1990 Winston 500
# 1990 Winston 500

The 1990 Winston 500 was the ninth stock car race of the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 21st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, May 6, 1990, before an audience of 140,000 in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 188 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt was able to fend off part-time driver for Hendrick Motorsports, Greg Sacks to take his 42nd career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third victory of the season. To fill out the top three, the aforementioned Greg Sacks and Roush Racing driver Mark Martin would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval, a 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) tri-oval.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.

| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Terry Labonte | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | Skoal |
| 01 | Mickey Gibbs | Gibbs Racing | Ford | Special Days Inn |
| 2 | Rick Mast | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | U.S. Racing |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service Plus |
| 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Kodak |
| 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Levi Garrett |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Folgers |
| 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | Zerex |
| 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | Snickers |
| 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | Coors Light |
| 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | Purolator Filters |
| 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Budweiser |
| 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | Raybestos |
| 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Motorcraft |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Tide |
| 18 | Greg Sacks | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | SlimFast |
| 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce |
| 20 | Rob Moroso (R) | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | Crown Central Petroleum |
| 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | Quaker State |
| 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | Miller Genuine Draft |
| 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Country Time |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Skoal Bandit |
| 35 | Bill Venturini | Venturini Motorsports | Chevrolet | Amoco |
| 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Peak Antifreeze |
| 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 47 | Jack Pennington (R) | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | Kanawha Insurance |
| 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | Alka-Seltzer |
| 57 | Jimmy Spencer | Osterlund Racing | Pontiac | Heinz |
| 66 | Dick Trickle | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | Phillips 66 TropArtic |
| 70 | J. D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Pontiac | Rumple Furniture |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Big Apple Market |
| 72 | Phil Parsons | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | Barkdoll Racing |
| 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | SlimFast |
| 75 | Rick Wilson | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | Dinner Bell Foods |
| 80 | Jimmy Horton | S&H Racing | Ford | Miles Concrete |
| 82 | Mark Stahl | Stahl Racing | Ford | Auto Bell Car Wash |
| 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | Prestone |
| 85 | Bobby Gerhart | Bobby Gerhart Racing | Chevrolet | James Omar Landis Auctions |
| 90 | Buddy Baker | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Sunny King Ford & Honda |
| 94 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | Sunoco |
| 98 | Butch Miller | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | Food World |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, May 3, at 4:30 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 Friday, May 4, at 3:30 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; up to two were given.

Bill Elliott, driving for Melling Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 48.027 and an average speed of 199.388 miles per hour (320.884 km/h) in the first round.

