The 2003 Ford 400 was the end of an era.

The season ending race was the final NASCAR Winston Cup Series event.

R.J. Reynolds, the manufacturer of Winston cigarettes, ended its more than 30 year sponsorship of NASCAR’s premier series allowing less controversial cell phone provider Nextel to take over the title rights.

In addition to being the last race for Winston, it was also the last season for the traditional points style championship hunt. 2004 saw the implementation of the Chase for the Nextel Cup (now Chase for the Sprint Cup).

The Ford 400 was the first NASCAR race held on the newly banked Homestead-Miami Speedway and it was a thriller.

NASCAR veteran Bill Elliott, in his final start in the No. 9 Dodge, led 189 of the race’s 267 laps. A Georgia native, “Awesome Bill from Dawsonville” was the class of the field that day and he was also the oldest driver to start the event.

While Elliott was completing the final circuit with a lead over Bobby Labonte, his right rear tire blew out. As the tire and the fender gave way, Labonte easily slipped past and took the checkered flag in his last victory to date. Elliott ended up 8th. 

Meanwhile, Matt Kenseth earned the final NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship before the title sponsor changeover. He ended the season 90 points ahead of 2nd place Jimmie Johnson despite blowing his engine and finishing dead last in the race.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished 3rd in the points that year, followed by Jeff Gordon, Kevin Harvick, Ryan Newman and Tony Stewart. The average age of the top-7 drivers was 29.

Race winner Labonte ended the season 8th in the standings, 74 points ahead of Elliott who ended up 9th.

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