|| *Comments on the 1998 NAPA Autocare 500:* View the most recent comment <#50> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Jack Lewis posted: 08.17.2004 - 5:08 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This would be Ricky Rudd's last win till Pocono in 2001. The win helped keep Rudd's winning streak for consecutive years alive. After the race Rudd received oxygen from being in a car that reached temperatures in upwards of 150 degrees. 2. MASH_guy posted: 06.08.2005 - 2:53 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) This was undoubtedly Ricky Rudd's most admirable win. Due to the extreme heat, Rudd couldn't even get out of the car under his own power after the race. He had to be lifted out, brought to a makeshift cot, and given oxygen before he could be interviewed. 3. Carl posted: 07.21.2005 - 3:44 pm Rate this comment: (12) (0) I was so damn proud of Rich Bickle that day. I went out and grilled some Thorn Apple Valley meat to celebrate his top 5 finish. 4. Marc posted: 07.21.2005 - 3:51 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I hate it for that woman Jeff Green got into on pit road. 5. Dave posted: 07.21.2005 - 3:57 pm Rate this comment: (4) (2) We all know the REAL reason Rudd was so exhausted after the race was because he had a rearview mirror full of Rich Bickle (4th place) bearing down on him. 6. Steve posted: 04.27.2006 - 7:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Did Jeff Green accidentally run into someone on pit road? Unless Robby Gordon wins a race, this will be the last time an owner-driver wins a Winston/Nextel Cup race. This 4th place finish for Rich Bickle is his only Top 5 finish, Mike Bliss made his Cup Series debut for Buzz McCall (25th), and the last of 7 Winston Cup races for Truck Series standout Dennis Setzer (38th). 7. XAC33 posted: 07.28.2006 - 7:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) End of an ERA as Rudd THE last owner/driver to EVER win a Cup race. Also an awesome display of Rudd's toughness. The same man who battled through relentless heat has also driven with velcro holding his hand to the gear shifter, and has had his eyelids taped open so he could race. Congratulations to Rudd's team for their driver comfort strategy in this race. Dumping then cold water into Rudds seat in the pits soon turned to hot steam as Rudd was driving in a sauna of sorts under green. 8. Frogger49 posted: 01.16.2007 - 5:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The 9 of Jerry Nadeau finished 49 laps down because at one point, Jerry became extremely fatigued and needed a relief driver. Problem was, there weren't any. They had already been accounted for. Steve Grissom at one point was in one of the cars, Hut Stricklin was on standby the entire race to relive Rudd, and I'm sure there were others. 9. Brock posted: 01.18.2007 - 5:56 am Rate this comment: (7) (0) Rich Bickle, after his incredible finish, was so choked up that he broke down while thanking "everyone who helped me get here," before saying "this is winning to me." A simply awesome moment during an already incredible race. 10. Brock posted: 01.18.2007 - 5:58 am Rate this comment: (3) (0) Ted Musgrave also had to get out of the car and get a relief driver, saying on the air to Bill Weber, "I've got a blistered butt." 11. Brock posted: 01.18.2007 - 5:59 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Michael Waltrip's Citgo Ford ran into the back of Mike Bliss' Chevrolet hard enough to crush in the opening to his radiator---before the race even started. 12. Anonymous posted: 01.31.2007 - 8:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) wasnt Earnheardt and Park involved in a wreck here?I have a photo and i think this is the race its from.How did it occur if so? 13. myself posted: 02.19.2007 - 7:36 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cale's last top 5 as a car owner. I always wished there had been a way for him & Rich Bickle to stick....I think they could've had some more good runs. 14. biffle16 posted: 03.25.2007 - 11:46 pm Rate this comment: (0) (4) 99.999999999 percent sure: Dennis Setzer's last Cup race. 15. Darrell posted: 04.11.2007 - 4:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bickle had some great qualifying efforts that season, but had trouble getting the car to perform. That changed at this race. 16. SK posted: 09.06.2007 - 1:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Steve Grissom became the substitute for the substitute driver of the #77, as the blistered Musgrave had been filling in for Robert Pressley, who sustained injuries in the Exide 400 at Richmond. Kenny Wallace, fabled sub for the super-teams, stepped into the #28 Ford when Kenny Irwin could no longer take the heat, but those were the only two substitutions that actually took place during this event. 17. FHgrad99 posted: 09.13.2007 - 7:28 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was one of the gutsiest performances I've seen. The cooling fan in Rudd's helmet failed early in the race, causing him to feel the full effects of the heat inside his car. 18. most posted: 10.30.2007 - 2:30 am Rate this comment: (3) (0) The emotion Bickle had, that is what it should be like. That was awesome for him and made me so happy to see! 19. Anonymous posted: 04.26.2008 - 7:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Yes I slam journeyman drivers. But Bickle performed very well in this race. He could have kept the 98 alive. 20. Anonymous posted: 07.30.2008 - 12:59 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Ricky Rudd won't be the last owner/driver to win for long if Tony Stewart has anything to say about it. 21. gordi101 posted: 07.27.2009 - 9:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRUbQRxp3Ts&feature=related 22. myself posted: 08.17.2009 - 2:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) ^^^^^Excellent premonition 2 posts above!^^^^^ 23. 18fan posted: 10.10.2009 - 6:51 pm Rate this comment: (1) (1) Tony is an owner in name only. It is a Rick Hendrick car, not a Stewart-Haas Racing car. 24. 18fan posted: 01.31.2010 - 7:33 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, what happened to Sterling Marlin after dominating? 