2008 AMP Energy 500
Encyclopedia
The 2008 AMP Energy 500, was race number thirty of the 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup season
and the fourth event of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. It was held on October 5 at Talladega Superspeedway
in Talladega, Alabama
, and marked the only race in the Championship Chase to utilize restrictor plate
s on the 2.66 miles (4.3 km) track. ABC
telecast the 188-lap, 500.8 miles (806 km) race beginning at 1 pm US EDT
and MRN
along with Sirius Satellite Radio
had radio coverage starting at 1:15 PM US EDT. This marked the last time the race will be run in an early October spot, as in 2009
, the race will be held in the slot formerly occupied by the Atlanta Motor Speedway
event.
would wind up sitting on the front row.
cut a tire and tapped Martin Truex Jr.
into the middle of the field. The second occurred with 16 laps to go. Carl Edwards
bumped Greg Biffle
into Matt Kenseth
. Edwards appeared to have gotten through, but Biffle and Kenseth came back up the track, tapped Edwards, and Edwards crashed into Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick
. 18 cars were involved. When the race was extended due to the green-white-checker finish
rule, it appeared that Regan Smith
had won the race. However, Tony Stewart
forced Regan's car below the yellow out-of-bounds line, an off-limits area at restrictor plate tracks Talladega and Daytona
, and NASCAR awarded Stewart the win, his first in 43 races, and his first win in 20 attempts at Talladega. Smith was placed 18th by NASCAR, last on the lead lap. In addition, the lead changed hands a new series record 65 times officially among 28 drivers, and many more times unofficially during each lap.
Failed to qualify: Sam Hornish, Jr.
(#77), Patrick Carpentier
(#10).
Notes: 1. The #08 car, to have been driven by Boris Said
was withdrawn earlier in the week.
2. Race extended two laps due to green-white-checker finish rule.
2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2008 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season began on February 9, 2008 at Daytona International Speedway with the Budweiser Shootout, followed by pole qualifying on Sunday, February 10, 2008 for the 50th Daytona 500 on February 17...
and the fourth event of the Chase for the Sprint Cup. It was held on October 5 at Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway
Talladega Superspeedway is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama, United States. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base just outside the small city of Lincoln. It was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in...
in Talladega, Alabama
Talladega, Alabama
Talladega is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 15,143. The city is the county seat of Talladega County. Talladega is approximately 50 miles east of Birmingham, Alabama....
, and marked the only race in the Championship Chase to utilize restrictor plate
Restrictor plate
A restrictor plate or air restrictor is a device installed at the intake of an engine to limit its power. This kind of system is occasionally used in road vehicles for insurance purposes, but mainly in automobile racing, to limit top speed and thus increase safety, to provide equal level of...
s on the 2.66 miles (4.3 km) track. ABC
NASCAR on ABC
NASCAR on ESPN is the coverage of NASCAR on ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC. ABC, and later ESPN, carried NASCAR races from the sanctioning body's top three divisions at various points from the early 1960s until 2002. ESPN resumed coverage of NASCAR with the Nationwide Series race at Daytona in February 2007...
telecast the 188-lap, 500.8 miles (806 km) race beginning at 1 pm US EDT
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
and MRN
Motor Racing Network
The Motor Racing Network is the principal radio broadcasting operation of NASCAR, promoting themselves as "The Voice of NASCAR." It broadcasts coverage of most major NASCAR races at the top three levels of NASCAR at tracks owned by International Speedway Corporation as well as Dover International...
along with Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
had radio coverage starting at 1:15 PM US EDT. This marked the last time the race will be run in an early October spot, as in 2009
2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The 2009 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season was the 61st season of professional stock car racing in the United States, which began at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, with the 2009 Budweiser Shootout at Daytona, a race for the top six teams of the four brands in the 2008...
, the race will be held in the slot formerly occupied by the Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway
Atlanta Motor Speedway is a track just outside Hampton, Georgia, twenty miles south of Atlanta. It is a quad-oval track with a seating capacity of over 125,000. It opened in 1960 as a standard oval. In 1994, 46 condominiums were built over the northeastern side of the track...
event.
Pre-Race news
- Paul MenardPaul MenardPaul Menard is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #27 Menards Chevrolet in the Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing and runs part-time for Kevin Harvick Inc. in the Nationwide Series. He is the son of Menards founder John Menard, Jr., whose company is his sponsor...
is leaving Dale Earnhardt, Inc.Dale Earnhardt, Inc.Dale Earnhardt, Inc. was a NASCAR-related organization located in Mooresville, North Carolina, United States working to continue the legacy of Dale Earnhardt. It was originally formed in 1980 by seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt who died in a crash on the closing lap of the 2001...
after the season for Yates RacingYates RacingYates Racing was an American stock car racing racing team that competed in NASCAR until the 2009 season when it merged with Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has officially owned the team since his father Robert's retirement on...
and he'll bring his family's MenardsMenardsMenards is a chain of home improvement stores in the Midwestern United States.The privately held company headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin has 262 stores in 13 states: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, South Dakota, North Dakota, and...
sponsorship along for the troubled Yates team, which is relying upon week-to-week deals. - Joey LoganoJoey LoganoJoseph Thomas "Joey" Logano , nicknamed "sliced bread" by Randy LaJoie, is an American stock car auto racing race car driver who currently drives the #20 Home Depot Toyota Camry in the Sprint Cup Series and the #20 GameStop/Sport Clips Toyota Camry in the Nationwide Series for Joe Gibbs...
will not drive the #96 Hall of FameHall of FameA hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field...
