The 1970 Alabama 500 was a

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

Grand National Series The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 to 1970, then the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand Nation ...

event that was held on April 12, 1970, at

Alabama International Motor Speedway Talladega Superspeedway, nicknamed “'Dega”, and formerly named Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS) from 1969 to 1989, is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base ...

(now Talladega Superspeedway) in

Talladega, Alabama Talladega (, also ) is the county seat of Talladega County, Alabama, United States. It was incorporated in 1835. At the 2020 census, the population was 15,861. Talladega is approximately east of one of the state’s biggest cities, Birmingham. ...

. As the inaugural running of what is now known as the

GEICO 500 The GEICO 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held at the Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama. The race is usually held in April or May. The 1997 event stands as the fastest NASCAR race to date ever run with an average speed of ...

, it helped to serve as a prime example of Talladega races yet to come.

Nord Krauskopf Nord Krauskopf (January 26, 1922 – August 3, 1986) was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race car owner whose career spanned from 1966 to 1977. He was the owner of K&K Insurance and a part of the business since its foundation in 1952. This was a ...

Bobby Isaac Robert Vance Isaac (August 1, 1932 – August 14, 1977) was an American stock car racing driver. Isaac made his first NASCAR appearance in 1961, and quickly forged a reputation of one of the toughest competitors of the 1960s and 1970s. He was most ...

won the

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the rac ...

, and the race was won by

Petty Enterprises Petty Enterprises (formerly Lee Petty Engineering) was a NASCAR racing team based in Level Cross, North Carolina, USA. It was founded by Lee Petty with his two sons Richard Petty and Maurice Petty. The team was later owned by Richard Petty, hi ...

Pete Hamilton Peter Goodwill Hamilton (July 20, 1942 – March 21, 2017) was an American professional stock car racing driver. He competed in NASCAR for six years, where he won four times in his career (including the 1970 Daytona 500), three times driving ...

Background

Alabama International Motor Speedway (AIMS), later known as Talladega Superspeedway, is a

motorsports Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

complex located north of

. It is located on the former

Anniston Air Force Base Anniston Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force airfield located approximately 10 miles north-northeast of Talladega, Alabama. It was active from 1942 to 1945 and 1949 to 1952. It is currently the site of the Talladega Superspeedway a ...

in the small city of

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln ...

. The track is a

Tri-oval A tri-oval is a shape which derives its name from the two other shapes it most resembles, a triangle and an oval. Rather than meeting at sharp, definable angles as the sides of a triangle do, in a tri-oval these angles are instead rounded into sm ...

and was constructed by

International Speedway Corporation International Speedway Corporation (ISC) was a corporation whose primary business is the ownership and management of motorsports race tracks. ISC was founded by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. in 1953 for the construction of Daytona International ...

, a business controlled by the

France Family The France family is known as the "first family" of NASCAR racing. NASCAR was founded by Bill France, Sr. in 1948 and to this day France family members own and operate NASCAR. Jim France, one of the sons of the founder, is the current chairman and ...

, in the 1960s. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line – located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the

series such as the

NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...

NASCAR Xfinity Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

, and the

NASCAR Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of thr ...

. The track is the longest NASCAR oval with a length of , and the track at its peak had a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of 175,000 spectators.

Qualifying

Failed to qualify:

Dick May Richard May (November 7, 1930June 9, 2009) was a NASCAR driver who competed in 185 races in the NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup Series between 1967 and 1985. In the 1975 running of the Mason-Dixon 500, May drove five different cars but did ...

(#67),

J.D. McDuffie John Delphus McDuffie Jr. (December 5, 1938 – August 11, 1991) was an American racing driver. He competed in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series from 1963 to 1991, collecting 106 top-10 finishes during his career, despite never finishing on the lead ...

, Johnny Halford (#57), Wayne Smith

Race report

The ABC broadcast picked up the action just after halfway at about lap 100. One of the announcers highlighted what had happened during the untelevised part of the race by showing scale models of the cars that started up front and talking about where they were now. However, the race was hard to watch on television as the announcers and apparently even NASCAR officials struggled to figure out who was leading at the end; making for a very poor and unprofessional finish. The TV crew thought Bobby Isaac was the leader and was confused when Hamilton was given the checkered flag. The broadcast crew left the air before the victory lane interview, thinking that Pete Hamilton won the race. A crowd of 36,000 was present at the race. 32 lead changes occurred between eight drivers:

Buddy Baker Elzie Wylie "Buddy" Baker Jr. (January 25, 1941 – August 10, 2015) was an American professional stock car racing driver and commentator. Over the course of his 33-year racing career, he won 19 races in the NASCAR Cup Series, including the 198 ...

, Hamilton, Isaac, David Pearson,

Cale Yarborough William Caleb "Cale" Yarborough (born March 27, 1939) is an American former NASCAR Winston Cup Series driver and owner, businessman, and farmer. He is one of only two drivers in NASCAR history to win three consecutive championships, winning in 1 ...

