1992 Champion Spark Plug 400
# 1992 Champion Spark Plug 400

The 1992 Champion Spark Plug 400 was the 19th stock car race of the 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 23rd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, August 16, 1992, before an audience of 95,000 in Brooklyn, Michigan, at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete. Depending on fuel mileage, Leo Jackson Motorsports driver Harry Gant would manage to run the final 51 laps on one tank of fuel to take his 18th and final NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second and final victory of the season. To fill out the top three, owner-driver Darrell Waltrip and Junior Johnson & Associates driver Bill Elliott would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

The race was held at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located in Brooklyn, Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is known as a "sister track" to Texas World Speedway as MIS's oval design was a direct basis of TWS, with moderate modifications to the banking in the corners, and was used as the basis of Auto Club Speedway. The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation. Michigan International Speedway is recognized as one of motorsports' premier facilities because of its wide racing surface and high banking (by open-wheel standards; the 18-degree banking is modest by stock car standards).

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.

| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | Skoal |
| 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | Miller Genuine Draft |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service Plus |
| 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodak |
| 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Tide |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Valvoline |
| 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | Hooters |
| 8 | Dick Trickle | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | Snickers |
| 9 | Chad Little | Melling Racing | Ford | National Child Abuse Hotline |
| 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | Purolator Filters |
| 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Budweiser |
| 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Chevrolet | Raybestos |
| 13 | Stan Fox | Folsom Racing | Chevrolet | Carrier "We're The Inside Guys." |
| 15 | Geoff Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Motorcraft |
| 16 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Roush Racing | Ford | Keystone |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | Western Auto |
| 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | Interstate Batteries |
| 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Maxwell House |
| 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | SplitFire |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | Quaker State |
| 27 | Jeff McClure | Linro Motorsports | Chevrolet | Showcase Racing Collectibles |
| 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Pennzoil |
| 31 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Team Ireland | Chevrolet | Team Ireland |
| 32 | Jimmy Horton | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | Active Trucking |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Skoal Bandit |
| 41 | Greg Sacks | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kellogg's Frosted Flakes |
| 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Mello Yello |
| 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 49 | Stanley Smith | BS&S Motorsports | Chevrolet | Ameritron Batteries |
| 51 | Jeff Purvis | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | Phoenix Construction |
| 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | Jimmy Means Racing |
| 55 | Ted Musgrave | RaDiUs Motorsports | Chevrolet | Jasper Engines & Transmissions |
| 66 | Jimmy Hensley (R) | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | Phillips 66 TropArtic |
| 68 | Bobby Hamilton | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | Country Time |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Transmissions Unlimited |
| 77 | Mike Potter | Balough Racing | Chevrolet | Kenova Golf Course Construction |
| 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Ford | Purex |
| 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Ford | Sunoco |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, August 14, at 3:30 PM 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, August 15, at 10:30 AM 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; up to two were given. 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.

Alan Kulwicki, driving for his own AK Racing team, would win the pole, setting a time of 40.405 and an average speed of 178.196 miles per hour (286.779 km/h) in the first round.

No drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 40.405 | 178.196 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 40.406 | 178.191 |
| 3 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 40.424 | 178.112 |
| 4 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 40.471 | 177.905 |
| 5 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 40.479 | 177.870 |
| 6 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 40.532 | 177.637 |
| 7 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 40.593 | 177.370 |
| 8 | 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 40.653 | 177.109 |
| 9 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 40.676 | 177.009 |
| 10 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 40.696 | 176.922 |
| 11 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 40.707 | 176.874 |
| 12 | 15 | Geoff Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 40.766 | 176.618 |
| 13 | 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 40.781 | 176.553 |
| 14 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 40.790 | 176.514 |
| 15 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 40.794 | 176.497 |
| 16 | 68 | Bobby Hamilton | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | 40.806 | 176.445 |
| 17 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 40.875 | 176.147 |
| 18 | 8 | Dick Trickle | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 40.906 | 176.013 |
| 19 | 66 | Jimmy Hensley (R) | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 40.973 | 175.725 |
| 20 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Chevrolet | 41.005 | 175.588 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 41.111 | 175.136 |
| 22 | 32 | Jimmy Horton | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 41.116 | 175.114 |
| 23 | 49 | Stanley Smith | BS&S Motorsports | Chevrolet | 41.141 | 175.008 |
| 24 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 41.164 | 174.910 |
| 25 | 41 | Greg Sacks | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 41.187 | 174.812 |
| 26 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 41.214 | 174.698 |
| 27 | 16 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Roush Racing | Ford | 41.262 | 174.495 |
| 28 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 41.269 | 174.465 |
| 29 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 41.270 | 174.461 |
| 30 | 31 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Team Ireland | Chevrolet | 41.306 | 174.309 |
| 31 | 9 | Chad Little | Melling Racing | Ford | 41.371 | 174.035 |
| 32 | 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | 41.397 | 173.926 |
| 33 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | 41.495 | 173.515 |
| 34 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Ford | 41.516 | 173.427 |
| 35 | 55 | Ted Musgrave | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | 41.806 | 172.224 |
| 36 | 51 | Jeff Purvis | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 41.902 | 171.830 |
| 37 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 42.276 | 170.309 |
| 38 | 13 | Stan Fox | Folsom Racing | Chevrolet | 42.495 | 169.432 |
| 39 | 27 | Jeff McClure | Linro Motorsports | Chevrolet | 42.597 | 169.026 |
| 40 | 77 | Mike Potter | Balough Racing | Chevrolet | 42.715 | 168.559 |
| Provisional |||||||
| 41 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | - | - |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 24 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 200 | 23 | running | 180 | $71,545 |
| 2 | 9 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 6 | running | 175 | $45,670 |
| 3 | 7 | 11 | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 200 | 72 | running | 175 | $45,820 |
| 4 | 5 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 35 | running | 165 | $28,920 |
| 5 | 3 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 155 | $29,265 |
| 6 | 15 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 200 | 0 | running | 150 | $21,715 |
| 7 | 8 | 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 146 | $19,515 |
| 8 | 14 | 18 | Dale Jarrett | Joe Gibbs Racing | Chevrolet | 200 | 4 | running | 147 | $18,265 |
| 9 | 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 200 | 7 | running | 143 | $19,715 |
| 10 | 6 | 21 | Morgan Shepherd | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 200 | 0 | running | 134 | $18,765 |
| 11 | 4 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 200 | 0 | running | 130 | $19,240 |
| 12 | 10 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Ford | 200 | 7 | running | 132 | $16,615 |
| 13 | 28 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 199 | 0 | running | 124 | $15,115 |
| 14 | 1 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 199 | 46 | running | 126 | $19,915 |
| 15 | 16 | 68 | Bobby Hamilton | TriStar Motorsports | Ford | 199 | 0 | running | 118 | $14,415 |
| 16 | 41 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 199 | 0 | running | 115 | $19,665 |
| 17 | 31 | 9 | Chad Little | Melling Racing | Ford | 199 | 0 | running | 112 | $7,865 |
| 18 | 21 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 199 | 0 | running | 109 | $13,165 |
| 19 | 18 | 8 | Dick Trickle | Stavola Brothers Racing | Ford | 199 | 0 | running | 106 | $9,665 |
| 20 | 27 | 16 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. | Roush Racing | Ford | 199 | 0 | running | 103 | $7,965 |
| 21 | 33 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | 198 | 0 | running | 100 | $15,040 |
| 22 | 26 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 198 | 0 | running | 97 | $11,940 |
| 23 | 13 | 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 198 | 0 | running | 94 | $11,740 |
| 24 | 20 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Chevrolet | 198 | 0 | running | 91 | $11,590 |
| 25 | 35 | 55 | Ted Musgrave | RaDiUs Motorsports | Ford | 197 | 0 | running | 88 | $11,340 |
| 26 | 30 | 31 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Team Ireland | Chevrolet | 197 | 0 | running | 85 | $6,390 |
| 27 | 36 | 51 | Jeff Purvis | Phoenix Racing | Chevrolet | 197 | 0 | running | 82 | $6,340 |
| 28 | 32 | 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | 193 | 0 | running | 79 | $6,290 |
| 29 | 19 | 66 | Jimmy Hensley (R) | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Ford | 191 | 0 | running | 76 | $8,590 |
| 30 | 40 | 77 | Mike Potter | Balough Racing | Chevrolet | 175 | 0 | running | 73 | $6,140 |
| 31 | 39 | 27 | Jeff McClure | Linro Motorsports | Chevrolet | 173 | 0 | running | 70 | $5,990 |
| 32 | 29 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 101 | 0 | engine | 67 | $7,540 |
| 33 | 17 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 96 | 0 | crash | 64 | $7,465 |
| 34 | 34 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Ford | 87 | 0 | crash | 61 | $6,840 |
| 35 | 23 | 49 | Stanley Smith | BS&S Motorsports | Chevrolet | 61 | 0 | crash | 58 | $5,790 |
| 36 | 11 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 55 | 0 | crash | 55 | $13,765 |
| 37 | 38 | 13 | Stan Fox | Folsom Racing | Chevrolet | 44 | 0 | crash | 52 | $5,740 |
| 38 | 22 | 32 | Jimmy Horton | Active Motorsports | Chevrolet | 21 | 0 | engine | 49 | $5,715 |
| 39 | 37 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 8 | 0 | engine | 46 | $7,240 |
| 40 | 12 | 15 | Geoff Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 4 | 0 | crash | 43 | $10,165 |
| 41 | 25 | 41 | Greg Sacks | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 4 | 0 | crash | 40 | $7,140 |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Bill Elliott | 2,796 |
| | 2 | Davey Allison | 2,759 (-37) |
| 1 | 3 | Harry Gant | 2,661 (-135) |
| 1 | 4 | Alan Kulwicki | 2,653 (–143) |
| | 5 | Mark Martin | 2,511 (–285) |
| 3 | 6 | Kyle Petty | 2,431 (–365) |
| 4 | 7 | Ernie Irvan | 2,429 (–367) |
| 2 | 8 | Morgan Shepherd | 2,415 (–381) |
| 2 | 9 | Terry Labonte | 2,401 (–395) |
| 2 | 10 | Dale Earnhardt | 2,400 (–396) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
