1987 Miller High Life 500

The 1987 Miller High Life 500 was the 12th stock car race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the sixth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, June 14, 1987, before an audience of 90,000 in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete.

1987 Miller High Life 500
Race details
Race 12 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1987 Miller High Life 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
The 1987 Miller High Life 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
Date June 14, 1987
Official name 6th Annual Miller High Life 500
Location Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Pocono Raceway
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4.0 km)
Distance 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Scheduled Distance 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Average speed 122.166 miles per hour (196.607 km/h)
Attendance 90,000
Pole position
Driver Junior Johnson & Associates
Time 57.877
Most laps led
Driver Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 82
Winner
No. 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network SETN
Announcers Eli Gold, Jerry Punch
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

In his first race back after taking 11 races off due to illness, Hendrick Motorsports' Tim Richmond managed to pull away from the field on the final restart with five laps left to take his 12th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Melling Racing's Bill Elliott and Wood Brothers Racing's Kyle Petty finished second and third, respectively.

Background

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The layout of Pocono International Raceway, the venue where the race was held.

The race was held at Pocono International Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.

Pocono International Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.

Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Buick Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Wrangler
04 Charlie Rudolph Rudolph Racing Chevrolet Sunoco
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Zerex
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller American
08 Trevor Boys Andrew Scott Racing Chevrolet Andrew Scott Racing
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors
11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Chevrolet Hamby Racing
15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft Quality Parts
17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet Freedlander Financial
19 Derrike Cope (R) Stoke Racing Chevrolet Alugard
21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller American
25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick Quaker State
27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac Kodiak
28 Davey Allison (R) Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile Hardee's
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet Bahari Racing
31 Ron Shephard Ron Shephard Racing Chevrolet L. B. S. Graphics, National Parts Peddler
33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Piedmont Airlines
48 James Hylton Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet Hylton Motorsports
50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac Valvoline
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Jimmy Means Racing
55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Copenhagen
62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac AC Spark Plug
64 Rodney Combs Langley Racing Ford Sunny King Ford
65 Tommie Crozier Leonard Racing Pontiac Universal Steel
67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford Pannill Sweatshirts
70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac Rumple Furniture
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Lifebuoy
74 Bobby Wawak Wawak Racing Chevrolet Wawak Racing
75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac Valvoline
80 Jimmy Horton S&H Racing Ford S&H Racing
81 Mike Potter Fillip Racing Ford Fillip Racing
85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet James Chevrolet
88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile Crisco
90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford Red Baron Frozen Pizza

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Saturday, June 13, at 10:00 AM EST. Each driver had one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round were guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Saturday, at 3:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver had one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 were decided on time,[3] and depending on who 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.

Terry Labonte, driving for Junior Johnson & Associates, managed to win the pole, setting a time of 57.877 and an average speed of 155.502 miles per hour (250.256 km/h) in the first round.[4]

