1991 First Union 400 Explained
The 1991 First Union 400 was the seventh stock car race of the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 41st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 21, 1991, before an audience of 41,500 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina at the North Wilkesboro Speedway, a 0.625miles oval short track. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. At race's end, owner-driver Darrell Waltrip would manage to get his car away from the chaotic nature of the race, leading the final 52 laps to take his 80th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.[1] [2] To fill out the top three, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt and Travis Carter Enterprises driver Jimmy Spencer would finish second and third, respectively.
Background
North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about five miles east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures 0.625miles and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill frontstretch. It has previously held races in NASCAR's top three series, including 93 Winston Cup Series races. The track, a NASCAR original, operated from 1949, NASCAR's inception, until the track's original closure in 1996. The speedway briefly reopened in 2010 and hosted several stock car series races before closing again in the spring of 2011. It was re-opened in August 2022 for grassroots racing.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
*After sustaining burns in a crash at the
1991 Valleydale Meats 500,
Sterling Marlin would be replaced by relief driver
Charlie Glotzbach for qualifying.
[3] During the race, Marlin would manage to start the race, before being replaced by Glotzbach one lap into the race. As a result of starting the race, Marlin is credited with the finish.
Qualifying
Qualifying was originally scheduled to be split into two rounds. The first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, April 19, at 3:00 PM EST. However, due to fog, the first round was cancelled, and qualifying was condensed into one round,[4] which was held on Saturday, April 20, at 12:15 AM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 1–30 would be decided on time,[5] and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two provisionals were given. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.
Brett Bodine, driving for King Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 19.357 and an average speed of 116.237mph.[6] [7]
Eight drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
Race results
| Fin | St | | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
|---|
| 1 | 13 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 52 | running | 180 | $53,800 |
|---|
| 2 | 17 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 400 | 19 | running | 175 | $35,225 |
|---|
| 3 | 14 | 98 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 400 | 70 | running | 170 | $20,350 |
|---|
| 4 | 29 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 160 | $16,450 |
|---|
| 5 | 9 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 37 | running | 160 | $14,725 |
|---|
| 6 | 26 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 150 | $13,875 |
|---|
| 7 | 21 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 400 | 0 | running | 146 | $9,280 |
|---|
| 8 | 32 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 142 | $11,800 |
|---|
| 9 | 20 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 138 | $12,450 |
|---|
| 10 | 22 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 23 | running | 139 | $13,830 |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 | running | 130 | $10,175 |
|---|
| 12 | 7 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 399 | 0 | running | 127 | $7,575 |
|---|
| 13 | 12 | 66 | Lake Speed | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 399 | 0 | running | 124 | $7,300 |
|---|
| 14 | 15 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 398 | 0 | running | 121 | $6,950 |
|---|
| 15 | 18 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 397 | 0 | running | 118 | $11,500 |
|---|
| 16 | 33 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 397 | 0 | running | 115 | $6,550 |
|---|
| 17 | 28 | 55 | Ted Musgrave (R) | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 397 | 0 | running | 112 | $5,625 |
|---|
| 18 | 3 | 42 | Kyle Petty | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 396 | 0 | running | 109 | $9,250 |
|---|
| 19 | 23 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 395 | 0 | running | 106 | $6,200 |
|---|
| 20 | 25 | 20 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 394 | 0 | running | 103 | $5,450 |
|---|
| 21 | 27 | 68 | Bobby Hamilton (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Pontiac | 392 | 0 | running | 100 | $3,600 |
|---|
| 22 | 31 | 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 388 | 0 | running | 97 | $3,300 |
|---|
| 23 | 4 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 388 | 66 | running | 99 | $7,125 |
|---|
| 24 | 10 | 75 | Joe Ruttman | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 378 | 0 | running | 91 | $5,525 |
|---|
| 25 | 6 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 369 | 0 | crash | 88 | $5,500 |
|---|
| 26 | 16 | 34 | Dick Trickle | AAG Racing | Buick | 369 | 0 | crash | 85 | $3,100 |
|---|
| 27 | 24 | 8 | Rick Wilson | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 339 | 0 | crash | 82 | $5,200 |
|---|
| 28 | 8 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 333 | 0 | flagged | 79 | $10,485 |
|---|
| 29 | 2 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 323 | 0 | crash | 76 | $8,675 |
|---|
| 30 | 1 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 218 | 103 | crash | 83 | $15,300 |
|---|
| 31 | 30 | 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 207 | 0 | engine | 70 | $5,000 |
|---|
| 32 | 5 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | 192 | 30 | crash | 72 | $2,925 |
|---|
| 33 | 19 | 24 | Mickey Gibbs | Team III Racing | Pontiac | 110 | 0 | header | 64 | $2,500 |
|---|
| Failed to qualify |
|---|
| 34 | | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | |
|---|
| 35 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac |
|---|
| 36 | 70 | J. D. McDuffie | McDuffie Racing | Pontiac |
|---|
| 37 | 47 | Rich Bickle | Close Racing | Oldsmobile |
|---|
| 38 | 41 | Larry Pearson | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet |
|---|
| 39 | 51 | Jeff Purvis (R) | Phoenix Racing | Oldsmobile |
|---|
| 40 | 76 | Bill Sedgwick | Spears Motorsports | Chevrolet |
|---|
| 41 | 44 | Irv Hoerr | Labonte Motorsports | Oldsmobile |
|---|
| Official race results | |
|---|
Standings after the race
- Drivers' Championship standings
- Note: Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.
Notes and References
- News: Higgins . Tom . April 22, 1991 . Trouble brews in ragged North Wilkesboro race . 24 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Droschak . David . April 22, 1991 . Spencer overcomes penalty, takes third place . 10 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Higgins . Tom . April 19, 1991 . Glotzbach charges into substitute role . 43 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Higgins . Tom . April 20, 1991 . Irvan's feet back on ground after dining with president . 37 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: April 19, 1991 . NASCAR today . 35 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Higgins . Tom . April 21, 1991 . Brett Bodine back in front again at North Wilkesboro (Part 1) . 43 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
- News: Higgins . Tom . April 21, 1991 . Brett Bodine back in front again at North Wilkesboro (Part 2) . 52 . . February 13, 2023 . Newspapers.com.
