1998 AC Delco 400
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| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 32 of 33 in the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1998 AC Delco 400 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Dale Earnhardt. | |||
| Date | November 1, 1998 | ||
| Official name | 34th Annual AC Delco 400 | ||
| Location | Rockingham, North Carolina, North Carolina Speedway | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 1.636 km (1.017 miles) | ||
| Distance | 393 laps, 399.681 mi (643.224 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 393 laps, 399.681 mi (643.224 km) | ||
| Average speed | 128.423 miles per hour (206.677 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Roush Racing | ||
| Time | 23.394 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Laps | 195 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TNN | ||
| Announcers | Eli Gold, Buddy Baker, Dick Berggren | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The 1998 AC Delco 400 was the 32nd stock car race of the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 34th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, November 1, 1998, in Rockingham, North Carolina, at North Carolina Speedway, a 1.017 miles (1.637 km) permanent high-banked racetrack. The race took the scheduled 393 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to make a late race pass on Penske-Kranefuss Racing driver Rusty Wallace to take his 41st career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his 12th victory of the season.[1][2]
In the process, Jeff Gordon would manage to clinch his third career NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship, completing a dominant and historic run.[3]
Entry list
North Carolina Speedway was opened as a flat, one-mile oval on October 31, 1965. In 1969, the track was extensively reconfigured to a high-banked, D-shaped oval just over one mile in length. In 1997, North Carolina Motor Speedway merged with Penske Motorsports, and was renamed North Carolina Speedway. Shortly thereafter, the infield was reconfigured, and competition on the infield road course, mostly by the SCCA, was discontinued. Currently, the track is home to the Fast Track High Performance Driving School.[4]
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, October 30, at 10:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour and 25 minutes.[5] Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 23.550 and an average speed of 155.465 mph (250.197 km/h).[6]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford | 23.550 | 155.465 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 23.615 | 155.037 |
| 3 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 23.716 | 154.377 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Final practice
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, October 31, after the preliminary 1998 AC Delco 200 NASCAR Busch Series race. The session would last for one hour.[5] Jeff Burton, driving for Roush Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 24.318 and an average speed of 150.555 mph (242.295 km/h).[7]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 24.318 | 150.555 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 24.341 | 150.412 |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 24.345 | 150.388 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
