1998 Pocono 500
The 1998 Pocono 500 was the 15th stock car race of the 1998 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 17th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, June 21, 1998, in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Within the last 25 laps, Penske-Kranefuss Racing driver Jeremy Mayfield was able to defend against Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon to complete a dominant run to win the race, securing his first career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season. To fill out the podium, Gordon and Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
The race was held at Pocono Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.Pocono Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.
Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by Sports Car Club of America and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.
Entry list
' denotes rookie driver.Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, June 19. Jeremy Mayfield, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 53.639 and an average speed of.Final practice
The final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, June 20. Jeremy Mayfield, driving for Penske-Kranefuss Racing, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 54.681 and an average speed of.Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, June 19, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 25 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, June 20, at 11:30 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. On January 24, 1998, NASCAR would announce that the amount of provisionals given would be increased from last season. Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 53.558 and an average speed of.
Two drivers would fail to qualify: Dave Marcis and Buckshot Jones.