1988 Pontiac Excitement 400

The 1988 Pontiac Excitement 400 was the second stock car race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 34th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 21, 1988, in Richmond, Virginia, at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, a 0.542 miles (0.872 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. Coming back from a two lap deficit, RahMoc Enterprises driver Neil Bonnett would manage to pass for the lead on the final restart with 48 laps left in the race, coming back with the help of a long green flag stint to gain his first lap back, and a period of back-to-back cautions to regain his second lap. Bonnett would manage to lead the final 48 laps to take his 17th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.[1][2][3][4]

1988 Pontiac Excitement 400
Race details
Race 2 of 29 in the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1988 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover.
The 1988 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover.
Date February 21, 1988
Official name 34th Annual Pontiac Excitement 400
Location Richmond, Virginia, Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway
Course Permanent racing facility
0.542 mi (0.872 km)
Distance 400 laps, 216.8 mi (348.905 km)
Scheduled Distance 400 laps, 216.8 mi (348.905 km)
Average speed 66.401 miles per hour (106.862 km/h)
Pole position
Driver Winkle Motorsports
Time 20.616
Most laps led
Driver Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing
Laps 151
Winner
No. 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises
Television in the United States
Network TBS
Announcers Ken Squier, Johnny Hayes
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

The victory was disputed by second place finisher, Ricky Rudd, and his team, King Racing. In an appeal filed by King Racing, the team stated that the three of Rudd, Richard Petty, and Darrell Waltrip all believed that Neil Bonnett had an accidental lap added to his total, with all three insisting that Bonnett had run no more than 399 laps of the race.[5] In an investigation done by NASCAR and their chief scorer, Morris Metcalfe, they maintained the validity of Bonnett's victory on February 23. Metcalfe firmly stated that he believed Bonnett had earned his laps back, stating in the Winston-Salem Journal that "We had everything under control the whole way, and we never had any doubt about who was leading, or who'd gotten lapped, or how Neil Bonnett got his laps back."[6][7]

The race was the final race using the former 0.542 miles (0.872 km) layout that Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway had been using at the time. The old track, one that was seen as an aging track and a track with few amenities,[8] was being torn down in favor of a new, 0.75 miles (1.21 km) long D-shaped oval named Richmond International Raceway that would be built near the now-former location of Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. The track was meant to be a more modern and expanded version of Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, with more amenities and seats being added.[9]

The race was the first victory that featured a car using the Hoosier Racing Tire brand, who had entered NASCAR in 1988 as a direct competitor towards the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, who prior to the 1988 season, had a monopoly on tires used in NASCAR since the 1971 season.[10] The victory was not viewed as a major victory for Hoosier Racing Tire, with Bonnett not showing a commitment towards using the brand for the entirety of the 1988 season. Bonnett would state that "We came here and tried the Hoosiers, and we found them to be the best tire for this track... we're going to run the best tire available at each track. Who knows? We might not run another race this year on Hoosier tires."[11][12]

Background

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Richmond International Raceway (RIR) is a 3/4-mile (1.2 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County. It hosts the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and Xfinity Series. Known as "America's premier short track", it formerly hosted a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race, an IndyCar Series race, and two USAC sprint car races.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet Kroger
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench
03 Dave Pletcher Sr. Weaver Racing Ford Wild Turkey Music
4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile Kodak
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Stroh's Light
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Zerex
07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac Just Say No!
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors Light
10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford Whitcomb Racing
11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
12 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford Crisco
17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Lennie Pond Hamby Racing Chevrolet Hamby Racing
25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick Quaker State
27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac Kodiak
28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile Hardee's
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac Country Time
31 Brad Teague Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile Slender You Figure Salons
33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Piedmont Airlines
46 Glenn Moffat Moffat Racing Chevrolet Moffat Racing
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet Eureka
55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Skoal, Crown Central Petroleum
67 Buddy Arrington[N 1] Arrington Racing Ford Pannill Sweatshirts
68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford Purolator
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Lifebuoy
75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac Valvoline
76 Graham Taylor Betty Taylor Racing Ford Car-Mate Trailers
83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile Wynn's, Kmart
88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile Red Baron Frozen Pizza
90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
97 Morgan Shepherd Winkle Motorsports Buick AC Spark Plug
98 Ed Pimm Curb Racing Pontiac Sunoco

Qualifying

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Qualifying was originally scheduled to be split into two rounds. The first round was scheduled to be held on Friday, February 19, at 3:00 PM EST. Originally, the first 20 positions were going to be determined by first round qualifying, with positions 21-30 meant to be determined the following day on Saturday, February 20.[14] However, due to rain, the first round was cancelled. As a result, qualifying was condensed into one round for all starting grid spots in the race, which was run on Saturday. 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.[15]

Morgan Shepherd, driving for Winkle Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 20.616 and an average speed of 94.645 miles per hour (152.316 km/h) in the first round.[16]

