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2008 Coca-Cola 600

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2008 Coca-Cola 600
Race details
Race 12 of 36[1] in the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
2008 Coca-Cola 600 program cover, made by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. The painting is named "Classic!"
2008 Coca-Cola 600 program cover, made by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. The painting is named "Classic!"
Date May 25, 2008 (2008-May-25)
Official name Coca-Cola 600
Location Lowe's Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1.5 mi (2.414 km)
Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km)
Weather Warm with temperatures approaching 79 °F (26 °C); wind speeds up to 7 miles per hour (11 km/h)[2]
Average speed 135.772 miles per hour (218.504 km/h)
Attendance 160,000
Pole position
Driver
Joe Gibbs Racing
Time 29.121
Most laps led
Driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 76
Winner
No. 9 Kasey Kahne Gillett Evernham Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network Fox Broadcasting Company
Announcers Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds
Radio in the United States
Radio Performance Racing Network

The 2008 Coca-Cola 600, the 49th running of the event, was a NASCAR stock car race held on May 25, 2008, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. The race was the twelfth stock car race of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season. The 400-lap race was won by Kasey Kahne of the Gillett Evernham Motorsports team, who started from the 2nd position. Greg Biffle finished second and Kyle Busch came in third.

Background

[edit]
Lowe's Motor Speedway, the track where the race was held.

The Coca-Cola 600 was the twelfth scheduled stock car race of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, out of 36, and the 49th iteration of the event. It was held on May 25, 2008, at Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.[3] Lowe's Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located thirteen miles from Charlotte, North Carolina in Concord, 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, the Nextel All-Star Challenge, and the Bank of America 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR.[4] The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI). Following the 2008 Coca-Cola 600, Humpy Wheeler retired as track president.[5]

