Jeff Gordon won the inaugural Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 1994.
The race was held on August 6, 1994, marking NASCAR’s first stock-car event at the famous Indianapolis circuit. Gordon, then a 23-year-old second-year Cup driver, started third and led 93 of the 160 laps for Hendrick Motorsports.
The finish became dramatic when leader Ernie Irvan suffered a right-front tire failure with five laps remaining. Gordon inherited the lead and held off Brett Bodine by 0.53 seconds. Bill Elliott finished third, followed by Rusty Wallace and Dale Earnhardt.
A common mix-up is confusing the inaugural Brickyard winner with the event’s polesitter: Rick Mast won the pole and led the opening lap, but Gordon won the race. Gordon later became the Brickyard 400’s most successful driver, winning five times.