The 1985 Winston Western 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on November 17, 1985, at Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California.
With the deletion of the two Nashville races the 1985 Winston Cup season was the first since 1974 with less than 30 races.
With one race remaining in the championship, Bill Elliott, who won 11 races, trailed Darrell Waltrip by 20 points (between 4-7 positions depending on the order of finish -- the equivalent of 4-7 points under the 2011 scoring system). Qualifying was held on Friday and Terry Labonte scored the pole with a time of 1:20.658.
The 500-kilometer race, lasting 119 laps, would have the championship battle come down to the first six laps of the race. The gearshift lever on Elliott's car broke on the sixth lap, necessitating repairs that lasted thirty minutes, or roughly 22 laps of the race and putting him several laps down. Waltrip finished seventh and locked down the championship on Lap 99.[1] This was a combination race with the Winston West series. They had four drivers (Jim Robinson, Hershel McGriff, Glen Steurer, and Ruben Garcia) eligible for the title. Robinson would clinch the title over McGriff with his 12th place finish.
Pit strategy determined the race. On the penultimate pit stop, Labonte's Billy Hagan pit crew changed two tires, while Ricky Rudd's Bud Moore Engineering Ford team changed four tires. On the final round of pit stops, the opposite took place, allowing Rudd to defeat Labonte by almost half a second in front of 40000 spectators. Ruben Garcia, later to gain fame from knocking out a wall in a crash during the last race at Riverside in 1988, scored his career-best finish of 14th place.[2]
Three cautions slowed the race for 11 laps; allowing for 14 lead changes.[2] Bobby Allison came into this race seeking to avoid going winless for the season for the first time since 1977. He qualified well but his chaotic season ended with a 17th-place, two laps down.[2] This was the final race for Rusty Wallace competing for Cliff Stewart Racing.[2]
Blair Aiken, Clark Dwyer, and John Soares, Jr would retire after the end of the race while Scott Autrey and Bud Hickey would make their only Winston Cup Series appearance at this event.[3] Notable crew chiefs for this race included Junie Donlavey, Robin Pemberton, Joey Arrington, Jake Elder, Travis Carter, Bud Moore, Tim Brewer, Jeff Hammond, Harry Hyde, Kirk Shelmerdine and Darrell Bryant.[4]
| Grid | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Billy Hagan | ||
| 2 | 27 | Tim Richmond | Raymond Beadle | ||
| 3 | 11 | Darrell Waltrip | Junior Johnson | ||
| 4 | 15 | Ricky Rudd | Bud Moore | ||
| 5 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Harry Melling | ||
| 6 | 22 | Bobby Allison | Bobby Allison | ||
| 7 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress | ||
| 8 | 33 | Harry Gant | Hal Needham | ||
| 9 | 7 | Kyle Petty | Wood Brothers | ||
| 10 | 47 | Ron Bouchard | Jack Beebe | ||
| 11 | 5 | Geoffrey Bodine | Rick Hendrick | ||
| 12 | 75 | Lake Speed | RahMoc Enterprises | ||
| 13 | 12 | Neil Bonnett | Junior Johnson | ||
| 14 | 98 | Jim Bown | Johnny Kieper | ||
| 15 | 18 | Glen Sturer | Glen Steurer | ||
| 16 | 78 | Jim Robinson | Lois Williams | ||
| 17 | 04 | Hershel McGriff | Gary Smith | ||
| 18 | 32 | Ruben Garcia | Fred Stoke | ||
| 19 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Dave Marcis | ||
| 20 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers |
| Pos | Driver | Manufacturer | Time/Status | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | 119 | 27 | 2:58:03 | |
| 2 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | 119 | 78 | +0.45 seconds | |
| 3 | 12 | Neil Bonnett | Chevrolet | 119 | 3 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 4 | 33 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet | 119 | 1 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 5 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | 119 | 6 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 6 | 5 | Geoffrey Bodine | Chevrolet | 119 | 2 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 7 | 11 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | 119 | 1 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 8 | 43 | Richard Petty | Pontiac | 119 | 0 | Led lap under green flag | |
| 9 | 75 | Lake Speed | Pontiac | 118 | 1 | +1 lap | |
| 10 | 47 | Ron Bouchard | Buick | 118 | 0 | +1 lap | |
| 11 | 11 | Glen Steurer | Chevrolet | 118 | 0 | +1 lap | |
| 12 | 78 | Jim Robinson | Oldsmobile | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 13 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 14 | 32 | Ruben Garcia | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 15 | 73 | Bill Schmitt | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 16 | 98 | Jim Bown | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 17 | 22 | Bobby Allison | Buick | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 18 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | +2 laps | |
| 19 | 07 | Derrike Cope | Ford | 116 | 0 | +3 laps | |
| 20 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Pontiac | 116 | 0 | +3 laps |
Section reference: [2]
| Pos | Driver | Points | Differential | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darrell Waltrip | 4292 | 0 | |
| 2 | 4191 | -101 | ||
| 3 | 4028 | -264 | ||
| 4 | 3897 | -395 | ||
| 5 | 3862 | -430 | ||
| 6 | 3857 | -435 | ||
| 7 | 3683 | -609 | ||
| 8 | 3561 | -731 | ||
| 9 | 3532 | -769 | ||
| 10 | 3507 | -785 |