Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

1967 Fireball 300

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit
Official name
  
Fireball 300

Date
  
March 7, 1967; 49 years ago (1967-03-07)

Location
  
Asheville-Weaverville Speedway, Weaverville, North Carolina

Course
  
Permanent racing facility 0.500 mi (0.804 km)

Distance
  
300 laps, 150 mi (241 km)

Weather
  
Chilly with temperatures approaching 71.1 °F (21.7 °C); winds up to 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)

The 1967 Fireball 300 was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) event that was held on March 7, 1967, at Asheville-Weaverville Speedway in Weaverville, North Carolina.

Contents

The name of the race was named after Fireball Roberts who died years before this race in a racing accident.

Summary

This was the historic site of Richard Petty's 50th career in front of nine thousand and five hundred people in what is now known as the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. The average speed of the race was 83.360 miles per hour (134.155 km/h) on a paved oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) for three hundred laps. It took one hour and forty-seven minutes for the race to reach its conclusion; Petty defeating Darel Dieringer by outlapping him twice. All twenty-two racers were from the United States of America.

Total winnings for this race were $7,150 ($51,355.84 when adjusted for inflation). Individual earnings for each driver ranged from the winner's share of $1,800 ($12,928.74 when adjusted for inflation) to the last-place finisher's portion of $100 ($718.26 when adjusted for inflation).

Jim Conway would retire from NASCAR Cup Series competition after this event. The transition to purposely-built racers began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s; most of the cars were trailered to events or hauled in by trucks.

Finishing order

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

Timeline

  • Start of race: Darel Dieringer officially began the race with the pole position
  • Lap 41: Jim Paschal's race would be ruined by his vehicle's faulty wiring
  • Lap 51: Engine issues forced Buck Baker out of the race
  • Lap 88: James Hylton's vehicle had a nasty engine problem
  • Lap 93: Problematic lug nuts would drive Earl Brooks out of the event
  • Lap 100: Neil Castles blamed his terrible performance on some nasty clutch issues
  • Lap 104: Richard Petty took over the lead from Darel Dieringer
  • Lap 109: The problems with Roy Mayne's differential knocked him out of the race
  • Lap 116: Darel Dieringer took over the lead from Richard Petty
  • Lap 119: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Darel Dieringer
  • Lap 128: The problems with Roy Tyner's differential knocked him out of the race
  • Lap 144: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison
  • Lap 157: The problems with Wayne Smith's differential knocked him out of the race
  • Lap 215: Darel Dieringer took over the lead from Richard Petty
  • Lap 234: Richard Petty took over the lead from Darel Dieringer
  • Finish: Richard Petty was the official winner of the event
  • References

    1967 Fireball 300 Wikipedia