1980 Holly Farms 400
| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 26 of 31 in the 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 North Wilkesboro Speedway | |||
| Date | September 21, 1980 | ||
| Official name | Holly Farms 400 | ||
| Location | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.625 mi (1.005 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 250 mi (402 km) | ||
| Weather | Temperatures between 68 °F (20 °C) and 89.1 °F (31.7 °C); average wind speeds of 3.5 miles per hour (5.6 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 75.51 miles per hour (121.52 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 25,000[3] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Junior Johnson & Associates | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Bobby Allison | Bud Moore Engineering | |
| Laps | 166 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 15 | Bobby Allison | Bud Moore Engineering | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | unknown | ||
The 1980 Holly Farms 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on September 21, 1980, at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Its total prize purse was finalized as $105,515 ($303,547.39 when adjusted for inflation); with the winner taking home $17,725 ($50,991.59 when adjusted for inflation).
By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.
Summary
Just months prior to the race, a new kind of asphalt was placed but did not get a chance to completely solve the disintegration problem.[4] The racetrack developed a slick surface; that made qualifying speeds 2 miles per hour (3.2 km/h) slower and the cars more likely to spin and crash with each other.[4]
Richard Childress, the current owner of Richard Childress Racing, would compete as a driver.[3] There were 30 American-born drivers on the racing grid; no foreigners or women competed in this race.[3] Bobby Allison managed to defeat Darrell Waltrip by half a second after more than three hours of racing.[3] Cale Yarborough would acquire the pole position through driving his qualifying session at an incredible top speed of almost 112 miles per hour (180 km/h).[3] Another Ford vehicle would not win another race until the 1990 Tyson Holly Farms 400.[5] D.K. Ulrich received credit for the last-place finish due to an oil pressure problem on the second lap of this 400-lap race.[3] Nine drivers failed to complete the race; including legends such as J.D. McDuffie, Lake Speed and Lennie Pond.[3] Bub Strickler would retire from NASCAR after this race.[6] Dale Earnhardt would maintain his championship points lead after this event.[6]
Two months after the race, the track was treated again.[4] The disintegration issue managed to solve itself throughout the harsh winter months and was completely prepared for the 1981 season.[4]
Top ten finishers
| Pos[3] | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Laps led |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 15 | Bobby Allison | Ford | 400 | 166 |
| 2 | 5 | 88 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | 400 | 131 |
| 3 | 6 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | 400 | 4 |
| 4 | 7 | 47 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 |
| 5 | 8 | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 |
| 6 | 4 | 27 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 |
| 7 | 9 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 |
| 8 | 24 | 53 | Slick Johnson | Chevrolet | 391 | 0 |
| 9 | 10 | 90 | Jody Ridley | Ford | 390 | 0 |
| 10 | 1 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Chevrolet | 389 | 54 |
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[3] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Earnhardt | 3847 | 0 |
| 2 | Cale Yarborough | 3757 | -90 |
| 3 | Richard Petty | 3741 | -106 |
| 4 | Benny Parsons | 3708 | -139 |
| 5 | Darrell Waltrip | 3662 | -185 |
| 6 | Bobby Allison | 3537 | -310 |
| 7 | Jody Ridley | 3273 | -574 |
| 8 | Harry Gant | 3242 | -605 |
| 9 | Richard Childress | 3125 | -722 |
| 10 | Dave Marcis | 3099 | -748 |
References
- ↑ Weather information for the 1980 Holly Farms 400 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ↑ Total prize purse for 1980 Holly Farms 400 at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1980 Holly Farms 400 racing information at Racing Reference
- 1 2 3 4 September 21, 1980 Holly Farms 400 at SavetheSpeedway.net
- ↑ Ford's next race victory at Google News Archive Search
- 1 2 1980 Holly Farms 400 racing results at Race Database
| Preceded by 1980 CRC Chemicals 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1980 |
Succeeded by 1980 Old Dominion 500 |