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Texas Motor Speedway Ranks Second In Purse Money For First Half Of Season

19 August 1997

Texas Motor Speedway Ranks Second In Purse Money For First Half Of Season

    CONCORD, N.C., Aug. 19 -- At the conclusion of the first half
of the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup season, Texas Motor Speedway ranks second in
total purse money awarded to Winston Cup teams.
    The top spot belongs to the season opener Daytona 500.  The Brickyard 400
pays the largest purse of the entire season.
    Texas Motor Speedway's inaugural race, the Interstate Batteries 500 was
the sixth race of the 1997 season and boasted a field of 43 drivers.
    Located in the Fort Worth-Dallas area, which is the eighth-largest media
market in the United States, Texas Motor Speedway is one of the outstanding
professional sports venues in the Metroplex.
    In addition to the total purse, Texas Motor Speedway ranked second in
total money awarded to the race winner, again behind the Daytona 500.
    Speedway Motorsports, the owner and operator of Atlanta, Bristol,
Charlotte, and Texas Motor Speedways and 600 Racing and the operator of Sears
Point Raceway, is a leading marketer and promoter of motorsports entertainment
in the United States.
    The following chart ranks each purse distributed during the first half of
the 1997 NASCAR Winston Cup season and the race winner's share of the money.
The starred events indicate Winston Cup Series races at Speedway Motorsport's
facilities.

    1. Daytona 500/Daytona, Fl.             $4,379,989   Jeff Gordon  $377,410
   *2. Interstate Batteries 500/Tx.         $3,804,005   Jeff Burton  $354,350
   *3. Coca-Cola 600/Charlotte, NC          $2,147,324   Jeff Gordon  $224,900
    4. California 500/Fontana, Ca.          $2,032,805   Jeff Gordon  $144,600
   *5. Save Mart 300/Sonoma, Ca.            $1,851,904   Mark Martin  $113,995
   *6. Primestar 500/Atlanta, Ga.           $1,687,128   Dale Jarrett $137,650
    7. Winston 500/Talladega, Al.           $1,654,311   Mark Martin   $92,220
    8. Miller 500/Dover, De.                $1,612,438   Ricky Rudd    $95,225
    9. Miller 400/Michigan, Mi.             $1,592,930   Ernie Irvan   $93,830
    10. Pepsi 400/Daytona, Fl.              $1,578,624   John Andretti $82,150
    11. Pontiac Excitement 400/Richmond,
         Va.                                $1,436,797   Rusty Wallace $86,775
    12. Pocono 500/Pocono, Pa.              $1,401,991   Jeff Gordon  $166,080
    13. Goodwrench 400/Rockingham, NC       $1,401,279   Jeff Gordon   $93,115
   *14. Food City 500/Bristol, Tn.          $1,378,814   Jeff Gordon   $83,640
    15. TranSouth Financial 400/Darlington,
         SC                                 $1,351,127   Dale Jarrett $142,860
    16. Goody's 500/Martinsville, Va.       $1,276,446   Jeff Gordon   $99,225

SOURCE  Speedway Motorsports, Inc.