1987 Holly Farms 400
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 25 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 North Wilkesboro Speedway | |||
| Date | October 4, 1987 | ||
| Official name | Holly Farms 400 | ||
| Location | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.625 mi (1.005 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 250 mi (402 km) | ||
| Weather | Chilly with temperatures approaching 68 °F (20 °C); wind speeds up to 8.9 miles per hour (14.3 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 96.051 miles per hour (154.579 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 31,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Melling Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | |
| Laps | 207 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 1 | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers |
Bob Jenkins Benny Parsons Ned Jarrett | ||
The 1987 Holly Farms 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that was held on October 4, 1987, at North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina.
Summary
Exactly 6% of this race was run under caution; with the stretch of green flag laps lasting an average of 94 laps.[2]
In this 400-lap event, Bill Elliott and Dave Marcis dominated the first 100 laps while Terry Labonte managed to dominate most of the race. Two Canadian drivers were in this 32-car grid - Trevor Boys and Larry Pollard. Slick Johnson would end up finishing in last-place due to a problem with his stock car engine on lap 11. Terry Labonte would end up beating Dale Earnhardt under a caution flag after two hours and thirty-six minutes of racing. Chevrolet and Ford vehicles would play a huge role in determining the starting lineup.[2]
Davey Allison would become the lowest-finishing driver to complete the event. Hut Stricklin would be involved in a crash on lap 207 that knocked him out of the race. Drivers who failed to make the grid were Glenn Moffat, Lynn Gibson, J.D. McDuffie (#70), Bobby Gerhart, Kevin Evans (#54), Joe Dan Bailey (#36), D. Wayne Strout (#97), Ronnie Adams (#38), Bill Hollar, Graham Taylor, Brandon Baker (#88), Clark James and Rodney Combs.[3]
Individual race earnings for each driver ranged from the winner's share of $45,575 ($122,227.5 when adjusted for inflation) to the last-place finisher's share of $1,125 ($3,017.14 when adjusted for inflation). The total prize purse for this event was $247,620 ($664,091.6 when adjusted for inflation).[4]
Qualifying
| Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Ford |
| 2 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet |
| 3 | 35 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet |
| 4 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet |
| 5 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | Ford |
| 6 | 90 | Ken Schrader | Ford |
| 7 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Chevrolet |
| 8 | 22 | Bobby Allison | Buick |
| 9 | 26 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick |
| 10 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet |
Top ten finishers
| Pos[2] | Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Laps | Winnings | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | 400 | $45,575 | 185 |
| 2 | 10 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | 400 | $26,950 | 175 |
| 3 | 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Ford | 399 | $25,420 | 170 |
| 4 | 9 | 26 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick | 398 | $11,205 | 160 |
| 5 | 18 | 5 | Geoffrey Bodine | Chevrolet | 398 | $11,975 | 160 |
| 6 | 11 | 21 | Kyle Petty | Ford | 398 | $9,425 | 150 |
| 7 | 5 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | Ford | 398 | $9,305 | 146 |
| 8 | 27 | 8 | Bobby Hillin, Jr. | Buick | 397 | $7,980 | 142 |
| 9 | 19 | 43 | Richard Petty | Pontiac | 397 | $5,310 | 138 |
| 10 | 20 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Pontiac | 397 | $9,975 | 134 |
Timeline
- Start of race: Bill Elliot has the pole position
- Lap 11: Slick Johnson develops an engine problem
- Lap 24: The differential on Harry Gant's vehicle becomes problematic
- Lap 39: First caution of the event, ended on lap 44
- Lap 40: Dave Marcis took over the lead from Bill Elliott
- Lap 46: Dale Earnhardt took over the lead from Dave Marcis
- Lap 179: Geoffrey Bodine took over the lead from Dale Earnhardt
- Lap 190: Dale Earnhardt took over the lead from Geoffrey Bodine
- Lap 192: Second caution of the event, ended on lap 197
- Lap 194: Terry Labonte took over the lead from Dale Earnhardt
- Lap 198: Dave Marcis' engine gave up
- Lap 202: Steve Christman's engine stopped working, forcing him to leave the race
- Lap 207: Hut Stricklin had a terminal crash, ending his day on the track
- Lap 208: Third caution of the event, ended on lap 218
- Lap 265: Buddy Arrington's engine became faulty
- Lap 400: Four caution of the event, which ended the race on a yellow flag
- Finish: Terry Labonte wins the race
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points[2] | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Earnhardt | 4136 | 0 |
| 2 | Bill Elliott | 3563 | -573 |
| 3 | Terry Labonte | 3446 | -690 |
| 4 | Darrell Waltrip | 3339 | -797 |
| 5 | Neil Bonnett | 3297 | -839 |
| 6 | Ricky Rudd | 3292 | -844 |
| 7 | Rusty Wallace | 3282 | -854 |
| 8 | Richard Petty | 3208 | -928 |
| 9 | Kyle Petty | 3154 | -982 |
| 10 | Ken Schrader | 3033 | -1103 |
References
- ^ Weather information for the 1987 Holly Farms 400 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ^ a b c d e 1987 Holly Farms 400 racing information at Racing Reference
- ^ Qualifying information at Racing Reference
- ^ 1987 Holly Farms 400 racing information at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet