1994 SplitFire Spark Plug 500

{{Short description|25th race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox NASCAR race report|Type=NASWINSTON|Scheduled_km=804.672|Official_name=24th Annual SplitFire Spark Plug 500|Caption=The 1994 SplitFire Spark Plug 500 program cover.|Radio=Motor Racing Network|Network=TNN|First_Team=Penske Racing South|Most_Team=Geoff Bodine Racing|First_Driver=Rusty Wallace|Most_Driver=Geoff Bodine|Pole_Team=Geoff Bodine Racing|Pole_Driver=Geoff Bodine|Most_laps=170|Car=2|Distance_km=804.672|Location=Dover, Delaware, Dover International Speedway|Scheduled_laps=500|Scheduled_mi=500|Distance_laps=500|Avg={{convert|112.556|mph|km/h}}|Date=September 18|Pole_Time=23.554|Course_km=1.6|Course_mi=1|Race_Name=SplitFire Spark Plug 500|Year=1994|Season_No=31|Race_No=25|Distance_mi=500|Announcers=Mike Joy, Buddy Baker|Image=1994 SplitFire Spark Plug 500.jpeg|Attendance=94,000}}

The '''1994 SplitFire Spark Plug 500''' was the 25th stock car race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 24th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, September 18, 1994, in Dover, Delaware at Dover International Speedway, a 1-mile (1.6 km) permanent oval-shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 500 laps to complete. With a handful laps to go in the race, previous damage sustained from an earlier incident caused Roush Racing driver Mark Martin to blow his right front tire with six laps to go in the race, propelling Penske Racing South driver Rusty Wallace to the lead when the caution would come out for Martin. Running with barely any fuel and a punctured left rear tire, Wallace was able to coast to the finish line, running at {{Convert|20|mph|km/h}} under caution to take his 38th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his seventh victory of the season.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Snyder |first=Brad |date=September 19, 1994 |title=Cautious ending lifts Wallace |pages=61 |work=The Baltimore Sun |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114877159/cautious-ending-lifts-wallace/ |access-date=December 19, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=September 19, 1994 |title=Rusty Wallace good to the last drop of gas at Dover |pages=12 |work=The Republic |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114877257/rusty-wallace-good-to-the-last-drop-of/ |access-date=December 19, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref> To fill out the top three, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt and owner-driver Darrell Waltrip would finish second and third, respectively.

== Background == [[File:Dover_International_Speedway.svg|thumb|The layout of Dover International Speedway, the venue where the race was held.]] Dover International Speedway is an oval race track in Dover, Delaware, United States that has held at least two NASCAR races since it opened in 1969. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosted USAC and the NTT IndyCar Series. The track features one layout, a 1-mile (1.6 km) concrete oval, with 24° banking in the turns and 9° banking on the straights. The speedway is owned and operated by Dover Motorsports.

The track, nicknamed "The Monster Mile", was built in 1969 by Melvin Joseph of Melvin L. Joseph Construction Company, Inc., with an asphalt surface, but was replaced with concrete in 1995. Six years later in 2001, the track's capacity moved to 135,000 seats, making the track have the largest capacity of sports venue in the mid-Atlantic. In 2002, the name changed to Dover International Speedway from Dover Downs International Speedway after Dover Downs Gaming and Entertainment split, making Dover Motorsports. From 2007 to 2009, the speedway worked on an improvement project called "The Monster Makeover", which expanded facilities at the track and beautified the track. After the 2014 season, the track's capacity was reduced to 95,500 seats.

=== Entry list ===

* '''(R)''' denotes rookie driver.

== Qualifying == Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, September 16, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 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 Saturday, September 17, at 11:00 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time,<ref>{{Cite news |date=September 16, 1994 |title=NASCAR today |pages=25 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114877837/nascar-today/ |access-date=December 19, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref> 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 two 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.

Geoff Bodine, driving for his own Geoff Bodine Racing team, won the pole, setting a time of 23.554 and an average speed of {{Convert|152.840|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} in the first round.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brinster |first=Dick |date=September 17, 1994 |title=Bodine takes pole with record lap |pages=12 |work=Bennington Banner |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114878111/bodine-takes-pole-with-record-lap/ |access-date=December 19, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}</ref>

Three drivers would fail to qualify.

