1979 Daytona 500
Encyclopedia
| Location | Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, one of the most prestigious races in NASCAR. In addition to NASCAR, the track also hosts races of ARCA, AMA Superbike, Grand-Am and Motocross... |
| Date | February 18, 1979 |
| Laps | 200 |
| Daytona 500 Champion | Richard Petty Richard Petty Richard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series... |
| Average speed | 143.977 mi/h |
| Pole Sitter | Buddy Baker Buddy Baker Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:... |
| Most Laps Led | 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... |
| Qualifying Race Winners | Buddy Baker Buddy Baker Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:... and Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,... |
| Television | |
| Network Television network A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small... |
CBS |
| Announcers | Ken Squier Ken Squier Ken Squier is an American sportscaster and motorsports editor from Waterbury, Vermont. From 1979-1997, he was the lap-by-lap commentator for NASCAR on CBS, and was also a lap-by-lap commentator for TBS from the time they had rights to NASCAR until 2000. Squier was the first announcer to give... and David Hobbs |
The 1979 Daytona 500 was the second race of the 1979 NASCAR
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...
Winston Cup (now Sprint Cup) season. It was held on February 18, 1979. Critics consider the 1979 Daytona 500 to be the most important race in stock car history.
A crash and subsequent fight between leaders 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...
and 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...
, along with Donnie's brother Bobby
Bobby Allison
Robert 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....
, brought national publicity to NASCAR. Motorsports announcer and editor Dick Berggren
Dick Berggren
Dr. Dick Berggren is a motorsports announcer and magazine editor from Manchester, Connecticut in the United States. Born in Westerly, Rhode Island, he now lives in Ipswich, Massachusetts with his wife Kathy. He is commonly seen wearing a trademark flat cap.- Academia :Berggren described himself...
said: "Nobody knew it then, but that was the race that got everything going. It was the first 'water cooler' race, the first time people had stood around water coolers on Monday and talked about seeing a race on TV the day before. It took a while - years, maybe - to realize how important it was."
Television
The 1979 Daytona 500 was the first 500-mile race to be broadcast in its entirety live on national television in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Races were shown on television but as an example, the Indianapolis 500
Indianapolis 500
The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
was broadcast on tape delay that evening in this era, and usually in edited form. Most races aired during this period were only broadcast starting with the final quarter to half of the race, as was the procedure for ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's IndyCar
American Championship Car Racing
Since 1916 there has been a recognized United States national automobile racing National Championship for drivers of professional-level, single-seat open wheel race cars. The championship has been under the auspices of several different sanctioning bodies since 1909. Since 1911, the Indianapolis...
broadcasts on their Wide World of Sports
Wide World of Sports (US TV series)
ABC's Wide World of Sports is a sports anthology series on American television that ran from 1961 to 1998 and was originally hosted by Jim McKay. The title continued to be used for general sports programs until 2006...
program.
CBS
NASCAR on CBS
NASCAR on CBS was a series of NASCAR races airing on CBS Sports from 1960-2000.-Races covered by CBS:*Jiffy Lube Miami 300*Michigan 400...
signed a new contract with NASCAR to telecast the race. Ken Squier
Ken Squier
Ken Squier is an American sportscaster and motorsports editor from Waterbury, Vermont. From 1979-1997, he was the lap-by-lap commentator for NASCAR on CBS, and was also a lap-by-lap commentator for TBS from the time they had rights to NASCAR until 2000. Squier was the first announcer to give...
, David Hobbs and Chris Economaki
Chris Economaki
Christopher "Chris" Constantine Economaki is an American motorsports commentator, pit road reporter, and journalist. Chris Economaki has been given the title "The Dean of American Motorsports." Microsoft chose Economaki to author the auto racing history portion of its Encarta...
were the booth announcers with Ned Jarrett
Ned Jarrett
Ned Jarrett is a retired race car driver and two-time NASCAR champion.Jarrett was best known for his calm demeanor, and he became known as "Gentleman Ned Jarrett", yet he was an intense competitor when he put his two hands on the steering wheel of a NASCAR Grand National stock car...
