1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer


The 1999 Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 22, 1999, at Michigan Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. This was the twenty-second race in the 1999 NASCAR Winston Cup Series schedule.

Background

The Michigan Speedway is a 2-mile tri-oval built in 1969. The frontstretch is 3,600 feet while the backstretch is 2,242 feet. The track features 18 degrees in the corners, 12 degrees in the frontstretch, and 5 degrees in the backstretch.
Ernie Irvan suffered head and lung injuries in a Busch Series practice session the previous day. His #36 M&Ms Pontiac was relieved by Dick Trickle for this race. Ernie would later announce his retirement from racing two weeks later.
Future 2000 Winston Cup rookies and then-Busch Series championship contenders Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Matt Kenseth made one of their pre-rookie season starts in this race.

Qualifying

Failed to qualify: Derrike Cope, Stanton Barrett, Darrell Waltrip, Brett Bodine, Tom Hubert

Race recap

The race was very competitive with 24 lead changes among 11 drivers. Many underdog drivers ran very well throughout the race, including Chad Little, Jimmy Spencer, and the underfunded Hut Stricklin in the unsponsored SBIII Motorsports Ford. It was the only top 10 for the SBIII team.
The final 20 laps featured a fierce battle between the sport's then-current stars of Bobby Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, Tony Stewart, Dale Jarrett, and Jeff Gordon. At the end, it was Bobby Labonte who prevailed with his third win at Michigan and fourth of the 1999 season.

Timeline