1992 Coca-Cola 600

The 1992 Coca-Cola 600, the 33rd running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on May 24, 1992, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.

For the first time in NASCAR history, the Stonewall Jackson Award was offered to the United States Army veteran who demonstrated patriotism and sacrifice above the typical expectations of a soldier or commissioned officer. This award was named after Confederate general Stonewall Jackson for his meritorious devotion to service during the American Civil War.

Background
Charlotte Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race, as well as the Bank of America 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.

Race report
There were 42 drivers on the starting grid; almost half of them failed to finish the race. It took four and a half hours to resolve 400 laps. Dale Earnhardt defeated Ernie Irvan by nearly half a second. There were several crashes, some engine problems, and Stanley Smith's vehicle managed to lose all of its tires by lap 248. Jimmy Means legitimately blew his engine 8 laps in; the smoke was pouring out of his engine. He was one of the best of the very low budget owner/drivers at babying a car with poor equipment to a finish ahead of the attrition. Had Means' engine not blown early in the race, he would have probably finished anywhere between 15th to 20th, like Dave Marcis did in this race.

There were 12 caution flags handed out by NASCAR officials throughout 62 laps of the race. Kyle Petty managed to develop a lengthy lead late in the race but couldn't prevent Dale Earnhardt from winning it. While Dale Earnhardt made his 400th start in this event, it would be his only win of the 1992 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season.

Bill Elliott qualified for the pole position with speeds reaching up to 175.479 mph in the solo qualifying session. Actual racing speeds would be 132.98 mph; more than 40 mph slower than qualifying. Rusty Wallace, Bobby Hamilton, and Randy Porter would accomplish individually solid finishes despite not being able to finish the race. The total prize purse for this racing event was $859,485 ($0 when adjusted for inflation). While the winner of the race received $125,100 of this total figure ($0 when adjusted for inflation), the last place finisher only received a meager $5,100 ($0 when adjusted for inflation).

Gary Balough would make his final start in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. Dave Mader III would make his 10th and final Cup Series start in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series; starting in 21st place but finishing in 39th place.

This race finally broke Ford's winning streak going back to the Fall 1991 race at Charlotte. Ford took the circuit by storm in the 1992 season, winning every race until the Coca-Cola 600.

Notable crew chiefs for this race included Kirk Shelmerdine, Tim Brewer, Jeff Hammond, Larry McReynolds, Andy Petree, Robin Pemberton, and Junie Donlavey.

Qualifying
Failed to qualify: Eddie Bierschwale (#23), James Hylton (#48), Delma Cowart (#0), Mike Potter (#77), Phil Barkdoll (#73), Mike Skinner (#85)