2005 Dickies 500

The 2005 Dickies 500 was the inaugural running of the race was a NASCAR Nextel Cup Series stock car race, which was held on November 6, 2005, at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) in Fort Worth, Texas.

2005 Dickies 500

Race details
Race 34 of 36 in the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series
Simple line diagram of Texas Motor Speedway track layout
Date	November 6, 2005
Location	Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, Texas
Course	Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.4 km)
Distance	334 laps, 501 mi (806.28 km)
Weather	Temperatures reaching up to 81 °F (27 °C); wind speeds up to 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)[1]
Average speed	151.005 miles per hour (243.019 km/h)[2]
Pole position
Driver	Ryan Newman	Penske Racing
Most laps led
Driver	Matt Kenseth	Roush Racing
Laps	149
Winner
No. 99	Carl Edwards	Roush Racing
Television in the United States
Network	NBC
Announcers	Bill Weber, Benny Parsons, Wally Dallenbach, Jr.
Nielsen Ratings	5.1/10[3]

Summary

The race was the 34th of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season, and the eighth race in the 2005 Chase for the NEXTEL Cup, and was the first race to be run under the lights at TMS. Track president Eddie Gossage later announced that the total purse money for the race was $6,815,880, then the largest in Chase history, and the fourth largest during the 2005 season, trailing the Daytona 500, the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, and the Samsung/RadioShack 500.[4]

The pole position was held by Penske Racing's Ryan Newman, and was won by Carl Edwards of Roush Racing. The race was created as a result of the Ferko lawsuit, which took out the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, along with the Subway 400 at North Carolina Speedway.[5][6] The race featured six cautions, which at the time was the fewest at Texas Motor Speedway in a Nextel Cup race, and the 151.005 miles per hour (243.019 km/h) average speed which was also at the time the highest at the track in a Cup race.[4]

Pole-sitter Ryan Newman was forced to start in the back after his car crashed on the second qualifying lap, and had to drive a backup car, and Matt Kenseth took over the pole position. Following the first caution flag, Greg Biffle passed Kenseth, but had to pit due to a loose wheel. Kenseth would dominate much of the race, leading a race-high 149 laps. Later in the race, with 11 laps remaining, Mark Martin did not change tires, and led on the restart. However, with two laps left, Carl Edwards, on newer tires, passed Martin and held him and Kenseth off for the victory[7] by a margin of .584 seconds.[8]

Top 20 finishers

1. Kurt Busch
2. Martin Truex, Jr.
3. Matt Kenseth
4. Casey Mears
5. Jimmie Johnson
6. Tony Stewart
7. Denny Hamlin
8. Dale Earnhardt, Jr.
9. Elliott Sadler
10. Mark Martin
11. Jamie McMurray
12. Dale Jarrett
13. Ricky Rudd
14. Jeff Gordon
15. Kyle Busch
16. Kevin Harvick
17. Mike Bliss
18. Jeff Green
19. Brian Vickers
20. Greg Biffle

Standings after the race

Pos	Driver	Points[2]
1	Tony Stewart	6255
2	Jimmie Johnson	6217
3	Carl Edwards	6178
4	Greg Biffle	6133
5	Mark Martin	6132
6	Matt Kenseth	6130
7	Ryan Newman	6081
8	Kurt Busch	5974
9	Rusty Wallace	5940
10	Jeremy Mayfield	5848

References

1. "2005 Dickies 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Archived from the original on 2013-06-21. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
2. "2005 Dickies 500". Racing-Reference. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
3. "TV Ratings 2005". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on 2014-02-14. Retrieved 2013-06-17.
4. "Dickies 500". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on 2012-10-06. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
5. Hood, Jeff (2009-11-06). "Beating NASCAR Is Bittersweet For Ferko". Racin' Today. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
6. McCormick, Steve. "2005 Dickies 500 at Texas Motor Speedway". About.com. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
7. McCormick, Steve (2005-11-07). "Edwards charges to Texas victory for second win in a row". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
8. "AAA Texas 500". NASCAR. Retrieved 2013-05-15.