=== Full qualifying results === {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed |- !1 |7 |Geoff Bodine |Geoff Bodine Racing |Ford |'''23.554''' |'''152.840''' |- !2 |32 |Dick Trickle |Active Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.571 |152.730 |- !3 |31 |Ward Burton '''(R)''' |A.G. Dillard Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.578 |152.685 |- !4 |6 |Mark Martin |Roush Racing |Ford |23.698 |151.912 |- !5 |26 |Brett Bodine |King Racing |Ford |23.755 |151.547 |- !6 |8 |Jeff Burton '''(R)''' |Stavola Brothers Racing |Ford |23.779 |151.394 |- !7 |28 |Kenny Wallace |Robert Yates Racing |Ford |23.823 |151.114 |- !8 |1 |Rick Mast |Precision Products Racing |Ford |23.832 |151.057 |- !9 |75 |Todd Bodine |Butch Mock Motorsports |Ford |23.858 |150.893 |- !10 |2 |Rusty Wallace |Penske Racing South |Ford |23.864 |150.855 |- !11 |40 |Bobby Hamilton |SABCO Racing |Pontiac |23.884 |150.729 |- !12 |24 |Jeff Gordon |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.886 |150.716 |- !13 |11 |Bill Elliott |Junior Johnson & Associates |Ford |23.886 |150.716 |- !14 |25 |Ken Schrader |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.889 |150.697 |- !15 |42 |Kyle Petty |SABCO Racing |Pontiac |23.911 |150.558 |- !16 |10 |Ricky Rudd |Rudd Performance Motorsports |Ford |23.920 |150.502 |- !17 |12 |Derrike Cope |Bobby Allison Motorsports |Ford |23.920 |150.502 |- !18 |4 |Sterling Marlin |Morgan–McClure Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.948 |150.326 |- !19 |18 |Dale Jarrett |Joe Gibbs Racing |Chevrolet |23.950 |150.313 |- !20 |21 |Morgan Shepherd |Wood Brothers Racing |Ford |23.951 |150.307 |- ! colspan="7" |Failed to lock in Round 1 |- !21 |41 |Joe Nemechek '''(R)''' |Larry Hedrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |23.939 |150.382 |- !22 |15 |Lake Speed |Bud Moore Engineering |Ford |23.965 |150.219 |- !23 |43 |John Andretti '''(R)''' |Petty Enterprises |Pontiac |24.012 |149.925 |- !24 |71 |Dave Marcis |Marcis Auto Racing |Chevrolet |24.031 |149.806 |- !25 |90 |Mike Wallace '''(R)''' |Donlavey Racing |Ford |24.042 |149.738 |- !26 |16 |Ted Musgrave |Roush Racing |Ford |24.043 |149.732 |- !27 |27 |Jimmy Spencer |Junior Johnson & Associates |Ford |24.083 |149.483 |- !28 |30 |Michael Waltrip |Bahari Racing |Pontiac |24.084 |149.477 |- !29 |5 |Terry Labonte |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |24.108 |149.328 |- !30 |33 |Harry Gant |Leo Jackson Motorsports |Chevrolet |24.146 |149.093 |- !31 |22 |Bobby Labonte |Bill Davis Racing |Pontiac |24.151 |149.062 |- !32 |23 |Hut Stricklin |Travis Carter Enterprises |Ford |24.151 |149.062 |- !33 |98 |Jeremy Mayfield '''(R)''' |Cale Yarborough Motorsports |Ford |24.157 |149.025 |- !34 |29 |Steve Grissom '''(R)''' |Diamond Ridge Motorsports |Chevrolet |24.180 |148.883 |- !35 |17 |Darrell Waltrip |Darrell Waltrip Motorsports |Chevrolet |24.226 |148.601 |- !36 |77 |Greg Sacks |U.S. Motorsports Inc. |Ford |24.258 |148.405 |- !37 |3 |Dale Earnhardt |Richard Childress Racing |Chevrolet |24.486 |147.023 |- !38 |55 |Tim Fedewa |RaDiUs Motorsports |Ford |24.578 |146.472 |- !39 |52 |Brad Teague |Jimmy Means Racing |Ford |24.722 |145.619 |- !40 |19 |Loy Allen Jr. '''(R)''' |TriStar Motorsports |Ford |25.093 |143.466 |- ! colspan="7" |Failed to qualify |- !41 |84 |Norm Benning |Norm Benning Racing |Ford | -* | -* |- !42 |79 |Doug French |Waters Racing |Chevrolet | -* | -* |- !43 |47 |{{Nowrap|Billy Standridge}} '''(R)''' |Johnson Standridge Racing |Ford | -* | -* |- ! colspan="7" |[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114873829/nascar-qualifying/ Official first round qualifying results] |- ! colspan="7" |[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114874095/todays-lineup/ Official starting lineup] |}

