1974 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

The 1974 NASCAR Winston Cup Series was the 26th season of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 3rd modern-era NASCAR Cup series. The season began on Sunday January 20 and ended on Sunday November 24. The first 15 races were shortened 10 percent due to the 1973 oil crisis. Following criticism of the 1972 and 1973 points systems that placed emphasis on completed miles, NASCAR implemented a new points system, that took basic purse winnings, multiplied by number of starts, and divided by 1,000; it was designed to more directly reward winning races, a response to Benny Parsons' championship the previous year with just one win. Richard Petty was Winston Cup champion at the end of the season finishing 567.45 points ahead of Cale Yarborough, while David Pearson finished a strong third in points despite only nineteen starts. Earl Ross was named NASCAR Rookie of the Year.[1]

1974 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Previous: 1973 Next: 1975

1974 was the final season before Ricky Rudd, Bill Elliott and Dale Earnhardt joined the Winston Cup Grand National tour.

Races

Western 500

Begun on January 20, the Western 500 at Riverside International Raceway was stopped by rain and resumed on January 26. Cale Yarborough led 144 laps but was closely contested by Bobby Allison, who led 33 laps. Allison faltered and finished a distant fifth, while Cale took the win with Richard Petty second. David Pearson finished third in the final eligible race for the Wood Brothers 1971 Mercury Cyclone; the car had won 19 times with Pearson and A. J. Foyt the previous two seasons.

Daytona 500

Richmond 500

Bobby Allison grabbed the win, his third with his own team since the start of 1973.

Carolina 500

Cale Yarborough led most of the first half but his car's handling deteriorated throughout the race and Richard Petty dominated the second half en route to the win.

Southeastern 500

Amid periodic snow flurries, a crowd of 18,000 witnessed Cale Yarborough win for the second straight spring Bristol race. Richard Petty was hit in the driver side door in a four-car crash.

Atlanta 500

NASCAR mandated smaller carburators for big-block engines. David Pearson led the most laps in a small block but had to pit late for fuel, giving Cale Yarborough the win.

Rebel 450

Darlington's spring race shaved 10 percent off its race distance as other races did, but did not lop off the opening 36 laps, it simply scheduled the race as a 450-miler. David Pearson took his third straight Rebel race win (and fifth in all). The race was stopped for half an hour when Lennie Pond smashed a guardrail and several posts were pushed off. Cale Yarborough took the point lead.

Gwyn Staley Memorial

Richard Petty debuted a hand-built (by his brother, the team's chief engine builder Maurice) small-block Chrysler engine and won going away. The win put him back into the point lead. Petty stated the small block cost $50,000; “so we’re still in the red right now.”

Virginia 500

Cale Yarborough lead almost wire to wire and the win gave him back the point lead. Richard Petty finished second despite multiple pitstops.

Winston 500

The lead changed 52 times among 14 drivers as David Pearson edged Benny Parsons. During pitstops at Lap 105 crewman Don Miller lost a leg when he was hit by the spinning car of rookie Grant Adcox.

Music City 420

Rain pushed the second half of the race from Saturday night to Sunday afternoon. Richard Petty took his fourth win of the season and retook the point lead over Yarborough. It was Neil Bonnett's first Winston Cup start.

Mason-Dixon 500

Petty, Pearson, and Yarborough were the only leaders in a race interrupted only three times for yellows. Petty, running the small-block Chrysler engine, led 210 laps but fell out with engine failure while leading with three laps to go. Cale took the win having led 220 laps, while Pearson was second with only 20 laps led.

World 600

David Pearson edged Richard Petty as the lead changed 37 times, the most for the race to that point of its history. Buddy Baker left Harry Hyde's Dodge team to drive Bud Moore's Ford after Moore released driver George Follmer. Baker led 94 laps before falling out with engine failure; he was signed to drive the rest of the season in Moore's Ford.

Tuborg 400

George Follmer was fired from Bud Moore's team before the 600 and jumped into Roger Penske's AMC Matador; he won the pole but blew his engine after just seven laps. Cale Yarborough edged Bobby Allison for the win, his sixth of the season.

Motor State 400

This was the last race of the season shortened by NASCAR due to the energy crunch. The lead changed 50 times among eight drivers, a new record for the track to that point. Petty edged rookie Earl Ross after Pearson pitted under a late yellow for tires and the green never flew again.

