Official name World 600 | ||
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Date May 27, 1979 (1979-May-27) Location Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina Course Permanent racing facility
1.500 mi (2.414 km) Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965 km) Weather Mild with temperatures approaching 75.9 °F (24.4 °C); wind speeds up to 18.1 miles per hour (29.1 km/h) | ||
The 1979 World 600, the 20th running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that was held on May 27, 1979, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina.
Before the performance, a skydiver was brought in to bring thrills to the live audience; he would parachute into one of the turns. There was also an invocation service followed by the American national anthem. Vehicles that were entered into this race would have a wheelbase of 115 inches or 2.9 metres; bringing a form of stock car racing that emulates the production vehicles of the late-1970s. NASCAR's decision to reduce the wheelbase size to 110 inches or 2.8 metres would scale down the adrenaline level of the Cup Series races starting in 1981.
Summary
Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt would fight it out on the closing laps of this race; Richard Petty would make a comeback and lose to Darrell Waltrip by a time of nearly six seconds.
While Earnhardt seemed to be the natural choice to win the race due to the 122 laps that he led, Waltrip would mount an incredible racing strategy; causing him to lead at the most opportune times in the race. While Bobby Allison felt like a survivor after the race was over, Tighe Scott would see his opportunity for a "top ten" finished ruined with a tie rod issue on lap 372. Ron Hutcherson and Chuck Bown would fail to start the race due to various issues with their vehicle. There were 41 drivers on the starting grid. The duration of this race was 263 minutes with a live audience of 136,000 in attendance for what would become a race loaded with lead changes. Chevrolet vehicles dominated the starting grid; as they were the dominant American manufacturer during the late-1970s.
Winnings for this event ranged from the winner's portion of $55,400 ($182,812.38 when adjusted for inflation) to the last-place takings of $1,165 ($3,844.34 when adjusted for inflation). NASCAR officials on-track handed out a grand total of $321,780 to everyone who qualified ($1,061,829.74 when adjusted for inflation).