The 1979 Southern 500 was a 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 Series (now Sprint Cup Series) race that took place on September 3, 1979 at Darlington Raceway

Darlington Raceway

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed the "Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition"...

 in the American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 community of Darlington

Darlington, South Carolina

Darlington is a city in and the county seat of Darlington County, in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is a center for tobacco farming. The population was 6,720 at the 2000 census and is part of the Florence Metropolitan Statistical Area...

, South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

.

Summary

Temperatures on the day of the race reached a minimum of 70 °F (21.1 °C) and a maximum of 88.9 °F (31.6 °C).

Three hundred and sixty seven laps were done on a paved oval track spanning 1.366 miles (2.2 km) for a grand total of 501.3 miles (806.8 km). The total time of the race as three hours, fifty-eight minutes, and fourteen seconds. Speeds were: 126.259 mi/h for the average and 154.88 mi/h for the pole position speed. There were nine cautions for fifty-two laps. David Pearson (using crew chief Jake Elder

Jake Elder

J.C. "Jake" Elder was a retired NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup crew chief. He was the championship crew chief for two years and for part of a third season...

) defeated Bill Elliott

Bill Elliott

William Clyde "Bill" Elliott , also known as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville or Million Dollar Bill, is a part-time driver and former champion of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. Elliott was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America on August 15, 2007. He won the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup...

 by two laps and four seconds. He would race for an injured Dale Earnhardt

Dale Earnhardt

Ralph Dale Earnhardt, Sr. was an American race car driver, best known for his involvement in stock car racing for NASCAR...

. Sixty thousand people came to watch this live event. Other famous drivers at the event include 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 ,...

, Richard Childress

Richard Childress

Richard 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...

, 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...

, Terry Labonte

Terry Labonte

Terrance 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...

, and Ricky Rudd

Ricky Rudd

Ricky 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...

.

Darrell Waltrip's mistake in this race would later cause him to lose the 1979 championship to Richard Petty (which would eventually become his last Cup Series championship ever). Notable sponors included: Shoney's

Shoney's

Shoney’s is a privately held restaurant chain that operates primarily in the Southeast, Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states and is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. It is named after Alex Schoenbaum, who was the owner of the original chain of Big Boy restaurants in the southeastern United States...

, Gatorade

Gatorade

Gatorade is a brand of sports-themed food and beverage products, built around its signature product: a line of sports drinks. Gatorade is currently manufactured by PepsiCo, distributed in over 80 countries...

, the U.S. Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, Kings Inn, Hawaiian Tropic

Hawaiian Tropic

Hawaiian Tropic is a brand of suntan lotion sold around the world, but more widely available in the United States.The Company was founded by Ron Rice in 1969. It was the largest private manufacturer of sun care products in the United States until being acquired in May 2007 by Playtex Products, Inc...

, Purolator

Purolator

Purolator may refer to:* Purolator Courier, a Canadian courier company* Purolator Filters, a joint venture of Bosch and Mann-Hummel, which distributes the Purolator brand of automotive filtration products...

, and Busch. The top prize of the race was $29,925 ($ in today's money).

Finishers

Note: The participants of this race were all American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

-born males.

1. David Pearson
2. Bill Elliott (his first career finish in the top five)
3. Terry Labonte
4. Buddy Baker
   Buddy Baker
   Elzie Wylie Baker, Jr. , nicknamed "Leadfoot" or more famously Buddy, is a former American NASCAR racecar driver.-Early life:...
   
   
5. Benny Parsons
   Benny Parsons
   Benjamin Stewart Parsons was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst on TBS, ESPN, NBC and TNT...
   
   
6. Dave Marcis
   Dave Marcis
   Dave 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...
   
   
7. Dick Brooks
   Dick Brooks
   Richard "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...
   
   
8. Ricky Rudd
9. Richard Petty
10. Bobby Allison
    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....
    
     (highest finishing 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...
    
     vehicle)
11. Darrell Waltrip
12. Harry Gant
    Harry Gant
    Harry 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:...
    