Firecracker 400

David Pearson, the winner of the previous two 400s, pulled an audacious fake as he slammed his brakes to put Petty into the lead on the final lap, then drafted past at the stripe; Pearson's maneuver was such that an angered Petty confronted Pearson in the pressbox after the race; the ensuing dialogue was transcribed by The Charlotte Observer and published the next day (July 5, 1974, edition). Some seven seconds behind them Cale Yarborough and Buddy Baker hit the stripe nose to nose for an official tie for third. Bobby Allison took over Roger Penske's Matador; he led 50 laps but broke an intake valve late in the race and finished fifth. The lead changed 45 times, a race record that stood until 2010. [2]

Volunteer 500

Junior Johnson had purchased his race team from Richard Howard when Carling Breweries joined the #52 of Earl Ross along with Cale Yarborough's #11. In the second race as owner of the team Junior saw Cale dominate but Buddy Baker surged to the lead late. A caution set up a two lap sprint and Cale sideslammed Baker on the final lap for the win. The race saw Neil Bonnett strike the inside pit guardrail, tearing up numerous support posts and requiring a 40-lap caution for repairs.

Nashville 420

Controversy marred Nashville's mid-summer event. Following Richard Petty's crash a scoring controversy ensued involving Cale Yarborough and Charlie Glotzbach; Glotzbach was placed a lap down based on scoring, but Cale stayed on the lead lap. Allison finished just behind Yarborough and drove into victory lane ahead of Yarborough, insisting Cale was a lap down. NASCAR later said a scoring mistake had been made but that the Yarborough win would stand.

Purolator 500

Originally published in NASCAR's schedule, the annual 300-miler at Trenton Speedway was cancelled and replaced by Pocono's Purolator 500. Richard Petty won the race as rain shortened the race by eight laps. Buddy Baker won the pole; he'd also won the pole in late April in Pocono's USAC stock car 500-miler. It was the inaugural race for NASCAR at Pocono, which has become part of the annual schedule since then.

Talladega 500

25 of the event's 50 entries were found sabotaged in the garage area on race morning. NASCAR instituted several competition cautions to allow teams to find previously-undetected sabotage. Buddy Baker fell out after leading 98 laps with rearend failure with three laps to go. Petty sideswiped past Pearson at the stripe ("Pearson tried to cut me off," Petty said; "I'd rather rub fenders with Richard than compete clean with some of the other cats, who are crazy at times," Pearson added); it was Petty's third straight win. Three days before the race A. J. Foyt brought his Coyote Indycar for a speed test; he hit 217 MPH, a closed-course record for the time.

Yankee 400

Pearson won for the first time since Daytona in July, beating Petty by some five seconds. The lead changed 45 times as Cale Yarborough led 60 laps but lost contact with the leaders after a late tire change backfired with mismatched tires.

Southern 500

Cale Yarborough took his third win in the race after melees eliminated half the field; Richard Petty, Bobby Allison and Buddy Baker were notable crash victims, and rookie Richie Panch was singled out for criticism after being involved in three wrecks. Sophomore Darrell Waltrip took second. NASCAR's 1974 point system, which took purse winnings multiplied by number of starts divided by 1,000, came under fire when Petty wrecked early yet outpointed every car that finished ahead of him except race-winner Yarborough.

Capital City 500

Cale Yarborough led 98 of the first 120 laps but the pavement was grinding up and Cale slipped in loose asphalt and crashed. The wreck put Richard Petty into the lead for the remaining 380 laps. Bobby Allison, originally entered in the race, did not race.

Delaware 500

Petty led 491 laps and put the entire field three laps down while Yarborough fell out with engine failure.

Wilkes 400

Petty and Yarborough swept the front row and led 391 laps. Cale led for 275 laps. Petty lost a lap on late pitstops but unlapped himself; he had to settle for second when a late yellow ended the race under caution.

Old Dominion 500

Earl Ross pulled off the upset win, the first for a rookie since 1965 and first for a Canadian driver ever. The win came after teammate Cale Yarborough crashed.

National 500

David Pearson made up a lap lost in the first 100 laps of the race and edged Richard Petty, who erased a two-lap deficit despite a pit fire three-quarters into the race; it was the fifth time in the season Pearson and Petty finished together in the top two and Pearson's fourth win in that rivalry. The race was chaotic as a ten-car melee erupted on the third lap and a vicious two-car crash in Turn Four eliminated Grant Adcox and Ramo Stott. The lead changed 47 times, a race record that was tied in 2000, and a track record that lasted until the 1979 World 600, among 11 drivers; it was the sixth race of the season to break 40 official lead changes.

American 500

Pearson grabbed his seventh win of 1974, edging Cale by two seconds. The surface at North Carolina Motor Speedway proved hard on tires and pitstops became frequent. Buddy Baker led twelve laps but fell out after only eighteen laps with brake failure.

Los Angeles Times 500

Originally left off of NASCAR's schedule, the race was added late in the season. Richard Petty led the most laps but fell out late and finished 15th. Bobby Allison took the win in Roger Penske's AMC Matador but was fined $9,100 for unapproved valve lifters in postrace inspection. The race lead changed 38 times officially (a track record for stock cars) while several laps saw up to four lead changes in one circuit.