Four drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 48.027 | 199.388 |
| 2 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 48.089 | 199.131 |
| 3 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 48.115 | 199.023 |
| 4 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 48.138 | 198.928 |
| 5 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 48.168 | 198.804 |
| 6 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 48.183 | 198.742 |
| 7 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 48.542 | 197.277 |
| 8 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 48.561 | 197.195 |
| 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 48.606 | 197.013 |
| 10 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 48.665 | 196.774 |
| 11 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 48.677 | 196.725 |
| 12 | 57 | Jimmy Spencer | Osterlund Racing | Pontiac | 48.731 | 196.507 |
| 13 | 20 | Rob Moroso (R) | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 48.747 | 196.443 |
| 14 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 48.755 | 196.411 |
| 15 | 94 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 48.758 | 196.399 |
| 16 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 48.791 | 196.266 |
| 17 | 18 | Greg Sacks | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 48.940 | 195.668 |
| 18 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 48.964 | 195.572 |
| 19 | 75 | Rick Wilson | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 49.051 | 195.225 |
| 20 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 49.107 | 195.003 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 49.072 | 195.142 |
| 22 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 49.135 | 194.892 |
| 23 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 49.142 | 194.864 |
| 24 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 49.147 | 194.844 |
| 25 | 66 | Dick Trickle | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 49.174 | 194.737 |
| 26 | 72 | Phil Parsons | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 49.216 | 194.571 |
| 27 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 49.277 | 194.330 |
| 28 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | 49.314 | 194.184 |
| 29 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 49.391 | 193.881 |
| 30 | 90 | Buddy Baker | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 49.461 | 193.607 |
| 31 | 1 | Terry Labonte | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 49.523 | 193.365 |
| 32 | 47 | Jack Pennington (R) | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | 49.524 | 193.361 |
| 33 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 49.572 | 193.174 |
| 34 | 2 | Rick Mast | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 49.591 | 193.100 |
| 35 | 35 | Bill Venturini | Venturini Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49.607 | 193.037 |
| 36 | 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 49.670 | 192.792 |
| 37 | 98 | Butch Miller | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 49.672 | 192.785 |
| 38 | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | 49.714 | 192.622 |
| 39 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 49.724 | 192.583 |
| 40 | 01 | Mickey Gibbs | Gibbs Racing | Ford | 50.066 | 191.268 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 41 | 70 | J. D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| 42 | 85 | Bobby Gerhart | Bobby Gerhart Racing | Chevrolet | -* | -* |
| 43 | 80 | Jimmy Horton | S&H Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| 44 | 82 | Mark Stahl | Stahl Racing | Ford | -* | -* |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 5 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 188 | 107 | running | 185 | $98,975 |
| 2 | 17 | 18 | Greg Sacks | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 188 | 41 | running | 175 | $46,900 |
| 3 | 6 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 188 | 4 | running | 170 | $39,050 |
| 4 | 4 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 188 | 1 | running | 165 | $30,150 |
| 5 | 10 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 2 | running | 160 | $26,425 |
| 6 | 31 | 1 | Terry Labonte | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 188 | 1 | running | 155 | $20,657 |
| 7 | 11 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 187 | 1 | running | 151 | $20,950 |
| 8 | 21 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 187 | 5 | running | 147 | $17,200 |
| 9 | 18 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 187 | 0 | running | 138 | $13,400 |
| 10 | 3 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 187 | 3 | running | 139 | $24,725 |
| 11 | 32 | 47 | Jack Pennington (R) | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | 187 | 0 | running | 130 | $9,870 |
| 12 | 24 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 187 | 0 | running | 127 | $12,540 |
| 13 | 7 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 186 | 0 | running | 124 | $12,010 |
| 14 | 29 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 186 | 0 | running | 121 | $11,405 |
| 15 | 38 | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | 186 | 0 | running | 118 | $7,975 |
| 16 | 37 | 98 | Butch Miller | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 186 | 0 | running | 115 | $8,510 |
| 17 | 34 | 2 | Rick Mast | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 186 | 0 | running | 112 | $9,570 |
| 18 | 35 | 35 | Bill Venturini | Venturini Motorsports | Chevrolet | 183 | 0 | running | 109 | $6,255 |
| 19 | 40 | 01 | Mickey Gibbs | Gibbs Racing | Ford | 183 | 0 | running | 106 | $6,040 |
| 20 | 22 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 183 | 0 | running | 103 | $17,575 |
| 21 | 20 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 181 | 0 | running | 100 | $6,565 |
| 22 | 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 175 | 0 | running | 97 | $16,570 |
| 23 | 33 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 171 | 0 | running | 94 | $8,310 |
| 24 | 23 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 170 | 2 | running | 96 | $13,655 |
| 25 | 8 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 162 | 0 | running | 88 | $13,275 |
| 26 | 15 | 94 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 159 | 0 | engine | 85 | $7,945 |
| 27 | 25 | 66 | Dick Trickle | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 158 | 0 | running | 82 | $8,790 |
| 28 | 2 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 154 | 20 | valve | 84 | $13,735 |
| 29 | 39 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 137 | 0 | running | 76 | $5,630 |
| 30 | 36 | 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 121 | 0 | clutch | 73 | $4,875 |
| 31 | 30 | 90 | Buddy Baker | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 115 | 1 | handling | 75 | $5,420 |
| 32 | 12 | 57 | Jimmy Spencer | Osterlund Racing | Pontiac | 114 | 0 | engine | 67 | $7,340 |
| 33 | 14 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 104 | 0 | accident | 64 | $7,285 |
| 34 | 16 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 103 | 0 | accident | 61 | $7,230 |
| 35 | 26 | 72 | Phil Parsons | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 101 | 0 | accident | 58 | $4,600 |
| 36 | 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 83 | 0 | engine | 55 | $11,570 |
| 37 | 13 | 20 | Rob Moroso (R) | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 79 | 0 | piston | 52 | $4,740 |
| 38 | 28 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | 41 | 0 | engine | 49 | $4,435 |
| 39 | 19 | 75 | Rick Wilson | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 9 | 0 | engine | 46 | $6,380 |
| 40 | 27 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 3 | 0 | engine | 43 | $9,350 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 41 | | 70 | J. D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Pontiac | | | | | |
| 42 | | 85 | Bobby Gerhart | Bobby Gerhart Racing | Chevrolet | | | | | |
| 43 | | 80 | Jimmy Horton | S&H Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| 44 | | 82 | Mark Stahl | Stahl Racing | Ford | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| - | - | - | - |
| | 1 | Dale Earnhardt | 1,460 |
| | 2 | Morgan Shepherd | 1,370 (-90) |
| 1 | 3 | Mark Martin | 1,295 (-165) |
| 1 | 4 | Darrell Waltrip | 1,245 (–215) |
| 2 | 5 | Geoff Bodine | 1,227 (–233) |
| | 6 | Kyle Petty | 1,224 (–236) |
| | 7 | Rusty Wallace | 1,174 (–286) |
| 2 | 8 | Brett Bodine | 1,155 (–305) |
| 1 | 9 | Ken Schrader | 1,136 (–324) |
| 1 | 10 | Bill Elliott | 1,129 (–331) |
| Official driver's standings ||||
