1982 Winston Western 500
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 30 of 30 in the 1982 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Riverside International Raceway | |||
| Date | November 21, 1982 | ||
| Official name | Winston Western 500 | ||
| Location | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.700 mi (4.345 km) | ||
| Distance | 119 laps, 311.8 mi (501.7 km) | ||
| Weather | Cold with temperatures reaching up to 59 °F (15 °C); wind speeds up to 2.9 miles per hour (4.7 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 99.823 miles per hour (160.650 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 38,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Junior Johnson & Associates | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Tim Richmond | Jim Stacy Racing | |
| Laps | 92 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 2 | Tim Richmond | Jim Stacy Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers |
Buddy Baker Ken Squier | ||
The 1982 Winston Western 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event held on November 21, 1982, at Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California.
By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.
Summary
Tim Richmond would defeat Ricky Rudd after more than three hours (119 laps) of racing action in front of 38000 people.[2] Seven seconds would end up separating the winner from the second-place finisher.[2] Darrell Waltrip would qualify for the race with the pole position driving at speeds of up to 114.995 miles per hour (185.067 km/h) in his individual qualifying session.[2] Dale Earnhardt, known to most racing fans as The Intimidator, would end up becoming "intimidated" himself due to a last-place finish on lap 8 due to an oil leak.[2] There would be 42 drivers on the grid; two of them would be Canadian while the other 40 were born in the United States of America.[2] Only one Chevrolet vehicle would participate in the race; driven by Mr. Jim Reich and owned by Mr. Ivan Baldwin.[2]
Other notable drivers at this race were Benny Parsons, Morgan Shepherd, Mark Martin, J.D. McDuffie, and Terry Labonte. Clive Skipton was the only non-qualifier for this event. [2] Trevor Boys and Derrike Cope would make their introduction into NASCAR during this race while Reich, Jim Lee, and Terry Herman would retire after this race.[3]
While the total purse of the race would be $203,745 in American dollars ($500,439.87 when adjusted for inflation), the winner of the race would receive $24,730 of the purse ($60,742.00 when adjusted for inflation) while 41st place finisher Kevin Terris would receive a meager $525 of that same amount ($1,289.51 when adjusted for inflation).[4]
Top ten finishers
| Pos[2] | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Winnings | Laps led |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 2 | Tim Richmond | Buick | 119 | $24,730 | 92 |
| 2 | 5 | 3 | Ricky Rudd | Pontiac | 119 | $16,980 | 1 |
| 3 | 1 | 11 | Darrell Waltrip | Buick | 119 | $25,100 | 8 |
| 4 | 13 | 21 | Neil Bonnett | Ford | 119 | $6,100 | 1 |
| 5 | 20 | 02 | Mark Martin | Buick | 118 | $7,760 | 0 |
| 6 | 15 | 57 | Ron Bouchard | Buick | 117 | $10,120 | 0 |
| 7 | 29 | 55 | Benny Parsons | Buick | 117 | $2,850 | 0 |
| 8 | 16 | 98 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick | 116 | $5,300 | 0 |
| 9 | 25 | 90 | Jody Ridley | Ford | 115 | $9,850 | 0 |
| 10 | 23 | 16 | Jim Bown | Buick | 115 | $2,550 | 0 |
Timeline
- Start of race: Darrell Waltrip had the pole position as the green flag was waved
- Lap 5: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Darrell Waltrip
- Lap 8: A sudden oil leak from Dale Earnhardt's vehicle made him the last-place finisher of the event
- Lap 9: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison
- Lap 12: Kevin Terris' vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles
- Lap 14: Ricky Rudd took over the lead from Tim Richmond
- Lap 15: J.D. McDuffie took over the lead from Ricky Rudd
- Lap 16: Don Waterman took over the lead from J.D. McDuffie
- Lap 17: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Don Waterman
- Lap 20: The transmission on Joe Ruttman's vehicle stopped working properly
- Lap 21: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison
- Lap 31: Randy Becker's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles
- Lap 40: John Krebs had a terminal crash
- Lap 42: An oil leak came out of Derrike Cope's vehicle
- Lap 46: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Tim Richmond
- Lap 48: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Bobby Allison
- Lap 62: Rick McCray's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles
- Lap 72: Darrell Waltrip took over the lead from Tim Richmond
- Lap 76: Harry Gant took over the lead from Darrell Waltrip
- Lap 81: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Harry Gant
- Lap 92: The transmission on Hershel McGriff's vehicle stopped working properly
- Lap 94: Terry Labonte had a terminal crash
- Lap 95: An oil leak came out of Harry Gant's vehicle
- Lap 97: Neil Bonnett took over the lead from Tim Richmond
- Lap 98: Tim Richmond took over the lead from Neil Bonnett
- Lap 111: Bobby Allison's vehicle suddenly developed engine troubles
- Finish: Tim Richmond was officially declared the winner of the event
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darrell Waltrip | 4489 | 0 |
| 2 | Bobby Allison | 4417 | -72 |
| 3 | Terry Labonte | 4211 | -278 |
| 4 | Harry Gant | 3877 | -612 |
| 5 | Richard Petty | 3814 | -675 |
| 6 | Dave Marcis | 3666 | -823 |
| 7 | Buddy Arrington | 3642 | -847 |
| 8 | Ron Bouchard | 3545 | -944 |
| 9 | Ricky Rudd | 3542 | -947 |
| 10 | Morgan Shepherd | 3451 | -1038 |
References
- ↑ Weather information for the 1982 Winston Western 500 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Racing Reference
- ↑ 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Race-Database
- ↑ 1982 Winston Western 500 information at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
| Preceded by 1982 Atlanta Journal 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1982-3 |
Succeeded by 1983 Daytona 500 |
| Preceded by 1981 |
Winston Western 500 races 1982 |
Succeeded by 1983 |