1963 Daytona 500

1963 Daytona 500
Race details
Race 7 of 55 in the 1963 NASCAR Grand National Series season

Track map of Daytona International Speedway showing mainly the speedway.
Date February 24, 1963 (1963-02-24)
Location Daytona International Speedway
Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S.
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4.023 km)
Distance 200 laps, 500 mi (800 km)
Average speed 151.556 miles per hour (243.906 km/h)
Pole position
Driver
Banjo Matthews
Qualifying race winners
Duel 1 Winner Junior Johnson Ray Fox
Duel 2 Winner Johnny Rutherford Smokey Yunick
Most laps led
Driver Fred Lorenzen Holman-Moody
Laps 77
Winner
No. 21 Ford Tiny Lund Wood Brothers Racing
Television in the United States
Network ABC's WWOS
Announcers Bill Flemming and Chris Economaki

The 1963 Daytona 500, the 5th running of the event held on February 24, 1963, was won by Tiny Lund driving a 1963 Ford. Lund drove his number 21 to victory in three hours and 17 minutes. There were 2 cautions flags which slowed the race for 10 laps.[1]

Weather played a critical role in Tiny Lund winning this race; with temperatures reaching up to 75 °F (24 °C) and wind speeds up to 20 miles per hour (32 km/h).[2] Lund won by making only four pit stops, but he would not have been able to make the distance on four pit stops had the first ten laps not been run under caution to dry the track from earlier rains. Had the race not started under caution, Lund would have had to make five pit stops, just as Fred Lorenzen and Ned Jarrett did. He was able to win on four pit stops along because of the slow start time.

Summary

Lund filled in for an injured Marvin Panch, who suffered injuries after a crash in a Maserati. Panch was to drive a Wood Brothers car in the 500.[3] The win was Lund's first victory of the season.[4]

Jim Cushman, Bubba Farr, Dick Good, Ted Hairfield and John Rogers retired from professional stock car racing after this event.[5] Drivers who failed to qualify for the race were: Bobby Isaac (#99), Buck Baker (#87), Pete Stewart (#57), Cale Yarborough (#52), Larry Thomas (#36), Roy Mayne (#33), Chuck Daigh (#25), Rodger Ward (#16), Al Terrell (#9) and Bill Foster (#2).[6]

The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s; most of the cars were trailered to events or hauled in by trucks.

This race marked the first time that ABC's Wide World of Sports covered the great American Race. It also helped to dispel the long-standing stereotypes of the Southern United States after the rest of the United States witnessed an emotional inspiring win.

Top ten finishers

Pos[1] Grid No. Driver Manufacturer Laps Winnings Laps led
1 12 21 Tiny Lund Ford 200 $24,550 17
2 2 28 Fred Lorenzen Ford 200 $15,540 77
3 8 11 Ned Jarrett Ford 200 $8,700 26
4 10 29 Nelson Stacy Ford 199 $8,275 0
5 11 0 Dan Gurney Ford 199 $3,550 0
6 23 43 Richard Petty Plymouth 198 $2,500 0
7 14 7A Bobby Johns Pontiac 198 $2,600 10
8 26 8 Joe Weatherly Pontiac 197 $1,500 0
9 4 13 Johnny Rutherford Chevrolet 196 $1,250 0
10 13 44 Tommy Irwin Ford 195 $1,000 0

References

  1. 1 2 "1963 Daytona 500". racing-reference.info. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  2. ↑ "Weather History for the 1963 Daytona 500 race". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2015-03-15.
  3. ↑ Auto editors of Consumer Guide. "1963 NASCAR Grand National Recap". HowStuffWorks, Inc ; Publications International, Ltd. p. 1. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  4. ↑ Fleischman, Bill; Al Pearce (2004). "Race Results: 1949–2002; 1960". The Unauthorized NASCAR Fan Guide: 2004. 2004 (10 ed.). 43311 Joy Rd. #414, Canton, MI, 48187: Checkered Flag Press; Visible Ink Press. pp. 225–226 of 576. ISBN 0-681-27587-1.
  5. ↑ Retirements from NASCAR at Race Database
  6. ↑ Qualifying information for the 1963 Daytona 500 at Racing Reference


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