Official name Delaware 500 | ||
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Date September 17, 1978 (1978-September-17) Course Permanent racing facility1.000 mi (1.609 km) Distance 500 laps, 500.0 mi (804.6 km) Weather Warm with temperatures reaching a maximum of 79 °F (26 °C); wind speeds up to 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h) | ||
The 1978 Delaware 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) racing event that took place on September 17, 1978, at Dover Downs International Speedway (now Dover International Speedway) in the American community of Dover, Delaware.
Contents
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 any more.
Background
Dover Downs International Speedway, now called Dover International Speedway, is one of five short tracks to hold NASCAR races; the others are Bristol Motor Speedway, Richmond International Raceway, Martinsville Speedway, and Phoenix International Raceway. The NASCAR race makes use of the track's standard configuration, a four-turn short track oval that is 1 mile (1.6 km) long. The track's turns are banked at twenty-four degrees, and both the front stretch (the location of the finish line) and the backstretch are banked at nine degrees.
Summary
Five hundred laps were completed on a paved oval track spanning 1.000 mile (1.609 km). The race took four hours, eleven minutes, and twenty seconds to complete. Three cautions were given out by NASCAR for eighteen laps. Thirty thousand stock car racing fans attended this live event. Notable speeds were: 119.323 miles per hour (192.032 km/h) for the average speed and 135.480 miles per hour (218.034 km/h) for the pole position speed (accomplished by J.D. McDuffie).
Bobby Allison defeated Cale Yarborough by 11½ seconds. Other notable names in the event included: Darrell Waltrip (now a NASCAR on Fox broadcaster), Richard Childress (now the owner of Richard Childress Racing), Richard Petty, and J.D. McDuffie. J.D. McDuffie established the pole position while using tires manufactured by the McCreary Tire Company. This pole position start also got him a guaranteed ride in the first running of the Busch Clash (now the Sprint Unlimited); Buddy Baker would ultimately win that race on February 1979. The Busch Clash consisted of a racing event with a single twenty-lap (50-mile) green flag sprint with no pit stops required.
Jabe Thomas would retire from NASCAR after this race. Bobby Allison would gain his 50th career Winston Cup Series victory from this race. Although McDuffie would never win a race with a Winston Cup Series vehicle, his best overall finish would come at the 1979 Sun-Drop Music City USA 420 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Finishing order
* Driver failed to finish race
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased