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1999 IROC champion Dale Earnhardt was off to a good start when
he drew the number-one starting spot for Race One of the 2000 series.
With drafting help from Tony Stewart, Earnhardt made the winning pass
on Jeff Burton to claim his 11th IROC win, typing Al Unser Jr. for series
wins. Bobby Labonte picked up his first series victory at Race Two in
Talladega with seasoned heavyweights Mark Martin and Dale Earnhardt
in tow. The open-wheel contenders became a force at Race Three in Michigan
when Indy Racing Northern Light Series driver Eddie Cheever Jr. fiercly
battled the NASCAR boys to claim his first win. X-open wheeler Tony
Stewart, again a bridesmaid, finished second with Dale Earnhardt and
Mark Martin third and fourth respectively. For the third consecutive
year, Martin had driven from the last row to win the final race at the
famed Brickyard. Unlike the 1999 finale when only Martin and Earnhardt
were in contention, five of the twelve were mathematically up for the
2000 crown when the green flag waved at Indy. Martin led the most laps
and won the race, while Earnhardt, also from the last row, finished
second, accruing a three-point lead to repeat as the 2000 IROC champion;
tying Mark Martin for overall championship wins with four. (from IROC
Website)
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Final Points
|
IROC 24 Champion
Dale Earnhardt
 |
| Position |
Driver/Residence/Sanction
|
Points |
Money Earned |
| 1 |
Dale Earnhardt/Mooresville,
NC/NASCAR |
74 |
$225,000 |
| 2 |
Mark Martin/Daytona
Beach, FL/NASCAR |
71 |
100,000 |
| 3 |
Tony Stewart/Rushville,
IN/NASCAR |
57 |
60,000 |
| 4 |
Bobby Labonte/Trinity,
NC/NASCAR |
52 |
50,000 |
| 5 |
Eddie Cheever
Jr./Orlando, FL/Indy Racing League |
46 |
45,000 |
| 6 |
Jeff Gordon/Charlotte,
NC/NASCAR |
37 |
40,000 |
| 7 |
Jeff Burton/Huntersville,
NC/NASCAR |
35 |
40,000 |
| 8 |
Rusty Wallace/Lake
Norman, NC/NASCAR |
31 |
40,000 |
| 9 |
Dale Jarrett/Hickory,
NC/NASCAR |
31 |
40,000 |
| 10 |
Dale Earnhardt
Jr./Concord, NC/NASCAR |
29 |
40,000 |
| 11 |
Greg Ray/Plano,
TX/Indy Racing League |
23 |
40,000 |
| 12 |
Mark Dismore/Greenfield,
IN/Indy Racing League |
15 |
40,000 |
Race One |
| |
| February 18, 2000 |
| Daytona International Speedway |
| Daytona Beach, Florida |
| 2.5-mile high-banked oval, 40 laps, 100 miles |
Finish |
Start |
Driver |
Laps |
Status |
| 1 |
1 |
Dale Earnhardt |
40 |
Running |
| 2 |
2 |
Tony Stewart |
40 |
Running |
| 3 |
11 |
Jeff Burton |
40 |
Running |
| 4 |
9 |
Mark Martin |
40 |
Running |
| 5 |
3 |
Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
40 |
Running |
| 6 |
12 |
Rusty Wallace |
40 |
Running |
| 7 |
5 |
Bobby Labonte |
40 |
Running |
| 8 |
10 |
Dale Jarrett |
40 |
Running |
| 9 |
7 |
Greg Ray |
40 |
Running |
| 10 |
6 |
Jeff Gordon |
40 |
Running |
| 11 |
4 |
Eddie Cheever Jr. |
40 |
Running |
| 12 |
8 |
Mark Dismore |
40 |
Running |
| Time
of Race: 33
minutes, 7 seconds |
| Average
Speed: 181.178
MPH |
| Margin
of Victory: .107 second |
| Caution
Flags : None |
| Lead
Changes: 12 among 5 drivers |
| Lap
Leaders: Earnhardt, 1-2; Earnhardt Jr., 3-5; Burton, 6-10;
