The 1996 Coca-Cola 600 was the 11th stock car race of the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 37th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, May 26, 1996, in Concord, North Carolina, at Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent quad-oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. At race's end, Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett would manage to dominate the late stages of the race to take his sixth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt and Hendrick Motorsports driver Terry Labonte would finish second and third, respectively.

1996 Coca-Cola 600
Race details
Race 11 of 31 in the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1996 Coca-Cola 600 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass.
The 1996 Coca-Cola 600 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass.
Date May 26, 1996
Official name 37th Annual Coca-Cola 600
Location Concord, North Carolina, Charlotte Motor Speedway
Course Permanent racing facility
1.5 mi (2.41 km)
Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km)
Scheduled Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km)
Average speed 147.581 miles per hour (237.509 km/h)
Attendance 165,000
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 29.384
Most laps led
Driver Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing
Laps 199
Winner
No. 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing
Television in the United States
Network TBS
Announcers Ken Squier, Buddy Baker, Dick Berggren
Radio in the United States
Radio Performance Racing Network

Background

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The layout of Charlotte Motor Speedway, the venue where the race was held.

Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge, as well as the UAW-GM Quality 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Ford Masters Inn Economy
1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Pontiac Hooters
2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford Miller
02 Robbie Faggart Miles Motorsports Chevrolet Miles Motorsports
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
9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford Spam
10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford Tide
11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford Lowe's
12 Derrike Cope Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford Mane 'n Tail
15 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Bud Moore Engineering Ford Hayes Modems
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 Chevrolet Interstate Batteries
19 Dick Trickle TriStar Motorsports Ford HealthSource RI
21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac MBNA
23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford Camel Cigarettes
24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet DuPont
25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Budweiser
26 Hermie Sadler Sadler Racing Chevrolet Peebles Department Stores
27 Elton Sawyer David Blair Motorsports Ford David Blair Motorsports
28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Steve Grissom Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet Cartoon Network, The Flintstones
30 Johnny Benson Jr. (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac Pennzoil
33 Robert Pressley Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet Skoal
37 Jeremy Mayfield Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford Kmart, Little Caesars
41 Ricky Craven Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kodiak
42 Kyle Petty Team SABCO Pontiac Coors Light Silver Bullet
43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
49 Mark Gibson Campbell Racing Ford 49 Express Pit Stop
57 Steve Seligman Seligman Racing Ford Matco Tools
63 Ed Berrier Schnell Motorsports Ford Purina Hi-Pro
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Prodigy
75 Morgan Shepherd Butch Mock Motorsports Ford Remington Arms
77 Bobby Hillin Jr. Jasper Motorsports Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions
78 Randy MacDonald Triad Motorsports Ford Diamond Rio, Hanes
81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford Square D, TIC Financial Systems
87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet Burger King
88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford Quality Care Service, Ford Credit
90 Dick Trickle Donlavey Racing Ford Heilig-Meyers
94 Todd Bodine Elliott-Hardy Racing Ford McDonald's Monopoly
95 Chuck Bown Sadler Brothers Racing Ford Shoney's
97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac Sterling Cowboy
98 Jeremy Mayfield Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford RCA
99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford Exide

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Wednesday, May 22, at 7:00 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 Thursday, May 23, at 6:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 26-38 would be decided on time,[3] 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 four provisionals were given. 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.

Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 29.384 and an average speed of 183.773 miles per hour (295.754 km/h) in the first round.[4]

