1975 Champion Spark Plug 400

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1975 Champion Spark Plug 400
Race details [1]
Race 20 of 30 in the 1975 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
1975ChampionSparkPlug400Flyer.jpg
Official program featuring Benny Parsons
Date August 24, 1975 (1975-08-24)
Official name Champion Spark Plug 400
Location Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn, Michigan
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 3.218 km (2.000 miles)
Distance 200 laps, 400 mi (643 km)
Weather Hot with temperatures of 89.1 °F (31.7 °C); wind speeds up to 12.8 miles per hour (20.6 km/h)
Average speed 107.583 miles per hour (173.138 km/h)
Attendance 47,000 [2]
Pole position
Driver
 Wood Brothers Racing
Most laps led
Driver A. J. Foyt Hoss Ellington
Laps 69
Winner
No. 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
Television in the United States
Network CBS Sports (aired September 20, 1975)
Radio in the United States
Radio MRN Radio

The 1975 Champion Spark Plug 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 24, 1975, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan.

Contents

Programs were sold for this race at a price of $1.50 per copy ($8.49 when adjusted for inflation). The cost of admission to this race was relatively cheap; children got in for US$5 ($28.31 when adjusted for inflation) while adults got decent seats for US$10 ($56.62 when adjusted for inflation).

This was the first Cup race at Michigan International Speedway to have a corporate title sponsor. In all prior years, the August Michigan Cup race had been called the Yankee 400.

Background

Michigan International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2 miles (3.2 km) long. [3] Groundbreaking took place on September 28, 1967. Over 2.5 million cubic yards (1.9×10^6 m3) of dirt were moved to form the D-shaped oval. The track opened in 1968 with a total capacity of 25,000 seats. The track was originally built and owned by Lawrence H. LoPatin, a Detroit-area land developer who built the speedway at an estimated cost of $4–6 million. [4] Financing was arranged by Thomas W Itin. Its first race took place on Sunday, October 13, 1968, with the running of the USAC 250 mile Championship Car Race won by Ronnie Bucknum.

Race report

Two hundred laps were completed in three hours and forty-five seconds on the paved oval track spanning 2 miles (3.2 km). All of the 36 drivers who qualified for this race were born in the United States of America. Henley Gray started 374 races in Cup, but this is the only race where he led laps - two of them right after Coo Coo Marlin's wreck. [5]

Six yellow flags slowed the race for 63 laps while the lead changed 25 times among twelve drivers. [2] [6] Richard Petty would defeat David Pearson by a distance of five feet as the lead changed four times between them in the final four laps [7] in front of 47,000 audience members. [2] This race was considered to be one of MRN's finest broadcasts; with interesting commentary during a long rain delay.

Pearson would win the pole position with a speed of 159.798 miles per hour (257.170 km/h) while the average speed of the race would be 107.583 miles per hour (173.138 km/h). [2] Even with David Pearson finishing in second place, he managed to keep his finishing streak going with victories at the 1976 Cam 2 Motor Oil 400 and the 1976 Champion Spark Plug 400. [8]

Jackie Rogers would receive the last-place finish for owner Lou Viglione and his 1975 Chevrolet team; he would match his career-best qualifying effort with a ninth-place starting spot but the motor on his #60 Chevrolet failed in the opening laps. [2] [6] The race saw A. J. Foyt lead sixty-eight laps before falling out with engine failure after 117 laps. Independent driver David Sisco led 28 laps en route to finishing 11th. [2] [6]

Prize winnings would range from $15,140 for the winner ($85,728 when adjusted for inflation) to $700 for the last-place finisher ($3,964 when adjusted for inflation). [6] [9] There were 36 cars on the official racing grid; most of them were Chevrolets. [2] [6] Terry Bivins would make his NASCAR debut in this race. Maynard Troyer would record his only top ten on his career. Richard Petty would keep his championship lead after this race. However, Dave Marcis would only be 573 points behind (despite not winning a race up to this point). [6] [9]

Qualifying

Grid [2] No.DriverManufacturer
121David Pearson'73 Mercury
215Buddy Baker'75 Ford
328A. J. Foyt'75 Chevrolet
443Richard Petty'74 Dodge
516Bobby Allison'75 AMC Matador
614Coo Coo Marlin'75 Chevrolet
790Dick Brooks'73 Ford
811Cale Yarborough'75 Chevrolet
960Jackie Rogers'75 Chevrolet
1072Benny Parsons'75 Chevrolet
1188Darrell Waltrip'75 Chevrolet
1224Cecil Gordon'75 Chevrolet
1348James Hylton'74 Chevrolet
1447Bruce Hill'75 Chevrolet
1596Richard Childress'75 Chevrolet
167Dean Dalton'73 Ford
1719Henley Gray'74 Chevrolet
1805David Sisco'75 Chevrolet
1979Frank Warren'74 Dodge
208Ed Negre'74 Dodge
2171Dave Marcis'74 Dodge
2270J.D. McDuffie'75 Chevrolet
2398Richie Panch'75 Chevrolet
2430Walter Ballard'75 Chevrolet
2563Terry Bivins'75 Chevrolet

Finishing order

Section reference: [10]

