1989 Pontiac Excitement 400

The 1989 Pontiac Excitement 400 was the fourth stock car race of the 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 35th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, March 26, 1989, before an audience of 50,000 in Richmond, Virginia, at Richmond International Raceway, a 0.75 miles (1.21 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. With the assist of a late caution and a fast final pitstop, Blue Max Racing driver Rusty Wallace would manage to pull away from the field on the final restart with 17 laps left in the race to take his 12th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second victory of the season.[1][2][3][4] To fill out the top three, owner-driver Alan Kulwicki and Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would finish second and third, respectively.

1989 Pontiac Excitement 400
Race details
Race 4 of 29 in the 1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1989 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass.
The 1989 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover, with artwork by NASCAR artist Sam Bass.
Date March 26, 1989
Official name 35th Annual Pontiac Excitement 400
Location Richmond, Virginia, Richmond International Raceway
Course Permanent racing facility
0.75 mi (1.21 km)
Distance 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km)
Scheduled Distance 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km)
Average speed 89.619 miles per hour (144.228 km/h)
Attendance 50,000
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 22.393
Most laps led
Driver Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 126
Winner
No. 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing
Television in the United States
Network TBS
Announcers Ken Squier, Johnny Hayes
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

Background

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The layout of Richmond International Raceway, the venue where the race was at.

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 U.S. Racing Pontiac Kroger
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service Plus
4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile Kodak
04 Bill Meacham Meacham Racing Ford Meacham Racing
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Stroh's Light
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Zerex
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors Light
11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Ford Budweiser
15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft
16 Larry Pearson (R) Pearson Racing Buick Chattanooga Chew
17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
19 Bill Ingram Gray Racing Oldsmobile Gray Racing
21 Neil Bonnett Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile B&B 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 Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac Hardee's
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac Country Time
31 Jim Sauter Bob Clark Motorsports Pontiac Slender You Figure Salons
33 Harry Gant Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Skoal Bandit
34 Rodney Combs AAG Racing Buick AAG Racing
40 Ben Hess (R) Hess Racing Oldsmobile Hess Racing
42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac Peak Antifreeze
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
48 Mickey Gibbs (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac SmartLease
49 Tony Spanos Hylton Motorsports Buick Hylton Motorsports
51 Butch Miller (R) Miller Racing Chevrolet Miller Racing
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Alka-Seltzer
55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Skoal, Crown Central Petroleum
57 Hut Stricklin (R) Osterlund Racing Pontiac Heinz
65 Steve Seligman O'Neil Racing Ford O'Neil Racing
66 Rick Mast (R) Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Mach 1 Racing
68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Pontiac Purolator
70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac Rumple Furniture
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Lifebuoy
75 Morgan Shepherd RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac Valvoline
83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
84 Dick Trickle (R) Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
88 Greg Sacks Baker–Schiff Racing Pontiac Crisco
90 Chad Little (R) Donlavey Racing Ford Wahoo!
94 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Sunoco

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Saturday, March 25, at 2:30 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round would be 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, March 25, at 4:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-34 would be decided on time,[5] 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.

Geoff Bodine, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 22.393 and an average speed of 120.573 miles per hour (194.043 km/h) in the first round.[6]

Nine drivers would fail to qualify. One of the nine who failed to qualify, Richard Petty, would break a streak of 513 consecutive starts in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series.[7][8]

