The 1986 First Union 400 was the seventh stock car race of the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 36th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 20, 1986, before an audience of 29,500 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina at the North Wilkesboro Speedway, a 0.625 miles (1.006 km) oval short track. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete.[1]

1986 First Union 400
Race details
Race 7 of 29 in the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1986 First Union 400 program cover, featuring Neil Bonnett.
The 1986 First Union 400 program cover, featuring Neil Bonnett.
Date April 20, 1986
Official name 36th Annual First Union 400
Location North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
0.625 mi (1.006 km)
Distance 400 laps, 250 mi (402.336 km)
Scheduled Distance 400 laps, 250 mi (402.336 km)
Average speed 88.408 miles per hour (142.279 km/h)
Attendance 29,500
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 20.014
Most laps led
Driver Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing
Laps 195
Winner
No. 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Bob Jenkins, Larry Nuber, Benny Parsons
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

By race's end, Richard Childress Racing's Dale Earnhardt was able to hold off a late-race charge by Bud Moore Engineering's Ricky Rudd, securing his 17th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second victory of the season.[2][3] To fill out the top three, Hendrick Motorsports' Geoff Bodine finished third.

The race was the first start for African-American driver Willy T. Ribbs, after previous failed attempts in the 1986 season. With the start, Ribbs became the sixth African-American driver to make a start in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the first African-American driver since George Wiltshire in 1975.[4]

Background

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The layout of North Wilkesboro Speedway, the venue where the race was held

North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about five miles east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures 0.625 mi (1.006 km) and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill frontstretch. It has previously held races in NASCAR's top three series, including 93 Winston Cup Series races. The track, a NASCAR original, operated from 1949, NASCAR's inception, until the track's original closure in 1996. The speedway briefly reopened in 2010 and hosted several stock car series races before closing again in the spring of 2011. It was re-opened in August 2022 for grassroots racing.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
01 Earle Canavan Canavan Racing Pontiac Gates Hydraulics
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Wrangler
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
6 Trevor Boys U.S. Racing Chevrolet Finky's
7 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 7-Eleven
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Chevrolet Miller American
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors
11 Darrell Waltrip Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
12 Neil Bonnett Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft Quality Parts
17 Doug Heveron Hamby Racing Chevrolet Hesco Exhaust Systems
22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller American
23 Michael Waltrip (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac Hawaiian Punch
25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
26 Joe Ruttman King Racing Buick Quaker State
27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac Alugard
30 Willy T. Ribbs DiGard Motorsports Pontiac Red Roof Inn
33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
35 Alan Kulwicki (R) AK Racing Ford Quincy's Steakhouse
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Terry Labonte Hagan Enterprises Oldsmobile Piedmont Airlines
48 Morgan Shepherd Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet Hemmelgarn & Sons
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Jimmy Means Racing
64 Rick Baldwin Langley Racing Ford Sunny King Ford
67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford Pannill Sweatshirts
70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac Rumple Furniture
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Pontiac Helen Rae Special
75 Jody Ridley RahMoc Enterprises Ford Nationwise Automotive
81 Chet Fillip (R) Fillip Racing Ford Circle Bar Truck Corral
85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet Bobby Gerhart Racing
90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford Red Baron Frozen Pizza
94 Eddie Bierschwale Eller Racing Pontiac Kodak Film
96 Jerry Bowman Jerry Bowman Racing Ford Jerry Bowman Racing
98 Ron Bouchard Curb Racing Pontiac Valvoline

Qualifying

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Qualifying was done over two rounds of qualifying over two days. The first round was held on Friday, April 18, at 3:00 PM EST, with each driver having one lap to set a time. In the first round, the first eight drivers in the round were guaranteed a starting spot within the top eight; however, their official starting positions were then determined by calculating the averages of their first round time and their second round time, with the second round being held on Saturday, April 19, at 3:00 PM EST, with all drivers having one lap to set a time in the round.[5] Drivers who did not lock into the race in the first round had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time, with all non-locked in drivers setting positions 9-30 based on speed. Depending on if teams needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two were given.[6]

Geoff Bodine, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, won the pole, setting an average time of 20.014 and average speed of 112.419 miles per hour (180.921 km/h) in his two runs.[7]

Four drivers failed to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 20.014 112.419
2 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 20.040 112.273
3 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 20.055 112.191
4 44 Terry Labonte Hagan Enterprises Oldsmobile 20.108 111.895
5 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 20.146 111.685
6 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 20.156 111.627
7 26 Joe Ruttman King Racing Buick 20.224 111.251
8 12 Neil Bonnett Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 20.297 110.851
Failed to lock in Round 1
9 7 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 20.213 111.315
10 11 Darrell Waltrip Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 20.224 111.254
11 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 20.231 111.215
12 35 Alan Kulwicki (R) AK Racing Ford 20.249 111.117
13 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 20.251 111.106
14 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 20.252 111.100
15 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 20.266 111.023
16 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 20.293 110.876
17 75 Jody Ridley RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 20.328 110.685
18 98 Ron Bouchard Curb Racing Pontiac 20.354 110.511
19 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 20.371 110.451
20 17 Doug Heveron Hamby Racing Oldsmobile 20.384 110.381
21 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 20.390 110.348
22 48 Morgan Shepherd Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet 20.395 110.321
23 81 Chet Fillip (R) Fillip Racing Ford 20.446 110.046
24 23 Michael Waltrip (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac 20.491 109.804
25 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford 20.526 109.617
26 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 20.567 109.399
27 6 Trevor Boys U.S. Racing Chevrolet 20.611 109.165
28 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 20.638 109.022
29 30 Willy T. Ribbs DiGard Motorsports Chevrolet 20.639 109.017
30 64 Rick Baldwin Langley Racing Ford 20.739 108.491
Failed to qualify
31 85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet -* -*
32 94 Eddie Bierschwale Eller Racing Pontiac -* -*
33 96 Jerry Bowman Jerry Bowman Racing Ford -* -*
34 01 Earle Canavan Canavan Racing Pontiac -* -*
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 5 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 400 195 running 185 $38,550
2 14 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 400 102 running 175 $20,075
3 1 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 90 running 170 $17,415
4 10 11 Darrell Waltrip Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 400 0 running 160 $13,750
5 7 26 Joe Ruttman King Racing Buick 400 0 running 155 $4,415
6 6 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 400 0 running 150 $6,865
7 16 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 400 1 running 151 $10,360
8 9 7 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 400 0 running 142 $7,815
9 13 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 400 0 running 138 $9,710
10 15 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 399 0 running 134 $8,410
11 8 12 Neil Bonnett Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 399 0 running 130 $8,640
12 3 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 398 0 running 127 $5,185
13 19 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 398 0 running 124 $4,715
14 11 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 398 0 running 121 $5,450
15 17 75 Jody Ridley RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 397 0 running 118 $4,535
16 20 17 Doug Heveron Hamby Racing Oldsmobile 395 0 running 115 $4,175
17 18 98 Ron Bouchard Curb Racing Pontiac 395 0 running 112 $4,040
18 12 35 Alan Kulwicki (R) AK Racing Ford 395 0 running 109 $1,655
19 22 48 Morgan Shepherd Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet 394 0 running 106 $3,880
20 28 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 392 0 running 103 $3,995
21 25 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford 390 0 running 100 $3,515
22 29 30 Willy T. Ribbs DiGard Motorsports Chevrolet 387 0 running 97 $1,010
23 23 81 Chet Fillip (R) Fillip Racing Ford 374 0 running 94 $985
24 30 64 Rick Baldwin Langley Racing Ford 354 0 running 0 $3,150
25 21 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 346 0 accident 88 $3,215
26 24 23 Michael Waltrip (R) Bahari Racing Pontiac 309 0 engine 85 $910
27 4 44 Terry Labonte Hagan Enterprises Oldsmobile 256 1 engine 87 $6,635
28 26 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 251 0 accident 79 $3,030
29 2 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 131 11 engine 81 $7,495
30 27 6 Trevor Boys U.S. Racing Chevrolet 85 0 accident 73 $2,335
Failed to qualify
31 85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet
32 94 Eddie Bierschwale Eller Racing Pontiac
33 96 Jerry Bowman Jerry Bowman Racing Ford
34 01 Earle Canavan Canavan Racing Pontiac
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Cooper, Ray (April 21, 1986). "Earnhardt holds off Rudd to win again". News & Record. pp. B4, B6. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Higgins, Tom (April 21, 1986). "Earnhardt Wins, But Not By Much". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1D, 3D. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Mulhurn, Mike (April 21, 1986). "Earnhardt Nips Rudd in Wet First Union 400". Winston-Salem Journal. pp. 21, 25. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Myrie, Donovan (February 17, 2020). "Meet the influential African-American drivers in NASCAR's Cup Series". WKMG-TV. Retrieved December 25, 2023.
  5. ^ Higgins, Tom (April 18, 1986). "Earnhardt–Waltrip Duel Due". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 7B. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Higgins, Tom (April 19, 1986). "King Richard Eyes 1st Pole In 7 Seasons". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 5C, 11C. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ Higgins, Tom (April 20, 1986). "Bodine Nudges Petty As Ribbs Qualifies". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1B, 5B. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  


Previous race:
1986 TranSouth 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1986 season
Next race:
1986 Sovran Bank 500