Article: 1979 Daytona 500 - The Race That Made Nascar

[Steve Holmes]

Its hard to imagine it now, being the multi-billion dollar super power it is, but back in 1979, the Nascar Winston Cup (now the Sprint Cup) was just another American sport, struggling to gain national recognition. Motor racing in general was a sport that didn’t garner a lot of media attention, compared to the high ranking ball sports it struggled to compete against. Even the Indy 500 was still aired as edited highlights, later on the same day the race was held.

Selected Nascar Grand National/Winston Cup races made television listings dating right back to the 1950s, but those that were aired were strictly limited to heavily edited highlights, and mostly televised at the most unsociable of time slots. Motor racing being given full live coverage was completely unheard of.

However, as the 1970s rolled on, and Nascar continued to grow, so efforts were made to increase and improve television coverage, and finally, in 1979, the 21^st running of the Daytona 500, the biggest prize in stock car racing, was to be broadcast live on national television, in its entirety. This was monumental, as up to this point, Nascar had been a sport largely ignored outside its Southeastern roots.

However, live television coverage alone was not enough to thrust Nascar to national recognition. A slick broadcasting package, new initiatives for improved television viewing, and a few strokes of luck all played their roles on this day, in what many consider to be the most important day in Nascar racing history.

The 1979 Daytona 500 was held on February 18, 1979, and was the second round in that seasons Nascar Winston Cup. CBS would air the race, while the television commentary team comprised the familiar voice of Ken Squier, along with David Hobbs in the announcement booth, while former Nascar driver Ned Jarrett, along with motoring journalist Brock Yates were positioned in the pits. Television viewers were also wowed for the first time with an in-car camera mounted inside Benny Parsons car, taking viewers along for the ride, plus trackside low-mounted cameras, to further dramatize the speeds. Finally, as luck would have it, a massive snowstorm struck large Northern and Midwestern areas, confining people to their houses, with only their television sets to keep them linked to the outside world. Nascar potentially had a captive audience.

But for all this, the 1979 Daytona 500 was just a damned good race, with a dramatic finish, and one that thrust stock car racing onto the national stage.

41 drivers qualified for the race. Among them were Richard Petty, gunning for his sixth Daytona 500 race win, despite being on a 45 race losing streak that began back in 1977. Cale Yarborough was going for his third win. David Pearson, ‘the Silver Fox’ was going for his second win, as were A.J Foyt, Bobby Allison and Benny Parsons. In fact, with the exception of former Petty Enterprises driver Pete Hamilton, who’d retired several years earlier, the above drivers accounted for every Daytona 500 win during the 1970s. Also hot contenders were Bobby Allison’s brother Donnie, along with Buddy Baker, Neil Bonnett, and the next wave of young hard chargers, headed by Darrell Waltrip, Terry Labonte, Geoff Bodine, Ricky Rudd, and a relative unknown, having his first full season in the big game, Dale Earnhardt. Current team owner Richard Childress was also in the line-up.

The field comprised 21 Oldsmobile’s, 7 Chevrolet’s, 6 Buick’s, 3 Mercury’s, 2 Ford’s, and 2 Dodge’s. The Oldsmobile Cutlass’ had strength in numbers, but were also the fastest cars in 1979, with their slipper body shape. Buddy Baker took his Cutlass to pole position, breaking the track record in the process, ahead of the similar cars of Donnie Allison, Yarborough, Waltrip, Parsons, and Foyt, while Bobby Allison, in the #15 Bud Moore Thunderbird was the first non-Olds on the starting grid. Dick Brooks (Cutlass) was next, while David Pearson in the famous #21 Wood Brothers Mercury, and the young Earnhardt (Buick) rounded out the top ten. Petty qualified back in 13^th, in the #43 STP Oldsmobile. Baker had also won the 125 mile Daytona race leading up to the big 500 miler, and went in as hot favourite.

The storms that affected large chunks of the country also affected the early part of the Daytona 500, and the first 15 laps (of 200) were run behind the pace-car, as overnight rain had made the track too wet to race on. Waltrip was sent out on his own to run some hot laps to test the condition of the track at speed, while everyone else trundled along behind the pace-car. Finally, despite the inside apron and pit lane still being quite damp, and several drivers complaining that Turn 2 was still too wet, most notably pole-man Baker, perhaps due to the pressure to get the race started given the live television audience, the Pontiac Trans-Am pace-car finally pulled off, and the race was flagged away, and Donnie Allison immediately jumped ahead of a tentative Baker. Completing the first lap at racing speeds, and in these pre-restrictor plate times, Allison opened a small gap to lead the field across the strip for the first time.

