The 1973 National 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 ...
Winston Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, 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. ...
racing event that took place on October 7, 1973, at
Charlotte Motor Speedway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including th ...
in
Concord
Concord may refer to:
Meaning "agreement"
* Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony)
* Harmony, in music
* Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
.
The Yom Kippur war between Israel and the Arabs broke out the day before. The Arab oil embargo soon went into effect and resulted in cancellation of the Texas race and shortening of 1974 races by 10%. Charlotte Motor Speedway was undergoing a leadership shakeup as original owner
Bruton Smith
Ollen Bruton Smith (March 3, 1927 – June 22, 2022) was a promoter and owner/CEO of NASCAR track owner Speedway Motorsports, Inc. He was inducted into NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2016 and the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2007. He was bill ...
was purchasing stock from holders looking to cash out; by 1973 he’d amassed nearly half the 1.4 million shares accounted for by the Speedway and despite public denials was seeking to usurp Richard Howard, the Speedway president appointed as such by bankruptcy court in 1963.
Qualifying
The first driver to qualify for pole,
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 ...
, was found in a post qualifying inspection to have modified his restrictor plate in an illegal fashion. Glotsbach's team was fined $500 and the $1,000 pole bonus he was to receive was rescinded. Glotsbach was forced to re-qualify after changes were made to the car to make it legal, and qualified 34th. Pole was then awarded to
David Pearson, who had qualified second.
Dean Dalton, whose performance on Saturday did not qualify him for the race, was allowed into the race 41st on the grid, because of the above.
Race report
334 laps took place on a paved track spanning with two cautions given out for sixteen laps.
However, the race took three hours and twenty-six minutes to finish with
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 ...
defeating
Richard Petty
Richard Lee Petty (born July 2, 1937), nicknamed "The King", is an American former stock car racing driver who raced from 1958 to 1992 in the former NASCAR Grand National and Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most notabl ...
by a time of 1.4 seconds.
Yarborough and Petty would lap the field three times before retrieving the checkered flag.
David Pearson won the official
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 ...
with a speed of - which was equivalent to 34.109 seconds.
Sixty-four thousand people attended this live racing event.
The race had a mobile home (driven by Tim Flock) to accompany the drivers and their vehicles on the opening parade lap; which was unusual back then by NASCAR standards and is still considered to be unusual in today's NASCAR.
Harry Gant
Harold Phil Gant["Harry P. Gant"](_blank)
(born January 10, 1940), known for his many nicknames such as "The Ban ...
would make his racing debut here; ultimately finishing in 11th place.
Dick Trickle
Richard Leroy Trickle (October 27, 1941 – May 16, 2013) was an American race car driver. He raced for decades around the short tracks of Wisconsin, winning many championships along the way. Trickle competed in the ASA, ARTGO, ARCA, All ...
also made his debut here, finishing an impressive fifth.
Wendell Scott
Wendell Oliver Scott (August 29, 1921 – December 23, 1990) was an American stock car racing driver. He was one of the first African-American drivers in NASCAR and the first African-American to win a race in the Grand National Series, NASCAR's h ...
would retire after this race; making a 12th-place finish in this event. Johnny Barnes' 15th-place run was his best in Cup competition. Wayne Andrews would pull out of the race on lap 5 due to engine problems.
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 ...
retired his car on lap 228, and team owner Nord Krauskopf refused to allow NASCAR to inspect the car after this was done. NASCAR disqualified the team, and therefore, Buddy Baker officially finished 41st.
Baker was the last driver to be disqualified for technical infractions until 1992 (when
Bobby Hillin Jr.
Robert "Bobby" Keith Hillin Jr. (born June 5, 1964) is an American stock car racing driver. He is a former competitor in NASCAR's Winston Cup and Busch Series, and once held the record for being the youngest driver ever to win a Winston Cup Serie ...
was disqualified from the 1992 Mello Yello 500), after which NASCAR stopped disqualifying drivers until a 2019 rule change.
What made this race extra important to drivers was that $100 was given out for every lap that a driver led ($ when adjusted for inflation). 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."
Wind speeds at this race would reach an average of .
The race was held on a dry circuit; with no precipitation recorded around the speedway.
Qualifying
Finishing order
Section reference:
Timeline
Section reference:
* Start of race: David Pearson started the race with the pole position.
* Lap 5: Wayne Andrews' engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 13: G.C. Spencer's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 32: Charlie Glotzbach took over the lead from Cale Yarborough.
* Lap 33: Lennie Pond took over the lead from Charlie Glotzbach.
* Lap 34: David Pearson took over the lead from Lennie Pond.
* Lap 46: Cale Yarborough took over the lead from David Pearson.
* Lap 47: Frank Warren's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 49: Dick Brooks' engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 53: Dick Trickle took over the lead from Cale Yarbrough.
* Lap 55: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Dick Trickle.
* Lap 61: Donnie Allison's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 64: Neil Castles developed problems with his vehicle's suspension while Cale Yarborough took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
* Lap 223: Dave Marcis' engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 228: Buddy Baker was disqualified by NASCAR due to non-compliance regarding engine inspection.
* Lap 230: Walter Ballard's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 233: Richard Petty took over the lead from Cale Yarborough.
* Lap 264: Joe Frasson's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 271: Cale Yarborough took over the lead from Richard Petty.
* Lap 281: Eddie Bond's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 282: Coo Coo Marlin's engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 284: Richard Childress' engine problem forced him out of the race.
* Lap 299: Richard Petty took over the lead from Cale Yarborough.
* Lap 313: Cale Yarborough took over the lead from Richard Petty.
* Finish: Cale Yarborough was officially declared the winner of the event.
References
{{1973 NASCAR Winston Cup
National 500
The Bank of America Roval 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series race that is held annually at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, United States, with the other one being the Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend, the race.
As of the 201 ...
NASCAR races at Charlotte Motor Speedway
National 500
The Bank of America Roval 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series race that is held annually at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, United States, with the other one being the Coca-Cola 600 on Memorial Day weekend, the race.
As of the 201 ...