, Richard Brickhouse,

Charlie Glotzbach Charles Lee Glotzbach (June 19, 1938 – April 23, 2021) was an Auto Racing Club of America, ARCA and NASCAR Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, Winston Cup Series driver. He holds one of the oldest race records in NASCAR. He has the record for fas ...

and

Bobby Allison Robert Arthur Allison (born December 3, 1937) is a former American professional stock car racing driver and owner. Allison was the founder of the Alabama Gang, a group of drivers based in Hueytown, Alabama, where there were abundant short track ...

. Bill Shirey blew his engine on lap 3 while Dale Alonzo inflicted terminal damage on lap 10. Further engine failures on the vehicles of Don Tarr on lap 17, Richard Brickhouse on lap 25, Bobby Mausgrover on the same lap, and E.J. Trivette on lap 73. Henley Gray's steering forced his exit on lap 78. Jim Vandiver overheated his vehicle on lap 93. Two more engine failures as Raymond Williams had to leave the race on lap 107 and Charlie Glotzbach on lap 117. Bill Champion's vehicle developed an oil leak on lap 125 while Bobby Allison lost his engine on lap 126. Elmo Langley could not continue the race due to a faulty engine on lap 149. Water pump issues took Ron Keselowski of the race while Alton Jones had to settle for a 24th-place finish due to engine problems on lap 155. Longtime Alabama independent driver Ben Arnold fielded cars for Alton Jones and himself. Cale Yarborough lost several laps on pit road when his car wouldn't refire, while Richard Petty lost a couple more laps himself when the crew had to go under the hood of the #43 Plymouth. Notable crew chiefs at this race included

Harry Hyde Harry Hyde (January 17, 1925 – May 13, 1996) was a leading crew chief in NASCAR stock car racing in the 1960s through the 1980s, winning 56 races and 88 pole positions. He was the 1970 championship crew chief for Bobby Isaac. He inspired t ...

Dale Inman Dale Inman (born August 19, 1936) is a retired NASCAR Grand National/Winston Cup Series crew chief from Level Cross, Randolph County, North Carolina. He is best known for being the crew chief of Richard Petty at Petty Enterprises during three de ...

Maurice Petty Maurice Petty (March 27, 1939July 25, 2020) was an American NASCAR crew chief and engine builder for Petty Enterprises, of which he was part owner. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2011. He was subsequently en ...

Tom Vandiver Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

Tom Ingram Tom Ingram (born 20 August 1993) is a British racing driver, currently racing in the British Touring Car Championship. Having won the Ginetta Junior Championship in 2010 and the G50 class of the Ginetta GT Supercup in 2011, Ingram was named ...

Dick Hutcherson Richard "Dick" Hutcherson (November 30, 1931 – November 6, 2005) was an American businessman and a former stock car racer. A native of Keokuk, Iowa, Hutcherson drove in NASCAR competition from 1964 to 1967. He won 14 races, finishing runner-up ...

and

Glen Wood Glenn Alexandria Wood (July 18, 1925 – January 18, 2019) was an American NASCAR driver from Stuart, Virginia. Early life He and brother Leonard Wood co-founded the legendary Wood Brothers Racing team in 1953, and won four races over an elev ...

Baker's accident

Even though Buddy Baker led the most laps with 101 (along with having a nine-second distance between

by lap 170),

pit road In motorsports, a pit stop is a pause for refuelling, new tyres, repairs, mechanical adjustments, a driver change, as a penalty, or any combination of the above. These stops occur in an area called the pits, most commonly accessed via a pit lan ...

problems allowed Hamilton to lap him. Baker began to close in on Hamilton. However, Baker's tire blew heading into the fourth turn on lap 175; fragments of the tire would ultimately damage the engine cooler that resulted in a serious fire for his Dodge. Baker attempted to put out the fire by spinning into the grass. Baker suffered second-degree burns to the legs and face but was subsequently released from the hospital. When asked about the incident, Baker stated, "it was the scariest thing that ever happened to me. I don't really mind losing this time; I'm just happy to be alive." Baker would finish 12th, as Hamilton led the final 18 laps to give him the victory, with a 44-second lead over second-place finisher Isaac; Pearson,

Benny Parsons Benjamin Stewart Parsons (July 12, 1941 – January 16, 2007) was an American NASCAR driver, and later an announcer/analyst/pit reporter on SETN, TBS, ABC, ESPN, NBC, and TNT. He became famous as the 1973 NASCAR Winston Cup Series champion, and ...

and Yarborough closed out the top five. The win was Hamilton's second of the season, and Hamilton would eventually win the second Talladega race.

Finishing order

''Source:

References

{{reflist

Alabama 500 The YellaWood 500 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car racing, stock car race held at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama, hosting an event in the NASCAR playoffs. The race is one of four NASCAR Cup Series races currently run with tapered sp ...

NASCAR races at Talladega Superspeedway