The 1991 Winston 500 was the ninth stock car race of the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 22nd iteration of the event. The race was originally scheduled to be held on Sunday, May 5, 1991, but was delayed to Monday, May 6, due to rain.[1] The race was held before an audience of 105,000 in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 188 laps to complete. Running on a fuel strategy, Leo Jackson Motorsports driver Harry Gant would manage to drive the last 56 laps of the race on one tank of fuel to take his 12th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season.[2][3]

1991 Winston 500
Race details
Race 9 of 29 in the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1991 Winston 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
The 1991 Winston 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt.
Date May 6, 1991
Official name 22nd Annual Winston 500
Location Lincoln, Alabama, Talladega Superspeedway
Course Permanent racing facility
2.66 mi (4.28 km)
Distance 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km)
Scheduled Distance 188 laps, 500.08 mi (804.8 km)
Average speed 165.62 miles per hour (266.54 km/h)
Attendance 105,000
Pole position
Driver Morgan-McClure Motorsports
Time 49.061
Most laps led
Driver Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing
Laps 112
Winner
No. 33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

On lap 72 of the race, a 20-car crash would occur when Morgan–McClure Motorsports driver Ernie Irvan's car hit both Kyle Petty and Mark Martin's cars, causing a chain reaction crash in the field. In the crash, Kyle Petty would suffer a broken left femur, causing Petty to miss the next several races due to his injury.[4] Irvan would take most of the blame for causing the crash by drivers, with many of the drivers involved in the crash claiming that Irvan had been "out of control" for the entire race leading up to that point.[5][6]

Background

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The layout of Talladega Superspeedway, the venue where the race was held.

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval, a 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) tri-oval.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Oldsmobile Skoal
2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac Miller Genuine Draft
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service Plus
4 Ernie Irvan Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet Kodak
5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Folgers
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Hooters
8 Rick Wilson Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Snickers
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors Light
10 Derrike Cope Whitcomb Racing Chevrolet Purolator Filters
11 Geoff Bodine Junior Johnson & Associates Ford Budweiser
12 Hut Stricklin Bobby Allison Motorsports Buick Raybestos
15 Morgan Shepherd Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft
17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet Western Auto
19 Chad Little Little Racing Ford Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
20 Bobby Hillin Jr. Moroso Racing Oldsmobile Rob Moroso Memorial
21 Dale Jarrett Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Sterling Marlin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford Maxwell House
24 Mickey Gibbs Team III Racing Pontiac Team III Racing
25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kodiak
26 Brett Bodine King Racing Buick Quaker State
28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford Texaco, Havoline
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac Pennzoil
33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Oldsmobile Skoal Bandit
41 Larry Pearson Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac Mello Yello
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
47 Greg Sacks Close Racing Oldsmobile Kanawha Insurance
49 Stanley Smith (R) BS&S Motorsports Buick Interstate Batteries
51 Jeff Purvis (R) Phoenix Racing Oldsmobile Phoenix Construction
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Alka-Seltzer
53 Donny Paul Paul Racing Chevrolet Paul Racing
55 Ted Musgrave (R) U.S. Racing Pontiac U.S. Racing
59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac Gibson Racing
65 Dave Mader III Bahre Racing Pontiac Jasper Engines & Transmissions
66 Lake Speed Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac Phillips 66 TropArtic
68 Bobby Hamilton (R) TriStar Motorsports Oldsmobile Country Time
70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac Rumple Furniture
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Big Apple Market
73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Oldsmobile Barkdoll Racing
75 Joe Ruttman RahMoc Enterprises Oldsmobile Dinner Bell Foods
77 Ken Ragan Branch-Ragan Racing Ford Jasper Engines & Transmissions
88 Buddy Baker Moroso Racing Oldsmobile Dipetane
90 Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) Donlavey Racing Ford Ford Motorsport Sportswear
94 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Sunoco
98 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Chevrolet Banquet Foods

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, May 2, at 4:30 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, May 3, at 4:30 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time,[7] 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. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.

