Dale Earnhardt Memorial-Tribute to a Legend

1999 - Talladega Sweep, Bristol Controversy

Dale Earnhardt long championed the end of restrictor-plate racing- that NASCAR creation that keeps drivers bunched togheter on the circuit's two fastest tracks, Daytona and Talladega.
Despite his public statements, Dale seemed to gravitate to the three-wide challenge they presented. Especially in 1999, Dale thoroughly dominated the series' restrictor-plate events.
His Daytona scorecard for the 1999 season featured two runner-up finishes, plus his annual romp in his half of the Twin 125s.

But it was at Talladega where Dale did his best work, claiming both the spring and fall races (like 1990). He led 70 of 188 laps in his DieHard 500 win, coming to the front from the 17th starting spot.
He charged even harder in the October race, moving up from 27th to the top spot. In the fall race the No.3 car shaked through the middle of the pack without a drafting partner and Dale roaring like a slingshot up to the front.

Bristol, however, provided the most memorable moment of the 1999 season. The Earnhardt of old was on full display in the track's much-anticipated night race. Passed by Terry Labonte on the next-to-last lap, Dale reclaimed the lead with a "rattle his cage a little" tap on the final lap in turn two. The jostel sent Terry Labonte into a race-conceding spin and allowed Dale to sneak to his ninth Bristol win. As Dale emerged from his car in victory lane, he heard something normally reserved for Jeff Gordon: thunderous boos cascaded from the crowd. But why? Dale is calling the Intimidator and Ironhead, and his nickname say all. The final lap was "Ironhead vs. Ironmen"...!

Three wins and 21 Top 10s would normally boost Dale Earnhardt into the heat of a points race. That wasn't a realistic expectation in 1999, thanks to Dale Jarrett, who crafted one of the most consistent seasons in NASCAR history. DJ won just one more time than Dale Earnhardt, but his 29 Top 10s, the most in the modern era, erased all doubts about the identity of the 1999 champion.

Wins	Top 5s	Top 10s	Poles	DNFs	Standings
3	7	21	0	3	7
No.	Date	Race	St	Fin	Pts	Laps	Status	Winner	Start
1	Feb. 14	Daytona 500 Daytona Int'l Speedway	4	2	170	200/200	Running	Jeff Gordon	608
2	Feb. 21	North Carolina 400 N. Carolina Motor Speedway	18	41	40	275/393	Wreck	Mark Martin	609
3	Mar. 7	Las Vegas 400 Las Vegas Motor Speedway	38	7	146	267/267	Running	Jeff Burton	610
4	Mar. 14	Cracker Barrel 500 Atlanta Motor Speedway	33	40	43	151/325	Wreck	Jeff Gordon	611
5	Mar. 21	TranSouth Financial 400 Darlington Raceway	30	25	88	163/164	Running	Jeff Burton	612
6	Mar. 28	PRIMESTAR 500 Texas Motor Speedway	38	8	142	334/334	Running	Terry Labonte	613
7	Apr. 11	Food City 500 Bristol Motor Speedway	34	10	134	500/500	Running	Rusty Wallace	614
8	Apr. 18	Goody's Body Pain 500 Martinsville Speedway	39	19	106	498/500	Running	John Andretti	615
9	Apr. 25	DieHard 500 Talladega Superspeedway	17	1	185	188/188	Running	Dale Earnhardt	616
10	May 2	California 500 presented by NAPA California Speedway	9	12	132	249/250	Running	Jeff Gordon	617
11	May 15	Pontiac Excitement 400 Richmond Int'l Raceway	37	8	142	400/400	Running	Dale Jarrett	618
12	May 30	Coca-Cola 600 Charlotte Motor Speedway	15	6	150	400/400	Running	Jeff Burton	619
13	June 6	MBNA Platinum 400 Dover Downs Int'l Speedway	34	11	130	398/400	Running	Bobby Labonte	620
14	June 13	Kmart 400 Michigan Speedway	15	16	115	198/200	Running	Dale Jarrett	621
15	June 20	Pocono 500 Pocono Raceway	25	7	146	200/200	Running	Bobby Labonte	622
16	June 27	Save Mart/Kragen 350K Sears Point Raceway	23	9	138	112/112	Running	Jeff Gordon	623
17	July 3	Pepsi 400 Daytona Int'l Speedway	10	2	175	160/160	Running	Dale Jarrett	624
18	July 11	Jiffy Lube 300 New Hampshire Int'l Speedway	14	8	142	300/300	Running	Jeff Burton	625
19	July 25	Pennsylvania 500 Pocono Raceway	11	9	143	200/200	Running	Bobby Labonte	626
20	Aug. 7	Brickyard 400 Indianapolis Motor Speedway	18	10	134	160/160	Running	Dale Jarrett	627
21	Aug. 15	Frontier@Glen Watkins Glen Int'l	14	20	103	90/90	Running	Jeff Gordon	628
22	Aug. 22	Pepsi 400 Michigan Speedway	38	5	160	200/200	Running	Bobby Labonte	629
23	Aug. 28	Goody's Headache Powder 500 Bristol Motor Speedway	26	1	180	500/500	Running	Dale Earnhardt	630
24	Sept. 5	Pepsi Southern 500 Darlington Raceway	25	22	97	268/270	Running	Jeff Burton	631
25	Sept. 11	Exide Batteries 400 Richmond Int'l Raceway	33	6	150	400/400	Running	Tony Stewart	632
26	Sept. 19	New Hampshire 300 New Hampshire Int'l Speedway	13	16	124	300/300	Running	Joe Nemechek	633
27	Sept. 26	MBNA Gold 400 Dover Downs Int'l Speedway	37	8	142	399/400	Running	Mark Martin	634
28	Oct. 3	NAPA AutoCare 500 Martinsville Speedway	38	2	175	500/500	Running	Jeff Gordon	635
29	Oct. 10	UAW-GM Quality 500 Charlotte Motor Speedway	17	12	127	334/334	Running	Jeff Gordon	636
30	Oct. 17	Winston 500 Talladega Superspeedway	27	1	180	188/188	Running	Dale Earnhardt	637
31	Oct. 24	Rockingham 400 N. Carolina Motor Speedway	37	40	43	318/393	Wreck	Jeff Burton	638
32	Nov. 7	Dura Lube 500K Phoenix Int'l Raceway	15	11	130	312/312	Running	Tony Stewart	639
33	Nov. 14	Jiffy Lube 500 Homestead Motorsports Complex	23	8	142	266/267	Running	Tony Stewart	640
34	Nov. 21	NAPA 500 Atlanta Motor Speedway	36	9	138	325/325	Running	Bobby Labonte	641