1977 Talladega 500

1977 Talladega 500

Race details[1][2][3]
Race 19 of 30 in the 1977 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
Layout of Talladega Superspeedway
Date	August 7, 1977
Official name	Talladega 500
Location	Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega, Alabama
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.660 mi (4.280 km)
Distance	188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km)
Weather	Hot with temperatures approaching 100.9 °F (38.3 °C); wind speeds up to 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h)
Average speed	162.524 miles per hour (261.557 km/h)
Attendance	65,000[4]
Pole position
Driver	Benny Parsons	DeWitt Racing
Time	49.698 seconds
Most laps led
Driver	Donnie Allison	Ellington Racing
Laps	92
Winner
No. 1	Donnie Allison	Ellington Racing
Television in the United States
Network	CBS
Announcers	Ken Squier Lee Petty

The 1977 Talladega 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 7, 1977, at Talladega Superspeedway in the American community of Talladega, Alabama.

By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.

Background

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a Tri-oval and was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in the 1960s. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line - located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the Sprint Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega Superspeedway is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66 miles (4.28 km), and the track at its peak had a seating capacity of 175,000 spectators.^[5]

Summary

Roger Penske withdrew his entry following fines to DiGard Racing, Bud Moore Engineering, the Junior Johnson team, the M.C. Anderson team, and Hoss Ellington's team; the fines came when NASCAR chief Bill Gazaway announced that an unnamed team was caught with an illegal fuel cell and an official watched members of the above-mentioned teams at garage pay phones calling for legal fuel cells. Hank Williams, Jr. served as the honorary starter of this race; joining a list of celebrities that came before and after him like Bart Starr and Will Ferrell.^[6]

188 laps were accomplished on a paved oval spanning 2.66 miles (4.28 km);^[2] the race was completed in three hours and four minutes; the lead changed hands 49 times among ten drivers.^[4] Donnie Allison (who would lead 92 laps overall) needed relief help after drinking a soda during a pitstop and falling ill soon after. Darrell Waltrip relieved Allison and defeated Cale Yarborough by less than a lap under the caution flag.^[2][3][4] Notable speeds were: 162.524 miles per hour (261.557 km/h) for the winner's speed and 192.684 miles per hour (310.095 km/h) for the pole position qualifying speed.^[4] Sixty-five thousand people would attend this live race from the opening ceremonies to the final yellow flag (which marked its official finish).^[4]

Most of the entries were manufactured by Chevrolet.^[2][4] There were 39 male participants and one female participant (Ms. Janet Guthrie).^[2][3][4] Unfortunately, Ms. Guthrie suffered an engine problem^[2][3] on lap 61 and did not finish the race.^[4] One of the most unusual facts of the race is that Marty Robbins (who was also a country music star) did not qualify in his own vehicle; Freddy Fryar did that for him.^[7]

Finishing order

1. Donnie Allison
2. Cale Yarborough
3. Skip Manning
4. Ricky Rudd
5. Lennie Pond
6. Buddy Baker†
7. Bobby Allison (drove the only AMC Matador in the race)
8. J.D. McDuffie†
9. James Hylton
10. Frank Warren
11. Richard Petty
12. Buddy Arrington
13. Harold Miller
14. Tommy Gale†
15. Grant Adcox*†
16. Cecil Gordon†
17. Dick May*†
18. D.K. Ulrich
19. Steve Moore*
20. Richard Childress*
21. Johnny Rutherford*
22. Darrell Waltrip*
23. Bill Elliott*
24. Benny Parsons*†
25. Neil Bonnett*†
26. Sam Sommers*
27. Tighe Scott*
28. David Sisco*
29. Butch Hartman*†
30. Jim Raptis*
31. G.C. Spencer*†
32. Joe Mihalic*
33. Peter Knab*
34. Janet Guthrie*
35. Bruce Hill*
36. Jimmy Means*
37. David Pearson*
38. Marty Robbins*† (his engine froze during a pit stop^[8])
39. Dick Brooks*†
40. Coo Coo Marlin*†

* Driver failed to finish race
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased

Standings after the race

Pos	Driver	Points[4]	Differential
1	Cale Yarborough	3125	0
2	Richard Petty	3093	-32
3	Benny Parsons	2819	-306
4	Darrell Waltrip	2772	-353
5	Buddy Baker	2583	-542
6	Dick Brooks	2348	-777
7	Cecil Gordon	2251	-874
8	Bobby Allison	2181	-944
9	Richard Childress	2153	-972
10	James Hylton	2104	-1021

References

1. "1977 Talladega 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2011-02-23.
2. "1977 Talladega 500 information (second reference)". Ultimate Racing History. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
3. "1977 Talladega 500 information (third reference)". Everything Stock Car. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved 2015-12-07.
4. "1977 Talladega 500 information (fourth reference)". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
5. "Track Facts". talladegasuperspeedway.com. Talladega Superspeedway. November 1, 2012. Archived from the original on November 1, 2012. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
6. "1977 Talladega 500 honorary starter information". Talladega Superspeedway. Retrieved 2011-02-23.
7. "Quirky fact about NASCAR driver Marty Robbins". MartyRobbins.net. Archived from the original on 2012-03-12. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
8. "Marty Robbins' engine information". Cottonowens.com. Retrieved 2011-03-01.