The 1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series event that took place on August 19, 1979, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan.
Background Michigan International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is long. Opened in 1968, the track's turns are banked at eighteen degrees, while the 3,600-foot-long front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at twelve degrees. The back stretch, has a five degree banking and is 2,242 feet long.
Race report There were 36 American-born male drivers on the grid.1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 racing information at Driver Averages
David Pearson, driving the Rod Osterlund No. 2 as a substitute Dale Earnhardt after his crash at Pocono, earned the pole position with a speed of .Richard Petty defeated Buddy Baker by one second in essentially a fuel mileage race that determined whoever could preserve the most fuel. There were 21 lead changes and five caution flags for 35 laps; making the race three hours and four minutes long while the average speed was .
Blackie Wangerin would receive the last-place finish due to a crash with H.B. Bailey on lap 2 which resulted in Wangerin's car flipping outside of the track in Turn 3 which resulted in a lengthy red flag to rebuild the turns 3 and 4 guardrail. John Anderson got his only top five finish in his Cup debut.
Al Rudd, Jr. qualified for his second, and final, Cup race. At Pocono, he qualified 18th but when DiGard Racing's Darrell Waltrip crashed in post-qualifying practice, and under rules of the time, had to withdraw and DiGard leased his car for that race for points purposes. Rudd ran this car, which was rebuilt by DiGard for Pocono, for his only NASCAR Cop start, which he did with hia NASCAR Hall of Fame Class of 2025 brother Ricky, who drove for Wesley Donlavey that season.
The entire purse was $142,905 ($ when adjusted for inflation).1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 racing purse at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet Notable crew chiefs for this race were Buddy Parrott, Joey Arrington, Kirk Shelmerdine, Darrell Bryant, Dale Inman, Harry Hyde, Bud Moore, Tim Brewer, and Jake Elder.1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 crew chiefs at Racing Reference
USAC Championship Trail standout Jan Opperman, in a car owned by Will Cronkite was the only driver to not qualify.
Qualifying Grid Driver Manufacturer Owner 1 2 David Pearson Chevrolet Rod Osterlund 2 15 Bobby Allison Ford Bud Moore 3 21 Neil Bonnett Mercury Wood Brothers 4 44 Terry Labonte Chevrolet Billy Hagan 5 43 Richard Petty Chevrolet Petty Enterprises 6 27 Benny Parsons Chevrolet M.C. Anderson 7 72 Joe Millikan Chevrolet L.G. DeWitt 8 11 Cale Yarborough Chevrolet Junior Johnson 9 47 Harry Gant Chevrolet Jack Beebe 10 88 Darrell Waltrip Chevrolet DiGard
Failed to qualify: Jan Opperman (#96)Qualifying information at Racing Reference
Finishing order FinStCar #DriverSponsor (Owner)Car MakeLapsMoneyStatusLedPoints1543Richard PettySTP (Petty Enterprises)Chevrolet20021100running918021128Buddy BakerW.I.N. (Harry Ranier)Chevrolet20012425running1151803627Benny ParsonsMelling Tool (M.C. Anderson)Chevrolet20012820running0165412David Pearson(Rod Osterlund)Chevrolet19910215running016052008John AndersonDraime Race Engines (Russ Draime)Chevrolet1994355running01556772Joe MillikanAppliance Wheels (L.G. DeWitt)Chevrolet1997195running815571690Ricky RuddTruxmore (Junie Donlavey)Mercury1995320running014682830Tighe ScottRuss Togs (Walter Ballard)Buick1974890running014291570J.D. McDuffieBailey Excavating (J.D. McDuffie)Chevrolet1974670running013810123Richard ChildressCRC Chemicals (Richard Childress)Oldsmobile1974550running0134111317Bill ElliottKnutsons RV (George Elliott)Mercury1954120running0130123148James HyltonPalatine Automotive Parts (James Hylton)Chevrolet1953850running0127133442Kyle PettySTP (Petty Enterprises)Dodge1951675running0124141864Tommy GaleSunny King Ford & Honda (Elmo Langley)Ford1933130running012115290John KennedyAvanti CB (John Kennedy)Chevrolet1881490running0163079Frank WarrenNative Tan (Frank Warren)Dodge1882725running011517811Cale YarboroughBusch (Junior Johnson)Chevrolet1856270engine3117183524Cecil GordonGordon Racing (Cecil Gordon)Oldsmobile1832300running0109191088Darrell WaltripGatorade (DiGard Racing)Chevrolet1734775running0106202267Buddy ArringtonHills Racing (Buddy Arrington)Dodge1501965engine0103212645Baxter PriceIron Peddlers (Baxter Price)Oldsmobile1461920running0100221952Jimmy MeansMr. Transmission (Jimmy Means)Chevrolet1451875running09723215Bobby AllisonHodgdon/Moore (Bud Moore)Ford1414935engine3899243225Ronnie ThomasStone's Cafeteria (Don Robertson)Chevrolet1312785overheating09125947Harry GantRace Hill Farm (Jack Beebe)Chevrolet129875clutch59326444Terry LabonteStratagraph (Billy Hagan)Chevrolet1081475engine59027336Marty RobbinsRobbins Racing (Marty Robbins)Dodge96825engine082281740D.K. UlrichMidwestern Farm Lines (D.K. Ulrich)Buick851300running079291405Dick BrooksBearfinder (Nelson Malloch)Chevrolet81785exhaust076302171Dave MarcisTransmissions Unlimited (Dave Marcis)Chevrolet67765engine073312419Lennie PondBelden Asphalt (Henley Gray)Chevrolet571250overheating070322322Al Rudd, Jr.Bill Lewis (Al Rudd)Chevrolet39740clutch033321Neil BonnettPurolator (Wood Brothers)Mercury281405ignition1769343601Earle CanavanScope Mount (Earle Canavan)Dodge23720engine0352536H.B. BaileyCaldwell Knapp Cadillac (H.B. Bailey)Pontiac2710crash058362739Blackie Wangerin(Blackie Wangerin)Mercury2700crash055 Failed to qualifyNameCar #SponsorOwnerCarJan Opperman96Will CronkriteFord Source:
Standings after the race Pos Driver Points Differential 1 Darrell Waltrip 3352 0 2 Richard Petty 3197 -155 3 Cale Yarborough 3063 -289 4 Bobby Allison 3023 -329 5 Benny Parsons 2827 -525 6 Joe Millikan 2719 -633 7 Dale Earnhardt 2588 -764 8 Richard Childress 2524 -828 9 J.D. McDuffie 2510 -842 10 Buddy Arrington 2415 -937
References