Ernie Irvan, driving for Morgan–McClure Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 49.061 and an average speed of 195.186 miles per hour (314.121 km/h) in the first round.[8]

Five drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 4 Ernie Irvan Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 49.061 195.186
2 33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Oldsmobile 49.117 194.963
3 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac 49.145 194.852
4 28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford 49.423 193.756
5 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 49.441 193.685
6 5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 49.538 193.306
7 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac 49.555 193.240
8 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 49.576 193.158
9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 49.650 192.870
10 66 Lake Speed Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac 49.652 192.862
11 11 Geoff Bodine Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 49.662 192.823
12 12 Hut Stricklin Bobby Allison Motorsports Buick 49.674 192.777
13 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Oldsmobile 49.687 192.726
14 68 Bobby Hamilton (R) TriStar Motorsports Oldsmobile 49.699 192.680
15 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 49.703 192.664
16 26 Brett Bodine King Racing Buick 49.734 192.544
17 19 Chad Little Little Racing Ford 49.753 192.471
18 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 49.765 192.424
19 22 Sterling Marlin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 49.778 192.374
20 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 49.786 192.343
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 24 Mickey Gibbs Team III Racing Pontiac 49.793 192.316
22 21 Dale Jarrett Wood Brothers Racing Ford 49.842 192.127
23 10 Derrike Cope Whitcomb Racing Chevrolet 49.898 191.911
24 94 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 49.922 191.819
25 47 Greg Sacks Close Racing Oldsmobile 49.931 191.785
26 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 49.950 191.712
27 73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Oldsmobile 49.996 191.535
28 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 50.050 191.329
29 98 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Chevrolet 50.102 191.130
30 8 Rick Wilson Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 50.126 191.039
31 49 Stanley Smith (R) BS&S Motorsports Buick 50.151 190.943
32 90 Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) Donlavey Racing Ford 50.212 190.711
33 15 Morgan Shepherd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 50.230 190.643
34 75 Joe Ruttman RahMoc Enterprises Oldsmobile 50.310 190.340
35 20 Bobby Hillin Jr. Moroso Racing Oldsmobile 50.492 189.654
36 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 50.519 189.552
37 88 Buddy Baker Moroso Racing Oldsmobile 50.626 189.152
38 55 Ted Musgrave (R) U.S. Racing Pontiac 50.772 188.608
39 51 Jeff Purvis (R) Phoenix Racing Oldsmobile 50.901 188.130
40 41 Larry Pearson Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 50.982 187.831
Provisional
41 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 51.445 186.141
Failed to qualify
42 59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac -* -*
43 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac -* -*
44 77 Ken Ragan Branch-Ragan Racing Ford -* -*
45 65 Dave Mader III Bahre Racing Pontiac -* -*
46 53 Donny Paul Paul Racing Chevrolet -* -*
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 2 33 Harry Gant Leo Jackson Motorsports Oldsmobile 188 18 running 180 $81,950
2 5 17 Darrell Waltrip Darrell Waltrip Motorsports Chevrolet 188 6 running 175 $47,400
3 8 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 188 112 running 175 $56,100
4 19 22 Sterling Marlin Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 188 4 running 165 $25,450
5 20 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 188 3 running 160 $25,800
6 11 11 Geoff Bodine Junior Johnson & Associates Ford 188 0 running 150 $25,350
7 18 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 188 13 running 151 $19,150
8 9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 188 0 running 142 $21,500