Season recap

DateEventCircuitWinner
January 20 & 26Winston Western 500Riverside International RacewayCale Yarborough
February 17Daytona 500Daytona International SpeedwayRichard Petty
February 24Richmond 500Richmond Fairgrounds RacewayBobby Allison
March 4Carolina 500North Carolina SpeedwayRichard Petty
March 17Southeastern 500Bristol International SpeedwayCale Yarborough
March 24Atlanta 500Atlanta International RacewayCale Yarborough
April 7Rebel 500Darlington RacewayDavid Pearson
April 21Gwyn Staley 400North Wilkesboro SpeedwayRichard Petty
April 28Virginia 500Martinsville SpeedwayCale Yarborough
May 5Winston 500Alabama International Motor SpeedwayDavid Pearson
May 11 & 12Music City USA 420Nashville SpeedwayRichard Petty
May 19Mason-Dixon 500Dover Downs International SpeedwayCale Yarborough
May 26World 600Charlotte Motor SpeedwayDavid Pearson
June 9Tuborg 400Riverside International RacewayCale Yarborough
June 16Motor State 400Michigan International SpeedwayRichard Petty
July 4Firecracker 400Daytona International SpeedwayDavid Pearson
July 14Volunteer 500Bristol International SpeedwayCale Yarborough
July 20Nashville 420Nashville SpeedwayCale Yarborough
July 28Dixie 500Atlanta International RacewayRichard Petty
August 4Purolator 500Pocono RacewayRichard Petty
August 11Talladega 500Alabama International Motor SpeedwayRichard Petty
August 25Champion Spark Plug 400Michigan International SpeedwayDavid Pearson
September 2Southern 500Darlington RacewayCale Yarborough
September 8Capital City 500Richmond Fairgrounds RacewayRichard Petty
September 15Delaware 500Dover Downs International SpeedwayRichard Petty
September 22Wilkes 400North Wilkesboro SpeedwayCale Yarborough
September 29Old Dominion 500Martinsville SpeedwayEarl Ross
October 6National 500Charlotte Motor SpeedwayDavid Pearson
October 20American 500North Carolina SpeedwayDavid Pearson
November 24Los Angeles Times 500Ontario Motor SpeedwayBobby Allison

Final Points standings

Place Driver Points Earnings Wins
1st Richard Petty 5037.750 $432,019 10
2nd Cale Yarborough 4470.300 $363,781 10
3rd David Pearson 2389.250 $252,819 7
4th Bobby Allison 2019.195 $178,437 2
5th Benny Parsons 1591.500 $185,080 0
6th Dave Marcis 1378.200 $83,376 0
7th Buddy Baker 1016.880 $151,025 0
8th Earl Ross 1009.470 $81,199 1
9th Cecil Gordon 1000.650 $66,165 0
10th David Sisco 956.200 $58,312 0
11th James Hylton 924.955 $61,384 0
12th J. D. McDuffie 920.850 $59,534 0
13th Frank Warren 820.845 $55,779 0
14th Richie Panch 775.440 $52,712 0
15th Walter Ballard 748.440 $54,038 0
16th Richard Childress 735.440 $50,248 0
17th Donnie Allison 728.805 $60,314 0
18th Lennie Pond 723.250 $55,989 0
19th Darrell Waltrip 609.975 $67,774 0
20th Tony Bettenhausen Jr. 601.695 $38,994 0
21st Jackie Rogers 587.880 $32,367 0
22nd Coo Coo Marlin 581.670 $41,944 0
23rd Ed Negre 534.300 $24,622 0
24th Bob Burcham 445.500 $27,923 0
25th Elmo Langley 433.780 $24,722 0
26th Charlie Glotzbach 293.090 $34,172
27th Dick Brooks 267.520 $22,760 0
28th Joe Frasson 240.800 $22,629 0
29th George Follmer 230.490 $53,780 0
30th Buddy Arrington 221.200 $22,085 0
31st Bill Champion 207.720 $13,480 0
32nd D.K. Ulrich 155.325 $11,955 0
33rd Bobby Isaac 152.950 $22,642 0
34th Travis Tiller 146.440 $11,410 0
35th Roy Mayne 141.720 $15,284 0
36th Dean Dalton 125.440 $12,485 0
37th Neil Castles 123.565 $12,479 0
38th G.C. Spencer 96.800 $12,985 0
39th Ramo Stott 82.950 $23,705 0
40th Jim Vandiver 71.400 $15,909 0
41st Dan Daughtry 63.040 $12,413 0
42nd Jabe Thomas 49.140 $7,835 0
43rd Gary Bettenhausen 49.000 $12,750 0
44th A. J. Foyt 41.220 $17,110 0
45th Jerry Schild 35.375 $8,395 0
46th Earle Canavan 34.920 $6,570 0
47th Dick Trickle 24.780 $10,828 0
48th Marty Robbins 23.780 $5,734 0
49th Alton Jones 20.400 $4,395 0
50th Hershel McGriff 23.340 $8,585 0

References

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