1970 American 500

The 1970 American 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on November 15, 1970, at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham, North Carolina. Jim Paschal qualified the #40 vehicle for Pete Hamilton.

1970 American 500
Race details[1]
Race 47 of 48 in the 1970 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Layout of Rockingham Speedway
Date November 15, 1970 (1970-November-15)
Official name American 500
Location North Carolina Motor Speedway, Rockingham, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1.017 mi (1.636 km)
Distance 492 laps, 500 mi (804 km)
Weather Chilly with temperatures of 65.3 °F (18.5 °C); wind speeds of 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)
Average speed 117.811 miles per hour (189.598 km/h)
Attendance 20,000[2]
Pole position
Driver
Nichels Engineering
Most laps led
Driver Cale Yarborough Wood Brothers Racing
Laps 205
Winner
No. 21 Cale Yarborough Wood Brothers Racing
Television in the United States
Network untelevised
Announcers none

Race report

Twenty thousand people watched Cale Yarborough win the race which lasted 4 hours, 14 minutes, and 24 seconds.[2] The average speed was 117.811 miles per hour (189.598 km/h) while the pole speed was 136.496 miles per hour (219.669 km/h).[2] There were seven cautions that lasted for forty-six laps and the margin of victory was four seconds.[2] As the penultimate race in NASCAR's Grand National era, this race was crucial for people wanting to win the 1970 NASCAR Grand National Championship. Bobby Isaac finished the race in 7th place, good enough for him to clinch the championship.[3]

492 laps were completed on the paved oval track spanning 1.017 miles (1.637 km).[2] The winner's purse was $20,445[2] ($134,601 when adjusted for inflation) while last place (40th) paid $540[2] ($3,292 when adjusted for inflation). Drivers who were eliminated from the race had to deal with engine problems, crashes, transmission problems, and problems with their fan pulley (in addition to their rear end).[2] Pete Hamilton would drive in his final race for Petty Enterprises here while Cale Yarborough would complete his final race for the Wood Brothers. Future winning team owner Hoss Ellington would retire from driving after this race.[4] Cale Yarborough would eventually transfer himself to the USAC Indy Car Series in 1971.[5]

Notable crew chiefs in this race included Herb Nab, Junie Donlavey, Harry Hyde, Dale Inman, Maurice Petty, Tom Vandiver and Banjo Matthews.[6]

Qualifying
Grid No. Driver Manufacturer Speed[7] Qualifying time[7] Owner
1 99Charlie Glotzbach'69 Dodge136.49626.823Ray Nichels
2 21Cale Yarborough'69 Mercury135.98526.923Wood Brothers
3 22Bobby Allison'69 Dodge135.98527.037Mario Rossi
4 32Dick Brooks'70 Plymouth135.28227.063Dick Brooks
5 71Bobby Isaac'69 Dodge135.07227.105Nord Krauskopf
6 17David Pearson'69 Ford135.05227.109Holman-Moody
7 43Richard Petty'70 Plymouth134.98827.122Petty Enterprises
8 30Dave Marcis'69 Dodge134.19627.282Dave Marcis
9 6Buddy Baker'69 Dodge134.17627.286Cotton Owens
10 40Pete Hamilton'70 Plymouth133.98427.326Petty Enterprises

Failed to qualify: Dick Poling (#65), Roy Mayne (#46)[7]

Finishing order

Section reference: [2]

  1. Cale Yarborough
  2. David Pearson
  3. Bobby Allison
  4. Donnie Allison
  5. Buddy Baker
  6. Richard Petty
  7. Bobby Isaac
  8. James Hylton
  9. Friday Hassler
  10. Buddy Young
  11. Joe Frasson
  12. Neil Castles
  13. Elmo Langley
  14. Jabe Thomas
  15. Pete Hamilton*
  16. Jim Vandiver
  17. Ben Arnold
  18. J.D. McDuffie
  19. Raymond Williams
  20. Wendell Scott*
  21. Cecil Gordon
  22. Johnny Halford
  23. Roy Mayne
  24. Larry Baumel
  25. Bill Champion*
  26. Frank Warren
  27. Hoss Ellington*
  28. Henley Gray
  29. LeeRoy Yarbrough*
  30. John Sears*
  31. Charlie Glotzbach*
  32. Dave Marcis*
  33. Benny Parsons*
  34. Bill Seifert*
  35. Tiny Lund*
  36. Bill Shirey*
  37. Bill Dennis*
  38. Roy Tyner*
  39. Dick Brooks*
  40. Buddy Arrington*

* Driver failed to finish race

Timeline

Section reference: [2]

Cale Yarborough
David Pearson
Cale Yarborough
Cale Yarborough
David Pearson
Cale Yarborough
David Pearson
Cale Yarborough
│
1
│
16
│
31
│
46
│
61
│
76
│
91
│
106
│
121
│
136
│
151
│
166
│
181
│
196
│
211
│
226
│
241
│
256
│
271
│
286
│
301
│
316
│
331
│
346
│
361
│
376
│
391
│
406
│
421
│
436
│
451
│
466
│
481

References
  1. "1970 American 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-08-03.
  2. "1970 American 500 information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2009-10-21.
  3. Lehto, Steve (15 January 2016). Dodge Daytona and Plymouth Superbird. ISBN 9781613252048. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
  4. Retirements from NASCAR at Race Database
  5. "Cale Yarborough's post-race decision". How Stuff Works (Auto). Retrieved 2010-09-23.
  6. "1970 American 500 crew chief information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2018-07-30.
  7. "1970 American 500 qualifying information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
Preceded by
1970 Georgia 500		 NASCAR Grand National Season
1970		 Succeeded by
1970 Tidewater 300
Preceded by
1969		 American 500 races
1970		 Succeeded by
1971
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