1987 Winchester 400
The 1987 Winchester 400 motor race, the eighteenth annual (run yearly since 1970), was held under American Speed Association sanction on October 4, 1987, at the Winchester Speedway, in Indiana (USA).
After tying to win the "big one" for several years, Butch Miller had a day of career firsts as he captured the 1987 running of the "Winchester 400" and clinched his first ASA National Championship.
The race
Driving the familiar number 52 Chevrolet, Miller started the weekend off by winning the pole for the 400-lap grind. At the start, Miller would cruise to an early lead as he paced the field for the first 115 laps. As Miller pitted under caution, two-time winner Mike Eddy put his Howe Buick at the top of the leader board for the next 60 laps, before he too headed down pit road on lap 176. That, in turn, handed the lead to Harold Fair who would hold the lead until Miller took over the lead for good on lap 276. Eddy’s hopes for a third win ended when engine problems sidelined him on lap 297.
Despite failing to lead a single lap, six-time winner Bob Senneker finished second ahead of Fair. Seeking a third-straight win, Mark Martin was on a charge in the second half of the event, making up two laps he lost with tire problems to finish fourth with Dick Trickle coming home fifth as the last car on the lead lap. Miller collected $10,600 for win.
Table of results
| Results of the 18th Annual Winchester 400 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Start | Car # | Driver/Hometown | Sponsor/Make | Laps | Winnings (in US$) |
Status | |
| 1 | 1 | 52 |  Butch Miller / Coopersville, MI |
Lane Automotive/MSW/Motorstate / Chevrolet | 400 | $10,600 | running | |
| 2 | 2 | 84 | Bob Senneker / Dorr, MI |
Elk Custom Vans / Buick | 400 | $7,900 | running | |
| 3 | 4 | 81 | Harold Fair / Detroit, MI |
Fair Racing / Buick | 400 | $4,650 | running | |
| 4 | 3 | 2 |  Mark Martin / Batesville, AR |
Specialty Associates, Inc. / Ford | 400 | $3,950 | running | |
| 5 | 8 | 99 |  Dick Trickle / Wisconsin Rapids, WI |
Coors Light Silver Bullet / Chevrolet | 396 | $3,420 | running | |
| 6 | 11 | 0 |  Tom Jones / Northbrook, IL |
Circle D/FelPro/Dillon / Oldsmobile | 399 | $3,000 | running | |
| 7 | 17 | 45 |  Dave Jackson / Loveland, OH |
Redbank Transport/Hickernell / Buick | 397 | $2,600 | running | |
| 8 | 9 | 79 | Bobby Dotter / Franklin, WI |
Miller American / Ford | 396 | $2,600 | running | |
| 9 | 10 | 90 | Kent Stauffer / Elyria, OH |
Liberty Ford Co./Flex Industries / Ford | 394 | $2,100 | running | |
| 10 | 14 | 51 | Dennis Vogel / Manitowoc, WI |
Pietroske Buick/Nelson Salvage / Buick | 393 | $1,750 | running | |
| 11 | 15 | 14 | Terry Senneker / Wayland, MI |
Funtoon Pontoon / Chevrolet | 393 | $1,350 | running | |
| 12 | 13 | 04 | Gene Harsch / Sharonville, OH |
Pepsi-Cola / Chevrolet | 392 | $1,225 | running | |
| 13 | 12 | 35 | Buddy Schrock / Plain City, OH |
Performance Technology / Chevrolet | 383 | $1,350 | gasket | |
| 14 | 5 | 97 | Ted Musgrave / Grand Marsh, WI |
Baker Enterprises of Wisconsin / Buick | 332 | $1,730 | running | |
| 15 | 7 | 36 |  Kenny Wallace / St. Louis, MO |
Child’s Tire/TL Woods/Fierge / Buick | 319 | $1,775 | accident | |
| 16 | 6 | 88 | Mike Eddy / Midland, MI |
Lea Diesel/Howe/Malcuit / Buick | 297 | $1,950 | valve spring | |
| 17 | 19 | 78 | Ed Cooper / Clarks Lake, MI |
Ultra-Tech/Habegger Racing / Buick | 287 | $925 | suspension | |
| 18 | 24 | 24 | Dave Jensen / Grain Valley, MO |
Stenger Truck Center / Chevrolet | 218 | $1,000 | handling | |
| 19 | 23 | 71 | John Wilson / Springfield, OH |
Baumgardner Racing Engines / Chevrolet | 160 | $935 | transmission | |
| 20 | 18 | 92 |  Peter Gibbons / Stoufferville, ONT, CAN |
Thompson Moving & Storage / Buick | 149 | $1,090 | accident | |
| 21 | 25 | 18 | Chet Kosin / Inkster, MI |
Giles Auto Body / Chevrolet | 142 | $845 | accident | |
| 22 | 22 | 7 | Gary St. Amant / Columbus, OH |
A-1 Auto Service/Stuphen Fire Eng. / Buick | 138 | $1,500 | valve spring | |
| 23 | 16 | 91 | Russ Urlin / London, ONT, CAN |
Budget Rent-A-Car / Buick | 124 | $1,575 | accident | |
| 24 | 28 | 28 |  Ronnie Bates / Waynesburg, KY |
Woodard-Gandolfo / Pontiac | 68 | $550 | power steering | |
| 25 | 27 | 67 |  Larry Harris / Indianapolis, IN |
The Toy Store/Van’s / Chevrolet | 61 | $740 | overheating | |
| 26 | 26 | 89 | Roy Aitchison / Deerfield, WI |
Dairy Queen / Buick | 29 | $700 | accident | |
| 27 | 21 | 1 |  Tom Harrington / Hendersonville, KY |
BFI Waste Systems / Chevrolet | 4 | $760 | accident | |
| 28 | 20 | 66 | Glenn Allen, Jr. / Cincinnati, OH |
AAMCO Transmission / Buick | 4 | $750 | accident | |
Race statistics
- Average Speed: 80.202 mph (129.073 km/h)
- Margin of Victory: 1.07 seconds
- Time of Race: Two hours, 29 minutes and 37.28 seconds
- Lead Changes: 6 among 3 drivers
- Lap Leaders: Butch Miller 1-115; Mike Eddy 116-176; Miller 177-215; Eddy 216-242; Harold Fair 243-278; Miller 279-400.
- Cautions: 11 for 51 laps
- Entries: 28 Qualifiers: 28
External links
| Preceded by 1986 Winchester 400 |
1987 Winchester 400 Winner: Butch Miller |
Succeeded by 1988 Winchester 400 |
Coordinates: 40°10′31″N 85°1′37″W / 40.17528°N 85.02694°W