1979 Virginia 500 Explained
The 1979 Virginia 500 was the 9th stock car race of the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. The race took place at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia on April 22, 1979 before a crowd of 35,500. Richard Petty, driving for his team Petty Enterprises would win the race by 4 seconds, leading 247 laps. Buddy Baker of Ranier-Lundy Racing and Darrell Waltrip of DiGard Motorsports would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Background
Qualifying
Race results
| Fin[2] [3] | St | | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
|---|
| 1 | 2 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Chevrolet | 500 | 247 | running | 185 | $23,400 |
|---|
| 2 | 4 | 28 | Buddy Baker | Ranier-Lundy Racing | Chevrolet | 500 | 196 | running | 175 | $14,700 |
|---|
| 3 | 1 | 88 | Darrell Waltrip | DiGard Motorsports | Chevrolet | 499 | 49 | running | 170 | $10,200 |
|---|
| 4 | 3 | 15 | Bobby Allison | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 498 | 1 | running | 165 | $7,100 |
|---|
| 5 | 8 | 72 | Joe Millikan | DeWitt Racing | Chevrolet | 497 | 0 | running | 155 | $6,550 |
|---|
| 6 | 21 | 47 | Harry Gant | Race Hill Farm Team | Chevrolet | 497 | 0 | running | 150 | $2,500 |
|---|
| 7 | 14 | 48 | James Hylton | Hylton Racing | Chevrolet | 495 | 7 | engine | 151 | $4,200 |
|---|
| 8 | 11 | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | Rod Osterlund Racing | Chevrolet | 495 | 0 | running | 142 | $4,200 |
|---|
| 9 | 19 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Chevrolet | 494 | 0 | running | 138 | $3,350 |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Chevrolet | 493 | 0 | running | 134 | $3,080 |
|---|
| 11 | 5 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Junior Johnson & Associates | Oldsmobile | 492 | 0 | running | 130 | $5,050 |
|---|
| 12 | 17 | 90 | Ricky Rudd | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 489 | 0 | running | 127 | $2,470 |
|---|
| 13 | 22 | 30 | Tighe Scott | Ballard Racing | Buick | 488 | 0 | running | 124 | $2,300 |
|---|
| 14 | 16 | 3 | Richard Childress | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 485 | 0 | running | 121 | $2,140 |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | 40 | D.K. Ulrich | Ulrich Racing | Chevrolet | 476 | 0 | running | 118 | $1,980 |
|---|
| 16 | 25 | 64 | Tommy Gale | Langley Racing | Ford | 476 | 0 | running | 115 | $1,820 |
|---|
| 17 | 30 | 24 | Cecil Gordon | Gordon Racing | Oldsmobile | 474 | 0 | running | 112 | $1,685 |
|---|
| 18 | 20 | 79 | Frank Warren | Warren Racing | Dodge | 472 | 0 | running | 109 | $1,500 |
|---|
| 19 | 13 | 27 | Benny Parsons | M. C. Anderson Racing | Chevrolet | 458 | 0 | running | 106 | $675 |
|---|
| 20 | 26 | 25 | Ronnie Thomas | Robertson Racing | Chevrolet | 454 | 0 | running | 103 | $2,150 |
|---|
| 21 | 27 | 05 | Dick Brooks | Nelson Malloch Racing | Oldsmobile | 437 | 0 | running | 100 | $640 |
|---|
| 22 | 18 | 67 | Buddy Arrington | Arrington Racing | Dodge | 312 | 0 | engine | 97 | $1,130 |
|---|
| 23 | 7 | 68 | Chuck Bown | Testa Racing | Buick | 263 | 0 | engine | | $620 |
|---|
| 24 | 29 | 45 | Baxter Price | Price Racing | Chevrolet | 247 | 0 | engine | 91 | $860 |
|---|
| 25 | 9 | 21 | Neil Bonnett | Wood Brothers Racing | Mercury | 207 | 0 | engine | 88 | $850 |
|---|
| 26 | 24 | 02 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 167 | 0 | engine | 85 | $590 |
|---|
| 27 | 12 | 1 | Donnie Allison | Ellington Racing | Chevrolet | 137 | 0 | engine | 82 | $3,030 |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Means Racing | Chevrolet | 132 | 0 | overheating | 79 | $820 |
|---|
| 29 | 6 | 12 | Lennie Pond | Kennie Childers Racing | Chevrolet | 10 | 0 | engine | 76 | $810 |
|---|
| 30 | 23 | 19 | Dick May | Gray Racing | Chevrolet | 0 | 0 | engine | | $800 | |
|---|
Notes and References
- Web site: 1979 Virginia 500 race results. live. Racing-Reference. https://web.archive.org/web/20210428030906/https://www.racing-reference.info/race-results/1979_Virginia_500/W/ . 2021-04-28 .
- Web site: 1979 Virginia 500 - The Third Turn. 2021-09-06. www.thethirdturn.com. en.
- Web site: Virginia 500. 2021-09-06. www.ultimateracinghistory.com.
