Race details | |||
---|---|---|---|
Race 27 of 28 in the 1973 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series | |||
Date | October 7, 1973 | ||
Official name | National 500 | ||
Location | Charlotte Motor Speedway (Concord, North Carolina) | ||
Course | Permanent racing facility 1.500 mi (2.414 km) |
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Distance | 334 laps, 500 mi (804 km) | ||
Average speed | 145.240 miles per hour (233.741 km/h) | ||
Pole position | |||
Driver | Wood Brothers | ||
Most laps led | |||
Driver | Cale Yarborough | Richard Howard | |
Laps | 257 | ||
Winner | |||
No. 11 | Cale Yarborough | Richard Howard | |
Television in the United States | |||
Network | untelevised | ||
Announcers | none |
The 1973 National 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on October 7, 1973 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the American community of Concord, North Carolina.[1][2][3] Temperatures for the race would vary between 53.1 °F (11.7 °C) and 75.9 °F (24.4 °C); with 63.6 °F (17.6 °C) being the average temperature.[4]
334 laps took place on a paved track spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km) with two cautions given out for sixteen laps.[1][2][3] However, the race took three hours and twenty-six minutes to finish with Cale Yarborough defeating Richard Petty by a time of 1.4 seconds.[1][2][3] Yarborough and Petty would lap the field three times before retrieving the checkered flag.[5] David Pearson won the official pole position with a speed of 158.315 miles per hour (254.783 km/h) - which was equivalent to 34.109 seconds.[1][2][3] Sixty-four thousand people attended this live racing event.[1][2][3] Amongst the other drivers who finished in the top ten were: Bobby Allison, Benny Parsons, Dick Trickle, Lennie Pond, Buddy Arrington, Elmo Langley, Cecil Gordon, and Henley Gray.[1][2][3]
Harry Gant would make his racing debut here; ultimately finishing in 11th place.[1][2] Wendell Scott would retire after this race; making a 12th place finish in this event.[1][2] Buddy Baker would become the last-place finisher here due to a disqualification on lap 228.[1][2][3] What made this race extra important to drivers that $100 was given out for every lap that a driver led ($539.51 in today's money). Yarborough and Petty were said to have engines in their cars that exceeded the horsepower permitted by NASCAR during that era. Bobby Allison filed a complaint with Bill France, Jr. which resulted in a 6-hour meeting and "satisfactory restitution."
Preceded by 1973 Old Dominion 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series Season 1973 |
Succeeded by 1973 American 500 |