Average speed 139.445 mph | ||
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Date May 29, 1994 (1994-05-29) Course Permanent racing facility1.5 mi (2.4 km) Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965.606 km) Weather Warm with temperatures approaching 82.9 °F (28.3 °C); wind speeds up to 11.1 miles per hour (17.9 km/h) | ||
The 1994 Coca-Cola 600, the 35th running of the event, was the 11th race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series. It was won by Jeff Gordon, who started from the pole and earned his first victory in a points-paying race. Gordon won the race 3.3 seconds ahead of Rusty Wallace with Geoff Bodine and Dale Jarrett following behind.
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Background
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, 13 miles from Charlotte, 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 and the The Winston, as well as the Mello Yello 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.
Summary
Four drivers failed to qualify for this race: Jimmy Hensley, Dave Marcis, Bobby Hillin Jr. and Jim Sauter. Nearly 12% of this race would be held under a caution flag while the average green flag run was just over 35 laps.
I told Rick [Hendrick] I didn't think the kid was ever going to make it. I mean, seriously, he hit everything but the pace car that year. At the time I thought I was right because he seemed to wreck almost every week. I remember Ray Evernham ... telling me that they had to replace something like 13 noses on the cars from where Jeff wrecked. ... I for one was pretty skeptical of his future at the time.
Gordon's crew chief Ray Evernham made the call for two tires while Wallace's crew chief made the call for four. Evernham's call paid off and Gordon outlasted Wallace in the closing laps. Following this race, Gordon would be referred to by Dale Earnhardt as the "Wonder Boy". Gordon ended up crying in Victory Lane after his victory.