1994 TranSouth Financial 400
# 1994 TranSouth Financial 400

The 1994 TranSouth Financial 400 was the fifth stock car race of the 1994 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 38th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, March 27, 1994, in Darlington, South Carolina, at Darlington Raceway, a 1.366 miles (2.198 km) permanent egg-shaped oval racetrack. The race took the scheduled 293 laps to complete. At race's end, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would manage to dominate the majority of the race to take his 60th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Hendrick Motorsports driver Ken Schrader and Bud Moore Engineering driver Lake Speed would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.

| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | Skoal |
| 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | Miller Genuine Draft |
| 02 | Curtis Markham | Taylor Racing | Ford | Children's Miracle Network Hospitals |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service Plus |
| 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodak |
| 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kellogg's Frosted Flakes |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Valvoline |
| 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | Exide |
| 8 | Jeff Burton | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | Raybestos |
| 9 | Rich Bickle (R) | Melling Racing | Ford | Melling Racing |
| 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | Tide |
| 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Budweiser |
| 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | Lumberton Ford |
| 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | Total Petroleum |
| 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Ford Quality Care |
| 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | The Family Channel |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | Western Auto |
| 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | Interstate Batteries |
| 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | Hooters |
| 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | Maxwell House |
| 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | Smokin' Joe's |
| 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | DuPont |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | Quaker State |
| 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | McDonald's |
| 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 29 | Steve Grissom | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | Diamond Ridge Motorsports |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Pennzoil |
| 31 | Ward Burton | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | Hardee's |
| 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | Active Trucking |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | Skoal Bandit |
| 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | Bailey Racing |
| 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Kendall |
| 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Meineke |
| 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Mello Yello |
| 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | Johnson Standridge Racing |
| 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | NAPA Auto Parts |
| 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | Petron Plus |
| 57 | Bob Schacht | Balough Racing | Ford | Balough Racing |
| 59 | Andy Belmont | Andy Belmont Racing | Ford | Metal Arrester |
| 61 | Rick Carelli | Chesrown Racing | Chevrolet | Total Petroleum |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Style Motorsports |
| 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | Factory Stores of America |
| 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | US Airways |
| 84 | Norm Benning | Norm Benning Racing | Oldsmobile | 84 Lumber |
| 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Heilig-Meyers |
| 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | Fingerhut |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, March 4, at 11:30 AM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 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, March 5, at 12:15 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time, and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; which was usually two. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.

Bill Elliott, driving for Junior Johnson & Associates, would win the pole, setting a time of 29.704 and an average speed of 165.553 miles per hour (266.432 km/h) in the first round.

