1969 Texas 500
Encyclopedia
The 1969 Texas 500 was a NASCAR
Grand National (now Sprint Cup Series) race that took place on December 7, 1969 at Texas World Speedway
in College Station
, Texas
, USA
.
(who finished 21st in this race and would stop racing in Ford
vehicles after this race) but would have an abbreviated racing career compared to him. Bobby Isaac
would win this race in his 1969 Dodge Charger
; gaining $15,640 in prize winnings ($ when inflation is taken into effect). Buddy Baker
earned the pole position with a speed of 176.284 mi/h while the average speed of the race was 144.277 mi/h. More than 23000 race fans would see Donnie Allison
lose the race by more than two laps. Don Biederman
was the only foreign-born driver (he was born in Port Credit
, Ontario
) and raced under the employ of Bill Champion
for this race in a 1968 Ford Torino
.
Roy Tyner
would finish in last place after picking up an engine
problem on lap 2 with his 1969 Pontiac
vehicle. Other notable drivers to develop problems in the race were: Elmo Langley
, Cale Yarborough
, Ed Negre
, and Bill Seifert
. Wendell Scott
(the first African American
driver in NASCAR history to win a race), Buddy Baker
(who was the highest finishing driver to DNF from the race in 8th place), and Benny Parsons
were three other notable drivers of this decade who participated in the race.
* Driver failed to finish race
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
Grand National (now Sprint Cup Series) race that took place on December 7, 1969 at Texas World Speedway
Texas World Speedway
Texas World Speedway was built in 1969 and is one of only seven superspeedways of two miles or greater in the United States, the others being Indianapolis, Daytona, Pocono, Talladega, Auto Club, and Michigan. TWS is located on approximately 600 acres on State Highway 6 in College Station, Texas....
in College Station
College Station, Texas
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Summary
David Pearson would eventually merge as the eventual champion for the year. Pearson would later be recognized for winnings races more consistently than Richard PettyRichard Petty
Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...
(who finished 21st in this race and would stop racing in Ford
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
vehicles after this race) but would have an abbreviated racing career compared to him. Bobby Isaac
Bobby Isaac
Bobby Isaac is a former NASCAR Grand National champion.-Early life:Isaac grew up on a farm near Catawba, North Carolina, the second youngest of nine children...
would win this race in his 1969 Dodge Charger
Dodge Charger
The Dodge Charger is an American automobile manufactured by the Dodge division of Chrysler. There have been several different Dodge vehicles, built on three different platforms and sizes, all bearing the Charger nameplate...
; gaining $15,640 in prize winnings ($ when inflation is taken into effect). Buddy Baker
Buddy Baker
Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:...
earned the pole position with a speed of 176.284 mi/h while the average speed of the race was 144.277 mi/h. More than 23000 race fans would see Donnie Allison
Donnie Allison
Dunkiny "Donnie" Allison is a former driver on the NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup circuit, who won ten times during his racing career, which spanned the 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s. He was part of the "Alabama Gang," and is the brother of 1983 champion Bobby Allison and uncle of Davey Allison...
lose the race by more than two laps. Don Biederman
Don Biederman
Don Biederman was a Canadian stock car racer from Port Credit, Ontario.Since his passing, Biederman has been inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame. He even has a memorial race held in his honor annually called "The Don Beiderman Memorial." This race is operated under the OSCAAR...
was the only foreign-born driver (he was born in Port Credit
Port Credit, Ontario
Port Credit is found at the mouth of the Credit River on the north shore of Lake Ontario, within the southcentral area of the city of Mississauga...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
) and raced under the employ of Bill Champion
Bill Champion
Buford Billy Champion , is a retired American professional baseball player, a right-handed pitcher who played in 202 games in the Major Leagues from -. He would play for the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies.-External links:...
for this race in a 1968 Ford Torino
Ford Torino
The Ford Torino is an intermediate automobile produced by the Ford Motor Company for the North American market between 1968 and 1976. The car was named after the city of Turin , which is considered the Detroit of Italy...
.
Roy Tyner
Roy Tyner
William Leroy "Roy" Tyner was a retired Native American NASCAR Grand National driver from Red Springs, North Carolina, USA.-Driver:...
would finish in last place after picking up an engine
Engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion. Heat engines, including internal combustion engines and external combustion engines burn a fuel to create heat which is then used to create motion...
problem on lap 2 with his 1969 Pontiac
Pontiac
Pontiac was an automobile brand that was established in 1926 as a companion make for General Motors' Oakland. Quickly overtaking its parent in popularity, it supplanted the Oakland brand entirely by 1933 and, for most of its life, became a companion make for Chevrolet. Pontiac was sold in the...
vehicle. Other notable drivers to develop problems in the race were: Elmo Langley
Elmo Langley
Elmo Langley was a NASCAR driver and owner. Langley primarily used the number "64" on his race cars during his NASCAR career.-Racing career:...
, Cale Yarborough
Cale Yarborough
William Caleb "Cale" Yarborough , is a farmer, businessman and former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner. He is one of only two drivers in NASCAR history to win three consecutive championships...
, Ed Negre
Ed Negre
Ed Negre is a retired NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver who raced from 1955 to 1979....
, and Bill Seifert
Bill Seifert
Bill Seifert is a retired NASCAR Sprint Cup Series who raced from 1966 to 1979.-Summary:Seifert raced 41,875 laps for . His grand total for race winnings is $147,831 USD . Seifert's average career start is 21st and his average career finish is 19th...
. Wendell Scott
Wendell Scott
Wendell Oliver Scott was an American stock car racing driver from Danville, Virginia. He is the only black driver to win a race in what is now the Sprint Cup Series. According to a 2008 biography of Scott, he broke the color barrier in Southern stock car racing on May 23, 1952, at the Danville...
