The 1998 Pepsi Southern 500, the 49th running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held on September 6, 1998 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested at 367 laps on the 1.366 mile (2.198 km) speedway, it was the twenty-fourth race of the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the race. His fourth consecutive Southern 500 victory.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 24 of 33 in the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 1998 Southern 500 program cover | |||
| Date | September 6, 1998 | ||
| Official name | Pepsi Southern 500 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway, Darlington County, South Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.366 mi (2.198 km) | ||
| Distance | 367 laps, 501.322 mi (806.800 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 93.2 °F (34.0 °C); wind speeds up to 11.3 miles per hour (18.2 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 139.031 miles per hour (223.749 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Robert Yates Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | |
| Laps | 273 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett and Benny Parsons | ||
Top 10 results
edit| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
| 2 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford |
| 4 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 12 | Jeremy Mayfield | Penske-Kranefuss Racing | Ford |
| 6 | 36 | Ernie Irvan | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac |
| 7 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford |
| 8 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Team SABCO | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 7 | Geoffrey Bodine | Mattei Motorsports | Ford |
| 10 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford |
Race statistics
edit- Time of race: 3:36:21
- Average Speed: 139.031 miles per hour (223.749 km/h)
- Pole Speed: 168.879
- Cautions: 2 for 16 laps
- Margin of Victory: 3.631 sec
- Lead changes: 12
- Percent of race run under caution: 4.4%
- Average green flag run: 117 laps
References
edit- ^ Weather information at The Old Farmers' Alamanac
- ^ Race statistics at Race Database