The 1968 Beltsville 300 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on May 17, 1968, at Beltsville Speedway in Beltsville, Maryland.
The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.
Beltsville Speedway was specially designed with banked turns for stock car racing. Originally known as the "Baltimore-Washington Speedway", this track received its final name in its 19th month of operation.[1] The track hosted modified stock car racing vehicles alongside the other NASCAR series.[1] Wednesday nights were the original night for racing but the schedule eventually added Friday night racing.[1] Ten Grand National races were raced there including the popular Beltsville 300 series of races.[2]
It took two hours for David Pearson (in his Holman-Moody owned '68 Ford Torino) to defeat Bobby Isaac (in his '67 Dodge Charger) by one lap and five seconds in front of 8,700 people. The majority of the starting grid would be driving Ford vehicles while Dodge, Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile and Plymouth made up the minority of the racing vehicles.[3] Notable crew chiefs who participated in the event were Ray Hicks, Jake Elder, Frankie Scott, Dale Inman and Harry Hyde.[4]
Notable speeds were: 74.844miles per hour as the average speed and 83.604miles per hour as the pole position speed. The track was a paved oval track spanning 0.5miles. Three hundred laps were raced on this track for a grand total of 150miles. There was one Canadian participant named Frog Fagan; he started in 20th place and finished the race in 22nd place.
Total winnings for this race were $6,800 ($ when considering inflation); David Pearson would receive $1,400 ($ when considering inflation) while last-place finisher Wendell Scott would receive a meager $100 ($ when considering inflation).[5] Tom Pistone was the start and park car for this race; he quit the race for reasons unknown. Other notable racers who participated included Wendell Scott, Buck Baker, and J.D. McDuffie.
| Grid | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | ||
| 2 | 17 | David Pearson | Holman-Moody Racing | ||
| 3 | 5 | Pete Hamilton | Rocky Hinton | ||
| 4 | 10 | Bill Champion | Bill Champion | ||
| 5 | 48 | James Hylton | James Hylton | ||
| 6 | 4 | John Sears | L.G. DeWitt | ||
| 7 | 71 | Bobby Isaac | Nord Krauskopf | ||
| 8 | 3 | Buddy Baker | Ray Fox | ||
| 9 | 55 | Tom Pistone | Lyle Stelter | ||
| 10 | 25 | Jabe Thomas | Don Robertson | ||
| 11 | 07 | George Davis | George Davis | ||
| 12 | 20 | Clyde Lynn | Clyde Lynn | ||
| 13 | 64 | Elmo Langley | Elmo Langley / Henry Woodfield | ||
| 14 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | J.D. McDuffie | ||
| 15 | 28 | Earl Brooks | Earl Brooks | ||
| 16 | 8 | Ed Negre | Ed Negre | ||
| 17 | 01 | Paul Dean Holt | Dennis Holt | ||
| 18 | 34 | Wendell Scott | Wendell Scott | ||
| 19 | 09 | Roy Tyner | Roy Tyner | ||
| 20 | 95 | Frog Fagan | Henley Gray | ||
| 21 | 19 | Henley Gray | Henley Gray | ||
| 22 | 88 | Buck Baker | '67 Oldsmobile | Buck Baker | |
| 23 | 06 | Neil Castles | Neil Castles |
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