Entry list

[edit]
Car[6] Driver Hometown Make Sponsor Owner Team Crew Chief
00 Michael McDowell Phoenix, AZ Toyota Aaron's Dream Machine Rob Kauffman Michael Waltrip Racing
01 Regan Smith Cato, NY Chevrolet DEI / Principal Financial Group Teresa Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
1 Martin Truex Jr Mayetta, NJ Chevrolet Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Teresa Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
2 Kurt Busch Las Vegas, NV Dodge Miller Lite Walter Czarnecki Penske Racing
5 Casey Mears Bakersfield, CA Chevrolet CARQUEST / Kellogg's Mary Hendrick Hendrick Motorsports
6 David Ragan Unadilla, GA Ford AAA Insurance Mike Dee Roush Fenway Racing
07 Clint Bowyer Emporia, KS Chevrolet Jack Daniel's / USO "Toast to the Troops" Richard Childress Richard Childress Racing
7 Robby Gordon Bellflower, CA Dodge Jim Beam Robby Gordon Robby Gordon Motorsports
08 Tony Raines LaPorte, IN Dodge getFUBAR.com John Carter E&M Motorsports
8 Mark Martin Batesville, AR Chevrolet U.S. Army "Salute the Troops" Teresa Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
9 Kasey Kahne Enumclaw, WA Dodge Budweiser George Gillett Jr Evernham Motorsports
10 Patrick Carpentier Ville Lasalle, Quebec, Canada Dodge LifeLock George Gillett Jr Evernham Motorsports
11 Denny Hamlin Chesterfield, VA Toyota FedEx Freight J D Gibbs Joe Gibbs Racing
12 Ryan Newman South Bend, IN Dodge Alltel Roger Penske Penske Racing
15 Paul Menard Eau Claire, WI Chevrolet Johns Manville / Menards Teresa Earnhardt Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
16 Greg Biffle Vancouver, WA Ford DISH Network / DishDVRs Jack Roush Roush Fenway Racing
17 Matt Kenseth Cambridge, WI Ford R+L Carriers John Henry Roush Fenway Racing
18 Kyle Busch Las Vegas, NV Toyota M&M's Joe Gibbs Joe Gibbs Racing
19 Elliott Sadler Emporia, VA Dodge Best Buy / Garmin Ray Evernham Evernham Motorsports
20 Tony Stewart Rushville, IN Toyota The Home Depot Joe Gibbs Joe Gibbs Racing
21 Jon Wood Stuart, VA Ford U.S. Air Force "Salute the Troops" Glen Wood Wood Brothers Racing
22 Dave Blaney Hartford, OH Toyota Caterpillar Bill Davis Bill Davis Racing
24 Jeff Gordon Vallejo, CA Chevrolet DuPont Rick Hendrick Hendrick Motorsports
26 Jamie McMurray Joplin, MO Ford IRWIN Industrial Tools Geoff Smith Roush Fenway Racing
28 Travis Kvapil Janesville, WI Ford Lumber Liquidators Doug Yates Yates Racing
29 Kevin Harvick Bakersfield, CA Chevrolet Shell / Pennzoil Richard Childress Richard Childress Racing
31 Jeff Burton South Boston, VA Chevrolet AT&T Mobility Richard Childress Richard Childress Racing
33 Ken Schrader Fenton, MO Chevrolet Camping World / RVs.com Richard Childress Richard Childress Racing
34 Jeff Green Owensboro, KY Chevrolet Gibson Custom Guitars Bob Jenkins Front Row Motorsports
38 David Gilliland Riverside, CA Ford FreeCreditReport.com Max Jones Yates Racing
40 Sterling Marlin Columbia, TN Dodge Wii Fit / Target Felix Sabates Chip Ganassi Racing
41 Reed Sorenson Peachtree City, GA Dodge Target Chip Ganassi Chip Ganassi Racing
42 Juan Pablo Montoya Bogota, Colombia Dodge Texaco / Havoline Floyd Ganassi Chip Ganassi Racing
43 Bobby Labonte Corpus Christi, TX Dodge Cheerios / Trix / Lucky & Friends Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
44 David Reutimann Zephyrhills, FL Toyota UPS Michael Waltrip Michael Waltrip Racing
45 Kyle Petty Trinity, NC Dodge Coca-Cola celebrates 2008 Olympics Kyle Petty Petty Enterprises
48 Jimmie Johnson El Cajon, CA Chevrolet Lowe's Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
50 Stanton Barrett Bishop, CA Chevrolet NOS Energy Drink / SKI / SBM Chris Lencheski SKI Motorsports
55 Michael Waltrip Owensboro, KY Toyota NAPA AUTO PARTS Michael Waltrip Michael Waltrip Racing
66 Scott Riggs Bahama, NC Chevrolet Haas Automation Joe Custer Stewart-Haas Racing
70 Johnny Sauter Necedah, WI Chevrolet Haas Automation Margaret Haas Stewart-Haas Racing
77 Sam Hornish Jr Defiance, OH Dodge Mobil 1 Roger Penske Penske Racing
78 Joe Nemechek Lakeland, FL Chevrolet Furniture Row / DenverMattress.com Barney Visser Furniture Row Racing
83 Brian Vickers Thomasville, NC Toyota Red Bull Dietrich Mateschitz Red Bull Racing Team
84 AJ Allmendinger Los Gatos, CA Toyota Red Bull Dietrich Mateschitz Red Bull Racing Team
88 Dale Earnhardt Jr Kannapolis, NC Chevrolet National Guard / AMP Energy Rick Hendrick Hendrick Motorsports
96 JJ Yeley Phoenix, AZ Toyota DLP HDTV Jeffrey Moorad Hall of Fame Racing
99 Carl Edwards Columbia, MO Ford Office Depot Jack Roush Roush Fenway Racing

Qualifying

[edit]

There were a total of three practice sessions prior to the race. During the first session on Thursday, May 22, 2008, David Ragan had the fastest speed at 181.622 mph.[7] Before Saturday's first practice session, both Haas CNC Racing cars - the No. 66 of Scott Riggs and the No. 70 Johnny Sauter - were impounded by NASCAR officials and taken to the research and development center for illegal wing adjustments. As a result, they were forced to drive backup cars and start at the rear of the starting lineup. Both teams were also charged a US $100,000 fine in addition to having their crew chiefs suspended for the next six races starting at Dover and running through Daytona.[8]

The second practice session took place on Saturday, May 24, 2008, with Greg Biffle taking the top position with a speed of 180.282 mph.[9] Brian Vickers had the fastest practice speed at 180.735 mph during the third and final practice session on Saturday.[10] Kyle Busch won the Coors Light Pole, currently known as the Busch Pole Award, with a speed of 185.433 mph for his second pole of 2008 and the fourth of his career.[11] He began on P-1 with Sprint All-Star Race XXIV champion Kasey Kahne next to him filling out the front row.

