2003 Ford 400
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 36 of 36 in the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Map of Homestead-Miami Speedway. Gray dashed lines are other courses. Gray solid line is another pit road option. | |||
| Date | November 16, 2003 | ||
| Location | Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead, Florida, United States | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.4 km) | ||
| Distance | 267 laps, 400.5 mi (644.5 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 80.6 °F (27.0 °C); with wind speeds reaching up to 14 miles per hour (23 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 116.868 miles per hour (188.081 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Chip Ganassi Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Bill Elliott | Evernham Motorsports | |
| Laps | 189 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | NBC | ||
| Announcers | Allen Bestwick, Wally Dallenbach Jr., and Benny Parsons | ||
The 2003 Ford 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on November 16, 2003, at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida, United States. This was the last race ever for NASCAR with title sponsorship from Winston, breaking a partnership beginning in 1972. Starting in 2004, new series sponsor Nextel would take over. The race was also the final Cup Series won by Bobby Labonte.
Summary
[edit]Jamie McMurray qualified for the pole position with a lap turned at 181.111 miles per hour (291.470 km/h). Ken Schrader, Kyle Petty, Mike Wallace, Derrike Cope, and Rich Bickle had all failed to qualify for the race. Kyle Busch was set to make his Cup Series debut in this race, driving the No. 60 Ditech Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Hendrick Motorsports, but was ejected from the event[3] after NASCAR confiscated his car for pre-race inspection failures.[4]
Bill Elliott dominated the race, leading 189 out of 267 laps, before cutting a tire and losing the lead on the final lap. Bobby Labonte would pass him and win the race, which would be his final NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory.[3] Ten cautions were called, slowing the field for a total of 60 laps, while the lead changed 21 times between 12 drivers.[3] Despite an engine failure on lap 28 which relegated him to a last-place finish, Matt Kenseth maintained his points lead over Jimmie Johnson and won the 2003 NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship.[3]
This would be the last NASCAR Winston Cup Series race for Ron Hornaday Jr. until the 2015 Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500.
Race Results
[edit] |
| Pos. | Car # | Driver | Make | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Chevrolet | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| 2 | 29 | Kevin Harvick | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | |
| 3 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| 4 | 10 | Johnny Benson | Pontiac | MB2 Motorsports | |
| 5 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| 6 | 19 | Jeremy Mayfield | Dodge | Evernham Motorsports | |
| 7 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| 8 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Dodge | Evernham Motorsports | |
| 9 | 42 | Jamie McMurray (R) | Dodge | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | |
| 10 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Dodge | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | |
| 11 | 54 | Todd Bodine | Ford | BelCar Motorsports | |
| 12 | 22 | Scott Wimmer | Dodge | Bill Davis Racing | |
| 13 | 74 | Tony Raines (R) | Chevrolet | BACE Motorsports | |
| 14 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Ford | Roush Racing | |
| 15 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| 16 | 14 | Larry Foyt (R) | Dodge | A. J. Foyt Racing | |
| 17 | 01 | Joe Nemechek | Pontiac | MB2 Motorsports | |
| 18 | 4 | Kevin Lepage | Pontiac | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | |
| 19 | 30 | Steve Park | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | |
| 20 | 90 | Ron Hornaday Jr. | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | |
| 21 | 38 | Elliott Sadler | Ford | Robert Yates Racing | |
| 22 | 23 | Kenny Wallace | Dodge | Bill Davis Racing | |
| 23 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Dodge | Penske Racing | |
| 24 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Chevrolet | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | |
| 25 | 7 | Jimmy Spencer | Dodge | Ultra Motorsports | |
| 26 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Ford | Robert Yates Racing | |
| 27 | 41 | Casey Mears (R) | Dodge | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | |
| 28 | 77 | Dave Blaney | Ford | Jasper Motorsports | |
| 29 | 32 | Ricky Craven | Pontiac | PPI Motorsports | |
| 30 | 31 | Robby Gordon | Chevrolet | Richard Childress Racing | |
| 31 | 21 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | Wood Brothers Racing | |
| 32 | 0 | Ward Burton | Pontiac | Haas CNC Racing | |
| 33 | 6 | Mark Martin | Ford | Roush Racing | |
| 34 | 25 | Brian Vickers | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| 35 | 16 | Greg Biffle (R) | Ford | Roush Racing | |
| 36 | 97 | Kurt Busch | Ford | Roush Racing | |
| 37 | 12 | Ryan Newman | Dodge | Penske Racing | |
| 38 | 02 | Hermie Sadler | Chevrolet | SCORE Motorsports | |
| 39 | 00 | Mike Skinner | Chevrolet | Michael Waltrip Racing | |
| 40 | 43 | Jeff Green | Dodge | Petty Enterprises | |
| 41 | 15 | Michael Waltrip | Chevrolet | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | |
| 42 | 1 | John Andretti | Chevrolet | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | |
| 43 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Ford | Roush Racing | |
| Source:[3] | |||||
Failed to Qualify
[edit]- 49 - Ken Schrader
- 45 - Kyle Petty
- 09 - Mike Wallace
- 79 - Derrike Cope
- 78 - Rich Bickle
- 60 - Kyle Busch (withdrew after pre-race tech failure)[4]
References
[edit]- ^ Weather information for the 2003 Ford 400 at The Old Farmers' Alamanac
- ^ 2003 Ford 400 NASCAR.com Official site of NASCAR
- ^ a b c d e 2003 Ford 400 racing information at Racing Reference
- ^ a b Adamcyzk, Jay. "2003 NASCAR Penalties". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
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