| Venue | Talladega Superspeedway |
| Corporate sponsor | Amp and 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 presented by Dodge (2001) EA Sports 500 (2002-2004) 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. The Amp Energy 500 is also one of four races currently run with restrictor plates, the others being the Aaron's 499, the Pepsi 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 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. [1]It was just recently announced that PepsiCo would sponsor the race under its Amp Energy Drink for an undisclosed amount of years. The main reason would be of Amp also sponsoring Dale Earnhardt, Jr. beginning in the 2008 season. During the driver introductions in 2005, Ricky Bobby and other characters were introduced in order to shoot scenes for the movie Talladega Nights.
Past winners
Amp Energy 500
- 2008 TBD
UAW Ford 500
- 2007 Jeff Gordon
- 2006 Brian Vickers (yellow flag at final lap)
- 2005 Dale Jarrett (505.40 miles / 190 laps due to green-white-checker finish)
EA Sports 500
- 2004 Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
- 2003 Michael Waltrip
- 2002 Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
- 2001 Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
Winston 500
- 2000 Dale Earnhardt
- 1999 Dale Earnhardt
- 1998 Dale Jarrett
DieHard 500
- 1997 Terry Labonte
- 1996 Jeff Gordon (343.14 miles / 129 laps due to darkness - late start caused by rain + in-race red flags)
- 1995 Sterling Marlin
- 1994 Jimmy Spencer
- 1993 Dale Earnhardt
- 1992 Ernie Irvan
- 1991 Dale Earnhardt
- 1990 Dale Earnhardt
Talladega DieHard 500
- 1989 Terry Labonte
- 1988 Ken Schrader
Talladega 500
- 1987 Bill Elliott
- 1986 Bobby Hillin, Jr.
- 1985 Cale Yarborough
- 1984 Dale Earnhardt
- 1983 Dale Earnhardt
- 1982 Darrell Waltrip
- 1981 Ron Bouchard
- 1980 Neil Bonnett
- 1979 Darrell Waltrip
- 1978 Lennie Pond
- 1977 Donnie Allison
- 1976 Dave Marcis
- 1975 Buddy Baker
- 1974 Richard Petty
- 1973 Dick Brooks
- 1972 James Hylton
- 1971 Bobby Allison
- 1970 Pete Hamilton
- 1969 Richard Brickhouse
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.
- The 1986 race won by Bobby Hillin Jr. saw 26 different leaders, a motorsports record tied several times since but yet to be broken.
- Brian Vickers' win in 2006 was met by a storm of debris from enraged fans when he hooked teammate Jimmie Johnson into race leader Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the final lap.
- Michael Waltrip's last win came in this race in 2003, a race where Elliott Sadler tumbled to Turn Three with seven to go.
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http://www.scenedaily.com/stories/2007/12/31/scene_daily28.html
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