2007 UAW-Ford 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 30 of 36 in the 2007 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Talladega Superspeedway | |||
| Date | October 7, 2007 | ||
| Official name | UAW-Ford 500 | ||
| Location | Talladega Superspeedway, Talladega, Alabama | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.66 mi (4.28 km) | ||
| Distance | 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km) | ||
| Weather | Hot with temperatures approaching 90 °F (32 °C); average wind speeds of 8.9 miles per hour (14.3 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 143.438 miles per hour (230.841 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Michael Waltrip Racing | ||
| Time | 50.648 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 40 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ABC | ||
| Announcers | Jerry Punch, Andy Petree and Rusty Wallace | ||
The 2007 UAW-Ford 500 was the 30th race of the 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Season and the fourth race in the 2007 Chase for the NEXTEL Cup. This race was raced on Sunday, October 7, 2007, at the Talladega Superspeedway outside of Talladega, Alabama.
Summary
This race was historic as it marked the first race for NASCAR's new Car of Tomorrow template, which was in their fourteenth race in the 2007 season before it becomes the full-time car in 2008, on a super speedway. In addition to the mandatory restrictor plate used at both Talladega and Daytona International Speedway (which will be 31/32" in diamiter), NASCAR had a mandatory gear ratio at this track for the first time.
Pre-Race News
- Jacques Villeneuve will make his Cup debut in the #27 Bill Davis Racing Toyota in qualifying. He made the race on time as he was not in the top 35 in owners points, and started fourth.
Qualifying
Because the top 35 teams are locked into the race, only eight slots were available for battle among sixteen teams. When all was said and done, the top eight teams were "go or go home" cars led by Michael Waltrip. Dave Blaney started second, followed by Brian Vickers, Villenevue, Joe Nemechek, David Reutimann, John Andretti, and Dale Jarrett. The next four fastest cars - A.J. Allmendinger, Boris Said, Sam Hornish Jr and Scott Riggs - were sent home.
Waltrip, in his 80th qualifying attempt, is the only driver to have attempted all 80 races, missing three (1988 Daytona 500, 2007 Aaron's 499, 2007 Pepsi 400).
Results
Top Ten Results: (NOTE: Chase drivers are in bold italics.)
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Car | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | #24 | Jeff Gordon | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 2. | #48 | Jimmie Johnson | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 3. | #22 | Dave Blaney | Toyota | Bill Davis Racing |
| 4. | #11 | Denny Hamlin | Chevrolet | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 5. | #12 | Ryan Newman | Dodge | Penske Racing |
| 6. | #25 | Casey Mears | Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports |
| 7. | #2 | Kurt Busch | Dodge | Penske Racing |
| 8. | #20 | Tony Stewart | Chevrolet | Joe Gibbs Racing |
| 9. | #96 | Tony Raines | Chevrolet | Hall of Fame Racing |
| 10. | #41 | Reed Sorenson | Dodge | Chip Ganassi Racing |
Post-Race Notes
- The win at Talladega was the 80th of Gordon's career. He now only needs five more wins to pass Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison for fourth and third, respectively, on the all-time wins list. Gordon, by sweeping Talladega, also beat Dale Earnhardt's record of most superspeedway wins.
- Blaney's third-place finish tied the best finish of his career, which came at Darlington in March 2003. The finish also propelled him back into the top-35 in owners points, leading Ken Schrader and the Wood Brothers by 51 points.
- During post-race inspection, the car of Reed Sorenson was found to be too low.
References
- ↑ Weather information for the 2007 UAW-Ford 500 at The Old Farmers' Almanac. Accessed 2013-06-18. Archived 2013-06-21.
| Previous race: 2007 LifeLock 400 |
NASCAR Nextel Cup Series 2007 season |
Next race: 2007 Bank of America 500 |