1982 Daytona 500
Race details[1]
Race 1 of 30 in the 1982 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season
1982 Daytona 500 program cover
1982 Daytona 500 program cover
Date February 14, 1982 (1982-02-14)
Location Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, Florida
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4.02336 km)
Distance 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Weather Temperatures of 72 °F (22 °C); wind speeds of 13 miles per hour (21 km/h)
Average speed 153.991 miles per hour (247.824 km/h)
Attendance 120,000[2]
Pole position
Driver Harry Ranier
Most laps led
Driver Bobby Allison DiGard Motorsports
Laps 147
Winner
No. 88 Bobby Allison DiGard Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network CBS
Announcers Ken Squier
David Hobbs
Ned Jarrett
Larry Nuber

The 1982 Daytona 500, the 24th running of the event, was the first race of the 1982 NASCAR Winston Cup season. It was the first time that the Daytona 500 was the first race of the season.[3]

Bobby Allison would take the win in the #88 Gatorade-sponsored Buick Regal.[2] Allison holds the distinction of leading the most laps in consecutive Daytona 500s in 1981 and 1982, and then win the next year. A live audience of 120,000 patrons was there for the 194-minute race in which five cautions would slow the field for 34 laps; there were a total of 31 lead changes over the course of the 200 laps. Allison's margin of victory over Cale Yarborough was 23 seconds, more than half a lap.[2]

No Chevrolet vehicles were in this race; the last time this happened was at the 1971 Space City 300 at Meyer Speedway in Texas.[4]

This event marked the first Daytona 500 starts for Joe Ruttman, Ron Bouchard, Jim Sauter, Rick Wilson, Tom Sneva, Mark Martin, Delma Cowart, Rusty Wallace, and Lake Speed,[2] the only Daytona 500 start for Lowell Cowell,[2] and the last Daytona 500 starts for Roy Smith, Gary Balough, Tighe Scott, Stan Barrett, Bobby Wawak, Donnie Allison, Billie Harvey, and Joe Millikan.[2]

Bumpergate

Allison's win caused controversy when his rear bumper fell off during the race. Allison's car was apparently tapped from behind by Cale Yarborough as they raced through turns three and four early in the race. After contact, Allison's bumper peeled off and flew high into the air before landing back in traffic. Several cars either ran over the bumper or collided while trying to avoid it, causing a huge crash that brought out the race's first caution.

After the bumper was off Allison's car, it was consistently faster than the competition allowing him to pull away to a significant lead despite other drivers working together in the draft.

Yarborough's crew chief, Tim Brewer, later intimated that Allison's team had intended for the bumper to come off because they knew it would offer a major aerodynamic advantage, either using hollow bolts or very thin wire to attach it superficially to the car. Allison and his crew chief Gary Nelson denied that and continue to deny it to this day.

Results

Pos Grid No. Driver Car Make Laps Status Laps
led
Points
1 788Bobby AllisonBuick Regal200Running147185
2 327Cale YarboroughBuick Regal200Running5175
3 82Joe RuttmanBuick Regal200Running0165
4 544Terry LabonteBuick Regal199Running3165
5 209Bill ElliottFord Thunderbird198Running0155
6 2247Ron BouchardBuick Regal198Running0150
7 233Harry GantBuick Regal198Running12151
8 41Buddy BakerBuick Regal198Running3147
9 2390Jody RidleyFord Thunderbird197Running0138
10 3830Roy SmithPontiac Grand Prix196Running0134
11 3175Gary BaloughPontiac Grand Prix196Running0130
12 175Jim SauterBuick Regal193Running5132
13 3370J. D. McDuffiePontiac Grand Prix193Running0124
14 3617Lowell CowellBuick Regal191Running0121
15 3967Buddy ArringtonChrysler Imperial191Running0118
16 4264Tommy GaleFord Thunderbird185Running0115
17 4052Jimmy MeansBuick Regal185Running0112
18 1362Rick WilsonOldsmobile Cutlass182Engine0109
19 2498Morgan ShepherdBuick Regal161Engine0106
20 611Darrell WaltripBuick Regal151Engine9108
21 951A. J. FoytOldsmobile Cutlass145Vibration0100
22 2537Tom SnevaBuick Regal144Transmission097
23 1242Kyle PettyPontiac Grand Prix131Engine799
24 1171Dave MarcisBuick Regal131Piston396
25 1421Neil BonnettFord Thunderbird104Crash088
26 128Benny ParsonsPontiac Grand Prix103Crash085
27 2143Richard PettyPontiac Grand Prix103Crash082
28 1896Elliott Forbes-RobinsonBuick Regal101Crash079
29 3059Tighe ScottBuick Regal81Crash076
30 2602Mark MartinBuick Regal75Valve073
31 416Stan BarrettBuick Regal65Engine070
32 2894Bobby WawakBuick Regal56Engine067
33 370Delma CowartBuick Regal55Engine064
34 2918Donnie AllisonBuick Regal53Oil Pressure061
35 163Ricky RuddPontiac Grand Prix51Engine058
36 1015Dale EarnhardtFord Thunderbird44Engine660
37 1972Rusty WallaceBuick Regal40Engine052
38 1513Dick BrooksFord Thunderbird24Piston049
39 3531Billie HarveyBuick Regal6Valve046
40 2750Joe MillikanPontiac Grand Prix3Crash043
41 3266Lake SpeedBuick Regal3Crash040
42 3423Geoffrey BodineBuick Regal3Crash037
Source[5]

Consolation race

Fourteen cars competed in a consolation race for non-qualifiers. Slick Johnson started from the pole in the event; he finished second, with Tim Richmond winning the 30-lap race. Ronnie Thomas, Bill Meazel and James Hylton rounded out the top five.[6]

References

  1. "Weather of the 1982 Daytona 500". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Archived from the original on 2013-07-02. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "1982 Daytona 500 results". Racing-reference. Archived from the original on 2007-03-11. Retrieved 2009-08-01.
  3. "1982 NASCAR Winston Cup Results". Racing-reference. Archived from the original on 2016-03-23. Retrieved 2009-08-01.
  4. 1971 Space City 300 racing information at Racing-Reference.info
  5. "Race Results".
  6. Hinshaw, Lydia (February 13, 1982). "Richmond Slips By Slick For Win". The Daytona Beach News-Journal. Daytona Beach, FL. p. 4B. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
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