1970 Daytona 500
The 1970 Daytona 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series race held on February 22, 1970, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.
Race details | |||
---|---|---|---|
Race 4 of 48 in the 1970 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
Track map of Daytona International Speedway. | |||
Date | February 22, 1970 | ||
Location |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S. | ||
Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.023 km) | ||
Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
Weather | Temperatures reaching up to 64.9 °F (18.3 °C); wind speeds approaching 10.1 miles per hour (16.3 km/h)[1] | ||
Average speed | 149.601 miles per hour (240.759 km/h) | ||
Pole position | |||
Driver | Wood Brothers Racing | ||
Most laps led | |||
Driver | David Pearson | Holman Moody | |
Laps | 82 | ||
Winner | |||
No. 40 | Pete Hamilton | Petty Enterprises | |
Television in the United States | |||
Network | ABC's Wide World of Sports | ||
Announcers |
Keith Jackson Chris Economaki |
First Daytona 500 starts for Joe Frasson, Dick Trickle, Tommy Gale, Ron Keselowski, and Jim Vandiver.[2] Only Daytona 500 start for Butch Hirst, Paul Feldner, Ron Grana, and Leonard Blanchard.[2] Last Daytona 500 starts for Richard Brickhouse, Roy Mayne, and Dr. Don Tarr.[2]
Summary
NASCAR's modern era would commence with this race. Winged, aerodynamic cars built specifically for high-speed superspeedway racing such as the Plymouth Superbird and Ford Torino Talladega made their debut. Pete Hamilton, hired by Petty Enterprises shortly before the season, won the race in the #40 Plymouth Superbird just three car lengths over David Pearson, after passing him with nine laps to go. It was the first win for the new Plymouth Superbird.[2]
This race would last 200 minutes, with an audience of 103,800 people watching.[2] A grand total of 24 lead changes were made with an average green flag run of 22 laps.[2] 23% of the race was held under a yellow flag; blown engines were the primary culprit behind the caution periods.[2]
On lap 7, Cecil Gordon and Richard Petty blew their engines.[2] Jim Vandiver blew his engine on lap 15 while Cale Yarborough would do the same thing on lap 32.[2] A.J. Foyt would also blow his engine on lap 58 while Buddy Arrington wrecked his vehicle on lap 77 by crashing it into a wall.[2] The final caution the race came when Dick Brooks blew his engine on lap 181.[2]
David Pearson tried to slingshot Pete Hamilton in the last turn, but got very loose and finished second.[2]
References
- "Weather of the 1970 Daytona 500". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Archived from the original on 2013-07-01. Retrieved 2013-06-23.
- Racing information for the 1970 Daytona 500 at Racing Reference. Accessed 2013-06-24. Archived 2013-06-30.