Pos[12] No. Driver Manufacturer Time Speed
1 18 Kyle Busch Toyota 29.121 185.433
2 9 Kasey Kahne Dodge 29.142 185.300
3 83 Brian Vickers Toyota 29.150 185.249
4 16 Greg Biffle Ford 29.194 184.969
5 6 David Ragan Ford 29.273 184.470
6 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr Chevrolet 29.278 184.439
7 8 Mark Martin Chevrolet 29.319 184.181
8 2 Kurt Busch Dodge 29.331 184.106
9 19 Elliott Sadler Dodge 29.352 183.974
10 48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 29.360 183.924
11 22 Dave Blaney Toyota 29.373 183.842
12 17 Matt Kenseth Ford 29.383 183.780
13 66 Scott Riggs Chevrolet 29.400 183.673
14 31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet 29.409 183.617
15 26 Jamie McMurray Ford 29.415 183.580
16 11 Denny Hamlin Toyota 29.435 183.455
17 41 Reed Sorenson Dodge 29.437 183.443
18 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 29.438 183.436
19 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 29.439 183.430
20 77 Sam Hornish Jr Dodge 29.452 183.349
21 5 Casey Mears Chevrolet 29.464 183.275
22 7 Robby Gordon Dodge 29.474 183.212
23 43 Bobby Labonte Dodge 29.476 183.200
24 1 Martin Truex Jr Chevrolet 29.481 183.169
25 15 Paul Menard Chevrolet 29.487 183.132
26 40 Sterling Marlin Dodge 29.499 183.057
27 84 AJ Allmendinger Toyota 29.532 182.852
28 44 David Reutimann Toyota 29.552 182.729
29 55 Michael Waltrip Toyota 29.558 182.692
30 99 Carl Edwards Ford 29.643 182.168
31 20 Tony Stewart Toyota 29.652 182.113
32 38 David Gilliland Ford 29.667 182.020
33 33 Ken Schrader Chevrolet 29.673 181.984
34 10 Patrick Carpentier Dodge 29.692 181.867
35 96 JJ Yeley Toyota 29.715 181.726
36 45 Kyle Petty Dodge 29.717 181.714
37 01 Regan Smith Chevrolet 29.719 181.702
38 12 Ryan Newman Dodge 29.747 181.531
39 07 Clint Bowyer Chevrolet 29.755 181.482
40 00 Michael McDowell Toyota 29.758 181.464
41 28 Travis Kvapil Ford 29.974 180.156
42 42 Juan Montoya Dodge 30.080 179.521
43 70 Johnny Sauter Chevrolet 29.761 181.446
Failed to qualify
44 34 Jeff Green Chevrolet 29.774   181.366
45 50 Stanton Barrett Chevrolet 29.982   180.108  
46 21 Jon Wood Ford 29.991   180.054  
47 78 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 30.061   179.635  
48 08 Tony Raines Dodge 30.739   175.673  

Failed to Qualify: Jeff Green (No. 34), Stanton Barrett (No. 50), Jon Wood (No. 21), Joe Nemechek (No. 78) and Tony Raines (No. 08).[13]

Race recap

[edit]

The 2008 Coca-Cola 600 began with a scheduled green flag at 5:45 p.m. EST. The race award was set at approximately $6,648,557.[11] The Car of Tomorrow had a successful race following its initial introduction at the 2007 Food City 500, and a record number of green flag passes was set with the average green flag run lasting 29.2 laps.[3] Kyle Busch led for the first 33 laps and lost his lead to Brian Vickers until a cut tire sent Vickers into the turn 4 wall while leading the field by an entire backstretch. Kasey Kahne, Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, and Busch then traded the lead amongst themselves several times after Vickers fell out of contention. Kurt Busch held the longest lead of the race from laps 67 to 119 which totaled to 53 laps led in one consecutive run.[3] Dale Earnhardt Jr. maintained the most laps led throughout at 76 laps. There was a total of 39 lead changes during the race with 16 different drivers leading a lap.[11] Johnson, who was leading late in the race, fell out of the race after experiencing engine failure that caused him to finish 39th. Robby Gordon and Patrick Carpentier also had engine trouble, and Paul Menard was eliminated from the running due to his car overheating. Approximately 12.5% of the race was run under caution, including five turning related accidents and three cautions citing debris.[3]