Seven drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.384 183.773
2 41 Ricky Craven Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.528 182.877
3 37 John Andretti Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 29.529 182.871
4 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.594 182.469
5 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet 29.606 182.395
6 97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac 29.659 182.070
7 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 29.675 181.971
8 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 29.675 181.971
9 19 Dick Trickle TriStar Motorsports Ford 29.688 181.892
10 9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford 29.700 181.818
11 30 Johnny Benson Jr. (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac 29.736 181.598
12 94 Todd Bodine Elliott-Hardy Racing Ford 29.741 181.568
13 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 29.754 181.488
14 12 Derrike Cope Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford 29.762 181.439
15 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 29.774 181.366
16 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 29.786 181.293
17 77 Bobby Hillin Jr. Jasper Motorsports Ford 29.786 181.293
18 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 29.811 181.141
19 15 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Bud Moore Engineering Ford 29.827 181.044
20 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 29.830 181.026
21 29 Steve Grissom Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet 29.836 180.989
22 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 29.850 180.905
23 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 29.853 180.886
24 98 Jeremy Mayfield Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 29.872 180.771
25 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford 29.876 180.747
Failed to lock in Round 1
26 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Pontiac 29.897 180.620
27 90 Mike Wallace Donlavey Racing Ford 29.948 180.313
28 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 29.949 180.307
29 33 Robert Pressley Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet 29.995 180.030
30 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 30.005 179.970
31 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 30.037 179.778
32 42 Kyle Petty Team SABCO Pontiac 30.045 179.730
33 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 30.059 179.647
34 95 Chuck Bown Sadler Brothers Racing Ford 30.059 179.647
35 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 30.081 179.515
36 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 30.132 179.211
37 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 30.137 179.182
38 75 Morgan Shepherd Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 30.157 179.063
Provisionals
39 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford -* -*
40 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford -* -*
41 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet -* -*
42 27 Elton Sawyer David Blair Motorsports Ford -* -*
Champion's Provisional
43 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford -* -*
Failed to qualify
44 78 Randy MacDonald Triad Motorsports Ford -* -*
45 63 Ed Berrier Schnell Motorsports Ford -* -*
46 26 Hermie Sadler Sadler Racing Chevrolet -* -*
47 49 Mark Gibson Campbell Racing Ford -* -*
48 02 Robbie Faggart Miles Motorsports Chevrolet -* -*
49 0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Ford -* -*
50 57 Steve Seligman Seligman Racing Ford -* -*
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 15 88 Dale Jarrett Robert Yates Racing Ford 400 199 running 185 $165,250
2 20 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 400 7 running 175 $97,000
3 4 5 Terry Labonte Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 59 running 170 $75,300
4 1 24 Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 101 running 165 $118,200
5 23 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 399 0 running 155 $46,350
6 36 4 Sterling Marlin Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 399 9 running 155 $55,100
7 7 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 399 0 running 146 $43,400
8 8 21 Michael Waltrip Wood Brothers Racing Ford 399 0 running 142 $36,500
9 22 28 Ernie Irvan Robert Yates Racing Ford 398 0 running 138 $37,000
10 31 7 Geoff Bodine Geoff Bodine Racing Ford 398 0 running 134 $36,500
11 35 22 Ward Burton Bill Davis Racing Pontiac 397 0 running 130 $34,150
12 26 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Pontiac 397 0 running 127 $29,150
13 28 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 397 0 running 124 $27,700
14 14 12 Derrike Cope Bobby Allison Motorsports Ford 397 0 running 121 $26,450
15 30 10 Ricky Rudd Rudd Performance Motorsports Ford 396 0 running 118 $30,620
16 21 29 Steve Grissom Diamond Ridge Motorsports Chevrolet 395 0 running 115 $24,200
17 18 23 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Ford 395 0 running 112 $23,350
18 13 99 Jeff Burton Roush Racing Ford 395 0 running 109 $15,490
19 19 15 Wally Dallenbach Jr. Bud Moore Engineering Ford 393 0 running 106 $21,800
20 9 19 Dick Trickle TriStar Motorsports Ford 392 0 running 103 $16,325
21 42 27 Elton Sawyer David Blair Motorsports Ford 392 0 running 100 $13,490
22 5 18 Bobby Labonte Joe Gibbs Racing Chevrolet 391 13 running 102 $26,945
23 32 42 Kyle Petty Team SABCO Pontiac 391 0 running 94 $19,485
24 40 11 Brett Bodine Brett Bodine Racing Ford 389 0 running 91 $19,220
25 33 87 Joe Nemechek NEMCO Motorsports Chevrolet 386 0 running 88 $19,210
26 17 77 Bobby Hillin Jr. Jasper Motorsports Ford 369 0 running 85 $8,680
27 3 37 John Andretti Kranefuss-Haas Racing Ford 368 0 running 82 $22,170
28 25 8 Hut Stricklin Stavola Brothers Racing Ford 364 0 running 79 $11,510
29 38 75 Morgan Shepherd Butch Mock Motorsports Ford 364 0 running 76 $11,480
30 39 16 Ted Musgrave Roush Racing Ford 352 0 running 73 $18,465
31 37 43 Bobby Hamilton Petty Enterprises Pontiac 342 0 running 70 $15,455
32 16 81 Kenny Wallace FILMAR Racing Ford 332 0 engine 67 $8,445
33 29 33 Robert Pressley Leo Jackson Motorsports Chevrolet 310 0 running 64 $15,435
34 43 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Ford 300 0 running 61 $23,425
35 10 9 Lake Speed Melling Racing Ford 213 0 handling 58 $15,720
36 12 94 Todd Bodine Elliott-Hardy Racing Ford 209 0 accident 55 $15,415
37 2 41 Ricky Craven Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 193 9 accident 57 $21,415
38 11 30 Johnny Benson Jr. (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac 192 0 accident 49 $16,400
39 27 90 Mike Wallace Donlavey Racing Ford 189 0 oil pump 46 $8,400
40 41 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 138 3 accident 48 $9,300
41 24 98 Jeremy Mayfield Cale Yarborough Motorsports Ford 136 0 transmission 40 $8,400
42 34 95 Chuck Bown Sadler Brothers Racing Ford 68 0 handling 37 $8,400
43 6 97 Chad Little Mark Rypien Motorsports Pontiac 0 0 oil pump 34 $8,400
Failed to qualify
44 78 Randy MacDonald Triad Motorsports Ford
45 63 Ed Berrier Schnell Motorsports Ford
46 26 Hermie Sadler Sadler Racing Chevrolet
47 49 Mark Gibson Campbell Racing Ford
48 02 Robbie Faggart Miles Motorsports Chevrolet
49 0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Ford
50 57 Steve Seligman Seligman Racing Ford
Official race results

References

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  1. ^ Macenka, Joe (May 27, 1996). "Jarrett dominates Charlotte race". The Daily News Leader. p. 7. Retrieved December 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Higgins, Tom (May 27, 1996). "Jarrett feels like a million". That's Racin'. Archived from the original on April 17, 2001. Retrieved December 28, 2022.  
  3. ^ "600 Week schedule". The Charlotte Observer. May 22, 1994. p. 86. Retrieved December 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Macenka, Joe (May 23, 1996). "Gordon paces Chevrolets in Coca-Cola 600 trials". The Stuart News. p. 22. Retrieved December 28, 2022.  
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NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1996 season
Next race:
1996 Miller 500 (Dover)