[Steve Holmes]

Through the opening laps, television viewers got an inside seat alongside Parsons at nearly 200mph, experiencing the effects of drafting, while the commentators rose to fever pitch. Donnie Allison was running like a dart, and drew several lengths ahead, until eventually the train of cars chasing him finally hauled him in, with Yarborough finally going by. A seven car train, which included Yarborough, Parsons, the Allison brothers, Waltrip, Foyt, and Dave Marcis, opened a sizable gap to the rest of the pack after 20 laps, while Baker slipped down the order.

Then, on lap 29, drama unfolded when the two Allison brothers touched coming out of Turn 2 while battling for the lead. The pair spun down through the infield, Donnie almost turning over, while they took a close following Yarborough with them. The three cars spun wildly through the soggy infield, water and mud flying everywhere, and while Donnie Allison and Yarborough eventually slithered to a halt without hitting anything, Bobby Allison crunched the inside wall, badly crumpling the rear of his Thunderbird.

The caution flags waved and the field dived into the pits for fuel, with Neil Bonnett emerging in front, ahead of Foyt and Petty. While neither Donnie Allison nor Yarborough hit anything, other than Allison clunking his brother a second time as they spun, both cars were stuck deep in the muddy infield, unable to gain traction, until assistance arrived. Donnie Allison lost one lap in the process, making several stops under caution while his crew made adjustments to correct the wheel alignment. Bobby Allison lost three laps, as his team straightened up his car as best they could, while Yarborough also lost three laps, as he was the last to be pushed from the mud, and had trouble getting his car to fire. However, these guys were still in a better position than pole man Baker, whose Oldsmobile had dropped on to seven cylinders, and would shortly be retired from the race.

Once the field got the green again, the lead was swapped several times, with nobody really being able to pull a gap. This lasted until lap 53, when a multi-car pile-up, triggered by Bruce Hill and Gary Balough, eliminated several cars, including David Pearson’s Mercury. At the green, Donnie Allison, who was the first car one lap down, and therefore starting on the bottom row alongside leader Petty, jumped ahead of Petty, and stayed ahead for a few laps, before being shuffled back briefly as Bonnett and the rookie Earnhardt moved forward. Allison then pushed back ahead, and was just holding out the new leader Parsons when Bonnett spun on lap 72, and was hit by Harry Gant, bringing out another caution, and allowing Allison to get back on the lead lap.

Geoff Bodine emerged in front following pit stops, and after several laps of lead swapping, Benny Parsons managed to make a breakaway, with Yarborough, three two laps down, going with him. And it remained this way at the halfway point, which, after the first 15 laps behind the pace-car, then the long delays for the cautions, had been the slowest Daytona 500 to date. Amazingly, Donnie Allison had worked his way back up to second.

The fifth caution period came when Johnny Utsman blew the motor in his Chevy Monte Carlo, which, for Yarborough, was timely, as he’d just gone ahead of race leader Parsons, and would get back one of his laps. Parsons made a stop for tyres and fuel under caution, but returned to his pits a lap later, with the car overheating. He returned again the next lap. Meanwhile, several other cars were suffering from fouled spark plugs due to all the laps run under caution. Waltrip stopped twice during the race to have his plugs replaced.

With Parsons being delayed, it was Donnie Allison who led the field towards the green once more, followed by the impressive rookie Dale Earnhardt, and Grant Adcox. After several laps at speed, Allison held the front, while the lapped cars of Yarborough and Bobby Allison sat right behind him, looking for a way past. On lap 119, Blackie Wangerin brought out another caution when smoke began billowing out behind his Mercury, and as the Allison’s and Yarborough raced for the line, Yarborough just got in front of Donnie as they went across the start/finish line, undoing another lap.

Allison held the lead throughout the next segment, with Yarborough, now just one lap down, right behind him and pushing hard. In behind the lapped Yarborough, Petty held second, with Earnhardt third, and powering down the back straight on lap 135, Yarborough pulled out of the draft, and went by Allison, just as Paul Fess lost the motor in his Oldsmobile, bringing out another caution. Yarborough was now on the lead lap.

To the green once more, and Donnie Allison again assumed control, until the young Earnhardt took over briefly, before Allison went by once more. Foyt held third, from the impressive Tighe Scott, and Petty. The high speed train continued through the laps, and Yarborough was working his way towards the front. With 45 laps to go, Yarborough broke into the top five for the first time since the beginning of the race.

Earnhardt dropped out of the running when he was forced to make a green flag pit stop as the rest of the field blasted along at full racing speed. For some reason Earnhardt chose not to stop when the rest of the front runners came in during the last caution, so he was now out of sync, and went down a lap.