After pit stops cycled through with 10 laps to go, Tony Stewart led the 2nd place car of Kasey Kahne by a large margin. Stewart cut a tire while leading with 2 laps to go, putting the victory in the lap of Kahne. With his eighth career win, Kahne completed the Charlotte sweep by following up his 2008 Sprint All-Star Race win with a win in the 600. Kahne's margin of victory was 10.203 seconds.[3] This was his first win in 2008—ending his 52 race winless drought.[11] Greg Biffle finished 2nd, Busch finished 3rd, while Jeff Gordon and Earnhardt Jr. rounded out the Top 5. The total race time was 4:25:09.[3]

Live television coverage of the 2008 Coca-Cola 600 began at 6:30 p.m. EDT in the United States on Fox. Radio coverage was handled by Sirius Satellite Radio and the Speedway Motorsports, Inc.-owned Performance Racing Network on terrestrial radio stations.[11]

Race results

[edit]
Fin[14][15] St # Driver Sponsor Make Team Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 2 9 Kasey Kahne Budweiser Dodge Evernham Motorsports 400 66 running 190
2 4 16 Greg Biffle Dish Network Ford Roush Fenway Racing 400 2 running 175
3 1 18 Kyle Busch M&M's Toyota Joe Gibbs Racing 400 61 running 170
4 18 24 Jeff Gordon DuPont Chevy Hendrick Motorsports 400 0 running 160
5 6 88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. National Guard, AMP Energy Chevy Hendrick Motorsports 400 76 running 165
6 14 31 Jeff Burton AT&T Mobility Chevy Richard Childress Racing 400 1 running 155
7 12 17 Matt Kenseth R&L Carriers Ford Roush Fenway Racing 400 1 running 151
8 9 19 Elliott Sadler Best Buy Dodge Evernham Motorsports 400 3 running 147
9 30 99 Carl Edwards Office Depot Ford Roush Fenway Racing 400 0 running 138
10 28 44 David Reutimann UPS Toyota Michael Waltrip Racing 400 0 running 134
11 23 43 Bobby Labonte Cheerios, Trix, Lucky & Friends Dodge Petty Enterprises 400 0 running 130
12 5 6 David Ragan AAA Insurance Ford Roush Fenway Racing 400 2 running 132
13 20 77 Sam Hornish Jr. Mobil 1 Dodge Penske Racing 400 0 running 124
14 19 29 Kevin Harvick Shell, Pennzoil Chevy Richard Childress Racing 400 0 running 121
15 7 8 Mark Martin U.S. Army Chevy Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 400 0 running 118
16 8 2 Kurt Busch Miller Lite Dodge Penske Racing 400 64 running 120
17 11 22 Dave Blaney Caterpillar Toyota Bill Davis Racing 400 2 running 117
18 31 20 Tony Stewart Home Depot Toyota Joe Gibbs Racing 399 23 running 114
19 37 01 Regan Smith Principal Financial Group, DEI Chevy Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 399 0 running 106
20 27 84 A.J. Allmendinger Red Bull Toyota Red Bull Racing Team 399 0 running 103
21 38 12 Ryan Newman Alltel Dodge Penske Racing 399 1 running 105
22 17 41 Reed Sorenson Target Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 399 0 running 97
23 15 26 Jamie McMurray Irwin Industrial Tools Ford Roush Fenway Racing 399 0 running 94
24 16 11 Denny Hamlin FedEx Freight Toyota Joe Gibbs Racing 399 1 running 96
25 39 07 Clint Bowyer Jack Daniel's, Toast to the Troops Chevy Richard Childress Racing 398 0 running 88
26 41 28 Travis Kvapil Lumber Liquidators Ford Yates Racing 398 0 running 85
27 29 55 Michael Waltrip NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Michael Waltrip Racing 397 0 running 82
28 13 66 Scott Riggs Haas Automation Chevy Stewart-Haas Racing 397 0 running -71
29 21 5 Casey Mears CARQUEST Auto Parts, Kellogg's Chevy Hendrick Motorsports 396 1 running 81
30 42 42 Juan Pablo Montoya Texaco, Havoline Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 396 0 running 73
31 26 40 Sterling Marlin Wii Fit Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 396 0 running 70
32 40 00 Michael McDowell Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota Michael Waltrip Racing 395 0 running 67
33 33 33 Ken Schrader Camping World Chevy Richard Childress Racing 395 0 running 64
34 24 1 Martin Truex Jr. Bass Pro Shops, Tracker Boats Chevy Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 395 0 running 61
35 43 70 Johnny Sauter Haas Automation Chevy Stewart-Haas Racing 395 0 running -92
36 36 45 Kyle Petty Coca-Cola Dodge Petty Enterprises 389 0 running 55
37 34 10 Patrick Carpentier LifeLock Dodge Evernham Motorsports 363 0 engine 52
38 35 96 J.J. Yeley DLP HDTV Toyota Hall of Fame Racing 353 0 running 49
39 10 48 Jimmie Johnson Lowe's Chevy Hendrick Motorsports 351 35 engine 51
40 32 38 David Gilliland FreeCreditReport.com Ford Yates Racing 343 0 running 43
41 25 15 Paul Menard Menards, Johns Manville Chevy Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 244 0 overheating 40
42 3 83 Brian Vickers Red Bull Toyota Red Bull Racing Team 184 61 crash 42
43 22 7 Robby Gordon Jim Beam Dodge Robby Gordon Motorsports 181 0 engine 34
Failed to qualify
44 34 Jeff Green Gibson Custom Guitars Chevrolet Front Row Motorsports
45 50 Stanton Barrett NOS Energy Drink / SKI / SBM Chevrolet SKI Motorsports
46 21 Jon Wood U.S. Air Force "Salute the Troops" Ford Wood Brothers Racing
47 78 Joe Nemechek Furniture Row / DenverMattress.com Chevrolet Furniture Row Racing
48 08 Tony Raines getFUBAR.com Dodge E&M Motorsports