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 22.393 120.573
2 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 22.441 120.315
3 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 22.556 119.702
4 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 22.563 119.665
5 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 22.570 119.628
6 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 22.571 119.623
7 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 22.582 119.564
8 94 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 22.680 119.048
9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 22.732 118.775
10 51 Butch Miller (R) Miller Racing Chevrolet 22.758 118.640
11 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 22.782 118.515
12 16 Larry Pearson (R) Pearson Racing Buick 22.811 118.364
13 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 22.816 118.338
14 84 Dick Trickle (R) Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 22.827 118.281
15 2 Ernie Irvan U.S. Racing Pontiac 22.827 118.281
16 66 Rick Mast (R) Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 22.834 118.245
17 90 Chad Little Donlavey Racing Ford 22.838 118.224
18 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 22.841 118.208
19 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 22.849 118.167
20 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 22.872 118.048
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 34 Rodney Combs AAG Racing Buick 22.819 118.322
22 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 22.829 118.271
23 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 22.841 118.208
24 23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile 22.843 118.198
25 40 Ben Hess (R) Hess Racing Oldsmobile 22.888 117.966
26 33 Harry Gant Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 22.889 117.961
27 88 Greg Sacks Baker–Schiff Racing Pontiac 22.897 117.919
28 21 Neil Bonnett Wood Brothers Racing Ford 22.899 117.909
29 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 22.905 117.878
30 75 Morgan Shepherd RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 22.907 117.868
31 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Pontiac 22.920 117.801
32 29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac 22.923 117.786
33 31 Jim Sauter Bob Clark Motorsports Pontiac 22.935 117.724
34 48 Mickey Gibbs (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac 22.973 117.529
Provisionals
35 28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford 22.992 117.432
36 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 23.058 117.096
Failed to qualify
37 57 Hut Stricklin (R) Osterlund Racing Pontiac 23.004 117.371
38 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac 23.020 117.289
39 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 23.167 116.545
40 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 23.169 116.535
41 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 23.589 114.460
42 04 Bill Meacham Meacham Racing Ford 23.657 114.131
43 65 Steve Seligman O'Neil Racing Ford 23.824 113.331
44 19 Bill Ingram Gray Racing Oldsmobile 24.038 112.322
45 49 Tony Spanos Hylton Motorsports Buick 24.623 109.654
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 2 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 400 88 running 180 $63,025
2 4 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 400 108 running 175 $28,625
3 6 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 400 43 running 170 $30,900
4 18 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 400 0 running 160 $13,600
5 35 28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford 399 11 running 160 $17,607
6 12 16 Larry Pearson (R) Pearson Racing Buick 399 0 running 150 $5,350
7 11 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 399 0 running 146 $10,600
8 8 94 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 398 0 running 142 $8,900
9 15 2 Ernie Irvan U.S. Racing Pontiac 398 0 running 138 $5,000
10 9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 397 0 running 134 $14,275
11 3 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 397 0 running 130 $6,000
12 23 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 397 0 running 127 $5,675
13 22 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 397 0 running 124 $5,525
14 26 33 Harry Gant Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 396 0 running 121 $5,250
15 29 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 396 0 running 118 $5,750
16 16 66 Rick Mast (R) Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 396 0 running 115 $5,050
17 5 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 396 0 running 112 $4,550
18 1 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 395 126 running 119 $12,350
19 7 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 394 0 running 106 $7,775
20 36 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 394 0 running 103 $5,275
21 28 21 Neil Bonnett Wood Brothers Racing Ford 393 0 running 100 $4,250
22 17 90 Chad Little Donlavey Racing Ford 392 0 running 97 $2,625
23 32 29 Dale Jarrett Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac 390 0 running 94 $4,025
24 25 40 Ben Hess (R) Hess Racing Oldsmobile 385 0 running 91 $1,850
25 14 84 Dick Trickle (R) Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 377 1 engine 93 $4,125
26 10 51 Butch Miller (R) Miller Racing Chevrolet 376 0 running 85 $1,775
27 20 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 323 23 running 87 $3,250
28 13 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 275 0 valve 79 $3,220
29 34 48 Mickey Gibbs (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac 229 0 engine 76 $1,690
30 19 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 202 0 crash 73 $7,420
31 24 23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile 152 0 camshaft 70 $1,640
32 21 34 Rodney Combs AAG Racing Buick 133 0 clutch 67 $2,260
33 30 75 Morgan Shepherd RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 128 0 valve 64 $7,250
34 27 88 Greg Sacks Baker–Schiff Racing Pontiac 87 0 engine 61 $2,900
35 31 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Pontiac 15 0 crash 58 $1,400
36 33 31 Jim Sauter Bob Clark Motorsports Pontiac 1 0 engine 55 $1,400
Failed to qualify
37 57 Hut Stricklin (R) Osterlund Racing Pontiac
38 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac
39 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac
40 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac
41 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac
42 04 Bill Meacham Meacham Racing Ford
43 65 Steve Seligman O'Neil Racing Ford
44 19 Bill Ingram Gray Racing Oldsmobile
45 49 Tony Spanos Hylton Motorsports Buick
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (March 27, 1989). "Wallace Whisks Past Kulwicki At Richmond (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 23. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Higgins, Tom (March 27, 1989). "Wallace Whisks Past Kulwicki At Richmond (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 25. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Pearson, Harold (March 27, 1989). "Wallace wins Richmond 400 (Part 1)". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 29. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Pearson, Harold (March 27, 1989). "Wallace wins Richmond 400 (Part 2)". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 32. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. March 25, 1989. p. 27. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Higgins, Tom (March 26, 1989). "Bodine, Wallace To Start Side By Side At Richmond". The Charlotte Observer. p. 32. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ Higgins, Tom (March 26, 1989). "Petty's Long Streak Of Starts May End (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 29. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ Higgins, Tom (March 26, 1989). "Petty's Long Streak Of Starts May End (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 32. Retrieved April 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
Previous race:
1989 Motorcraft Quality Parts 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1989 season
Next race:
1989 TranSouth 500