Official name World 600 | ||
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Date May 26, 1968 (1968-May-26) Course Permanent racing facility1.500 mi (2.414 km) Distance 255 laps, 378 mi (442.89 km) Scheduled Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (703 km) | ||
The 1968 World 600, the ninth running of the event, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that took place on May 26, 1968, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.
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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.
Background
Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) quad-oval track located in Concord, North Carolina, was the location for the race. The track's turns were banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, was five degrees. The back stretch, opposite of the front, also had a five degree banking. During the 1968 season, Charlotte Motor Speedway hosted the NASCAR Grand National Series twice, with the other race being the National 500. The track opened for the inaugural World 600 in 1960, and was built by Bruton Smith and Curtis Turner. An estimated 60,000 spectators were in attendance for the race.
Summary
This race was shortened to 255 laps due to rain after being able to race for three hours and four minutes in front of a live audience of 60,000 people. Buddy Baker would defeat Donnie Allison under the race's sixth (and final caution flag). Cale Yarborough would become the last-place finisher due to an automobile crash on lap 45. All the competitors (except for Canadian Frog Fagan) was born in the United States of America. Bobby Allison suffered an engine problem on the 229th lap of the race; forcing him to retire in a respectable 28th place.
Donnie Allison won the pole position by driving speeds up to 159.223 miles per hour or 256.245 kilometres per hour during solo qualifying runs while actual race speeds would reach 104.207 miles per hour or 167.705 kilometres per hour. Both of Nord Krauskopf's teams would finish in the "top ten" during this race. The top ten finishers included Buddy Baker, Donny Allison, LeeRoy Yarbrough, David Pearson, Bobby Isaac, Charlie Glotzbach, Tiny Lund, James Hylton, Curtis Turner, and Sam McQuagg.
Darel Dieringer would be a part of the race's second crash on lap 212; giving him a 32nd-place finish. Earl Balmer, Paul Lewis, and Phil Wendt would retire from NASCAR after this racing event. Prior to this race, Balmer was known as the winner of the 1966 Daytona 500 qualifying race.