1978 Capital City 400
| Race details[1][2][3][4] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 23 of 30 in the 1978 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Richmond International Speedway | |||
| Date | September 10, 1978 | ||
| Official name | Capital City 400 | ||
| Location | Richmond Fairgrounds (Richmond, Virginia) | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.542 mi (0.872 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 216.8 mi (348.9 km) | ||
| Weather | Hot with temperatures approaching 95 °F (35 °C); wind speeds up to 17.26 miles per hour (27.78 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 79.568 miles per hour (128.052 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 18,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | DiGard Motorsports | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Neil Bonnett | Osterlund Motorsports | |
| Laps | 276 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 5 | Darrell Waltrip | DiGard Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The 1978 Capital City 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on September 10, 1978, at Richmond Fairgrounds in Richmond, Virginia.
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
Four hundred laps were completed on an oval track spanning 0.546 miles (0.879 km) per lap for a grand total of 216.8 miles (348.9 km) of racing.[2] The race was completed within two hours and forty-three minutes of the first official green flag of the race.[2] Darrell Waltrip would end up defeating Bobby Allison (who drove a 1978 Ford Thunderbird) by only one second.[2][4] Neil Bonnett started chasing down Waltrip on pit road and slammed into Waltrip's vehicle; forcing Bill France, Jr. to put them on probation for the remainder of the year. The spectators were incredibly disgruntled after Darrell Waltrip's victory so Waltrip needed police protection in order to make it to the post-race interviews.[5]
When I passed Neil, I was on the inside and he was on the outside. It think it's pretty poor strategy when he doesn't move up. He actually cut into me.— Darrell Waltrip
Eighteen thousand people were a live witness to five yellow flags being used for twenty-seven laps in addition to 16 lead changes by the drivers.[2] The pole position speed was acquired by Darrell Waltrip's Chevrolet Monte Carlo with a qualifying speed of 91.964 miles per hour (148.002 km/h) during his solo run.[2][4] Meanwhile, the average speed of the actual race would be 79.568 miles per hour (128.052 km/h).[2][4]
Ed Negre would receive the last-place finish for a brake problem acquired on lap 6 of the race.[2][3][4] The top prize of the race was $13,800 ($50,067.24 when adjusted for inflation) while last placed awarded the driver with a meager $300 ($1,088.42 when adjusted for inflation).[2][3][4] Cale Yarborough would retain his lead in the championship points after this race.[2][3] 30 drivers would attend this race; all of them were born in the United States of America.[2]
Top ten finishers
| Pos[2] | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 88 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | 400 |
| 2 | 2 | 15 | Bobby Allison | Ford | 400 |
| 3 | 3 | 5 | Neil Bonnett | Chevrolet | 400 |
| 4 | 10 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Oldsmobile | 399 |
| 5 | 7 | 90 | Dick Brooks | Oldsmobile | 397 |
| 6 | 6 | 72 | Benny Parsons | Ford | 397 |
| 7 | 13 | 92 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | 392 |
| 8 | 12 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | Chevrolet | 391 |
| 9 | 11 | 2 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | 388 |
| 10 | 14 | 17 | Roger Hamby | Chevrolet | 388 |
Timeline
- Start of race: Darrell Waltrip started the race with the pole position
- Lap 6: Ed Negre abused his vehicle's brakes; causing him to exit the race prematurely
- Lap 16: Wayne Morgan's vehicle overheated; causing him to leave the race
- Lap 28: Ferrel Harris' vehicle also overheated; with the same consequences
- Lap 49: Tighe Scott had a terminal crash; causing him to withdraw from the event
- Lap 52: Dave Marcis gained the lead from Darrell Waltrip
- Lap 53: Lennie Pond gained the lead from Dave Marcis
- Lap 54: Neil Bonnett gained the lead from Lennie Pond
- Lap 85: The rear end of Dave Dion's vehicle was unserviceable; causing him to leave the race
- Lap 172: Nelson Oswald's vehicle overheated; ending his day on the track early
- Lap 182: Darrell Waltrip gained the lead from Neil Bonnett
- Lap 183: Bobby Allison gained the lead from Darrell Waltrip
- Lap 184: Darrell Waltrip gained the lead from Bobby Allison
- Lap 191-394: Neil Bonnett, Richard Petty and Bobby Allison would trade the lead amongst themselves
- Lap 198: Tommy Gale's engine became problematic; causing him not to finish the race
- Lap 256: Frank Warren's vehicle had some handling issues; ending his race prematurely
- Lap 356: Issues with his vehicle's rear end would make Richard Petty humble; settling for a rather embarrassing 20th place "finish"
- Lap 395: Darrell Waltrip gained the lead from Neil Bonnett; making this the final lead change of the event
- End of race: Darrell Waltrip won the race; shortly before disrespecting former race champion Neil Bonnett
Championship standings
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cale Yarborough | 3692 |
| 2 | Benny Parsons | 3394 |
| 3 | Dave Marcis | 3340 |
| 4 | Darrell Waltrip | 3263 |
| 5 | Bobby Allison | 3176 |
| 6 | Richard Petty | 3074 |
| 7 | Lennie Pond | 2840 |
| 8 | Buddy Arrington | 2839 |
| 9 | Dick Brooks | 2798 |
| 10 | Richard Childress | 2176 |
References
- ↑ "1978 Capital City 400 weather information". Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2011-08-16.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "1978 Capital City 400 racing results". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2011-07-11.
- 1 2 3 4 "1978 Capital City 400 racing results". Driver Averages. Retrieved 2011-07-10.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "1978 Capital City 400 racing results". Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ↑ "Racing History Minute - September 10, 1978". Racers Reunion. Retrieved 2015-01-28.
| Preceded by 1978 Southern 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1978 |
Succeeded by 1978 Delaware 500 |