The 1996 DieHard 500 was the 18th stock car race of the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 28th iteration of the event.

At race's end, Hendrick Motorsports driver Jeff Gordon would manage to avoid numerous crashes and stay in front when the race was eventually called to take his 15th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series and his sixth victory of the season.

Marlin would be spun by hitting Ernie Irvan's front bumper, sending him into Earnhardt.

The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family.

[5] Jeremy Mayfield, driving for Cale Yarborough Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 49.779 and an average speed of 192.370 miles per hour (309.590 km/h) in the first round.

The accident also collected Terry Labonte, Mark Martin, Lake Speed, Brett Bodine, Wally Dallenbach, Jr., Ward Burton, Ken Schrader, Greg Sacks and Ricky Craven.

Mike Joy, David Hobbs and Dick Berggren handled pit road for the television side.