1976 Mason-Dixon 500

Last updated
1976 Mason-Dixon 500
Race details [1] [2] [3]
Race 12 of 30 in the 1976 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
Dover International Speedway.PNG
Layout of Dover International Speedway
Date May 16, 1976 (1976-May-16)
Official name Mason-Dixon 500
Location Dover Downs International Speedway, Dover, Delaware
Course Permanent racing facility
1.000 mi (1.609 km)
Distance 500 laps, 500.0 mi (804.6 km)
Weather Mild with temperatures of 78.1 °F (25.6 °C); wind speeds of 15 miles per hour (24 km/h)
Average speed 115.436 miles per hour (185.776 km/h)
Pole position
Driver K&K Insurance Racing
Most laps led
Driver Cale Yarborough Junior Johnson & Associates
Laps 243
Winner
No. 73 Benny Parsons DeWitt Racing
Television in the United States
Network untelevised
Announcers none

The 1976 Mason-Dixon 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series event that took place on May 16, 1976, at Dover Downs International Speedway (now called Dover International Speedway) in Dover, Delaware.

Contents

Only manual transmission vehicles were allowed to participate in this race; a policy that NASCAR has retained to the present day.

Background

Dover International Speedway, where the race was held. Dover International Raceway.jpg
Dover International Speedway, where the race was held.

Dower 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. [4] 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. [5] 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. [5]

Race report

The total time of the race was four hours, nineteen minutes, and fifty-three seconds. [2] Six cautions were given for thirty-eight laps while thirty-two thousand and eight hundred fans were in attendance for the race. [2] The average speed in the race was 115.436 miles per hour (185.776 km/h) with the pole winning speed being 136.013 miles per hour (218.892 km/h). [2] From lap 115 to lap 227, Cale Yarborough would get into a run of good luck and lead for a duration of 163 laps. He would never regain the lead after losing it to David Pearson on lap 278. [2]

Benny Parsons defeated second place driver David Pearson by a time of 25½ seconds. [2] [6] Other notable racers who competed includes: Darrell Waltrip, Ricky Rudd, and Cale Yarborough (who would lose the points lead after this race). [2] [3] [7] Bruce Hill finished in last place due to an engine problem on lap 2. [2]

This race would be Neil Castles' final race in his NASCAR Cup Series career. It would also be the last race for Doc Faustina before his retirement. Total winnings for this race would be $108,140 ($514,961 when adjusted for inflation).

Qualifying

Grid [2] No.DriverManufacturerOwner
171Dave MarcisDodgeNord Krauskopf
221David PearsonMercuryWood Brothers
32Bobby AllisonMercuryRoger Penske
415Buddy BakerFordBud Moore
588Darrell WaltripChevroletDiGard Racing
643Richard PettyDodgePetty Enterprises
772Benny ParsonsChevroletL.G. DeWitt
811Cale YarboroughChevroletJunior Johnson
928Donnie AllisonChevroletHoss Ellington
1054Lennie PondChevroletRonnie Elder
1190Dick BrooksFordJunie Donlavey
1236Bobby WawakChevroletJohn Gwinn
1324Cecil GordonChevroletCecil Gordon
143Richard ChildressChevroletRichard Childress
1547Bruce HillChevroletBruce Hill
168Ed NegreDodgeEd Negre
1722Ricky RuddChevroletAl Rudd
1867Buddy ArringtonDodgeBuddy Arrington
1950Darrell BryantChevroletCliff Stewart
2040D.K. UlrichChevroletJ.R. DeLotto

Top 10 finishers

Pos [2] GridNo.DriverManufacturerLapsLaps ledPointsTime/Status
1772 Benny Parsons Chevrolet 5001761804:19:53
2221 David Pearson Mercury50075175+25.5 seconds
3171 Dave Marcis Dodge4994170+1 lap
432 Bobby Allison Mercury4972165+3 laps
5415 Buddy Baker Ford 4950155+5 laps
6643 Richard Petty Dodge4920150+7 laps
71193 Dick Brooks Ford 4920146+7 laps
81054 Lennie Pond Chevrolet 4910142+8 laps
91950 Darrell Bryant Chevrolet 4780138+12 laps
10143 Richard Childress Chevrolet 4760134+14 laps

Timeline

Section reference: [2]

Standings after the race

PosDriverPoints [2] Differential
1 Increase2.svg Benny Parsons 18360
2 Decrease2.svg Cale Yarborough 1812-24
3 1rightarrow.png Richard Petty 1723-113
4 1rightarrow.png Bobby Allison 1656-180
5 Increase2.svg Dave Marcis 1612-224
6 Decrease2.svg Lennie Pond 1588-248
7 1rightarrow.png Richard Childress 1516-320
8 Increase2.svg Buddy Baker 1429-407
9 Decrease2.svg Darrell Waltrip 1384-452
10 Increase2.svg Frank Warren 1371-465

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References

  1. "1976 Mason-Dixon 500 weather information". The Old Farmer's Almanac. Retrieved 2012-06-12.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "1976 Mason-Dixon 500 racing results". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  3. 1 2 "1976 Mason-Dixon 500 racing results (fourth references)". Driver Averages. Archived from the original on 2011-10-05. Retrieved 2011-01-27.
  4. "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR . Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 12 September 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
  5. 1 2 "NASCAR Tracks—The Dover International Speedway". Dover International Speedway. Archived from the original on 21 September 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
  6. "1976 Mason-Dixon 500 winner information". Dover Speedway. Archived from the original on 2010-12-15. Retrieved 2011-03-01.
  7. "1976 Mason-Dixon 500 racing results (third reference)". Motor Racing Network. Archived from the original on 2011-07-14. Retrieved 2011-01-27.
Preceded by NASCAR Winston Cup Season
1976
Succeeded by