(inaugural event)
July 15, 2001
Chicagoland Speedway (D-shaped oval) Joliet, Illinois
Race 19 of 37 on Winston Cup circuit (18th points race)
TV: NBC, 2 p.m. EDT
Laps: 267
Track length: 1 1/2 mile
Race length: 400 miles
Qualifying record: none
Race record: none
DRIVERS TO WATCH
Johnny Benson -- Came close to winning at Daytona on Saturday as he was in front for the final restart, but the action in the closing laps forced him back to 13th; is eighth in the Winston Cup standings.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. -- It made for a great storyline as Dale Jr. won Saturday night's Pepsi 400 at Daytona and dedicated his third career points victory (the number of his father's car) to his late father; Earnhardt led 119 of 160 laps to capture the emotional race over Michael Waltrip, a reverse of the top two spots in February; Dale Jr. has one win, one pole, four top-three finishes and seven top-10s this year.
Jeff Gordon -- Winston Cup points leader Gordon tops the standings by 48 points over Dale Jarrett, down from 126 points from last race; smoke came out of his Chevrolet two laps from the end of the Pepsi 400 which caused him to finish 37th; the three-time Winston Cup champion is tied for most wins this season with three and has four poles; has 11 top-five finishes and has led in 14 races.
Dale Jarrett -- Finished 11th in the Pepsi 400 and narrowed the lead by Jeff Gordon in the standings to 48 points; tied with Gordon for most wins at three each; has seven top fives and nine top-10 finishes.
Bobby Labonte -- Was in contention for victory at the Pepsi 400 late, but eventually finished fifth for his third straight top-10 finish; up to seventh in the points standings after as low as 25th 10 races ago.
Sterling Marlin -- Had a shot to win the Pepsi 400 after starting from the pole, but a wreck on lap 144 cost him the position and subsequently the race; having a strong season with nine top-10 finishes puts him sixth in the Winston Cup standings, some 244 points out of first place.
Ricky Rudd -- His 14th place finish at the Pepsi 400 was the lowest finish since another 14th at the Talladega 500 in April; the 44-year-old also ended an 88-race winless streak with a victory at the Pocono 500 on June 17; one of the most consistent drivers this season; his 12 top-10 finishes are the most in the series, one more than Jeff Gordon; third in the standings, 76 points behind Gordon.
Tony Stewart -- It was a bitter result for Stewart to be moved 20 positions down from sixth to 26th for passing the yellow line five laps from the finish of the Pepsi 400; the team insisted it was the circumstances which forced the driver to go low, but NASCAR stood by its decision; Stewart is now 201 points out of first place in the standings; has two wins and six top fives this year.
Rusty Wallace -- After a string of five poor finishes, he improved with a fifth at Sonoma and seventh in the Pepsi 400 on Saturday; fifth in the Winston Cup standings, 219 points behind Jeff Gordon; one of 11 winners this season; he recorded his 54th career win on April 29 at California Speedway.