1987 Southern 500
The 1987 Heinz Southern 500, the 38th running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race held on September 6, 1987 at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina. Contested over 202 laps – shortened from 367 laps due to rain – on the 1.366 mile (2.198 km) speedway, it was the 21st race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. Dale Earnhardt of Richard Childress Racing won the race.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 21 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
| Date | September 6, 1987 | ||
| Official name | Southern 500 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway, Darlington County, South Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.366 mi (2.198 km) | ||
| Distance | 202 laps, 275.932 mi (444.069 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 367 laps, 501.322 mi (806.8 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 82 °F (28 °C); wind speeds of 17.6 miles per hour (28.3 km/h)[1] | ||
| Average speed | 115.52 miles per hour (185.91 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ranier-Lundy Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 109 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins & Larry Nuber | ||
Race report
Johnathan Lee Edwards would make his final NASCAR career start while Richard Petty would finish in the "top ten" for the 700th time in his career.[2]
The last race attempt for Tim Richmond sees him withdraw for health reasons, then resign from Hendrick Motorsports later in the month.[2] An attempted comeback in 1988 was ultimately not to be, due to a highly controversial "positive" drug test that barred him for the 1988 season. He was reinstated later in the year after a settled lawsuit, but could not find a ride, and ultimately never raced again before his death in 1989.
Alan Kulwicki had engine problems on lap 77; picking up his only last place-finish.[2] Harry Gant could handle his vehicle's clutch and had to exit the race on lap 95.[2] Greg Sacks' engine gave out on lap 96 while Johnathan Lee Edwards had the same problem on lap 122.[2] Trevor Boys inflicted terminal vehicle damage on lap 126 while fatigue ended H.B. Bailey's race on lap 133.[2] Connie Saylor would pass out due to exhaustion on lap 140.[2] Bobby Allison blew his vehicle's engine on lap 185 while a troublesome distributor ended Buddy Baker's race on lap 199.[2]
The battle for the win turned into a showdown between Earnhardt and Richard Petty; Petty gunned past Earnhardt on a Lap 188 restart but Earnhardt retook the lead on lap 191 just before rain brought out what would be the race-ending yellow at Lap 198.[2] This was the first Darlington race with more than 10 cars on the lead lap despite rain ending it early.[2] Rookie sensation Davey Allison won the pole and led 86 laps but crashed in the fourth turn at Lap 164; the crash swept up Lake Speed while Mike Potter spun behind them and was drilled by Benny Parsons.[2]
Qualifying
| Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 | Davey Allison | Ford | Harry Ranier |
| 2 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Harry Melling |
| 3 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Junior Johnson |
| 4 | 83 | Lake Speed | Oldsmobile | Lake Speed |
| 5 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | Richard Childress |
| 6 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | Ford | Alan Kulwicki |
| 7 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | Rick Hendrick |
| 8 | 4 | Rick Wilson | Oldsmobile | Larry McClure |
| 9 | 35 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet | Rick Hendrick |
| 10 | 33 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet | Hal Needham |
Top 10 finishers
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps led | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 109 | Running |
| 2 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 0 | Running |
| 3 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 2 | Running |
| 4 | 44 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 0 | Running |
| 5 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | Chevrolet | 0 | Running |
| 6 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 0 | Running |
| 7 | 15 | Ricky Rudd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 0 | Running |
| 8 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 1 | Running |
| 9 | 26 | Morgan Shepherd | King Racing | Buick | 0 | Running |
| 10 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 | Running |
Race statistics
The race had the following properties:[3]
- Time of race: 2:23:19
- Average Speed: 115.52 miles per hour (185.91 km/h)
- Pole Speed: 157.232 miles per hour (253.040 km/h)
- Cautions: 5 for 50 laps
- Margin of Victory: under caution
- Lead changes: 13
- Percent of race run under caution: 24.8%
- Average green flag run: 38 laps
References
- Weather information at the Old Farmers' Almanac
- Racing information at Racing Reference
- Race statistics at Race Database