POSST#DRIVERSPONSOR / OWNERCARLAPSMONEYSTATUSLEDPTS
1443  Richard PettySTP   (Petty Enterprises)'74 Dodge20018140running45180
2121  David PearsonPurolator   (Wood Brothers)'73 Mercury20010735running33175
3811  Cale YarboroughHolly Farms   (Junior Johnson)'75 Chevrolet2009385running0165
4516  Bobby AllisonCoca-Cola / AMC   (Roger Penske)'75 Matador2004060running9165
52171  Dave MarcisK & K Insurance   (Nord Krauskopf)'74 Dodge1996310running3160
6215  Buddy BakerBud Moore Engineering   (Bud Moore)'75 Ford1985710running2155
71188  Darrell WaltripTerminal Transport   (DiGard Racing)'75 Chevrolet1984610running3151
81447  Bruce HillDixie 500   (Bruce Hill)'75 Chevrolet1972510running1147
92563  Terry BivinsMoyer Chevrolet   (Billy Moyer)'75 Chevrolet1961910running0138
10167  Dean DaltonBelden Asphalt   (Dean Dalton)'73 Ford1961810running0134
112430  Walter BallardClyde Lynn Auto Parts   (Walter Ballard)'75 Chevrolet1962210running1135
121805  David SiscoReliable Plumbing   (David Sisco)'75 Chevrolet1962110running28132
131224  Cecil GordonBob Stott Motors   (Cecil Gordon)'75 Chevrolet1951905running0124
142741  Grant AdcoxAdcox-Kirby   (Herb Adcox)'75 Chevrolet1951285running0121
153437  Bruce JacobiOpal's Truck Stop   (Opal Voight)'75 Chevrolet1951185running0118
163382  Ferrel HarrisDan Walters Forever   (Ferrel Harris)'74 Dodge1941100running0115
171348  James HyltonNitro 9   (James Hylton)'74 Chevrolet1941575running0112
183164  Elmo LangleyIndependent Auto Salvage   (Elmo Langley)'73 Ford1941550running0109
193633  Dick MayJoli Boutique   (Hiram Handy)'75 Chevrolet1931025running0106
20790  Dick BrooksTruxmore Industries   (Junie Donlavey)'73 Ford1921500running0103
212840  D.K. UlrichGarden State Auto Body   (D.K. Ulrich)'75 Chevrolet192975running0100
222967  Buddy ArringtonPagoda Motel   (Buddy Arrington)'73 Plymouth1921450running097
233525  Jabe ThomasThomas Racing   (Don Robertson)'74 Chevrolet190925running094
243091  Harold MillerMiller Racing   (Harold Miller)'75 Chevrolet187900running091
252398  Richie PanchGrey-Rock Brake Products   (Bettie Panch)'75 Chevrolet1831375engine088
261979  Frank WarrenJohn 3:16   (Frank Warren)'74 Dodge1541350running085
271719  Henley GrayGray Racing   (Henley Gray)'74 Chevrolet142825rear end287
282270  J.D. McDuffieButler's / Glenn's Landscaping   (J.D. McDuffie)'75 Chevrolet1321300engine079
292665  Carl AdamsAdams Racing   (Richard Mummert)'73 Ford119785engine076
30328  A. J. FoytGilmore Enterprises   (Hoss Ellington)'75 Chevrolet117940engine6983
311596  Richard ChildressL.C. Newton Trucking   (Tom Garn)'75 Chevrolet961250engine275
323201  Earle CanavanKava Instant Coffee   (Earle Canavan)'74 Dodge61740engine067
33208  Ed Negre10,000 RPM Speed Equipment   (Ed Negre)'74 Dodge581230engine269
341072  Benny ParsonsKing's Row Fireplace   (L.G. DeWitt)'75 Chevrolet463220engine061
35614  Coo Coo MarlinCunningham-Kelley   (H.B. Cunningham)'75 Chevrolet171210engine058
36960  Jackie RogersViglione Racing   (Lou Viglione)'75 Chevrolet6700engine055

Timeline

Section reference: [2]

Standings after the race

PosDriverPoints [2] Differential
1 1rightarrow.png Richard Petty 33290
2 1rightarrow.png Dave Marcis 2756-573
3 1rightarrow.png James Hylton 2625-704
4 1rightarrow.png Benny Parsons 2525-804
5 1rightarrow.png Richard Childress 2493-836
6 Increase2.svg Darrell Waltrip 2474-855
7 Decrease2.svg Cecil Gordon 2449-880
8 1rightarrow.png Elmo Langley 2224-1105
9 1rightarrow.png David Pearson 2183-1146
10 1rightarrow.png Buddy Baker 2103-1226
10 Increase2.svg Walter Ballard 2103-1226

References

  1. ↑ "1975 Champion Spark Plug 400 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "1975 Champion Spark Plug 400 racing information". Racing Reference. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Michigan International Speedway". CBS Sports. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Track History". Michigan International Speedway. Archived from the original on March 2, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Driver Henley Gray Career Statistics". Racing Reference. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "1975 Champion Spark Plug 400 racing information". Race Database. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Exact distance of victory". Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on September 19, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2013.
  8. ↑ "David Pearson was king of Michigan International Speedway". Stock Car Racing. Archived from the original on November 27, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2013.
  9. 1 2 "1975 Champion Spark Plug 400 racing information". Driver Averages. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Race Results". Racing-Reference. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
Preceded by NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
1975		Succeeded by
Preceded by Champion Spark Plug 400 races
1975		Succeeded by
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