AMP Energy 500 | | | Venue | Talladega Superspeedway | | Corporate sponsor | AMP Energy Drink
PepsiCo | | First race | 1969 | | Distance | 500.08 miles (804.8 km) | | Number of laps | 188 | | Previous names | Talladega 500 (1969-1987) Talladega DieHard 500 (1988-1989) DieHard 500 (1990-1997) Winston 500 (1998-2000) EA Sports 500 (2001-2004) UAW-Ford 500 (2005-2007) | The AMP Energy 500 is a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, Alabama.[1] The AMP Energy 500 is also one of four races currently run with restrictor plates, the others being the Aaron's 499, the Coke Zero 400, and the Daytona 500. Through 1996, the race was normally held in early August or late July. In 1997, it was moved, after overwhelming fans' requests, to early October due to the uncomfortably hot summer temperatures, and sometimes unpredictable summertime thunderstorms in the Alabama area. In 2009, the race moved again, this time to November 1 as part of a realignment agreement with Atlanta and Fontana (where Fontana will earn a race in the Chase and Atlanta will gain the Labor Day weekend race). In 1998, the name of the race was swapped with that of the spring race. The fall race became known as the Winston 500 for three years in order to promote the Winston No Bull 5 program. During the driver introductions in 2005, Ricky Bobby and other characters were introduced in order to shoot scenes for the movie Talladega Nights. [edit] Past winners AMP Energy 500 UAW-Ford 500 EA Sports 500 Winston 500 DieHard 500 Talladega DieHard 500 Talladega 500 [edit] Notable races - The 1969 race was marred by a driver's strike by the Professional Drivers Association over track safety issues, even though officials proved the track was safe for racing.
- Before the 1974 race, crewmen found slashed tires, tampered alignments, and dirt clogging fuel lines in the garage area. NASCAR threw several competition yellows to allow teams to further check their cars for undetected sabotage; two early crashes happened when cars slipped in oil from other sabotaged cars. Richard Petty won on the last lap by sideswiping David Pearson in the trioval and winning by a nose.
- The 1975 race was blackened when former Daytona 500 champion Tiny Lund was crushed to death in a vicious melee on the backstretch by the spinning car of Terry Link. Dick Brooks survived a wild tumble down the backstretch later in that race.
- The 1999 race is know for Dale Earnhardt charging from the 27th starting spot to the 5th poistion in the first 3 laps. Later,with 10 laps to go, Earnhardt charged to the front and held off Dale Jarrett on the last two laps winning his 9th Talladega win.
- The 2000 race was famous for being Dale Earnhardt's last win. Earnhardt managed to come from deep in the field and gain seventeen positions in the final four laps to score the victory.
- The 2001 race was Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s first Talladega win. He passed Bobby Labonte on the last lap to take the win. The last lap was famous for Bobby Labonte flipping over after being tagged by Bobby Hamilton. Labonte's spinning car clipped Johnny Benson, sending Benson head-on into the outside wall, causing a wreck involving many cars.
- Michael Waltrip's last win came in this race in 2003, a race where Elliott Sadler's car became airborne and tumbled from the backstretch to turn three with seven to go.
- Dale Earnhardt, Jr.'s win in 2004 was a dramatic one, as on the last lap of the race, Jeff Gordon brushed the wall exiting turn two, collecting then-rookie Kasey Kahne and Greg Biffle. No caution was thrown for the wreck, and the leaders continued to race to the finish line. At the finish, Elliott Sadler, who took a terrible tumble during the race the year before, flipped at the start-finish line after making contact with Ward Burton. The race had several wrecks, the biggest one being a hard crash that took out championship contender Jeremy Mayfield. Brendan Gaughan triggered a scary crash that sent Bobby Labonte and Sterling Marlin head-on into the outside wall. The race was also famous for Earnhardt Jr. swearing in Victory Lane during the post-race television interview, and being docked 25 championship points as a result.
- Much like the EA Sports 500 the year before, the 2005 UAW-Ford 500 was a wild race. Two cars flipped over in separate accidents. 2003 EA Sports 500 winner Michael Waltrip was hit by Mark Martin after being involved in a wreck that began when Jimmie Johnson spun Elliott Sadler. Not long after, Ryan Newman spun Casey Mears, which started a chain reaction resulting in Scott Riggs flipping several times before being hit by Jeff Burton. The race was incident-filled, and Dale Jarrett took his last win in the race. Scenes from this race were used in the movie Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and actors from the movie were introduced in driver introductions.
- The October 2006 running was the first at Talladega since the track was repaved following the May 1 Aaron's 499. The new asphalt proved exceptionally racey and the lead changed hands 63 times among 23 drivers. The win by Brian Vickers was met by a storm of debris from enraged fans when he, while running third, hooked teammate and second place driver Jimmie Johnson into race leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final lap, sending both spinning; Kasey Kahne passed Vickers in Turn Three but NASCAR ruled Vickers was leading when the yellow flew, freezing the field.
- The 2007 UAW-Ford 500 was won by Jeff Gordon in dramatic style. Gordon pulled off a comeback much like Dale Earnhardt had in 2000, working his way from the back in the closing laps, and passed teammate Jimmie Johnson with a push from Tony Stewart on the final lap. It was the first Talladega race for NASCAR's controversial Car of Tomorrow.
- The newly named AMP Energy 500 in 2008, saw 64 lead changes among a motorsports record 28 leaders. Two accidents (one a ten-car crash that came when Brian Vickers' right-front tire disintegrated, the other a ten-car melee involving Greg Biffle and Dale Earnhardt Jr.) took a number of contenders out of the running. Regan Smith passed Tony Stewart on the apron of the trioval at the finish. The pass was ruled illegal by NASCAR in prohibiting passing under the yellow line. The victory was awarded to Stewart, what proved to be his final win for Joe Gibbs Racing.
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