2000 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Bobby Labonte was crowned champion at season's end.

[1] The season was marred by tragedy when Adam Petty and Kenny Irwin Jr. were killed in separate accidents at New Hampshire International Raceway.

This was the final season for three-time Winston Cup Champion Darrell Waltrip.

Also, this was unexpectedly the final full-time season for seven-time Winston Cup champion, and one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history, Dale Earnhardt, who was killed the following year in the season-opening 2001 Daytona 500.

Because of the new television deal struck on December 15, 1999, it would be the last year for a multitude of these long-time broadcasters.

NASCAR on CBS broadcast the final races of its twenty-two-season partnership, ending with the Pepsi 400 at Daytona.

NASCAR on TNN and NASCAR on TBS ended their time in the Winston Cup Series; the former's run of ten seasons came to an end at the Checker Auto Parts/Dura Lube 500 at Phoenix, while the latter's abruptly ceased at eighteen seasons following the UAW-GM Quality 500 at Lowe's Motor Speedway (TBS had initially won rights for the new deal, but was replaced by TNT).

NASCAR on ESPN, alongside its affiliated programming with ESPN on ABC, ended its initial run of covering NASCAR's top series (both networks returned during the 2007 season); ESPN's first run of twenty seasons concluded with the NAPA 500 at Atlanta, while ABC's then twenty-five nonconsecutive seasons with the sport ended with the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis.

This was the last season without Jimmie Johnson until 2021, Jason Leffler until 2014 (due to his death shortly after his last Cup start at Pocono in June 2013), and the last without Kevin Harvick until 2024.

Terry Wooden 4 Waddell Wilson 1 The Bud Shootout, an exhibition race for all Pole Award winners from the previous season, was held February 13 at Daytona International Speedway.

Top 10 results Notes: The Gatorade Twin 125s were run on February 17 at Daytona International Speedway.

The Gatorade Twin 125s were broadcast tape-delayed on February 19 on CBS after the NASCAR Busch Series race.

Failed to qualify: 60 –Geoff Bodine, 84-Norm Benning, 72–Jim Sauter, 65–Dan Pardus, 85 –Carl Long, 48–Stanton Barrett, 89-Bobby Gerhart, 96–Greg Sacks, 11 –Brett Bodine, 71-Dave Marcis, 91 –Andy Hillenburg, 27 –Jeff Fuller*, 50 –Ricky Craven, and 34 –David Green The Dura Lube/Kmart 400 was held February 27 at North Carolina Speedway.

89) The Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500 was held March 12 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

90) The Food City 500 was held March 26 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

21) The NAPA Auto Parts 500 was held April 30 at California Speedway.

90) The Winston, the all-star race for all past champions and recent winners, was held May 20 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

Top ten results The Coca-Cola 600 was held May 28 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

71) The MBNA Platinum 400 was held June 4 at Dover Downs International Speedway.

Due to qualifying being rained out, the starting lineup was set by owner's points, so Bobby Labonte was awarded pole position.

90) The Pepsi 400 presented by Meijer was held August 20 at Michigan Speedway.

50) The Pepsi Southern 500 presented by Kmart was held September 3 at Darlington Raceway.

9) The Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 was held September 9 at Richmond International Raceway.

71) The Dura Lube 300 sponsored by Kmart was held September 17 at New Hampshire International Speedway.

90) The Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400 was held October 22 at North Carolina Speedway.

9) The Checker Auto Parts/Dura Lube 500 was held November 5 at Phoenix International Raceway.

90) The Pennzoil 400 presented by Discount Auto Parts was held November 12 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

In the preseason, the two favorites for the award were Matt Kenseth and Dale Earnhardt Jr.

While Earnhardt had the name, the popularity, and the two wins, Kenseth had more consistency and was able to claim the title by a narrow margin.

Ed Berrier and Jeff Fuller finished towards the bottom, mainly due to being released from their rides during the season.