1996 Miller 400 (Richmond) Explained
The 1996 Miller 400 was the 24th stock car race of the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 39th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, September 7, 1996, in Richmond, Virginia, at Richmond International Raceway, a 0.75 miles (1.21 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Robert Yates Racing driver Ernie Irvan would manage to defend and come out victorious against Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon, only beating Gordon by a tenth of a second. The win was Irvan's 14th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second and final victory of the season.[1] [2] To fill out the top three, Roush Racing driver Jeff Burton would finish third.
Background
Richmond International Raceway (RIR) is a 3/4-mile (1.2 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series. Known as "America's premier short track", it formerly hosted a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, an IndyCar Series race, and two USAC sprint car races.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
Qualifying was originally scheduled to be split into two rounds. The first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, September 6, at 5:30 PM EST. However, only six drivers were able to set a lap before qualifying was rained out and postponed until Saturday, September 7, at 12:00 PM EST. Qualifying was eventually combined into only one round.[3] Each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 26-36 would be decided on time,[4] 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.
Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 21.997 and an average speed of 122.744mph.[5]
Three drivers would fail to qualify: Stacy Compton, Jay Sauter, and Gary Bradberry.
Full qualifying results
Race results
Fin | St | | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
---|
1 | 16 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 88 | running | 180 | $86,665 |
---|
2 | 2 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 168 | running | 180 | $59,640 |
---|
3 | 3 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 113 | running | 170 | $50,755 |
---|
4 | 8 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 11 | running | 165 | $30,505 |
---|
5 | 24 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 1 | running | 160 | $37,155 |
---|
6 | 10 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 150 | $30,005 |
---|
7 | 12 | 43 | Bobby Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 400 | 0 | running | 146 | $29,005 |
---|
8 | 18 | 12 | Derrike Cope | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 142 | $24,705 |
---|
9 | 1 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 1 | running | 143 | $34,805 |
---|
10 | 34 | 30 | Johnny Benson Jr. (R) | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 400 | 13 | running | 139 | $26,155 |
---|
11 | 4 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 0 | running | 130 | $28,105 |
---|
12 | 37 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 127 | $29,405 |
---|
13 | 11 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 | running | 124 | $23,155 |
---|
14 | 22 | 21 | Michael Waltrip | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 121 | $22,955 |
---|
15 | 9 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 118 | $23,855 |
---|
16 | 7 | 94 | Bill Elliott | Bill Elliott Racing | Ford | 399 | 4 | running | 120 | $23,500 |
---|
17 | 30 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 112 | $26,400 |
---|
18 | 19 | 42 | Kyle Petty | Team SABCO | Pontiac | 399 | 0 | running | 109 | $22,150 |
---|
19 | 21 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Pontiac | 398 | 0 | running | 106 | $22,025 |
---|
20 | 23 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 398 | 0 | running | 103 | $30,100 |
---|
21 | 17 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 0 | running | 100 | $27,850 |
---|
22 | 36 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 398 | 0 | running | 97 | $21,825 |
---|
23 | 38 | 75 | Morgan Shepherd | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 398 | 0 | running | 94 | $14,650 |
---|
24 | 39 | 8 | Hut Stricklin | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 398 | 0 | running | 91 | $14,525 |
---|
25 | 26 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 397 | 0 | running | 88 | $21,575 |
---|
26 | 29 | 33 | Robert Pressley | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 397 | 0 | running | 85 | $21,250 |
---|
27 | 15 | 90 | Dick Trickle | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 397 | 0 | running | 82 | $14,125 |
---|
28 | 25 | 41 | Ricky Craven | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 397 | 0 | running | 79 | $21,000 |
---|
29 | 35 | 37 | Jeremy Mayfield | Kranefuss-Haas Racing | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 76 | $20,975 |
---|
30 | 28 | 23 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 73 | $20,925 |
---|
31 | 13 | 9 | Lake Speed | Melling Racing | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 70 | $20,375 |
---|
32 | 40 | 77 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 67 | $10,850 |
---|
33 | 33 | 15 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 395 | 0 | running | 64 | $17,845 |
---|
34 | 27 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 395 | 1 | running | 66 | $10,825 |
---|
35 | 14 | 27 | Todd Bodine | David Blair Motorsports | Ford | 395 | 0 | running | 58 | $10,825 |
---|
36 | 31 | 98 | John Andretti | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 394 | 0 | running | 55 | $10,825 |
---|
37 | 5 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 362 | 0 | crash | 52 | $25,825 |
---|
38 | 20 | 81 | Kenny Wallace | FILMAR Racing | Ford | 308 | 0 | rear end | 49 | $10,825 |
---|
39 | 6 | 87 | Joe Nemechek | NEMCO Motorsports | Chevrolet | 301 | 0 | transmission | 46 | $17,825 |
---|
40 | 32 | 29 | Chad Little | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 38 | 0 | crash | 43 | $17,825 |
---|
Failed to qualify |
---|
41 | | 46 | Stacy Compton | Monroe Racing | Chevrolet | |
---|
42 | 40 | Jay Sauter | Team SABCO | Chevrolet |
---|
43 | 95 | Gary Bradberry | Sadler Brothers Racing | Ford |
---|
Official race results | |
---|
Notes and References
- Web site: Higgins . Tom . September 8, 1996 . Irvan holds off Gordon for 2nd Richmond win . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20000815213712/http://www.thatsracin.com/96/docs/9_07mill.htm . August 15, 2000 . October 23, 2022 . That's Racin' . The Charlotte Observer.
- News: Kurz Jr. . Hank . September 8, 1996 . Irvan comeback includes Miller 400 win . 30 . The Indianapolis Star . October 23, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- News: September 7, 1996 . Rain pushes NASCAR qualifying to today, Busch race to Sunday . 5 . Star-Gazette . October 23, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- News: September 6, 1996 . Miller 400 . 30 . . October 23, 2022 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Kurz Jr. . Hank . September 8, 1996 . Martin nabs pole for Miller 400 . 40 . The Belleville News-Democrat . October 23, 2022 . Newspapers.com.