session was held on Friday, April 9, at 12:00 PM CST. The session would last for two hours.[6] David Green, driving for Brewco Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.985 and an average speed of 165.561 miles per hour (266.445 km/h).[7]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 37 | David Green | Brewco Motorsports | Chevrolet | 28.985 | 165.561 |
| 2 | 25 | Bobby Hamilton Jr. | Team Rensi Motorsports | Ford | 29.003 | 165.459 |
| 3 | 8 | Martin Truex Jr. | Chance 2 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.040 | 165.248 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second and final practice
editThe final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, April 9, at 6:15 PM CST. The session would last for one hour.[6] Martin Truex Jr., driving for Chance 2 Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.452 and an average speed of 162.936 miles per hour (262.220 km/h).[8]
During the session, Martin Truex Jr. would crash along with Jeff Fuller, forcing Truex Jr. to go to a backup car and to start at the rear for the race.[9]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Martin Truex Jr. | Chance 2 Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.452 | 162.936 |
| 2 | 55 | Robby Gordon | Robby Gordon Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.619 | 162.018 |
| 3 | 25 | Bobby Hamilton Jr. | Team Rensi Motorsports | Ford | 29.619 | 162.018 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on Friday, April 9, at 3:35 PM CST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[6] Positions 1-38 would be decided on time, while positions 39-43 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 next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[10]
Martin Truex Jr., driving for Chance 2 Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 28.819 and an average speed of 166.515 miles per hour (267.980 km/h).[11]
11 drivers would fail to qualify: Shane Wallace, Stan Boyd, Justin Ashburn, Chad Chaffin, Mike Harmon, Greg Sacks, Morgan Shepherd, Jimmy Kitchens, Eddie Beahr, Norm Benning, and Brad Baker.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editStandings after the race
edit
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
edit- ^ Walker, Teresa (April 12, 2004). "Waltrip takes crash-filled win at Nashville". NASCAR. Archived from the original on July 23, 2004. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "Rookies' eagerness leads to costly lesson". The Tennessean. April 11, 2004. pp. C10. Retrieved June 25, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "2021 NASCAR Cup Series schedule release: Dirt track racing returns, road racing set at COTA and Road America". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2020-10-08.
- ^ Welcome to Nashville Superspeedway
- ^ Welcome to Nashville Superspeedway
- ^ a b c "Jayski's Silly Season Site - April 2004 Busch Series Archives". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on September 2, 2004. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "NASCAR.com - Races - 2004 Pepsi 300 Practice 1 Results". NASCAR. Archived from the original on June 3, 2004. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "NASCAR.com - Races - 2004 Pepsi 300 Practice 2 Results". NASCAR. Archived from the original on July 3, 2004. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "Crash ruins Truex's record qualifying time". Spartanburg Herald Journal. Retrieved 2022-06-25.
- ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site - Provisional Land Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on 5 February 2005. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ^ Walker, Teresa (April 9, 2004). "Truex races to pole, then wrecksin the final Busch practice". ThatsRacin. Archived from the original on August 4, 2004. Retrieved June 25, 2022.
- ^ "2004 Pepsi 300 - The Third Turn". The Third Turn. Retrieved June 23, 2022.