Toyota for the rest of the season. It is expected that the 18-year driver will have extra rides in the #02 Joe Gibbs RacingJoe Gibbs RacingJoe Gibbs Racing is a group of NASCAR racing teams owned and operated by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991, and J. D. Gibbs, his son...
machine at two or three more races. - JTG Daugherty RacingJTG Daugherty RacingJTG Daugherty Racing is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team owned by former advertising executive Tad Geschickter and his wife Jodi, along with current ESPN analyst Brad Daugherty...
announced a technical alliance with Michael Waltrip Racing and in 2009 will field Toyotas with Marcos AmbroseMarcos AmbroseMarcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...
behind the wheel.
Qualifying
Talladega is known for its surprise pole sitters, and this time, Travis KvapilTravis Kvapil
Travis Kvapil is an American race car driver. He currently drives for Front Row Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.-Early career:...
would wind up sitting on the front row.
Race Recap
The big one happened on lap 68, when Brian VickersBrian Vickers
Brian Lee Vickers is a American NASCAR driver. He was the 2003 Busch Series champion, and at age 20, became the youngest champion in any of NASCAR's three top-tier series...
cut a tire and tapped Martin Truex Jr.
Martin Truex Jr.
Martin Lee Truex Jr. is a NASCAR driver. He drives the #56 NAPA Auto Parts Toyota Camry for Michael Waltrip Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. Truex is a two-time Nationwide Series champion; having won the title in 2004 and 2005. His younger brother, Ryan is a champion in the K&N Pro Series East...
into the middle of the field. The second occurred with 16 laps to go. Carl Edwards
Carl Edwards
Carl Michael Edwards, II is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #99 Fastenal/Aflac Ford Fusion in the Sprint Cup Series and the #60 Ford in the Nationwide Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
bumped Greg Biffle
Greg Biffle
Gregory Jack "Greg" Biffle is a NASCAR driver who drives the #16 3M Ford Fusion for Roush Fenway Racing in the Sprint Cup Series. After racing in the NASCAR Winter Heat Series in the mid-90s, he was recommended to Jack Roush by former announcer Benny Parsons...
into Matt Kenseth
Matt Kenseth
Matthew Roy "Matt" Kenseth is an American stock car driver. Kenseth currently drives the No. 17 Crown Royal Ford Fusion in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Roush Fenway Racing...
. Edwards appeared to have gotten through, but Biffle and Kenseth came back up the track, tapped Edwards, and Edwards crashed into Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kevin Harvick
Kevin Harvick
Kevin Michael Harvick is an American stock car auto racing race car driver and car owner currently competing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing, driving the No. 29 Budweiser/Jimmy John's/Rheem/Okuma/Realtree Outdoors/Bad Boy Buggies Chevrolet Impala...
. 18 cars were involved. When the race was extended due to the green-white-checker finish
Green-white-checker finish
The green-white-checker finish is a rule implemented into many levels of automobile racing in the United States. When the race would otherwise end during a yellow-flag caution condition , this rule gives the field an attempt to finish the race under a green-flag, racing condition...
rule, it appeared that Regan Smith
Regan Smith
Regan Smith is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #78 Furniture Row Chevrolet Impala for Furniture Row Racing.-Beginnings:...
had won the race. However, Tony Stewart
Tony Stewart
Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart...
forced Regan's car below the yellow out-of-bounds line, an off-limits area at restrictor plate tracks Talladega and Daytona
Daytona International Speedway
Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross...
, and NASCAR awarded Stewart the win, his first in 43 races, and his first win in 20 attempts at Talladega. Smith was placed 18th by NASCAR, last on the lead lap. In addition, the lead changed hands a new series record 65 times officially among 28 drivers, and many more times unofficially during each lap.