25. Andre posted: 09.21.2010 - 2:34 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) I remember this race well... it was coming down to Ricky Rudd holding everyone off at the end, and ESPN went screen-in-screen with the race on one side, and every Mark McGwire at bat of the day. Big Mac homered twice and reached 70 Home Runs for the season that day, totalling for about 20 minutes late in the race that we missed. lol We still got to see the finish of the race, however. 26. awesomegordonfan posted: 11.20.2010 - 7:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) "Unless Robby Gordon wins a race, this will be the last time an owner-driver wins a Winston/Nextel Cup race." Yeah. Sure. Whatever. 27. sk posted: 03.19.2011 - 7:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "99.999999999 percent sure: Dennis Setzer's last Cup race." yeah. sure. whatever. 28. 18fan posted: 04.02.2011 - 9:52 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sterling Marlin's most laps led in a single race. 29. Rotor77 posted: 05.16.2011 - 1:04 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) Always nice to see that dumbass biffle16 get proven wrong. 30. Schroeder51 posted: 07.18.2011 - 10:34 pm Rate this comment: (3) (1) Sad fact: The crowd booed Bickle after his emotional interview. Just watched it on Youtube and they just started booing. I don't know if they were booing him or somebody else, but if they were booing for him, then that's just sick. 31. RaceFanX posted: 08.29.2011 - 5:20 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Bill Elliott's sponsor was 'McDonald's Get Back with Big Mac' 32. sk posted: 12.11.2011 - 3:33 am Rate this comment: (3) (0) @24 marlin had an alternator go bad. @30 the fans wouldn't have been responding to a tv interview being conducted, but it does sound like a certain jeff gordon talking over the pa in the background. and we all know how adored mr. rainbow warrior was in the south, especially then. 33. Mike posted: 12.20.2011 - 10:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was Ernie Irvan's last Cup pole. 34. Anonymous posted: 12.21.2011 - 7:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) bobby hamilton was charging through the field on a long green run when he was involved in an accident. i truly believe bobby would have won had he not run into problems. this was one of the best races that i ever witnessed. also perhaps the hottest. 35. b4il3y posted: 08.25.2012 - 6:41 pm Rate this comment: (6) (0) They were cutting to the at-bats for Sosa and McGwire during that race. Heroes my ass. Ricky Rudd was the hero of that year. 36. Bryan posted: 10.21.2014 - 10:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) This was the 100th cup race at Martinsville va way to ricky an the 10 team 37. Ben posted: 10.13.2015 - 1:42 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Those cuts to the baseball game were super annoying. Who needs that juicer McGuire when we had a real man like Ricky Rudd turning in the gutsiest performance of his career. 38. Paul M. posted: 10.29.2015 - 3:22 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In the background at about :45 you can hear a disgruntled individual Screaming "Alright you guys settle down everyone shut up for a second SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" 39. RaceFanX posted: 01.03.2016 - 6:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rudd's victory here was his only top-5 finish of 1998. 40. Maverick11 posted: 03.19.2016 - 1:24 am Rate this comment: (1) (1) Imo, one of the greatest driving performances in NASCAR. Not only was it the last win for an owner/driver, (unless you count Stewart's wins at SHR) Rudd dominated the race, and he couldn't even get out of the car under his own power and had to be given oxygen in victory lane on a stretcher! Tough as nails, and that's some serious determination right there. 41. Braindead Zombie posted: 03.19.2016 - 3:05 am Rate this comment: (0) (1) I think I've said this on here before, but if I had been a NASCAR fan back in the 80s and 90s, I think Ricky Rudd would've been my favorite driver. This race along with the time he raced with his eyes taped open are two of the gutsiest performances in NASCAR history. I wonder what he's up to now, haven't heard much from him since his retirement. 42. Braindead Zombie posted: 07.01.2016 - 1:38 am Rate this comment: (2) (2) This was also the first race after I was born. Fitting that Rudd is one of my all-time favorite drivers. 43. bayley01 posted: 07.23.2016 - 7:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mav11... i want to upvote this to obivion. Rudd had a dominate car and a crappy situation. He fought and fought and won. This is one of the most underrated wins ever. 44. Darrell posted: 10.29.2016 - 5:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #85 Sponsor: Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce 45. Darrell posted: 10.29.2016 - 5:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Sorry, that should be for the No. 79 car. Big Daddy's BBQ Sauce/Aphelion Technologies 46. Josh posted: 10.04.2017 - 1:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) One of the most legendary and memorable NASCAR races, not only of the '90s, but all-time, in my opinion. 47. Ultimate Warrior #18 posted: 03.23.2018 - 11:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The first Martinsville race i watched live and in my opinion still the best Martinsville race in the past 20 years. Ricky Rudd's Performance was epic and legendary and Rich Bickle's emotion after the race was priceless. 48. CJ posted: 04.18.2018 - 7:41 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Ted Musgrave makes his only start in the 77 subbing for Robert Pressley. Musgrave would be relieved during the race by Steve Grissom. First career start for Mike Bliss First appearance for David Green in the 41. Only top 5 of the season for Ricky Rudd. Season and career best finish for Rich Bickle, his only Cup series top 5. 49. Greg1&9Fan posted: 08.17.2018 - 10:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rusty Wallace actually had the best car in this race, but had a punctured Radiator earlier in the race that put him laps down. He made up 3 laps on the track and visibly past the leaders a couple times. 50. Anthony posted: 06.05.2020 - 1:38 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) This is the last Martinsville race with 2 pit roads. The back stretch was always a big handicap and was finally eliminated. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: