The race was held at Michigan International Speedway, a two-mile (3.2 km) moderate-banked D-shaped speedway located in Brooklyn, Michigan. The track is used primarily for NASCAR events. It is known as a "sister track" to Texas World Speedway as MIS's oval design was a direct basis of TWS, with moderate modifications to the banking in the corners, and was used as the basis of Auto Club Speedway. The track is owned by International Speedway Corporation. Michigan International Speedway is recognized as one of motorsports' premier facilities because of its wide racing surface and high banking (by open-wheel standards; the 18-degree banking is modest by stock car standards).
The first practice session was held on Friday, August 18, at 1:35 PM EST. The session would last for 55 minutes.[3]Dale Jarrett of Robert Yates Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 37.678 and an average speed of 191.092 mph (307.533 km/h).[4]
The second practice session was held on Saturday, August 19, at 9:00 AM EST. The session would last for one hour.[3]Andy Houston of PPI Motorsports would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 38.066 and an average speed of 189.145 mph (304.399 km/h).[5]
The third and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, August 19, after the preliminary 2000 NAPAonline.com 250.[3]Rusty Wallace of Penske-Kranefuss Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 39.085 and an average speed of 184.213 mph (296.462 km/h).[6]
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, August 18, at 3:30 PM EST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap. During the first round, the top 25 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, August 19, at 10:45 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 26-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champion needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[7]
