1982 Winston Western 500
The 1982 Winston Western 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event held on November 21, 1982, at Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California.
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 30 of 30 in the 1982 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Riverside International Raceway (1969-1988 version) | |||
| Date | November 21, 1982 | ||
| Official name | Winston Western 500 | ||
| Location | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.700 mi (4.345 km) | ||
| Distance | 119 laps, 311.8 mi (501.7 km) | ||
| Weather | Cold with temperatures reaching of 59 °F (15 °C); wind speeds of 2.9 miles per hour (4.7 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 99.823 miles per hour (160.650 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 38,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Junior Johnson & Associates | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Tim Richmond | Jim Stacy Racing | |
| Laps | 92 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 2 | Tim Richmond | Jim Stacy Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers |
Buddy Baker Ken Squier | ||
During the early 1980s, the NASCAR Winston Cup Series was plagued with top teams running big engines and finishing in third place to avoid inspection.
Background
Riverside International Speedway was a race track or road course in Moreno Valley, California. The track was in operation from September 22, 1957, to July 2, 1989. The original course design proved to be dangerous, and it was partially reconfigured in 1969.
Race report
Tim Richmond would defeat Ricky Rudd in the three hour long, 119 lap race which had 38 000 spectators in attendance.[2] Seven seconds would end up separating the winner from the second-place finisher.[2] Darrell Waltrip would qualify on pole position with a lap which had an average speed of 114.995 miles per hour (185.067 km/h) in his individual qualifying session.[2] Dale Earnhardt, recorded a last-place finish on lap 8 due to an oil leak.[2] There would be 42 drivers on the grid; two of them were Canadian while the other 40 were born in the United States.[2] Only one Chevrolet vehicle would participate in the race; driven by Jim Reich and owned by Ivan Baldwin.[2]
Clive Skipton was the only non-qualifier for this event.[2] Trevor Boys and Derrike Cope would make their introduction into NASCAR during this race while Reich, Jim Lee, and Terry Herman would retire after this race.[3]
The total purse of the race would be $203,745 ($539,784 when adjusted for inflation), the winner of the race would receive $24,730 of the purse ($65,517 when adjusted for inflation) while 41st place finisher Kevin Terris would receive $525 of that same amount ($1,391 when adjusted for inflation). Terris makes his first Cup start in more than a decade but goes out early with a blown engine. He would only make one further Cup start.[4]
Qualifying
| Grid[2] | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Darrell Waltrip | Buick | Junior Johnson |
| 2 | 88 | Bobby Allison | Pontiac | DiGard |
| 3 | 28 | Joe Ruttman | Pontiac | Harry Ranier |
| 4 | 2 | Tim Richmond | Buick | Jim Stacy |
| 5 | 3 | Ricky Rudd | Pontiac | Richard Childress |
| 6 | 50 | Geoffrey Bodine | Pontiac | Cliff Stewart |
| 7 | 15 | Dale Earnhardt | Ford | Bud Moore |
| 8 | 17 | Lake Speed | Pontiac | Roger Hamby |
| 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Buick | Hal Needham |
| 10 | 75 | Jimmy Insolo | Pontiac | RahMoc Enterprises |
Failed to qualify: Clive Skilton (#61)[5]
Top 10 finishers
| Pos[2] | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Winnings | Laps led | Points | Time/Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 2 | Tim Richmond | Buick | 119 | $24,730 | 92 | 185 | 3:07:24 |
| 2 | 5 | 3 | Ricky Rudd | Pontiac | 119 | $16,980 | 1 | 175 | +7 seconds |
| 3 | 1 | 11 | Darrell Waltrip | Buick | 119 | $25,100 | 8 | 170 | Lead lap under green flag |
| 4 | 13 | 21 | Neil Bonnett | Ford | 119 | $6,100 | 1 | 165 | Lead lap under green flag |
| 5 | 20 | 02 | Mark Martin | Buick | 118 | $7,760 | 0 | 155 | +1 lap |
| 6 | 15 | 57 | Ron Bouchard | Buick | 117 | $10,120 | 0 | 150 | +2 laps |
| 7 | 29 | 55 | Benny Parsons | Buick | 117 | $2,850 | 0 | 146 | +2 laps |
| 8 | 16 | 98 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick | 116 | $5,300 | 0 | 142 | +3 laps |
| 9 | 25 | 90 | Jody Ridley | Ford | 115 | $9,850 | 0 | 138 | +4 laps |
| 10 | 23 | 16 | Jim Bown | Buick | 115 | $2,550 | 0 | 134 | +4 laps |
Timeline
Section reference:[2]
- Start of race: Darrell Waltrip had the pole position as the green flag was waved.
- Lap 5: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Darrell Waltrip.
- Lap 8: A sudden oil leak from Dale Earnhardt's vehicle made him the last-place finisher of the event.
- Lap 9: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
- Lap 12: Kevin Terris' vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles.
- Lap 14: Ricky Rudd took over the lead from Tim Richmond.
- Lap 15: J.D. McDuffie took over the lead from Ricky Rudd.
- Lap 16: Don Waterman took over the lead from J.D. McDuffie.
- Lap 17: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Don Waterman.
- Lap 20: The transmission on Joe Ruttman's vehicle stopped working properly.
- Lap 21: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
- Lap 31: Randy Becker's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles.
- Lap 40: John Krebs had a terminal crash.
- Lap 42: An oil leak came out of Derrike Cope's vehicle.
- Lap 46: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Tim Richmond.
- Lap 48: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
- Lap 62: Rick McCray's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles.
- Lap 72: Darrell Waltrip took over the lead from Tim Richmond.
- Lap 76: Harry Gant took over the lead from Darrell Waltrip.
- Lap 81: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Harry Gant.
- Lap 92: The transmission on Hershel McGriff's vehicle stopped working properly.
- Lap 94: Terry Labonte had a terminal crash.
- Lap 95: An oil leak came out of Harry Gant's vehicle.
- Lap 97: Neil Bonnett took over the lead from Tim Richmond.
- Lap 98: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Neil Bonnett.
- Lap 111: Bobby Allison's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles.
- Finish: Tim Richmond was officially declared the winner of the event.
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
1  |
Darrell Waltrip | 4489 | 0 |
| 2 |
Bobby Allison | 4417 | -72 |
| 3 |
Terry Labonte | 4211 | -278 |
| 4 |
Harry Gant | 3877 | -612 |
| 5 |
Richard Petty | 3814 | -675 |
| 6 |
Dave Marcis | 3666 | -823 |
| 7 |
Buddy Arrington | 3642 | -847 |
| 8 |
Ron Bouchard | 3545 | -944 |
| 9 |
Ricky Rudd | 3542 | -947 |
10  |
Morgan Shepherd | 3451 | -1038 |
References
- Weather information for the 1982 Winston Western 500 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Racing Reference
- 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Race-Database
- 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
- Qualifying information for the 1982 Winston Western 500 at Racing Reference
| Preceded by 1982 Atlanta Journal 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1982-3 |
Succeeded by 1983 Daytona 500 |
| Preceded by 1981 |
Winston Western 500 races 1982 |
Succeeded by 1983 |