| Top Ten Finishers (Chase Drivers highlighted in yellow) |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Car # | Driver | Car Make | Team | ||||
| 1 | 20 | Tony Stewart Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne "Tony" Stewart is an American auto racing driver and owner. Throughout his racing career, Stewart has won titles in Indy cars and stock cars as well as midget, sprint and USAC Silver Crown cars, giving him the recognition of "one of the finest racers of his generation."Stewart... |
Toyota | Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing is a group of NASCAR racing teams owned and operated by former Washington Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991, and J. D. Gibbs, his son... |
||||
| 2 | 15 | Paul Menard Paul Menard Paul Menard is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #27 Menards Chevrolet in the Sprint Cup Series for Richard Childress Racing and runs part-time for Kevin Harvick Inc. in the Nationwide Series. He is the son of Menards founder John Menard, Jr., whose company is his sponsor... |
Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet , also known as Chevy , is a brand of vehicle produced by General Motors Company . Founded by Louis Chevrolet and ousted GM founder William C. Durant on November 3, 1911, General Motors acquired Chevrolet in 1918... |
Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. was a NASCAR-related organization located in Mooresville, North Carolina, United States working to continue the legacy of Dale Earnhardt. It was originally formed in 1980 by seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt who died in a crash on the closing lap of the 2001... |
||||
| 3 | 6 | David Ragan David Ragan David Ragan, , is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He has previously driven the #6 Roush Fenway Racing ford, but is currently looking for a ride for the 2012 season... |
Ford Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK... |
Roush Fenway Racing | ||||
| 4 | 31 | Jeff Burton Jeff Burton Jeffrey Brian "Jeff" Burton , also referred to as JB or The Mayor, is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver who drives the #31 Caterpillar Chevrolet Impala for Richard Childress Racing. Burton is the younger brother of Ward Burton, who is a former Sprint Cup driver... |
Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing Richard Childress Racing RCR Enterprises, LLC, doing business as Richard Childress Racing, is a NASCAR team based in Welcome, North Carolina, and is owned and operated by former driver Richard Childress... |
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| 5 | 07 | Clint Bowyer Clint Bowyer Clint Bowyer is a NASCAR driver. He drives the #15 5 Hour Energy Toyota Camry in the Sprint Cup Series for Michael Waltrip Racing. Early in his career, he drove for Richard Childress Racing. He won the 2008 Nationwide Series championship.... |
Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | ||||
| 6 | 43 | Bobby Labonte Bobby Labonte Robert Alan "Bobby" Labonte is an American race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He currently drives the #47 Kroger/Clorox/Kimberly-Clark/Kingsford/Reese Towpower Hitches Toyota Camry for JTG Daugherty Racing. He currently resides in Trinity, North Carolina. He is married to his wife... |
Dodge Dodge Dodge is a United States-based brand of automobiles, minivans, and sport utility vehicles, manufactured and marketed by Chrysler Group LLC in more than 60 different countries and territories worldwide.... |
Petty Enterprises Petty Enterprises Petty Enterprises was a NASCAR racing team based in Randleman, North Carolina, USA. The team was owned by Richard Petty, his son Kyle Petty, and Boston Ventures. At the time of its folding the team operated the #43 and #45 Dodge Chargers in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Petty Enterprises ran from... |
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| 7 | 66 | Scott Riggs Scott Riggs Russell Scott Riggs is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #81 Dodge Charger for Whitney Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.-Early career:... |
Chevrolet | Haas CNC Racing Haas CNC Racing Stewart-Haas Racing, formerly known as Haas CNC Racing, is a NASCAR racing team based in Kannapolis, North Carolina, which runs Chevrolet Impalas. The team is owned by Tony Stewart and Gene Haas, and runs the #14 Office Depot/Mobil 1 Chevrolet Impala driven by Stewart and the #39 United States... |
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| 8 | 7 | Robby Gordon Robby Gordon Robert W. "Robby" Gordon is an American racecar driver who currently competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series as an owner-driver, driving the No. 7 Speed Energy Dodge Charger for Robby Gordon Motorsports, and also competes part-time in the Nationwide Series... |
Dodge | Robby Gordon Motorsports Robby Gordon Motorsports Robby Gordon Motorsports is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team. It fields the #7 Dodge Charger for Robby Gordon. It is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is owned by Gordon and heavily supported by John Menard, Jr.-2005:... |
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| 9 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Johnson Jimmie Kenneth Johnson is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He currently drives the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.... |
Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports Hendrick Motorsports , originally named All Star Racing, is a current American auto racing team created in 1984 by Rick Hendrick. The team currently competes in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Chevrolet Impalas... |
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| 10 | 19 | Elliott Sadler Elliott Sadler Elliott William Barnes Sadler is a NASCAR driver. He currently drives the #2 OneMain Financial Chevrolet Impala for Kevin Harvick Inc. in the Nationwide Series. He is one of only 23 drivers to have won in each of NASCAR's top three series... |
Dodge | Gillett Evernham Motorsports | ||||
Failed to qualify: Sam Hornish, Jr.
Sam Hornish, Jr.
Racing League]] championships. He currently drives the #12 Alliance Truck Parts Dodge Challenger for Penske Racing part-time in the NASCAR Nationwide Series. He also drives the #38 Front Row Motorsports Ford when Travis Kvapil is unable to drive the car....
(#77), Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier
Patrick Carpentier is a retired Canadian race car driver. He is best known for his career in the Champ Car World Series and the IndyCar Series. In 2009, Patrick shared the #36 of Tommy Baldwin Racing with Mike Skinner and ran Michael Waltrip's #55 Toyota Camry in the road course races in the...
(#10).
Notes: 1. The #08 car, to have been driven by Boris Said
Boris Said
Boris Said is an American race car driver from Carlsbad, California but considers his hometown to be Stamford, Connecticut. His father, Bob Said, was a Formula One race driver and US Olympic bobsled driver in 1968 and 1972. He drove the #26 Ford Fusion for Latitude 43 Motorsports in the NASCAR...
was withdrawn earlier in the week.
2. Race extended two laps due to green-white-checker finish rule.