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.[1][2] To fill out the top three, owner-driver Darrell Waltrip and Junior Johnson & Associates driver Bill Elliott would finish second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 19 of 29 in the 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1992 Champion Spark Plug 400 program cover, featuring Richard Petty. Artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass. | |||
| Date | August 16, 1992 | ||
| Official name | 23rd Annual Champion Spark Plug 400 | ||
| Location | Brooklyn, Michigan, Michigan International Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2 mi (3.2 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 200 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km) | ||
| Average speed | 146.056 miles per hour (235.054 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 95,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | AK Racing | ||
| Time | 40.405 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Bill Elliott | Junior Johnson & Associates | |
| Laps | 72 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
editThe 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
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
editQualifying 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,[3] 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.[4]
No drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editStandings after the race
edit
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References
edit- ^ Higgins, Tom (August 17, 1992). "Gant able to stretch fuel to end for NASCAR win". Muncie Evening Press. p. 16. Retrieved February 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Harris, Mike (August 17, 1992). "Gant conserves his way to victory". The Tribune. p. 11. Retrieved February 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. August 13, 1992. p. 27. Retrieved February 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (August 15, 1992). "Kulwicki earns pole with record-setting lap". The Charlotte Observer. p. 11. Retrieved February 3, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.