the Winston Cup Series, in only his 2nd career start. Pontiac Excitement 400 The Pontiac Excitement 400 was run on June 6 in Richmond, Virginia. Jeff Gordon won the pole. The race was broadcast on ESPN. Top Ten Results 5-Terry Labonte 88-Dale Jarrett 2-Rusty Wallace 33-Ken Schrader 6-Mark Martin 12-Jeremy Mayfield 99-Jeff Burton 18-Bobby Labonte 28-Kenny Irwin Jr. 40-Sterling Marlin Failed to qualify: 8-Buckshot Jones, 91-Kevin Lepage On lap 370, Jeff Gordon was battling for the lead with Rusty Wallace. Gordon passed Wallace off turn 4 to take the lead, but was tapped by Wallace and spun into the outside wall in turn 2, suffering major damage on the front. Many fans cheered as Gordon's car was pushed toward the garage area. Gordon finished 37th, experiencing his 2nd DNF of 1998. This would be Jeff Gordon's final finish outside the top 10 in 1998, because after this race, he would spend the next/last 20 races in the top 10. He would go on to score 17 consecutive top 5 finishes and 20 consecutive top 10 finishes, which both stand as All-Time NASCAR records as of 2021. He would go on to score 10 victories in the 20 race stretch. This race was notable as it was the first time that NASCAR decided to red flag a race with under 10 laps to go in order to ensure a green flag finish. This did allow for a final restart, but the race still ended under caution when the No. 26 of Johnny Benson smacked the wall in Turn 1 with 2 laps to go. Benson scraped along the wall for the rest of the race to finish 18th. This was the first time that the first race of the season at Richmond was held at night during the spring. In previous years, it was an afternoon race in February or March. This Was Dale Earnhardts final race with Larry McReynolds as his crew chief after 45 races together and 1 win, Team Owner Richard Childress swapped McReynolds with Mike Skinners Crew Chief Kevin Hamlin, Both drivers saw better performances after swapping Miller Lite 400 The Miller Lite 400 was run on June 14 in Brooklyn, Michigan. Ward Burton won the pole. The race was broadcast on CBS. Top Ten Results 6-Mark Martin 88-Dale Jarrett 24-Jeff Gordon 99-Jeff Burton 12-Jeremy Mayfield 94-Bill Elliott 18-Bobby Labonte 22-Ward Burton 42-Joe Nemechek 50-Wally Dallenbach Jr.*