9 29 98 Jimmy Spencer Travis Carter Enterprises Chevrolet 188 0 running 138 $17,300
10 13 1 Rick Mast Precision Products Racing Oldsmobile 187 0 running 134 $17,650
11 16 26 Brett Bodine King Racing Buick 187 0 running 130 $13,670
12 14 68 Bobby Hamilton (R) TriStar Motorsports Oldsmobile 186 0 running 127 $10,040
13 6 5 Ricky Rudd Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 186 2 running 129 $15,860
14 33 15 Morgan Shepherd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 186 0 running 121 $15,480
15 21 24 Mickey Gibbs Team III Racing Pontiac 186 0 running 118 $8,700
16 38 55 Ted Musgrave (R) U.S. Racing Pontiac 186 1 running 120 $9,860
17 35 20 Bobby Hillin Jr. Moroso Racing Oldsmobile 184 0 running 112 $8,965
18 41 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 184 0 running 109 $10,155
19 27 73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Oldsmobile 183 0 running 106 $6,665
20 36 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 180 0 running 103 $8,555
21 31 49 Stanley Smith (R) BS&S Motorsports Buick 168 0 running 100 $6,140
22 4 28 Davey Allison Robert Yates Racing Ford 164 2 running 102 $14,720
23 12 12 Hut Stricklin Bobby Allison Motorsports Buick 157 0 running 94 $8,910
24 28 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 151 0 running 91 $15,305
25 30 8 Rick Wilson Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 149 0 running 88 $8,775
26 7 2 Rusty Wallace Penske Racing South Pontiac 146 0 running 85 $5,645
27 15 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 136 0 running 82 $12,590
28 23 10 Derrike Cope Whitcomb Racing Chevrolet 118 0 engine 79 $13,935
29 34 75 Joe Ruttman RahMoc Enterprises Oldsmobile 116 0 running 76 $8,330
30 39 51 Jeff Purvis (R) Phoenix Racing Oldsmobile 94 0 hub 73 $5,425
31 10 66 Lake Speed Cale Yarborough Motorsports Pontiac 79 0 crash 70 $8,045
32 1 4 Ernie Irvan Morgan–McClure Motorsports Chevrolet 71 18 crash 72 $15,740
33 3 42 Kyle Petty SABCO Racing Pontiac 70 9 crash 69 $14,410
34 32 90 Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) Donlavey Racing Ford 70 0 crash 61 $5,180
35 22 21 Dale Jarrett Wood Brothers Racing Ford 70 0 crash 58 $7,850
36 37 88 Buddy Baker Moroso Racing Oldsmobile 70 0 crash 55 $5,120
37 24 94 Terry Labonte Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 70 0 crash 52 $7,715
38 17 19 Chad Little Little Racing Ford 70 0 crash 49 $5,635
39 25 47 Greg Sacks Close Racing Oldsmobile 39 0 piston 46 $5,555
40 26 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 2 0 crash 43 $5,500
41 40 41 Larry Pearson Larry Hedrick Motorsports Chevrolet 2 0 crash 40 $4,900
Failed to qualify
42 59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac
43 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac
44 77 Ken Ragan Branch-Ragan Racing Ford
45 65 Dave Mader III Bahre Racing Pontiac
46 53 Donny Paul Paul Racing Chevrolet
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (May 6, 1991). "Talladega weather moves race to today". The Charlotte Observer. p. 27. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Crowe, Steve (May 7, 1991). "Gant luck goes good in marred 500". Sun-News. p. 9. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ Newberry, Paul (May 7, 1991). "Gant 'coasts' to victory in rain-delayed Winston 500". The Citizens' Voice. p. 55. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Cosen, Mike; Sims, Tommy (May 7, 1991). "Martin finds flipping over not to his liking". Alabama Journal. p. 15. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  5. ^ Higgins, Tom (May 7, 1991). "'Out of control' Irvan draws blame for causing wild crash at Talladega". The Charlotte Observer. p. 23. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ Pearson, Harold (May 7, 1991). "Racers find quick cause for pileup". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. 32. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. May 2, 1991. p. 29. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ Higgins, Tom (May 3, 1991). "Irvan ready to step closer to $1 million". The Charlotte Observer. p. 38. Retrieved February 14, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
Previous race:
1991 Hanes 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1991 season
Next race:
1991 Coca-Cola 600