Eight drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 29.704 | 165.553 |
| 2 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.751 | 165.292 |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.758 | 165.253 |
| 4 | 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | 29.798 | 165.031 |
| 5 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 29.810 | 164.965 |
| 6 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.811 | 164.959 |
| 7 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 29.863 | 164.672 |
| 8 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 29.894 | 164.501 |
| 9 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 29.898 | 164.479 |
| 10 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | 29.909 | 164.419 |
| 11 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 29.944 | 164.227 |
| 12 | 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 29.947 | 164.210 |
| 13 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.016 | 163.833 |
| 14 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 30.017 | 163.827 |
| 15 | 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 30.022 | 163.800 |
| 16 | 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 30.043 | 163.685 |
| 17 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 30.046 | 163.669 |
| 18 | 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | 30.054 | 163.625 |
| 19 | 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | 30.064 | 163.571 |
| 20 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 30.083 | 163.468 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.085 | 163.457 |
| 22 | 8 | Jeff Burton (R) | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 30.102 | 163.365 |
| 23 | 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 30.103 | 163.359 |
| 24 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.105 | 163.348 |
| 25 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 30.105 | 163.348 |
| 26 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 30.138 | 163.169 |
| 27 | 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 30.163 | 163.034 |
| 28 | 29 | Steve Grissom | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.212 | 162.770 |
| 29 | 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.235 | 162.646 |
| 30 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 30.310 | 162.243 |
| 31 | 9 | Rich Bickle | Melling Racing | Ford | 30.310 | 162.243 |
| 32 | 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 30.335 | 162.110 |
| 33 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 30.337 | 162.099 |
| 34 | 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | 30.340 | 162.083 |
| 35 | 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 30.349 | 162.035 |
| 36 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.359 | 161.982 |
| 37 | 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 30.379 | 161.875 |
| 38 | 31 | Ward Burton | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.404 | 161.742 |
| 39 | 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.448 | 161.508 |
| 40 | 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | 30.530 | 161.074 |
| Provisional |||||||
| 41 | 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 42 | 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | -* | -* |
| 43 | 61 | Rick Carelli | Chesrown Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 44 | 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 45 | 02 | Curtis Markham | Taylor Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 46 | 57 | Bob Schacht | Balough Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 47 | 84 | Norm Benning | Norm Benning Racing | Oldsmobile | -* | -* |
| 48 | 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 49 | 59 | Andy Belmont | Andy Belmont Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 9 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 293 | 166 | running | 185 | $70,190 |
| 2 | 3 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 293 | 7 | running | 175 | $47,835 |
| 3 | 1 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 293 | 5 | running | 170 | $35,285 |
| 4 | 14 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 293 | 9 | running | 165 | $27,550 |
| 5 | 35 | 15 | Lake Speed | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 293 | 0 | running | 155 | $26,300 |
| 6 | 11 | 28 | Ernie Irvan | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 293 | 24 | running | 155 | $22,875 |
| 7 | 6 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 293 | 4 | running | 151 | $18,395 |
| 8 | 21 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Chevrolet | 292 | 0 | running | 142 | $17,265 |
| 9 | 25 | 10 | Ricky Rudd | Rudd Performance Motorsports | Ford | 292 | 0 | running | 138 | $9,260 |
| 10 | 20 | 16 | Ted Musgrave | Roush Racing | Ford | 292 | 0 | running | 134 | $18,405 |
| 11 | 33 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 291 | 0 | running | 130 | $19,400 |
| 12 | 4 | 12 | Chuck Bown | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Ford | 291 | 0 | running | 127 | $15,470 |
| 13 | 19 | 55 | Jimmy Hensley | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | 291 | 0 | running | 124 | $11,185 |
| 14 | 28 | 29 | Steve Grissom | Diamond Ridge Motorsports | Chevrolet | 291 | 0 | running | 121 | $9,280 |
| 15 | 30 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 290 | 0 | running | 118 | $15,025 |
| 16 | 12 | 98 | Derrike Cope | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 290 | 0 | running | 115 | $10,405 |
| 17 | 15 | 23 | Hut Stricklin | Travis Carter Enterprises | Ford | 290 | 0 | running | 112 | $7,250 |
| 18 | 23 | 90 | Mike Wallace (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 290 | 0 | running | 109 | $10,415 |
| 19 | 29 | 41 | Joe Nemechek (R) | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 290 | 0 | running | 106 | $9,670 |
| 20 | 22 | 8 | Jeff Burton (R) | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 286 | 0 | running | 103 | $14,040 |
| 21 | 38 | 31 | Ward Burton | A.G. Dillard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 285 | 0 | running | 100 | $6,670 |
| 22 | 41 | 75 | Todd Bodine | Butch Mock Motorsports | Ford | 283 | 0 | running | 97 | $9,050 |
| 23 | 31 | 9 | Rich Bickle | Melling Racing | Ford | 282 | 0 | running | 94 | $6,430 |
| 24 | 34 | 52 | Brad Teague | Jimmy Means Racing | Ford | 279 | 0 | running | 91 | $9,335 |
| 25 | 32 | 40 | Bobby Hamilton | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 277 | 0 | running | 88 | $12,490 |
| 26 | 36 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 274 | 0 | running | 85 | $12,275 |
| 27 | 27 | 27 | Jimmy Spencer | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 271 | 0 | engine | 82 | $8,110 |
| 28 | 26 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 269 | 4 | running | 84 | $7,950 |
| 29 | 39 | 32 | Dick Trickle | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 259 | 0 | running | 76 | $5,865 |
| 30 | 40 | 77 | Greg Sacks | U.S. Motorsports Inc. | Ford | 250 | 3 | running | 78 | $5,805 |
| 31 | 13 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 236 | 0 | engine | 70 | $11,745 |
| 32 | 17 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 235 | 0 | running | 67 | $15,710 |
| 33 | 8 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 218 | 56 | running | 69 | $17,850 |
| 34 | 2 | 4 | Sterling Marlin | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 197 | 15 | engine | 66 | $16,765 |
| 35 | 24 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 195 | 0 | engine | 58 | $15,580 |
| 36 | 5 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 195 | 0 | engine | 55 | $11,045 |
| 37 | 10 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Ford | 178 | 0 | engine | 52 | $9,530 |
| 38 | 18 | 14 | John Andretti (R) | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | 170 | 0 | engine | 49 | $9,510 |
| 39 | 16 | 22 | Bobby Labonte | Bill Davis Racing | Pontiac | 138 | 0 | crash | 46 | $9,480 |
| 40 | 7 | 7 | Geoff Bodine | Geoff Bodine Racing | Ford | 134 | 0 | engine | 43 | $9,357 |
| 41 | 37 | 43 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 131 | 0 | engine | 40 | $5,857 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 42 | | 19 | Loy Allen Jr. (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | | | | | |
| 43 | | 61 | Rick Carelli | Chesrown Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 44 | | 47 | Billy Standridge (R) | Johnson Standridge Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 45 | | 02 | Curtis Markham | Taylor Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 46 | | 57 | Bob Schacht | Balough Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 47 | | 84 | Norm Benning | Norm Benning Racing | Oldsmobile | | | | | |
| 48 | | 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | | | | | |
| 49 | | 59 | Andy Belmont | Andy Belmont Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Ernie Irvan | 860 |
| 2 | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | 779 (-81) |
| 1 | 3 | Mark Martin | 779 (-81) |
| 5 | 4 | Ken Schrader | 688 (–192) |
| 3 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | 657 (–203) |
| 4 | 6 | Lake Speed | 647 (–213) |
| 3 | 7 | Morgan Shepherd | 640 (–220) |
| 1 | 8 | Jeff Gordon | 615 (–245) |
| 3 | 9 | Sterling Marlin | 614 (–246) |
| 5 | 10 | Terry Labonte | 609 (–251) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