, Mike Joy
Mike Joy
Mike Joy is an American TV sports announcer, who currently serves as the lap-by-lap voice of FOX Sports' NASCAR Sprint Cup coverage. His color analysts are Darrell Waltrip and Larry McReynolds. Joy has broadcast more than 30 Daytona 500s, NASCAR's biggest event...
and Brock Yates
Brock Yates
Brock Yates is an American journalist and author. He was longtime executive editor of Car and Driver, an American automotive magazine. He was a pit reporter for CBS' coverage of certain NASCAR Sprint Cup series races in the 1980s, including the Daytona 500...
in the pits for that race. The day was fortunate for CBS as a major snowstorm known as the Presidents Day Snowstorm of 1979 bogged down most of the Northeast and parts of the Midwestern United States, increasing the viewership of the event. The race introduced two new innovative uses of TV cameras: The "in-car" camera and the low angle "speed shot", which are now considered standard in all telecasts of auto racing. Motor Racing Network
Motor Racing Network
The Motor Racing Network is the principal radio broadcasting operation of NASCAR, promoting themselves as "The Voice of NASCAR." It broadcasts coverage of most major NASCAR races at the top three levels of NASCAR at tracks owned by International Speedway Corporation as well as Dover International...
was broadcasting the race on the radio, and their broadcasters include Dick Berggren
Dick Berggren
Dr. Dick Berggren is a motorsports announcer and magazine editor from Manchester, Connecticut in the United States. Born in Westerly, Rhode Island, he now lives in Ipswich, Massachusetts with his wife Kathy. He is commonly seen wearing a trademark flat cap.- Academia :Berggren described himself...
.
Qualifying
Buddy Baker qualified on the pole, but his race ended on lap 38 after his engine expired. The rest of the five fastest qualifiers include Donnie Allison, Cale Yarborough, Darrell WaltripDarrell Waltrip
Darrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,...
, and Benny Parsons
Benny Parsons
Benjamin Stewart Parsons was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst on TBS, ESPN, NBC and TNT...
.
Race
The race started under the yellow flag for 15 laps due to wet conditions after overnight rain the night before the race. Donnie Allison lost control of his car on lap 32 (of 200 laps) and forced Cale Yarborough and Bobby Allison to take evasive action. All three cars spun through the backstretch infield which was slippery and muddy after a morning rain. Yarborough was forced to repair his car, and fell two laps behind the leader. He made up both laps through a series of caution periods.Finish
Donnie Allison was leading the race on the final lap with Yarborough draftingDrafting (racing)
Drafting or slipstreaming is a technique where two vehicles or other moving objects are caused to align in a close group reducing the overall effect of drag due to exploiting the lead object's slipstream...
him tightly. As Yarborough attempted a slingshot pass at the end of the backstretch, Allison attempted to block him. Yarborough refused to give ground and as he pulled alongside Allison, his left side tires left the pavement and went into the wet and muddy infield grass. Yarborough lost control of his car and contacted Allison's car halfway down the backstretch. As both drivers tried to regain control, their cars made contact three more times before locking together and crashing into the outside wall in turn three. After the cars settled in the infield grass (short of the finish line), Donnie Allison and Yarborough began to argue. After they stopped arguing, Bobby Allison, who was one lap down at that point, stopped, and a fight broke out. Richard Petty
Richard 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 was over half a lap behind before the incident, went on to win. With the brawl in the infield, the television audience was shown seconds of Petty's win. The story made the front page of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Sports section. NASCAR had arrived as a national sport, and began to expand from its Southeastern United States base and become a national sport, shedding its moonshine
Moonshine
Moonshine is an illegally produced distilled beverage...
running roots along the way.
Reactions from Yarborough and the Allisons were not surprisingly different. Yarborough said "I was going to pass him and win the race, but he turned left and crashed me. So, hell, I crashed him back. If I wasn't going to get back around, he wasn't either." Allison said "The track was mine until he hit me in the back," he says. "He got me loose and sideways, so I came back to get what was mine. He wrecked me, I didn't wreck him."
Play-by-play of the final lap
David Hobbs - "the white flag is out, one lap to go, this is the last lap."Ken Squier - "Two of the greatest fiddling, fidgeting with first place, trying to take it home it all comes down to this. Out of turn two Donnie Allison in first where will Cale make his move, he comes to the inside Donnie Allison throws the block, Cale hits him, he slides, Donnie Allison slides, they hit again, they drive up the turn, they're hitting the wall, they're head on to the wall, they slide to the inside, watching closely the third and fourth place cars, they are out of it. The third and fourth place are coming around for the finish, between A.J. Foyt and Richard Petty. In the back stretch are the leaders two cars are out. The leaders are in turns three and four, the leaders are in turn three and four. Coming down is Richard Petty out in front, Darrell Waltrip is in second, A. J. Foyt is in third, here they come, Waltrip trying to sling shot, Petty out in front, at the line, Waltrip to the inside.......PETTY WINS IT!!!, [Crowd Roars], down on pit road it has gone crazy, the whole Richard Petty crew is jumping up and down as Richard Petty has won it".
David Hobbs - Richard Petty has just won his 6th Daytona 500 and the crowd here is going absolutely mad!
Ken Squier - Well there he is after a full year with out a win as the two leaders tangle in the back straightaway, they throw the block that didn't work....A.J. Foyt pulls up to congratulate Petty, no matter how hard A.J. fights he is a true gentleman at the end, lets look again at that crash. There it is, they are already in the turn spinning, sliding, Donnie Allison's hopes vanished, Cale Yarborough trying to win his third he's out of it. a sad, sad moment for these people, but for Richard Petty hurt all of last year, driving most of the year with broken, bad bruised body, comes home a winner today after 45 straight losses. If we can, we should be down at pit road. Is going to be some scene, Richard Petty's 18-year-old son Kyle out there waiting for his father. They have both tasted success...And here comes a $60,000 car becoming a 22 passenger school bus taking his crew to victory lane...AND THERE'S A FIGHT BETWEEN DONNIE ALLISON AND CALE YARBORUGH. TEMPERS OVERFLOWING THEY ARE ANGRY BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY HAVE LOST! AND WHAT A BITTER DEFEAT."
Race results
- 43-Richard PettyRichard PettyRichard Lee Petty is a former NASCAR driver who raced in the Strictly Stock/Grand National Era and the NASCAR Winston Cup Series...
- 88-Darrell WaltripDarrell WaltripDarrell Lee Waltrip is a 3-time NASCAR Cup Series champion , 3-time runner-up , winner of the 1989 Daytona 500 and 5-time winner of the prestigeous Coca-Cola 600 ,...
- 51-A. J. FoytA. J. FoytAnthony Joseph Foyt, Jr., or as he is universally known as in motorsports circles, A. J. Foyt , is a retired American automobile racing driver. He raced in numerous genres of motorsports. His open wheel racing includes USAC Champ cars and midget cars. He raced stock cars in NASCAR and USAC. He won...
- 1-Donnie AllisonDonnie AllisonDunkiny "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...
- 11-Cale YarboroughCale YarboroughWilliam 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...
- 30-Tighe ScottTighe ScottTighe Scott is a retired American racecar driver from Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania. He competed in dirt modified racing before moving up into the NASCAR Winston Cup...
- 68-Chuck BownChuck BownRichard Charles Bown, Jr. is a former NASCAR champion. His last ride came in 1999. He currently lives with his wife in Asheboro, North Carolina. He is the brother of former fellow NASCAR competitor Jim Bown...
- 2-Dale EarnhardtDale EarnhardtRalph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...
- 14-Coo Coo MarlinCoo Coo MarlinClifton "Coo Coo" Marlin was a NASCAR Winston Cup driver who spent 14 years in the series.-Local track history:...
- 79-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...
- 15-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....
- 67-Buddy ArringtonBuddy ArringtonBuddy Arrington is a retired NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup driver.- Biography :...
- 40-D. K. UlrichD. K. UlrichDonald Keith Ulrich is a former driver/owner in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. As a driver, he had sixteen top ten finishes in 273 starts. His last race came in 1992....
- 19-Bill DennisBill DennisBill Dennis is a former NASCAR driver and rookie of the year in the Grand National Series .-Racing career:...
- 98-Ralph Jones
- 44-Terry LabonteTerry LabonteTerrance Lee Labonte is a semi-retired NASCAR driver who occasionally drives in the Sprint Cup Series when called upon and is a two-time Winston Cup and IROC champion. He currently drives the #32 U.S. Chrome Ford for FAS Lane Racing. Labonte was introduced to the sport through his father, who had...
- 3-Richard ChildressRichard ChildressRichard Childress is a former NASCAR driver and the current team owner of Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series. As a business entrepreneur, Childress became one of the wealthiest men in North Carolina...
- 72-Benny ParsonsBenny ParsonsBenjamin Stewart Parsons was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst on TBS, ESPN, NBC and TNT...
- 50-Bruce HillBruce HillBruce Edward Hill is a former professional American football player who selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL Draft with a draft pick the Buccaneers had received for trading Steve Young. A 6'0", 175-lb. wide receiver from Arizona State, Hill played his entire NFL...
- 39-Blackie WangerinBlackie WangerinBlackie Wangerin is a former NASCAR Winston Cup driver from Bloomington, Minnesota. In 1971 he attempted to qualify for the Daytona 500 but did not make it past the qualifying race. He returned to the series in 1977 and made at least one start every season thereafter until 1984...
- 74-Bobby WawakBobby WawakBobby Wawak was an American NASCAR driver from Villa Park, Illinois. He made 141 Grand National/Winston Cup starts, with 14 Top 10 finishes.-Local racing:...
- 82-Paul Fess
- 41-Grant AdcoxGrant AdcoxGrant Adcox was a stock car racing driver who died in a single-car accident in the 1989 Atlanta Journal 500 in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series.-Career:...
- 02-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...
- 70-J. D. McDuffie
- 37-Dave WatsonDave WatsonDavid "Dave" Watson is an English former professional footballer who made 12 appearances for the English national team. He is now the youth team coach at Newcastle United.-Playing career:...
- 05-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...
- 00-John Utsman
- 47-Geoffrey Bodine
- 54-Lennie PondLennie PondLennie Pond is a former NASCAR driver. He won NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year honors in 1973, and won his only race at Talladega Superspeedway in 1978 for Ronnie Elder and Harry Ranier....
- 90-Ricky RuddRicky RuddRicky Rudd is a former American NASCAR driver. He is the uncle of actor Skeet Ulrich and Nationwide Series driver Jason Rudd. Rudd is known as the "Iron Man" of NASCAR; holding the record for most consecutive starts in NASCAR racing. At the conclusion of the 2005 season, Rudd had made 788...
- 5-Neil BonnettNeil BonnettLawrence Neil Bonnett was a NASCAR driver who compiled 18 victories and 20 poles over his 18-year career. The Alabama native currently ranks 35th in all-time NASCAR Cup victories. He appeared in the 1983 film Stroker Ace and the 1990 film Days of Thunder...
- 12-Harry GantHarry GantHarry Phil Gant is a retired American racecar driver best known for driving the #33 Skoal Bandit car on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit during the 1980s and 1990s.-Nicknames:...
- 25-Ronnie Thomas
- 87-Gary BaloughGary BaloughGary Balough is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver who has competed from 1979 to 1992.-Summary:Balough has only led one lap out of 4033 - the equivalent of . He started an average of 21st place and finished an average of 25th while bringing home a career grand total of $90,900 . Balough's...
- 72-Joe MillikanJoe MillikanJoseph "Joe" Milikan was a NASCAR Winston Cup race car driver who competed from the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season to the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season along with Terry Labonte, Dale Earnhardt, and Darrell Waltrip.He retired prior to 1993 and has never raced during the NEXTEL Cup or...
- 21-David Pearson
- 17-Skip ManningSkip ManningSkip Manning is a former NASCAR driver from Bogalusa, Louisiana. He competed in seventy-nine Winston Cup events in his career, spanning from 1975 to 1979. Manning won the rookie-of-the-year award in 1976...
- 75-Butch Mock
- 28-Buddy BakerBuddy BakerElzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:...
- 89-Jim VandiverJim VandiverJim Vandiver is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup driver that raced from 1968 to 1983.-Summary:...