1987 Winston 500

1987 Winston 500
Race details[1]
Race 9 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season

Layout of Talladega Superspeedway
Date May 3, 1987 (1987-05-03)
Official name Winston 500
Location Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega, Alabama
Course 2.660 mi (4.280 km)
Distance 178 laps, 473.5 mi (762.0 km)
Scheduled Distance 188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km)
Weather Warm with temperatures approaching 84.9 °F (29.4 °C); wind speeds up to 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h)
Average speed 154.228 mph (248.206 km/h)
Attendance 135,000[2]
Pole position
Driver
Melling Racing
Time 44.998 seconds
Most laps led
Driver Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing
Laps 101
Winner
No. 28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Bob Jenkins
Larry Nuber

The 1987 Winston 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on May 3, 1987, at Alabama International Motor Speedway in Talladega, Alabama, USA. The race was a turning point in the balance between stock car speed and safety in NASCAR.

Davey Allison was the winner of the race, cut ten laps short due to darkness. It was Allison's first win in his career.

Allison's victory was somewhat overshadowed by a lap 22 crash in which the car of his father, Bobby Allison went airborne near the track's start/finish line, ripping down almost 100 feet of protective catch fence. Two large steel cables backing the fence managed to deflect Allison's car and prevent it from spearing unabated into the spectator grandstands.[3] If this had happened, the accident had the potential to be a disaster on the scale of the 1955 Le Mans disaster.[3]

Unrestricted high-speed races at Talladega Superspeedway ended after the 1987 Winston 500 because of the lap 22 crash. While the summer race (Talladega 500) would be run with a smaller carburetor, restrictor plates would end up being compulsory by the end of the year.

Background

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a Tri-oval and was constructed by International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France Family, in the 1960s. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line - located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the Sprint Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega Superspeedway is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of 2.66 miles (4.28 km), and the track at its peak had a seating capacity of 175,000 spectators.[4]

Summary

Qualifying

Bill Elliott won the pole for this race. At a qualifying speed of 212.809 mph[3][2] (which converts to a qualifying lap time of 44.998 seconds) this speed created headlines across the country and especially in Alabama newspapers near Talladega. Elliott had a picture taken of himself with his car and a sign proclaiming it "World's Fastest Race Car".[3]

For comparison, this qualifying speed was rivaling contemporary Indy Car racing; the 1987 Indianapolis 500 saw a qualifying speed of 216.809 mph logged by Bobby Rahal a few days later.[5]

Concerns were already being raised about these speeds. Chevrolet team drivers were reporting that rear tires of the Monte Carlo SS cars were lifting off the track in turn 3 of the track.[3]

Race

The Winston 500 was scheduled for 188 laps. 178 laps were run.

A major wreck occurred on lap 22, when Bobby Allison suffered a blown engine. Debris from the malfunctioning engine cut a tire, causing the car to turn backwards, go airborne, and shear off several feet of the catch fence in front of the start/finish line. Speeds for this event were upwards of 200 miles per hour or 320 kilometres per hour, a major factor in the severity of Allison's crash. Five spectators would be injured as a result of Allison's crash; two of them had to be treated in the hospital while three were treated in the infield medical center and released.[6] Allison's crash did not cause any fatalities, although one spectator lost an eye as a result of flying debris.[3]

The race was red flagged, and remained stopped for two hours, twenty-six minutes while crews worked to repair the damaged catch fence.[7] Talladega did not have track lighting in 1987, so this delay in particular, as well as other caution periods, caused the race to be cut short at 178 laps due to darkness.[8]

There were 41 American-born drivers on the starting grid. More than one hundred thousand people would go and see Davey Allison defeat Terry Labonte by more than three-quarters of a second. Average speed of the race was 154.228 miles per hour (248.206 km/h) lasting three hours and four minutes, excluding the red flag period.[2] Carburetor restrictor plates - now fuel injection restrictor plates - became de rigueur at Talladega and Daytona races after this event; enforcing a status quo of vehicles not going as fast as their engines desire to the present day.[9]

