1976 Winston 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 10 of 30 in the 1976 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Map of the Talladega Superspeedway | |||
| Date | May 2, 1976 | ||
| Location | Talladega International Motor Speedway (Talladega, Alabama) | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 2.660 mi (4.280 km) | ||
| Distance | 188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures reaching a maximum of 73.9 °F (23.3 °C); wind speeds up to 11.8 miles per hour (19.0 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 169.887 miles per hour (273.407 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Dave Marcis | K&K Insurance Racing | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Buddy Baker | Bud Moore Engineering | |
| Laps | 135 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 15 |
Buddy Baker |
Bud Moore Engineering | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | CBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier | ||
The 1976 Winston 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on May 2, 1976, at Alabama International Motor Speedway (now Talladega Superspeedway) in Talladega, Alabama.[2] By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.
Summary
Dave Marcis won the pole position for the race with a lap of 189.197 miles per hour (304.483 km/h). 40 cars started the race. Buddy Baker defeated Cale Yarborough by 35 seconds, in an average speed of 167.887 miles per hour (270.188 km/h). His record of winning three races in a row at Talladega would not be broken until 2002 when Dale Earnhardt, Jr. recorded his fourth consecutive victory at that track. There were 24 different leaders and three cautions for 14 laps. Attendance was 80,000.[2]
Baker had qualified 12th, and two days before the race Bud Moore's team transported the engine for the team's 1976 Ford Torino back to their shop in Spartanburg, SC for examination. The engine was brought back to Talladega the day before the race.
Through his second-place finish, Yarborough managed to take the lead in championship points over Benny Parsons; who finished in 26th place during this event.[3] Parsons was eliminated when Dick Brooks spun out of the lead group and was hit by David Pearson, Marcis, and Parsons.[3] Petty finished fourth after losing a lap when he stalled out his car on pit road.
Prize winnings for this race varied from $25,285 for the winner ($104,792.28 when considering inflation) all the way to $1,205 for last-place finisher Darrell Bryant ($4,994.06 when considering inflation).[4]
Top ten finishers
- Buddy Baker – #15
- Cale Yarborough – #11
- Bobby Allison – #2
- Richard Petty – #43
- Terry Ryan – #81
- Cecil Gordon – #24
- Donnie Allison – #28
- Bruce Hill – #47
- Dave Marcis – #71
- Frank Warren – #79
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cale Yarborough | 1535 |
| 2 | Benny Parsons | 1486 |
| 3 | Richard Petty | 1398 |
| 4 | Bobby Allison | 1331 |
| 5 | Lennie Pond | 1291 |
References
- ↑ 1976 Winston 500 weather information at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 1976 Winston 500 racing information at Racing Reference
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 1976 Winston 500 racing information at Race Database
- ↑ 1976 Winston 500 racing information at Driver Averages
| Preceded by 1976 Virginia 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Season 1976 |
Succeeded by 1976 Music City USA 420 |
| Preceded by 1975 Winston 500 |
Talladega spring race 1976 |
Succeeded by 1977 Winston 500 |