    
13. D. K. Ulrich
    D. K. Ulrich
    Donald 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....
    
    
14. Buddy Arrington
    Buddy Arrington
    Buddy Arrington is a retired NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup driver.- Biography :...
    
     (highest finishing Dodge
    Dodge
    Dodge is a United States-based brand of automobiles, minivans, and sport utility vehicles, manufactured and marketed by Chrysler Group LLC in more than 60 different countries and territories worldwide....
    
     vehicle)
15. Joe Millikan
    Joe Millikan
    Joseph "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...
    
    
16. Jimmy Means
    Jimmy Means
    James "Jimmy" Means is a former Winston Cup/Nextel Cup owner/driver. Currently, he is an adviser for Front Row Motorsports and owns his own team, Means Racing. He competed in NASCAR for eighteen years in mostly his own equipment, posting seventeen career top-tens...
    
    
17. Chuck Bown
    Chuck Bown
    Richard 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...
    
    
18. J. D. McDuffie
19. 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...
    
    
20. Ed Negre
    Ed Negre
    Ed Negre is a retired NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series driver who raced from 1955 to 1979....
    
     (his final Cup Series race)
21. Tommy Gale
    Tommy Gale
    Thomas "Tommy" Gale was an English footballer who played for Sheffield Wednesday and York City in the Football League.-Career:...
    
    
22. Frank Warren
    Frank 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...
    
    
23. Baxter Price
    Baxter Price
    Baxter Price is an American racing driver from Monroe, North Carolina who competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series.Price made 90 Winston Cup starts beginning in 1973, often as an owner-driver. He competed nearly full-time in 1978, when he finished a career-best 23rd in points, and 1979 when he...
    
    
24. Ronnie Thomas
25. Lennie Pond
    Lennie Pond
    Lennie 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....
    
    
26. Cecil Gordon
    Cecil Gordon
    Cecil Gordon was a NASCAR driver. He is not related to Sprint Cup driver Jeff Gordon although the two drivers drove in car number 24....
    
    
27. H. B. Bailey
    H. B. Bailey
    Herring "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....
    
    * (highest finishing 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)
28. Jim Vandiver
    Jim Vandiver
    Jim Vandiver is a retired NASCAR Winston Cup driver that raced from 1968 to 1983.-Summary:...
    
    
29. Richard Childress
    Richard Childress
    Richard 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...
    
    *
30. Jack Ingram
    Jack Ingram (NASCAR)
    Jack Ingram is a former NASCAR Busch Series race car driver and champion. Nicknamed the "Iron Man", during eight seasons in the Busch Series, he won 31 races and 5 poles, as well as the 1982 and 1985 championships. Unlike most younger competitors, Ingram won his 31 races between the age of 45 and...
    
    *
31. 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...
    
    *
32. Neil Bonnett
    Neil Bonnett
    Lawrence 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...
    
    *
33. Billy Smith*
34. Dick May
    Dick May
    Dick May was a NASCAR driver who competed in 185 races in the NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup between 1967 and 1985....
    
    *
35. Tighe Scott
    Tighe Scott
    Tighe 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...
    
    *
36. Coo Coo Marlin
    Coo Coo Marlin
    Clifton "Coo Coo" Marlin was a NASCAR Winston Cup driver who spent 14 years in the series.-Local track history:...
    
    *
37. Ralph Jones
    Ralph Jones
    Ralph Robert Jones was an American football and basketball coach in the United States. He served as the head coach for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League from 1930 to 1932.-Indiana:...
    
    *
38. James Hylton
    James Hylton
    James 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...
    
    *
39. Earle Canavan
    Earle Canavan
    Earle Samuel Canavan is an American racing driver from Fort Johnson, New York.Canavan participated in NASCAR Winston Cup part-time from 1969 to 1986. His best points result came in 1975 when he drove in 12 of the 30 races and finished 32nd in points...
    
    *
40. Ferrel Harris
    Ferrel Harris
    Ferrel Harris was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver whose career spanned from 1975 to 1982 .-Summary:...
    
    *

* Driver failed to finish race