Eighteen changes in the race's first-place position were made; with Bill Elliott and Davey Allison each surviving 30 laps in the lead. Chet Fillip was the last-place finisher due to a faulty engine situation that developed on the third lap. Bill Elliott would qualify for the pole position during the solo qualifying sessions with a top speed of 212.809 miles per hour (342.483 km/h). Ford and Chevrolet vehicles made up the majority of the participating manufacturers.[2] Ron Bouchard made his final entry into NASCAR Cup Series competition in this race while Ed Pimm made his introduction into professional stock car racing. Davey Allison would score his first victory in this race.[10]

Finishing order

  1. Davey Allison (No. 28)
  2. Terry Labonte (No. 11)
  3. Kyle Petty (No. 21)
  4. Dale Earnhardt (No. 3)
  5. Bobby Hillin, Jr. (No. 8)
  6. Rusty Wallace (No. 27)
  7. Neil Bonnett (No. 75)
  8. Ken Schrader (No. 90)
  9. Lake Speed (No. 83)
  10. Morgan Shepherd (No. 26)
  11. Darrell Waltrip (No. 17)
  12. Benny Parsons (No. 35)
  13. Dave Marcis (No. 71)
  14. Sterling Marlin (No. 44)
  15. Slick Johnson (No. 12)
  16. Richard Petty (No. 43)
  17. Mark Stahl (No. 82)
  18. Eddie Bierschwale (No. 67)
  19. Steve Christman (No. 62)
  20. Rick Wilson* (No. 4)
  21. Bill Elliott* (No. 9)
  22. Connie Saylor* (No. 63)
  23. Rick Knoop* (No. 6)
  24. Michael Waltrip* (No. 30)
  25. Greg Sacks* (No. 50)
  26. Ed Pimm* (No. 98)
  27. Dale Jarrett* (No. 18)
  28. Harry Gant* (No. 33)
  29. Ricky Rudd* (No. 15)
  30. Phil Parsons (No. 55)
  31. Buddy Baker* (No. 88)
  32. Jimmy Means* (No. 52)
  33. Alan Kulwicki* (No. 7)
  34. Phil Barkdoll* (No. 73)
  35. Joe Ruttman* (No. 99)
  36. Cale Yarborough* (No. 29)
  37. Ron Bouchard* (No. 1)
  38. Bobby Allison* (No. 22)
  39. Geoffrey Bodine* (No. 5)
  40. Chet Fillip* (No. 81)

* Driver failed to finish race

Failed to qualify[2]

  1. Blackie Wangerin (No. 39)
  2. Ronnie Sanders (No. 86)

Timeline[2]

Standings after the race

Pos Driver Points[2] Differential
1 Dale Earnhardt 1555 0
2 Bill Elliott 1335 -220
3 Neil Bonnett 1289 -266
4 Terry Labonte 1253 -302
5 Richard Petty 1220 -335
6 Rusty Wallace 1216 -339
7 Kyle Petty 1194 -361
8 Ken Schrader 1175 -380
9 Ricky Rudd 1158 -397
10 Darrell Waltrip 1152 -403

References

  1. ↑ "1987 Winston 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-08-30.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "1987 Winston 500 racing information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2012-08-30.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Hinton: Remembering Talladega '87". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  4. ↑ "Track Facts". talladegasuperspeedway.com. Talladega Superspeedway. November 1, 2012. Archived from the original on November 1, 2012. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  5. ↑ King, Alanis. "The Days When Even NASCAR Got Too Fast, And How They Changed The Sport". Black Flag. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  6. ↑ "A Look Back: The 1987 Winston 500". Hardcore Race Fans. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
  7. ↑ TheRacingJungle2 (2013-05-02), 1987 Winston 500, retrieved 2016-04-16
  8. ↑ "Talladega Memories - 1987 Winston 500". Blogspot (Bench Racing). Retrieved 2014-09-07.
  9. ↑ "The day it almost was all over". NASCAR Fans (Wet Paint). Retrieved 2012-11-11.
  10. ↑ "1987 Winston 500 racing information". Race Database. Retrieved 2012-08-30.
Preceded by
1987 Sovran Bank 500		 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season
1987 		Succeeded by
1987 Coca-Cola 600
Preceded by
1986		 Winston 500 races
1987 		Succeeded by
1988
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