1980 Warner W. Hodgdon 400
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| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 15 of 31 in the 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 Layout of Riverside International Raceway (1969–1988 version) | |||
| Date | June 8, 1980 | ||
| Official name | Warner W. Hodgdon 400 | ||
| Location | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 4.345 km (2.700 miles) | ||
| Distance | 119 laps, 211.8 mi (401.7 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 87.1 °F (30.6 °C); wind speeds of 7 miles per hour (11 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 101.846 mph (163.905 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 18,000[2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver |
| Junior Johnson | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver |
Darrell Waltrip/Bobby Allison (tied) | DiGard/Bud Moore | |
| Laps | 23 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 88 | Darrell Waltrip | DiGard | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Untelevised | ||
| Announcers | None | ||
The 1980 Warner W. Hodgdon 400 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that took place on June 8, 1980, at Riverside International Raceway in Riverside, California. The Sharon Hodgdon 200 for Grand American Stock cars was run the same day as this race. Ron Esau was the winner, Roy Smith was second Ray Elder third.
By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore. Only manual transmission vehicles were allowed to participate in this race; a policy that NASCAR has retained to the present day. Road courses were one of the more attractive features for NASCAR during the 1980 Winston Cup Series season. NASCAR would develop a liking for tracks with a lap duration of a mile and a half by the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.
The NASCAR Winston Cup Series was also plagued with top teams running big engines and finishing in third place to avoid inspection around the time that this race was held.
Qualifying
Darrell Waltrip would beat Neil Bonnett by less than half a second in front of 18000 fans in attendance; getting the season sweep at the Riverside road course.[2] There were 18 different changes in the first-place position while there would be five different caution periods for 15 laps.[2][3] Cale Yarborough would qualify for the pole position with a qualifying speed of 113.792 miles per hour (183.130 km/h) while the average speed of the race would be 101.846 miles per hour (163.905 km/h).[2][3] Cecil Gordon would earn his last top-ten finish at this race.[2] Other famous drivers who raced here included: Richard Petty, Cale Yarborough, Dale Earnhardt, Bobby Allison, Terry Labonte, and Richard Childress (now the owner of Richard Childress Racing).[2][3]
D.K. Ulrich would finish last in the race due to an engine issue on the pace laps of this 95-lap race.[2][4] He would make $1,000 just for qualifying ($3,816 when adjusted for inflation) while Waltrip went home with an extra $22,100 in his bank account ($84,339 when adjusted for inflation).[2][4][5] Notable crew chiefs who were actively participating in this race included Junie Donlavey, Joey Arrington, Darel Dieringer, Darrell Bryant, Dale Inman, Bud Moore, Kirk Shelmerdine among others.[6]
The race was named after famous race team owner/sponsor, owner of 12 race tracks, local city redeveloper, and philanthropist Warner Hodgdon.
Roy Smith was the only Canadian to appear in a 36-driver grid of mostly American-born competitors. J.D. McDuffie tallies his third and final top-10 of the season, all of being ninth-place runs.[2] Smith would drive for NASCAR team owner Robert Beadle.[2]
Don Waterman would make his NASCAR Winston Cup Series debut at this race.[3]
The only known DNQ for the race was Gene Thoensen; an independent driver who was the driver of the unsponsored No. 77 machine.[7]
| Grid[2] | No. | Driver | Manufacturer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Cale Yarborough | Chevrolet | Junior Johnson |
| 2 | 88 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | DiGard Racing |
| 3 | 15 | Bobby Allison | Ford | Bud Moore |
| 4 | 73 | Bill Schmitt | Oldsmobile | Bill Schmitt |
| 5 | 2 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | Rod Osterlund |
| 6 | 43 | Richard Petty | Chevrolet | Petty Enterprises |
| 7 | 21 | Neil Bonnett | Mercury | Wood Brothers |
| 8 | 27 | Benny Parsons | Chevrolet | M.C. Anderson |
| 9 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | Dave Marcis |
| 10 | 44 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Billy Hagan |
| 11 | 3 | Richard Childress | Chevrolet | Richard Childress |
| 12 | 67 | Buddy Arrington | Dodge | Buddy Arrington |
| 13 | 12 | Donnie Allison | Chevrolet | Kennie Childers |
| 14 | 75 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet | RahMoc Enterprises |
| 15 | 45 | Roy Smith | Oldsmobile | Robert Beadle |
| 16 | 25 | Ronnie Thomas | Chevrolet | Don Robertson |
| 17 | 40 | D.K. Ulrich | Chevrolet | D.K. Ulrich |
| 18 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | Chevrolet | J.D. McDuffie |
| 19 | 66 | Lake Speed | Chevrolet | Lake Speed |
| 20 | 48 | James Hylton | Chevrolet | James Hylton |