[Steve Holmes]

Then, on lap 164, the massive spectator embankments erupted into life as Yarborough pulled out of the draft and moved past Foyt for second. And, as had been the case at the beginning, the three cars at the head of the field were the two Allison brothers, albeit, with Bobby still three laps down, with Yarborough right behind.

The two Allison brothers then pitted together for fuel and tyres, signalling the final round of pit stops. Amazingly, with all the cautions, this was the first time all race that the front runners made green flag stops. A few laps later Petty was in followed by Yarborough, Scott, Foyt, and Waltrip.

Now began the final sprint for the finish. In 1979, cautions weren’t thrown towards the end of the race to bunch the field up and produce a close finish, so these guys had the hammer down. By lap 178, with 22 to go, as the field cleansed itself, it was Donnie Allison who resumed the lead, and now had Yarborough biting down hard on his back bumper. These two had dropped everyone else off behind them, and gradually drew away to fight over the win between them.

Back in third, running on his own, was Waltrip, while behind him, and gaining were Foyt and Petty, running nose to tail. With 15 laps to run, Allison and Yarborough were a full 15 seconds ahead of Foyt, who’d pushed Waltrip down to fifth, behind Petty. The best any of this trio could hope for was third.

With ten laps to run, and now almost 20 seconds ahead, Allison and Yarborough continued to reel off the laps. Yarborough was happy to just sit behind, waiting, pulling out of the draft every couple of laps to provide his engine some cool air. Nascar were double and triple checking their photo-finish camera was working, fully expecting it would be required. Petty had now moved ahead of Foyt, taking Waltrip with him, but these guys were fighting for third.

The laps continued to count down: 5, 4, 3, and the 100,000 spectators in attendance were on their feet with 2 laps to run. Allison was still in front, Yarborough lurking just a few meters off his back bumper as they swept into the tri-oval, across the stripe to receive the white flag, with one lap to run. This was it, time to put it all on the line. Both drivers had overcome heavy early race set-backs, both badly wanted this win. For Allison, who’d been trying to win the Daytona 500 since 1967, this was his best shot yet.

They fired into turn one, Allison still in front, but then through turn two, Yarborough began to reduce the gap. Sling-shotting off Turn 2, Yarborough used the slip-stream off Allison’s car to begin reeling him in along the back straight, and halfway down the straight, pulled out of the draft and to the bottom of the track, to draw alongside, but as he did, Allison moved down, Yarborough got two wheels on the wet, slippery grass, and spun hard right, straight into the left rear quarter of Allison’s Oldsmobile. They bounced off each other, then slammed together once again, both cars getting at least two wheels off the deck in the impact. By now both drivers were just passengers, and the two cars locked together, and fired straight into the outside wall at Turn 3, crunching hard, then sliding back down the steep embankment, dropping down the track, into the infield, still spinning, before they finally came to rest in the grass, both pointing back towards the track, both destroyed.

The cameras held position on the two smoking, junked Oldsmobiles for several seconds, before switching back to the battle between Petty, Waltrip, and Foyt, who were so far behind they were only now just entering Turn 3, long after stunned television viewers had grasped what had just happened. At that, Petty ducked and dived, and did everything he could manage to hold out the hard charging Waltrip, and crossed the line just fractions ahead, to win his sixth Daytona 500.

But the drama wasn’t over. Petty celebrated his cool-down lap, and Waltrip and Foyt pulled alongside down the back straight to signal their congratulations. Petty completed his lap, pulled into pit lane, and his crew jumped on the car as he drove slowly enjoying this most unexpected win. As he headed towards victory lane, on the other side of the track, Bobby Allison stopped in Turn 3 to check on his brother, and suddenly a brawl broke out between the Allison’s and Yarborough. There were fists flailing everywhere, punching and kicking, and the fight went to ground, still continuing as frayed tempers boiled over. Eventually, officials pulled the drivers apart, but the fight was caught on camera, and aired to millions of viewers all across America.

It had been an epic race, full of drama and tension throughout, with a finish no one could ever have imagined. And it was all caught on camera, live to air, throughout. That Allison and Yarborough got into a brawl following their pile-up further added to the excitement, as viewers could see this was a sport full of emotion, in which people they could fully relate to, gave 100% of themselves to the cause. Nascar proved itself to be a blue-collar sport, which its followers were already full aware of. But now the rest of America got to see it too.

Nascar has since gone on to become a super-power, a multi-billion dollar marketing machine, with a fan-base far exceeding that of virtually every other motor racing category in the world. And that day, on February 18, 1979, proved a major turning point for the sport, directing it on the path to what it has become today. Nascar won a lot of new race fans that day.

[Steve Holmes]

Here are the final two laps of the race, and that famous brawl.

[Steve Holmes]

And for those who have time, here is the 1979 Daytona 500, in its entirety. Trust me, it is spellbinding!