== Race results == {| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%" !Fin !St !# !Driver !Team !Make !Laps !Led !Status !Pts !Winnings |- !1 |10 |2 |Rusty Wallace |Penske Racing South |Ford |500 |56 |running |180 |$55,055 |- !2 |37 |3 |Dale Earnhardt |Richard Childress Racing |Chevrolet |500 |62 |running |175 |$47,980 |- !3 |35 |17 |Darrell Waltrip |Darrell Waltrip Motorsports |Chevrolet |500 |11 |running |170 |$36,705 |- !4 |14 |25 |Ken Schrader |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |500 |20 |running |165 |$32,965 |- !5 |1 |7 |Geoff Bodine |Geoff Bodine Racing |Ford |500 |170 |running |165 |$31,520 |- !6 |15 |42 |Kyle Petty |SABCO Racing |Pontiac |500 |0 |running |150 |$24,965 |- !7 |29 |5 |Terry Labonte |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |500 |0 |running |146 |$23,015 |- !8 |34 |29 |Steve Grissom '''(R)''' |Diamond Ridge Motorsports |Chevrolet |499 |1 |running |147 |$16,815 |- !9 |22 |15 |Lake Speed |Bud Moore Engineering |Ford |499 |0 |running |138 |$21,765 |- !10 |20 |21 |Morgan Shepherd |Wood Brothers Racing |Ford |499 |0 |running |134 |$23,565 |- !11 |12 |24 |Jeff Gordon |Hendrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |499 |0 |running |130 |$20,615 |- !12 |17 |12 |Derrike Cope |Bobby Allison Motorsports |Ford |499 |0 |running |127 |$13,415 |- !13 |30 |33 |Harry Gant |Leo Jackson Motorsports |Chevrolet |499 |0 |running |124 |$17,015 |- !14 |26 |16 |Ted Musgrave |Roush Racing |Ford |498 |0 |running |121 |$16,615 |- !15 |8 |1 |Rick Mast |Precision Products Racing |Ford |498 |0 |running |118 |$16,665 |- !16 |9 |75 |Todd Bodine |Butch Mock Motorsports |Ford |497 |0 |running |115 |$11,865 |- !17 |31 |22 |Bobby Labonte |Bill Davis Racing |Pontiac |497 |0 |running |112 |$15,665 |- !18 |16 |10 |Ricky Rudd |Rudd Performance Motorsports |Ford |496 |0 |running |109 |$15,450 |- !19 |4 |6 |Mark Martin |Roush Racing |Ford |494 |158 |crash |111 |$23,065 |- !20 |7 |28 |Kenny Wallace |Robert Yates Racing |Ford |494 |2 |running |108 |$20,965 |- !21 |2 |32 |Dick Trickle |Active Motorsports |Chevrolet |494 |0 |running |100 |$11,165 |- !22 |40 |19 |Loy Allen Jr. '''(R)''' |TriStar Motorsports |Ford |491 |0 |running |97 |$9,115 |- !23 |38 |55 |Tim Fedewa |RaDiUs Motorsports |Ford |487 |0 |running |94 |$8,565 |- !24 |33 |98 |Jeremy Mayfield '''(R)''' |Cale Yarborough Motorsports |Ford |472 |0 |running |91 |$10,915 |- !25 |23 |43 |John Andretti '''(R)''' |Petty Enterprises |Pontiac |468 |1 |running |93 |$10,765 |- !26 |5 |26 |Brett Bodine |King Racing |Ford |462 |0 |running |85 |$14,615 |- !27 |3 |31 |Ward Burton '''(R)''' |A.G. Dillard Motorsports |Chevrolet |417 |0 |running |82 |$8,465 |- !28 |13 |11 |Bill Elliott |Junior Johnson & Associates |Ford |404 |0 |running |79 |$14,415 |- !29 |25 |90 |Mike Wallace '''(R)''' |Donlavey Racing |Ford |398 |0 |rear end |76 |$10,265 |- !30 |18 |4 |Sterling Marlin |Morgan–McClure Motorsports |Chevrolet |380 |0 |running |73 |$18,215 |- !31 |11 |40 |Bobby Hamilton |SABCO Racing |Pontiac |379 |0 |crash |70 |$14,165 |- !32 |32 |23 |Hut Stricklin |Travis Carter Enterprises |Ford |367 |0 |running |67 |$9,605 |- !33 |28 |30 |Michael Waltrip |Bahari Racing |Pontiac |326 |0 |running |64 |$12,055 |- !34 |19 |18 |Dale Jarrett |Joe Gibbs Racing |Chevrolet |323 |0 |crash |61 |$19,405 |- !35 |24 |71 |Dave Marcis |Marcis Auto Racing |Chevrolet |273 |0 |engine |58 |$7,805 |- !36 |21 |41 |Joe Nemechek '''(R)''' |Larry Hedrick Motorsports |Chevrolet |225 |8 |crash |60 |$8,280 |- !37 |6 |8 |Jeff Burton '''(R)''' |Stavola Brothers Racing |Ford |189 |8 |crash |57 |$13,280 |- !38 |36 |77 |Greg Sacks |U.S. Motorsports Inc. |Ford |118 |3 |crash |54 |$7,780 |- !39 |27 |27 |Jimmy Spencer |Junior Johnson & Associates |Ford |100 |0 |engine |46 |$7,780 |- !40 |39 |52 |Brad Teague |Jimmy Means Racing |Ford |29 |0 |timing chain |43 |$7,780 |- ! colspan="11" |[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114872916/sundays-results/ Official race results] |}

