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Date February 17, 1980 (1980-02-17) Location Daytona International SpeedwayDaytona Beach, Florida, U.S. Course Permanent racing facility2.5 mi (4.023 km) Distance 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) Average speed 177.602 miles per hour (285.823 km/h) | ||
The 22nd annual Daytona 500 was held February 17, 1980, at Daytona International Speedway. Buddy Baker started the decade by winning the fastest Daytona 500 in history, at 177.602 mph (285.823 km/h), it was Baker's only 500 win and did so in his 18th start, the longest until Dale Earnhardt in 1998. The 1980 Daytona Speedweeks was also marred by the death of Ricky Knotts, who was killed during the Gatorade Twin 125 qualifying races. There were 42 cars in the field, after planning to only run 40 cars.
References
1980 Daytona 500 Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA