The 1954 Mid-South 250 was a NASCAR Grand National (now Sprint Cup Series) race that took place on October 10, 1954 at Memphis-Arkansas Speedway in the American community of LeHi, Arkansas.[1][2]
One hundred and sixty seven laps were raced on a dirt track spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km).[1][2] Twelve thousand people would attend this live untelevised race where Buck Baker would win in his 1954 Oldsmobile vehicle.[1][2] Other notable competitors included Lee Petty (who led 150 laps which was considered to be the most laps), Marvin Panch, Jimmie Lewallen, Arden Mounts, and Junior Johnson.[1][2] The average speed of the race was 89.013 miles per hour (143.253 km/h) and the race took two hours, forty-eight minutes, and fifty-one seconds to complete.[1][2] There was no record of the pole speed, the number of cautions, or even the margin of victory that Buck Baker had over Dick Rathmann.[1] This event was the 35th race out of 37 in the 1954 Grand National season.[1] Even though it was advertised as a 250-mile race, the actual distance of the race was 250.5 miles (403.1 km).
One of the major sponsors of the race was for the gasoline brand Pure;[1] which is now a defunct oil company that services ten Southern states as a cooperative.[3] Vapor lock from the fuels being used in the NASCAR Cup Series back then led to the elimination of three drivers from the race (John Erickson, Bud Harless, and Charles Brinkley).[1] When NASCAR switches to fuel injection in the 2012 season,[4] it is assumed that the vapor lock problem will be solved permanently.
Richard Jones achieved the race's last place finish due to a crash on the first lap of the race.[1][5]
| Preceded by none |
Mid-South 250 races 1954-1955 |
Succeeded by 1955 Mid-South 250 |