2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series - Coca-Cola 600

Coca-Cola 600

The Coca-Cola 600 was held May 28 at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. won the pole. This was the first career Winston Cup series win for Matt Kenseth.

Top Ten Results

1. Matt Kenseth
2. Bobby Labonte
3. Dale Earnhardt
4. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
5. Dale Jarrett
6. Jeremy Mayfield
7. Mike Skinner
8. Rusty Wallace
9. Steve Park
10. Jeff Gordon

Failed to qualify: Ted Musgrave (#15), Steve Grissom (#44), Ed Berrier (#90), Darrell Waltrip (#66), Dave Marcis (#71)

• Carl Long, who qualified in the #85 Mansion Motorsports entry, gave up his spot so Darrell Waltrip could compete in his final Coca-Cola 600.
• The race was stopped on lap 254 by a 51-minute red flag due to rain.
• Kenseth became the only rookie ever to win the Coca-Cola 600.
• Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the pole with a new track qualifying record. Earnhardt led a race-high 175 laps, but a caution flag on lap 360 caused by oil on the track from Jerry Nadeau's blown engine, at which point he was leading by nearly 5 seconds, and a slow pit stop dropped him to 6th on the final restart.
• Nadeau himself led 115 laps, most of them in the first half (he had led only 14 total laps in his Cup career before this race), and lap 254 when the race was stopped for rain. However, just after the rain delay, various engine problems dropped him from contention.
• Robby Gordon was competing in the Indianapolis 500, where the start was delayed 3 hours by rain. Gordon finished 6th in that event. P.J. Jones started the 600 in Gordon's #13 Ford. Gordon arrived at Charlotte during the red flag at lap 254 and drove the remainder of this race. The car finished 35th, 11 laps off the pace.
• John Andretti started the race in the #43 Pontiac. On lap 81, he was replaced by Tim Fedewa. Andretti was suffering from a rib injury he suffered in a crash at the Winston Open.