Jarrett, 11-13; Earnhardt, 14-15; Earnhardt Jr., 16-22; Jarrett,
23; Burton, 24-26; Earnhardt, 27-38; Burton, 39; Earnhardt, 40. |
Race Two |
| |
| April 15, 2000 |
| Talladega Superspeedway |
| Talladega, AL |
| 2.66-mile high-banked tri-oval, 38 laps, 101.08 miles |
Finish |
Start |
Driver |
Laps |
Status |
| 1 |
6 |
Bobby Labonte
|
38 |
Running |
| 2 |
9 |
Mark Martin |
38 |
Running |
| 3 |
12 |
Dale Earnhardt |
38 |
Running |
| 4 |
10 |
Jeff Burton |
38 |
Running |
| 5 |
3 |
Jeff Gordon |
38 |
Running |
| 6 |
11 |
Tony Stewart |
38 |
Running |
| 7 |
4 |
Greg Ray |
38 |
Running |
| 8 |
5 |
Dale Jarrett |
38 |
Running |
| 9 |
7 |
Rusty Wallace |
38 |
Running |
| 10 |
2 |
Eddie Cheever Jr. |
38 |
Running |
| 11 |
8 |
Dale Earnhardt. Jr. |
37 |
Running |
| 12 |
8 |
Mark Dismore |
33 |
Rear End |
| Time
of Race: 33
minutes, 13 seconds |
| Average
Speed: 182.583
MPH |
| Margin
of Victory: .073
second |
| Caution Flags: None |
| Lead Changes: 11 among 7 drivers |
| Lap Leaders:
Cheever, 1-2; Gordon, 3; Stewart, 4; Labonte, 5-7; Wallace, 8-11;
Martin; 12-14; Jarrett, 15-16; Cheever, 17-22; Wallace, 23; Martin,
24-26; Labonte 27-38. |
Race Three |
| |
| June 10, 2000 |
| Michigan International Speedway |
| Brooklyn, Michigan |
| Two-mile superspeedway, 50 laps, 100 miles. |
Finish |
Start |
Driver |
Laps |
Status |
| 1 |
2 |
Eddie Cheever Jr. |
50 |
Running |
| 2 |
8 |
Tony Stewart |
50 |
Running |
| 3 |
12 |
Dale Earnhardt |
50 |
Running |
| 4 |
10 |
Mark Martin |
50 |
Running |
| 5 |
3 |
Dale Jarrett |
50 |
Running |
| 6 |
11 |
Bobby Labonte |
50 |
Running |
| 7 |
6 |
Jeff Gordon |
50 |
Running |
| 8 |
7 |
Dale Earnhardt Jr. |
50 |
Running |
| 9 |
5 |
Rusty Wallace |
50 |
Running |
| 10 |
1 |
Mark Dismore |
50 |
Running |
| 11 |
4 |
Greg Ray |
44 |
Running |
| 12 |
9 |
Jeff Burton |
37 |
Over heating |
| Time
of Race: 37
minutes, 0 second |
| Average
Speed: 162.162
MPH |
| Margin
of Victory: 0.711
second |
| Caution Flags:
1 |
| Lead Changes:
9 among 4 drivers |
| Lap Leaders:
Cheever, 1-4; Earnhardt, 5; Cheever, 6; Earnhardt, 7-10; Earnhardt
Jr., 11; Earnhardt, 12-21; Martin, 22-30; Earnhardt Jr., 31-32; Cheever,
33-50. |
Race Four |
| |
| August 4, 2000 |
| Indianapolis Motor Speedway |
| Indianapolis, IN |
| 2.5-mile oval, 40 laps, 100 miles |
Finish |
Start |
Driver |
Laps |
Status |
| 1 |
11 |
Mark Martin |
40 |
Running |
| 2 |
12 |
Dale Earnhardt
|
40 |
Running |
| 3 |
10 |
Tony Stewart |
40 |
Running |
| 4 |
5 |
Jeff Gordon |
40 |
Running |
| 5 |
3 |
Rusty Wallace
|
40 |
Running |
| 6 |
9 |
Bobby Labonte
|
40 |
Running |
| 7 |
8 |
Eddie Cheever,
Jr. |
40 |
Running |
| 8 |
6 |
Dale Jarrett |
40 |
Running |
| 9 |
4 |
Dale Earnhardt
Jr. |
40 |
Running |
| 10 |
2 |
Greg Ray |
18 |
Accident |
| 11 |
1 |
Mark Dismore |
7 |
Accident |
| 12 |
7 |
Jeff Burton |
1 |
Engine |
| Time
of Race: 38
minutes, 41 seconds |
| Average
Speed: 155.106
MPH |
| Margin
of Victory: 1.327 second |
| Caution Flags:
1 |
| Lead Changes:
2 among 3 drivers |
| Lap Leaders:
Dismore, 1-6; Gordon, 7-8; Martin, 9-40. |
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Rauzulu's Street