== Standings after the race == {{col-begin}} {{col-2}} ;Drivers' Championship standings {| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |- ! ! Pos ! Driver ! Points |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 1 | Dale Earnhardt | style="text-align:center;"| 3,795 |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 2 | Rusty Wallace | style="text-align:center;"| 3,568 (-227) |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 3 | Mark Martin | style="text-align:center;"| 3,428 (-367) |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 4 | Ricky Rudd | style="text-align:center;"| 3,319 (–476) |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 5 | Ken Schrader | style="text-align:center;"| 3,304 (–491) |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 6 | Morgan Shepherd | style="text-align:center;"| 3,211 (–584) |- |align="left"| 10px '''1''' | style="text-align:center;"| 7 | Jeff Gordon | style="text-align:center;"| 3,054 (–744) |- |align="left"| 10px '''1''' | style="text-align:center;"| 8 | Ernie Irvan | style="text-align:center;"| 3,026 (–769) |- |align="left"| 10px | style="text-align:center;"| 9 | Bill Elliott | style="text-align:center;"| 2,966 (–829) |- |align="left"| 10px '''2''' | style="text-align:center;"| 10 | Darrell Waltrip | style="text-align:center;"| 2,959 (–836) |- class="sortbottom" !colspan="9"|[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/114878459/driver-standings/ Official driver's standings] |}

*<small>'''Note''': Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.</small> {{col-end}}

== References == {{Reflist}}{{NASCAR next race|Previous_race=1994 Miller Genuine Draft 400 (Richmond)|Next_race=1994 Goody's 500 (Martinsville)|Monsteryear=1994|Series=NASCAR Winston Cup Series}} {{NASCAR on TNN}}{{1994 Winston Cup}}

Category:1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Category:NASCAR races at Dover Motor Speedway Category:September 1994 sports events in the United States Category:1994 in sports in Delaware