The 2002 Tropicana 400 was the 18th stock car race of the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the second iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, July 14, 2002, in Joliet, Illinois, at Chicagoland Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.41 km) tri-oval speedway. The race took the scheduled 267 laps to complete. At race's end, Kevin Harvick, driving for Richard Childress Racing, would stretch out a fuel run and climb through the field to win his third career NASCAR Winston Cup Series win and his first and only win of the season.[1][2] To fill out the podium, Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports and Tony Stewart of Joe Gibbs Racing would finish second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 18 of 36 in the 2002 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 2002 Tropicana 400 program cover. | |||
| Date | July 14, 2002 | ||
| Official name | 2nd Annual Tropicana 400 | ||
| Location | Joliet, Illinois, Chicagoland Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.41 km) | ||
| Distance | 267 laps, 400.5 mi (644.542 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 267 laps, 400.5 mi (644.542 km) | ||
| Average speed | 136.832 miles per hour (220.210 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Penske Racing | ||
| Time | 29.500 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Ryan Newman | Penske Racing | |
| Laps | 87 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 29 | Kevin Harvick | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | NBC | ||
| Announcers | Allen Bestwick, Benny Parsons, Wally Dallenbach Jr. | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
edit
Chicagoland Speedway is a 1.5 miles (2.41 km) tri-oval speedway in Joliet, Illinois, southwest of Chicago. The speedway opened in 2001 and currently hosts NASCAR racing. Until 2011, the speedway also hosted the IndyCar Series, recording numerous close finishes including the closest finish in IndyCar history. The speedway is owned and operated by International Speedway Corporation and located adjacent to Route 66 Raceway.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
editFirst practice
editThe first practice session was held on Friday, July 12, at 11:20 AM CST, and would last for 2 hours.[3] Joe Nemechek of Hendrick Motorsports would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 29.467 and an average speed of 183.256 miles per hour (294.922 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | Joe Nemechek | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.467 | 183.256 |
| 2 | 12 | Ryan Newman (R) | Penske Racing | Ford | 29.564 | 182.655 |
| 3 | 97 | Kurt Busch | Roush Racing | Ford | 29.663 | 182.045 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second practice
editThe second practice session was held on Saturday, July 13, at 10:15 AM CST, and would last for 45 minutes.[3] Ryan Newman of Penske Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.071 and an average speed of 179.575 miles per hour (288.998 km/h).[5]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Ryan Newman (R) | Penske Racing | Ford | 30.071 | 179.575 |
| 2 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 30.285 | 178.306 |
| 3 | 25 | Joe Nemechek | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.299 | 178.224 |
| Full second practice results | ||||||
Third and final practice
editThe third and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, July 13, at 11:15 AM CST, and would last for 45 minutes.[3] Dale Earnhardt Jr. of Dale Earnhardt, Inc. would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 30.364 and an average speed of 177.842 miles per hour (286.209 km/h).[6]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 30.364 | 177.842 |
| 2 | 12 | Ryan Newman (R) | Penske Racing | Ford | 30.438 | 177.410 |
| 3 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Chip Ganassi Racing | Dodge | 30.491 | 177.101 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on Friday, July 12, at 3:05 PM CST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 1-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champ needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[7]
Ryan Newman of Penske Racing would win the pole, setting a time of 29.500 and an average speed of 183.051 miles per hour (294.592 km/h).[8]
Four drivers would fail to qualify: Ron Hornaday Jr., Kirk Shelmerdine, Tony Raines, and Scott Wimmer.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editReferences
edit- ^ Smith, Marty (2002-07-15). "Harvick has just enough juice to win". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on 2002-12-15. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ Harris, Mike (2002-07-15). "Harvick criticized for winning Chicago move". El Paso Times. p. 23. Retrieved 2022-03-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d "Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site - 2002 Chicagoland Race Info & Rundown". Jayski's NASCAR Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on 2019-01-31. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ "NASCAR.com - Races - 2002 Chicagoland Practice 1 Results". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on 2002-10-05. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ "NASCAR.com - Races - 2002 Chicagoland Practice 2 Results". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on 2002-10-05. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ "NASCAR.com - Races - 2002 Chicagoland Practice 3 Results". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on 2002-12-02. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 2002 Provisional/Owners Points Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on 2005-02-05. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
- ^ Smith, Marty (2002-07-13). "Lead-foot Newman earns Bud Pole at Chicagoland". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on 2002-10-05. Retrieved 2022-03-21.
- ^ "2002 Tropicana 400 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2022-03-17.