[16]

Post-race standings

[edit]
Rank Driver Points
1 Kyle Busch 1860
2 Jeff Burton 1766 (-94)
3 Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1721 (-139)
4 Denny Hamlin 1596 (-264)
5 Clint Bowyer 1578 (-282)
6 Carl Edwards 1538 (-322)
7 Kevin Harvick 1517 (-343)
8 Tony Stewart 1511 (-349)
9 Jimmie Johnson 1493 (-367)
10 Jeff Gordon 1486 (-374)
11 Greg Biffle 1483 (-377)
12 Kasey Kahne 1454 (-406)
13 David Ragan 1398 (-462)
14 Ryan Newman 1369 (-491)
15 Martin Truex Jr. 1291 (-569)
16 Matt Kenseth 1264 (-596)
17 Juan Pablo Montoya 1263 (-597)
18 Bobby Labonte 1258 (-602)
19 Travis Kvapil 1240 (-620)
20 Brian Vickers 1203 (-657)

[3]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "NASCAR Sprint Cup Schedule, NASCAR Schedule, Auto Racing Schedule - ESPN". ESPN.com.
  2. ^ "Weather information for the 2008 Coca-Cola 600". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Archived from the original on 2024-05-26. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "05/25/2008 Race: Coca Cola 600 (Cup) - Racing-Reference.info". www.racing-reference.info. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  4. ^ "Charlotte Motor Speedway Track History". www.charlottemotorspeedway.com. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  5. ^ "NASCAR promoter Humpy Wheeler to retire after Coca-Cola 600". Autoweek. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  6. ^ "2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Coca Cola 600 Entry List - Charlotte Motor Speedway". frcs.pro. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  7. ^ "NASCAR Practice #1 Speeds for the 2008 Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway". NASCAR Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  8. ^ Newton, David (24 May 2008). "Riggs, Sauter cars impounded before Cup practice". ESPN.com. ESPN. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  9. ^ "NASCAR Practice #2 Speeds for the 2008 Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway". NASCAR Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  10. ^ "NASCAR Practice #3 Speeds for the 2008 Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway". NASCAR Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  11. ^ a b c d e "Jayski's® NASCAR Silly Season Site - Sprint Cup Race Info / Rundown Page". 13 May 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-05-13. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  12. ^ "2008 Coca-Cola 600 qualifying results". Racing Reference. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29.
  13. ^ "Qualifying Times: Coca Cola 600". Crash. 24 May 2008. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  14. ^ "2008 Coca-Cola 600 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  15. ^ "Race Results". Racing-Reference. Archived from the original on 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  16. ^ "2008 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Charlotte Results - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 10 March 2019.


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