(the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
driver in NASCAR history to win a race), Buddy Baker
Buddy Baker
Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:...
(who was the highest finishing driver to DNF from the race in 8th place), and Benny Parsons
Benny Parsons
Benjamin Stewart Parsons was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst on TBS, ESPN, NBC and TNT...
were three other notable drivers of this decade who participated in the race.
Finishing order
- Bobby Isaac
- Donnie Allison
- Benny Parsons
- James HyltonJames HyltonJames Harvey Hylton is a part-time race car driver. He is a two-time winner in NASCAR and competes in the ARCA RE/MAX Series,finishing 16th in points in 2006. He made headlines while attempting to qualify for the 2007 Daytona 500 at age 72...
- Dick BrooksDick BrooksRichard "Dick" Brooks was an American NASCAR driver. Born in Porterville, California, he was the 1969 NASCAR Rookie of the Year, and went on to win the 1973 Talladega 500...
- Ray ElderRay ElderRaymond Marvin Elder was a former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver.He participated primarily in west coast races at Riverside International Raceway and Ontario Motor Speedway from 1967 to 1978. He won races at Riverside in 1971 and 1972 driving for Fred Elder...
- Jack McCoyJack McCoyJohn James "Jack" McCoy is a fictional character in the television drama Law & Order, created by Michael S. Chernuchin and played by Sam Waterston since 1994. He is the second-longest tenured character on the show, after Lt. Anita Van Buren . On January 28, 2009, McCoy's character ended the longest...
- Buddy Baker*
- Dave MarcisDave MarcisDave Marcis is a retired driver on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit whose career spanned five decades. Marcis won five times over this tenure, twice at Richmond, including his final win in 1982...
- LeeRoy YarbroughLeeRoy YarbroughLonnie "LeeRoy" Yarbrough was a NASCAR racer. His best season was 1969 when he won seven races, tallied 21 finishes in the top-ten and earned $193,211...
* - Cecil GordonCecil GordonCecil Gordon was a NASCAR driver. He is not related to Sprint Cup driver Jeff Gordon although the two drivers drove in car number 24....
- Jabe ThomasJabe ThomasCerry Ezra "Jabe" Thomas is a retired NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver who competed from the mid 1960s through the late 1970s. His son Ronnie was also a NASCAR Cup Series driver; competing from 1977 to 1989.-Career:Thomas drove 75243 laps of racing and earned $295,497 in total...
- E. J. Trivette
- Johnny HalfordJohnny HalfordJohnny Halford is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver who raced from 1969 to 1978.-Summary:He would earn one top ten finish in the 1972 Firecracker 400 while leading 16 laps out of 6924 - the equivalent of . Halford's average starting position would be 24th while he would finish 21st on...
- Friday HasslerFriday HasslerRaymond "Friday" Hassler was a NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver.-Summary:He made his debut in 1960 but only drove a handful of races per year until 1967 when he drove 21 of the 49 races for Red Sharp and finished 32nd in points. He improved to 27th for Sharp the next year and...
* - Neil CastlesNeil CastlesNeil "Soapy" Castles is a retired NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver that participate from 1957 to 1976.-History:...
- Henley GrayHenley GrayHenley Gray is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver whose career spanned from 1964 to 1977.-Summary:...
- Wendell Scott
- Don Biederman
- H. B. BaileyH. B. BaileyHerring "H. B." Bailey was a NASCAR driver. He raced his #36 Pontiac part-time as an independent driver in the Grand National/Winston Cup series from 1962 to 1993 making 85 races over his career....
* - Richard Petty*
- Dave Alonzo
- Bobby AllisonBobby AllisonRobert Arthur Allison is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver and was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers. His two sons, Clifford Allison and Davey Allison followed him into racing, and both died within a year of each other....
* - Earl Brooks*
- Cale Yarborough*
- David Pearson*
- Elmo Langley*
- Bill ShireyBill ShireyBill Shirey is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver who accomplished three finishes in the "top ten" and has driven for 9588 laps - the equivalent of . He started 24th on average and also finished an average of 24th place...
* - Ben Arnold*
- Frank WarrenFrank Warren (NASCAR driver)Frank Warren is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver who raced from 1963 to 1980.Out of 88863 laps finished in his career, Warren had led 72 of them. Warren's total career earnings were $625,886 and while his average finish was 20th place in his entire career. The total amount of miles...
* - Bill ChampionBill ChampionBuford Billy Champion , is a retired American professional baseball player, a right-handed pitcher who played in 202 games in the Major Leagues from -. He would play for the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies.-External links:...
* - John Sears*
- Richard BrickhouseRichard BrickhouseRichard Brickhouse is a retired NASCAR driver. He is best known for winning the inaugural Talladega 500 in 1969 after a boycott of the top stars of the sport at the time because concerns with tire wear with the high rate of speeds at the racetrack. He retired in 1982 with 13 career top 10's in 39...
* - Joe Hines*
- Ed NegreEd NegreEd Negre is a retired NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver who raced from 1955 to 1979....
* - Bill SeifertBill SeifertBill Seifert is a retired NASCAR Sprint Cup Series who raced from 1966 to 1979.-Summary:Seifert raced 41,875 laps for . His grand total for race winnings is $147,831 USD . Seifert's average career start is 21st and his average career finish is 19th...
* - Larry BaumelLarry BaumelLarry Baumel is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver whose career spanned from 1969 to 1971.-Summary:...
* - Roy Tyner*
* Driver failed to finish race