1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500
| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 7 of 31 in the 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Darlington Raceway | |||
| Date | April 13, 1980 | ||
| Official name | CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway (Darlington, South Carolina) | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.366 mi (2.198 km) | ||
| Distance | 189 laps, 258.2 mi (415.4 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 367 laps, 501.3 mi (806.7 km) | ||
| Weather | Warm with temperatures reaching up to 79.9 °F (26.6 °C); wind speeds up to 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h); exactly 0.31 inches (7.9 mm) of rain and hail interrupted the race | ||
| Average speed | 112.397 miles per hour (180.885 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 45,000[3] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | M.C. Anderson Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | David Pearson | Ellington Racing | |
| Laps | 99 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 1 | David Pearson | Ellington Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ABC | ||
| Announcers |
Keith Jackson Jackie Stewart | ||
The 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that was held on April 13, 1980, at Darlington Raceway in the American community of Darlington, South Carolina.
Forty-five thousand racing fans would attend the event, interrupted by 0.31 inches or 7.9 millimetres of precipitation, shortened to the shortest race in what is now the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series by percentage in Darlington history (51.50%, 189 laps, which is six laps more than an official race, which is 184 laps), as the race was shortened because of impending darkness (Darlington did not add lights until the 2004 Southern 500).
Summary
There were 36 American-born drivers on the racing grid for this event. A multiple-car crash where Ricky Rudd and Richard Petty collided in Turn 1 collected numerous cars, with Neil Bonnett never completing the first lap. David Pearson would earn his final victory ever as a NASCAR Cup Series driver as he gathered the strength to defeat Benny Parsons by a little more than three seconds. Lake Speed would finish in the top ten only three races after his Cup Series debut; making a similar impression on the NASCAR community that Trevor Bayne would eventually do at the 2011 Daytona 500.[3]
Most of the cars used in this racing event belonged to the Chevrolet manufacturer. The entire event took two hours and twenty-three minutes to complete. Almost the entire "top ten" grid were driving Chevrolet stock car vehicles. Harry Gant would achieve his first "top five" finish in this event; marking a precedence for more than 100 "top five" finishes. Winnings for this race varied from $21,340 for the winner ($62,029.07 when adjusted for inflation) to a modest $1,800 for the last-place finisher ($5,232.07 when adjusted for inflation); he never recorded an actual lap during the event.[3] The total prize purse was calculated to be $173,565 ($504,502.14 when adjusted for inflation).[4]
Melvin Revis would retire from NASCAR Cup Series competition after this race while David Pearson would never win again.[5]
Qualifying
| Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet |
| 2 | 1 | David Pearson | Chevrolet |
| 3 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Chevrolet |
| 4 | 40 | Ricky Rudd | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet |
| 6 | 28 | Buddy Baker | Chevrolet |
| 7 | 43 | Richard Petty | Chevrolet |
| 8 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet |
| 9 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet |
| 10 | 47 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet |
Finishing order
- David Pearson (No. 1)
- Benny Parsons (No. 27)
- Harry Gant (No. 47)
- Darrell Waltrip (No. 88)
- Dick Brooks (No. 7)
- Lennie Pond (No. 68)
- Joe Millikan (No. 72)
- Lake Speed (No. 66)
- Richard Petty (No. 43)
- Jody Ridley (No. 90)
- Sterling Marlin (No. 5)
- Cale Yarborough* (No. 11)
- Bobby Wawak (No. 74)
- Buddy Arrington (No. 67)
- Tommy Gale (No. 64)
- Roger Hamby (No. 17)
- John Anderson (No. 19)
- James Hylton (No. 48)
- Ricky Rudd (No. 40)
- Bill Elswick (No. 75)
- Richard Childress (No. 3)
- J.D. McDuffie (No. 70)
- Dave Marcis* (No. 71)
- Dick May (No. 99)
- Slick Johnson (No. 53)
- Ronnie Thomas* (No. 25)
- Buck Simmons* (No. 12)
- Jimmy Means (No. 25)
- Dale Earnhardt* (No. 2)
- Bobby Allison* (No. 15)
- Baxter Price* (No. 45)
- Terry Labonte* (No. 44)
- Melvin Revis* (No. 59)
- Cecil Gordon* (No. 82)
- Buddy Baker* (No. 28)
- Neil Bonnett* (No. 21)
* Driver failed to finish race
Timeline
- Start of race: David Pearson was leading the racing grid as the green flag was waved
- Lap 14: Dale Earnhardt took over the lead from David Pearson
- Lap 28: Lennie Pond took over the lead from Dale Earnhardt
- Lap 29: Dave Marcis took over the lead from Lennie Pond
- Lap 32: Dale Earnhardt took over the lead from Dave Marcis
- Lap 33: David Pearson took over the lead from Dale Earnhardt
- Lap 87: Lennie Pond took over the lead from David Pearson
- Lap 88: Cale Yarborough took over the lead from Lennie Pond
- Lap 123: Benny Parsons took over the lead from Cale Yarborough
- Lap 135: Darrell Waltrip took over the lead from Benny Parsons
- Lap 150: Benny Parsons took over the lead from Darrell Waltrip
- Lap 158: David Pearson took over the lead from Benny Parsons
- Finish: David Pearson was pronounced the winner of the event
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[3] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Earnhardt | 1106 | 0 |
| 2 | Bobby Allison | 1013 | -93 |
| 3 | Darrell Waltrip | 1002 | -104 |
| 4 | Richard Petty | 962 | -144 |
| 5 | Cale Yarborough | 927 | -179 |
References
- ↑ 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 weather information at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ↑ Amount of precipitation that ended the 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- 1 2 3 4 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 racing information at Racing Reference
- ↑ 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 racing information at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
- ↑ 1980 CRC Chemicals Rebel 500 racing information at Race Database
| Preceded by 1980 Valleydale Southeastern 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1980 |
Succeeded by 1980 Northeastern Bank 400 |