Four drivers failed to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 57.877 155.502
2 35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 57.901 155.438
3 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 57.937 155.341
4 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 58.115 154.865
5 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 58.245 154.520
6 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 58.304 154.363
7 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 58.317 154.329
8 29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 58.503 153.838
9 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 58.529 153.770
10 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 58.535 153.754
11 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 58.610 153.557
12 26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick 58.648 153.458
13 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 58.653 153.445
14 50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac 58.675 153.387
15 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 58.711 153.293
16 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 58.759 153.168
17 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 58.832 152.978
18 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 58.906 152.786
19 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 58.955 152.659
20 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 58.976 152.604
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 58.415 154.070
22 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet 59.016 152.501
23 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 59.068 152.367
24 18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet 59.099 152.287
25 1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Chevrolet 59.307 151.753
26 28 Davey Allison (R) Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 59.328 151.699
27 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 59.493 151.278
28 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 59.609 150.984
29 08 Trevor Boys Andrew Scott Racing Chevrolet 59.774 150.567
30 64 Rodney Combs Langley Racing Ford 59.984 150.040
31 12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Chevrolet 60.258 149.358
32 19 Derrike Cope (R) Stoke Racing Chevrolet 60.297 149.261
33 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford 60.322 149.199
34 80 Jimmy Horton S&H Racing Ford 60.424 148.947
35 62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac 60.543 148.655
36 04 Charlie Rudolph Rudolph Racing Chevrolet 60.574 148.579
37 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 60.590 148.539
38 74 Bobby Wawak Wawak Racing Chevrolet 60.595 148.527
39 85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet 60.623 148.459
40 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 60.624 148.456
Failed to qualify
41 81 Mike Potter Fillip Racing Ford 62.009 145.140
42 31 Ron Shephard Ron Shephard Racing Chevrolet 62.396 144.240
43 48 James Hylton Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet 62.771 143.378
44 65 Tommie Crozier Leonard Racing Pontiac 65.922 136.525
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 3 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 200 82 running 185 $40,325
2 4 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 200 32 running 175 $30,600
3 11 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 200 1 running 170 $24,575
4 8 29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 200 0 running 160 $11,505
5 7 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 200 55 running 160 $22,400
6 16 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 200 0 running 150 $14,600
7 23 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 200 5 running 151 $14,825
8 13 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 200 3 running 147 $9,930
9 5 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 200 1 running 138 $11,905
10 15 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 200 1 running 139 $6,460
11 20 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 200 0 running 130 $5,215
12 26 28 Davey Allison (R) Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 199 0 running 127 $3,995
13 9 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 199 0 running 124 $6,270
14 28 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 199 0 running 121 $10,515
15 19 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 198 0 running 118 $7,465
16 22 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet 198 1 running 120 $7,240
17 21 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 198 0 running 112 $9,150
18 29 08 Trevor Boys Andrew Scott Racing Chevrolet 198 0 running 109 $2,965
19 37 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 197 0 running 106 $6,665
20 30 64 Rodney Combs Langley Racing Ford 197 0 running 103 $6,375
21 34 80 Jimmy Horton S&H Racing Ford 196 0 running 100 $2,595
22 36 04 Charlie Rudolph Rudolph Racing Chevrolet 196 0 running 97 $2,490
23 31 12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Chevrolet 194 0 running 0 $5,800
24 38 74 Bobby Wawak Wawak Racing Chevrolet 193 0 running 91 $2,330
25 33 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford 192 0 running 88 $5,480
26 35 62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac 187 0 running 85 $2,220
27 27 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 186 0 running 82 $5,210
28 40 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 174 0 running 79 $2,110
29 18 43 Richard Petty[a] Petty Enterprises Pontiac 171 0 crash 76 $5,580
30 10 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 150 0 oil-leak 73 $5,765
31 12 26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick 147 0 engine 70 $4,680
32 6 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 144 0 engine 67 $3,890
33 2 35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 119 0 engine 64 $11,010
34 25 1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Chevrolet 110 0 oil-pan 61 $1,755
35 24 18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet 103 0 ignition 58 $3,700
36 14 50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac 94 0 engine 55 $1,645
37 1 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 85 19 oil-pump 57 $13,915
38 32 19 Derrike Cope (R) Stoke Racing Chevrolet 63 0 axle 49 $1,585
39 39 85 Bobby Gerhart Bobby Gerhart Racing Chevrolet 43 0 ignition 46 $1,555
40 17 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 14 0 engine 43 $9,525
Failed to qualify
41 81 Mike Potter Fillip Racing Ford
42 31 Ron Shephard Ron Shephard Racing Chevrolet
43 48 James Hylton Hylton Motorsports Chevrolet
44 65 Tommie Crozier Leonard Racing Pontiac
Official race results

Standings after the race

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Notes

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  1. ^ Petty was injured in the 1987 Budweiser 500, breaking several ribs. Joe Ruttman relieved him for the race.[5] However, per the rules at the time, Petty is credited with the finishing position as he was in the car for at least one parade lap.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (June 15, 1987). "Richmond Returns To NASCAR As Winner". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1B, 3B. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Miegoc, Joe (June 15, 1987). "Richmond is triumphant in comeback". Times Leader. pp. 1C, 6C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. June 13, 1987. pp. 4C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Higgins, Tom (June 14, 1987). "Labonte Starts 1st In Pocono". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1D, 10D. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ Miegoc, Joe (June 13, 1987). "Ruttman Optimistic About Relief Role". Times Leader. pp. 1C, 4C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Stouch, Rick (May 24, 1987). "Petty family fortunes differ at Miller 500". Times Leader. pp. 6C. Retrieved October 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  


Previous race:
1987 Budweiser 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1987 season
Next race:
1987 Budweiser 400