Eight drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 97 Morgan Shepherd Winkle Motorsports Buick 20.616 94.645
2 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 20.659 94.448
3 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 20.689 94.311
4 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 20.689 94.311
5 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 20.691 94.302
6 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 20.723 94.156
7 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 20.724 94.152
8 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 20.729 94.129
9 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 20.731 94.120
10 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 20.737 94.093
11 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 20.780 93.898
12 90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford 20.781 93.893
13 10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford 20.782 93.889
14 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 20.794 93.835
15 28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 20.804 93.790
16 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 20.858 93.547
17 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 20.860 93.538
18 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 20.871 93.489
19 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 20.879 93.453
20 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 20.887 93.417
21 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford 20.887 93.417
22 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 20.902 93.350
23 31 Brad Teague Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile 20.904 93.341
24 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 20.943 93.167
25 12 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 20.981 92.998
26 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 21.000 92.914
27 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 21.002 92.905
28 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 21.028 92.791
29 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet 21.060 92.650
30 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford 21.104 92.456
Provisionals
31 22 Lennie Pond Hamby Racing Chevrolet 21.169 92.173
32 29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 21.116 92.404
Failed to qualify
33 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile -* -*
34 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 21.228 91.916
35 2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet -* -*
36 98 Ed Pimm Curb Racing Pontiac -* -*
37 03 Dave Pletcher Sr. Weaver Racing Ford -* -*
38 76 Graham Taylor Betty Taylor Racing Ford -* -*
39 07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac -* -*
40 46 Glenn Moffat Moffat Racing Chevrolet -* -*
Official first round qualifying results

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 3 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 400 141 running 180 $45,900
2 22 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 400 0 running 170 $25,660
3 9 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 400 0 running 165 $16,975
4 11 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 400 39 running 165 $14,185
5 14 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 400 0 running 155 $12,315
6 18 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 400 67 running 155 $5,290
7 4 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 400 0 running 146 $11,790
8 20 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 399 0 running 142 $6,550
9 10 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 399 1 running 143 $9,320
10 2 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 399 151 running 144 $16,245
11 25 12 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 399 0 running 130 $8,795
12 16 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 399 0 running 127 $10,595
13 8 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 398 0 running 124 $5,305
14 12 90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford 398 0 running 121 $5,125
15 27 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 398 0 running 118 $5,505
16 1 97 Morgan Shepherd Winkle Motorsports Buick 398 1 running 120 $8,025
17 28 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 397 0 running 112 $4,450
18 24 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 397 0 running 109 $8,075
19 23 31 Brad Teague Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile 395 0 running 106 $1,835
20 30 67 Ken Schrader[N 1] Arrington Racing Ford 395 0 running 103 $4,610
21 5 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 393 0 crank 100 $4,045
22 31 22 Lennie Pond Hamby Racing Chevrolet 383 0 running 0 $2,375
23 13 10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford 380 0 running 94 $2,365
24 29 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Chevrolet 374 0 running 91 $3,755
25 7 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 364 0 running 88 $1,645
26 32 29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 337 0 crash 85 $1,510
27 19 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 325 0 running 82 $9,275
28 6 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 289 0 crash 79 $4,430
29 15 28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 276 0 running 76 $10,055
30 17 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 225 0 running 73 $3,420
31 26 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 110 0 engine 70 $2,820
32 21 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford 47 0 crash 67 $2,820
Failed to qualify
33 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile
34 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
35 2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet
36 98 Ed Pimm Curb Racing Pontiac
37 03 Dave Pletcher Sr. Weaver Racing Ford
38 76 Graham Taylor Betty Taylor Racing Ford
39 07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac
40 46 Glenn Moffat Moffat Racing Chevrolet
Official race results

Standings after the race

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b After Ken Schrader failed to qualify using his Hendrick Motorsports entry, team owner Rick Hendrick would manage to buy out owner-driver Buddy Arrington's car for the race, using Arrington's car for driver points.[13]

References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett Comeback A Triumph Despite Protest (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 49. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Higgins, Tom (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett Comeback A Triumph Despite Protest (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 52. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Pearson, Harold (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett prevails in 400; confusion shrouds finish (Part 1)". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 25. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Pearson, Harold (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett prevails in 400; confusion shrouds finish (Part 2)". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 28. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ Pearson, Harold (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett took the flag, but who is counting?". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 22. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Mulhurn, Mike (February 23, 1988). "Metcalfe, NASCAR Stand Behind Bonnett's Richmond Win (Part 1)". Winston-Salem Journal. p. 25. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ Mulhurn, Mike (February 23, 1988). "Metcalfe, NASCAR Stand Behind Bonnett's Richmond Win (Part 2)". Winston-Salem Journal. p. 29. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ Pearson, Harold (February 21, 1988). "Fairgrounds finale occasion for relief and remembrance". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 41. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  9. ^ Pearson, Harold (May 15, 1988). "Fruits of struggle". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 40. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  10. ^ Macenka, Joe (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett wins Richmond race". The Daily Item. p. 21. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  11. ^ King, Randy (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett declared winner of wild race at Richmond (Part 1)". The Roanoke Times. p. 9. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  12. ^ King, Randy (February 22, 1988). "Bonnett declared winner of wild race at Richmond (Part 2)". The Roanoke Times. p. 12. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  13. ^ Pearson, Harold (February 21, 1988). "Twist of events puts Pond in field". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 41. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  14. ^ "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. February 19, 1988. p. 28. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  15. ^ Higgins, Tom (February 20, 1988). "Rain May Put Allisons On Front Row". The Charlotte Observer. p. 23. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  16. ^ Higgins, Tom (February 21, 1988). "Shepherd Captures Pole, Schrader At Back Of Field". The Charlotte Observer. p. 30. Retrieved June 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  


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1988 Daytona 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1988 season
Next race:
1988 Goodwrench 500