Official name Northern 300 | ||
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Date July 16, 1972 (1972-July-16) Location Trenton Speedway, Trenton, New Jersey Course Permanent racing facility
1.500 mi (2.410 km) Distance 200 laps, 300.0 mi (482.8 km) Weather Hot with temperatures approaching 91 °F (33 °C); wind speeds up to 8 miles per hour (13 km/h) | ||
The 1972 Northern 300 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on July 16, 1972, at Trenton Speedway in Trenton, New Jersey.
Contents
Background
The first race at the Fairgrounds was held on September 24, 1900, but there was no further racing there until 1907. Regular racing began in 1912 and continued until 1941. A new 1 mile dirt oval was opened in 1946. In 1957 the track was paved. It operated in that configuration until 1968 when the track was expanded to 1.5 miles (2.41 km) and a "kidney bean" shape with a 20° right-hand dogleg on the back stretch and a wider turn 3 & 4 complex than turns 1 & 2. The track closed in 1980 and the Fairgrounds itself closed 3 years later. The former site of the speedway is now occupied by the Grounds for Sculpture, a UPS shipping facility, and the housing development known as "Hamilton Lakes".
Summary
Bobby Allison defeated Bobby Isaac by 1.4 seconds after two hours and fifty-seven seconds of racing. There were nine lead changes and five cautions for 21 laps. Twenty thousand people attended this live event to witness average speeds of 114.03 miles per hour (183.51 km/h). Isaac qualified for the pole position with an impressive speed of 133.126 miles per hour (214.246 km/h) on a paved oval track spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km). A.J. Cox received the last-place finish due to overheating while Bill Shirey was disqualified for entering pit road in reverse; he was involved in the first caution of the day, having spun on John Sears' oil and went to pit lane for repairs in the opposite direction of traffic flow. The other drivers in the top ten were: Richard Petty, Fred Lorenzen, Cecil Gordon, James Hylton, Larry Smith, Benny Parsons, Raymond Williams, and Walter Ballard.
While the complete purse of this racing event was an impressive $35,675 ($204,258.53 when adjusted for inflation), the race winner actually received only $7,900 of that prize money ($45,231.74 when adjusted for inflation).
The Plymouth Superbirds and Dodge Chargers that competed in this race were equipped with special wings to demonstrate their status as muscle cars. A 1972 Chevrolet Chevelle would become the make and model to win this racing event; defeating a 1972 Dodge Charger in the process. Bob Greenley would compete in his only NASCAR Cup Series race here along with Fred Drake.