2005 UAW-GM Quality 500

The 2005 UAW-GM Quality 500 was the stock car racing race of the 2005 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series season, the fifth race of the 2005 Chase for the Nextel Cup, and the 46th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, October 15, 2005, before a crowd of 165,000 in Concord, North Carolina, at Lowe's Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent quad-oval. The race was extended from its scheduled 334 laps to 336 laps due to a green–white–checker finish. At race's end, Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports would hold off the field on the final restart to win his 18th career NASCAR Nextel Cup Series win and his fourth and final win of the season. To fill out the podium, Kurt Busch and Greg Biffle of Roush Racing would finish second and third, respectively.

Background
Lowe's Motor Speedway is a motorsports complex located in Concord, North Carolina, United States 13 miles from Charlotte, North Carolina. The complex features a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend and the NEXTEL All-Star Challenge, as well as the UAW-GM Quality 500. The speedway was built in 1959 by Bruton Smith and is considered the home track for NASCAR with many race teams located in the Charlotte area. The track is owned and operated by Speedway Motorsports Inc. (SMI) with Marcus G. Smith (son of Bruton Smith) as track president.

Entry list
* Withdrew.

First practice
The first practice session was held on Thursday, October 13, at 1:00 PM EST and would last for 50 minutes. Elliott Sadler of Robert Yates Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a 28.305 and an average speed of 190.779 mph.

Second practice
The second practice session was held on Thursday, October 13, at 3:10 PM EST and would last for an hour and 10 minutes. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports would set the fastest time in the session, with a 27.948 and an average speed of 193.216 mph.

Third practice
The third practice session was held on Friday, October 14, at 4:30 PM EST and would last for 45 minutes. Jimmie Johnson of Hendrick Motorsports would set the fastest time in the session, with a 28.692 and an average speed of 188.206 mph.

Fourth and final practice
The fourth and final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Friday, October 14, at 6:10 PM EST and would last for 45 minutes. Ryan Newman of Penske Racing would set the fastest time in the session, with a 28.502 and an average speed of 189.460 mph.

Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Thursday, October 13, at 7:10 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.

Elliott Sadler of Robert Yates Racing would win the pole, with a time of 27.948 and an average speed of 193.216 mph.

Six drivers would fail to qualify: Boris Said, Carl Long, Jimmy Spencer, Mike Garvey, P. J. Jones, and Stanton Barrett.