1979 Talladega 500

1979 Talladega 500

Race details[1]
Race 20 of 31 in the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
Layout of Talladega Superspeedway
Date	August 5, 1979 (1979-August-05)
Official name	Talladega 500
Location	Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega, Alabama
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.660 mi (4.280 km)
Distance	188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km)
Weather	Hot with temperatures of 90.9 °F (32.7 °C); wind speeds of 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h)
Average speed	161.229 miles per hour (259.473 km/h)
Attendance	80,000[2]
Pole position
Driver	Neil Bonnett	Wood Brothers Racing
Most laps led
Driver	Darrell Waltrip	DiGard Motorsports
Laps	102
Winner
No. 88	Darrell Waltrip	DiGard Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network	CBS
Announcers	Ken Squier Lee Petty
Radio in the United States
Radio	Motor Racing Network
Booth Announcers	Jack Arute and Barney Hall
Turn Announcers	Turns 1 & 2: Eli Gold Backstreatch & Turn 3: Hal Hamrick Turn 4 & Tri-Oval: Mike Joy Pit Reporter: Darel Dieringer Garage Area: Joe Alloy

The 1979 Talladega 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on August 5, 1979, at Alabama International Motor Speedway in Talladega, Alabama.

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 Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and the Craftsman 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.^[3]

There were 41 American-born drivers on the starting grid; 21 of them failed to finish the race. Most of the problems were engine failures. After 188 laps and five caution flags, Darrell Waltrip would defeat David Pearson by a minute and two seconds in front of a crowd of eighty thousand fans. After many lead changes, Waltrip lead the final 55 laps.^[2]

The race averaged 161.229 miles per hour (259.473 km/h) for the 500 miles while Neil Bonnett would earn his pole position in qualifying with a speed of 193.6 miles per hour (311.6 km/h).^[2] Kyle Petty would earn ninth place in his inaugural Winston Cup race after starting 18th. Bob Burcham and Al Holbert would make this race their individual swan songs.^[4] The total prize purse at this event was $205,680 ($863,460 when adjusted for inflation). While the winner would collect $32,325 of this purse ($135,703 when adjusted for inflation), the last-place finisher, Dick May, would collect $1,050 ($4,408 when adjusted for inflation).^[5]

Oldsmobile would rack up their 100th victory in the history of the NASCAR Cup Series.

Section reference:^[2]

† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased
* Driver failed to finish race

Pos	Driver	Points[2]	Differential
1	Darrell Waltrip	3246	0
2	Richard Petty	3017	-229
3	Cale Yarborough	2946	-300
4	Bobby Allison	2924	-322
5	Benny Parsons	2662	-584
6	Dale Earnhardt	2588	-658
7	Joe Millikan	2564	-682
8	Richard Childress	2390	-856
9	J.D. McDuffie	2372	-874
10	Buddy Arrington	2312	-934