1961 World 600

The 1961 World 600, the second running of the event, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that took place on May 28, 1961, at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina. Chris Economaki called the race in one of the few televised NASCAR races of the 1960s. A series of two qualifying events took place on May 21 to determine the starting grid for this event.

1961 World 600
Race details[1]
Race 24 of 52 in the 1961 NASCAR Grand National Series season
1961 World 600 program cover
1961 World 600 program cover
Date May 28, 1961 (1961-May-28)
Official name World 600
Location Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1.500 mi (2.414 km)
Distance 400 laps, 600 mi (965 km)
Weather Temperatures of 73 °F (23 °C); wind speeds of 10.1 miles per hour (16.3 km/h)
Average speed 111.633 miles per hour (179.656 km/h)
Attendance 46,538[2]
Pole position
Driver
Petty Enterprises
Most laps led
Driver David Pearson John Masoni
Laps 225
Winner
No. 3 David Pearson John Masoni
Television in the United States
Network ABC
Announcers Chris Economaki

This race began a streak of 1856 consecutive NASCAR races where at least one of the drivers in the race was from North Carolina. The streak would come to an end after Dale Earnhardt Jr. did not race in the 2012 Bank of America 500 at Charlotte after getting a concussion after the previous race at Talladega.

Background

Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) quad-oval track located in Concord, North Carolina, was the location for the race.[3] The track's turns were banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, was five degrees.[4] The back stretch, opposite of the front, also had a five degree banking.[4] Charlotte Motor Speedway hosted the NASCAR Grand National Series twice during the season, with the other race being the National 400. The track opened for the inaugural World 600 one year earlier, and was built by Bruton Smith and Curtis Turner. Around 46,538 spectators attended the race.

Race report

Four hundred laps were raced over a paved oval track spanning 1.500 miles (2.414 km) with a time of five hours, twenty-two minutes, and twenty-nine seconds.[2] Seven cautions were waved for fifty-seven laps. David Pearson defeated Fireball Roberts by more than two laps for his first NASCAR Cup series victory.[2] Even though there were 55 cars in the event, only 19 vehicles were allowed to qualify during each pre-race qualifying session.

The average speed was 111.633 miles per hour (179.656 km/h) while the pole position speed was 131.611 miles per hour (211.807 km/h).[2] The qualifying races only set the front row (which is the opposite of what happens before the Daytona 500). A lot of drivers chose not to participate in qualifying.

Attendance for this race was 46,538 and the top prize was $24,280 ($237,771 when adjusted for inflation).[2] The last place competitor received $200 ($1,959 when adjusted for inflation).[2] Competitors for this race included: Ralph Earnhardt, Ned Jarrett, Tiny Lund, Junior Johnson, Joe Weatherly, Richard Petty, and Roy Tyner. Ralph Earnhardt was competitive early, leading four times and finishing 11th.[2]

A terrible crash occurred to driver Reds Kagle; he would lose a leg in this race when his car penetrated the outside guard rail.[2][5]

Notable crew chiefs for the race were Ray Fox, Bud Allman, Smokey Yunick, Mario Rossi, Roy Burdick, Shorty Johns and Joseph Meyer.[6]

It would be the final race for the future Hall of Famer, Tim Flock.

Qualifying
Grid[2] No. Driver Manufacturer
1 43Richard Petty'61 Plymouth
2 8Joe Weatherly'61 Pontiac
3 3David Pearson'61 Pontiac
4 20Marvin Panch'60 Pontiac
5 28Fred Lorenzen'61 Ford
6 6Ralph Earnhardt'61 Pontiac
7 18Tommy Irwin'61 Pontiac
8 4Rex White'61 Chevrolet
9 16Speedy Thompson'61 Ford
10 22Fireball Roberts'61 Pontiac
11 11Ned Jarrett'61 Chevrolet
12 72Bobby Johns'61 Ford
13 53Bob Burdick'61 Pontiac
14 47Bob Welborn'61 Pontiac
15 87Buck Baker'61 Chrysler
16 24Roscoe Thompson'60 Pontiac
17 85Emanuel Zervakis'61 Chevrolet
18 94Banjo Matthews'61 Ford
19 46Jack Smith'61 Pontiac
20 21Curtis Turner'61 Ford

Finishing order

Section reference: [7]

Fin St # Driver Sponsor Make Laps Led Status
1 3 3 David Pearson '61 Pontiac 400 225 running
2 10 22 Fireball Roberts '61 Pontiac 398 6 running
3 8 4 Rex White '61 Chevrolet 397 0 running
4 11 11 Ned Jarrett '61 Chevrolet 397 30 running
5 25 14 Jim Paschal '61 Pontiac 394 0 running
6 39 30 Tiny Lund '60 Chevrolet 392 0 running
7 19 46 Jack Smith '61 Pontiac 392 3 running
8 14 47 Bob Welborn '61 Pontiac 392 0 running
9 23 27 Junior Johnson '61 Pontiac 390 0 running
10 2 8 Joe Weatherly '61 Pontiac 389 14 running
11 6 6 Ralph Earnhardt '61 Pontiac 386 75 running
12 30 1 Paul Lewis '61 Chevrolet 386 0 running
13 33 82 Joe Eubanks '61 Ford 384 0 running
14 37 10 T.C. Hunt '61 Dodge 376 0 running
15 17 85 Emanuel Zervakis '61 Chevrolet 375 0 running
16 54 93 Lee Reitzel '60 Ford 371 0 running
17 44 61 Elmo Langley '59 T-Bird 371 0 running
18 43 96 Friday Hassler '60 Chevrolet 368 0 running
19 12 72 Bobby Johns '61 Ford 367 0 running
20 7 18 Tommy Irwin '61 Pontiac 361 0 driveshaft
21 38 5 Bobby Waddell '59 Chevrolet 361 0 running
22 41 38 Ed Markstellar '61 Ford 360 0 running
23 48 23 Doug Yates '61 Plymouth 358 0 running
24 42 19 Herman Beam '60 Ford 357 0 running
25 49 57 Wes Morgan '61 Chevrolet 347 0 running
26 32 86 Buddy Baker '61 Chrysler 342 0 rear end
27 13 53 Bob Burdick '61 Pontiac 338 0 crash
28 18 94 Banjo Matthews '61 Ford 336 0 engine
29 36 80 Tubby Gonzales '61 Ford 336 0 rear end
30 1 43 Richard Petty '61 Plymouth 332 47 engine
31 26 48 G.C. Spencer '60 Chevrolet 325 0 running
32 55 71 Bob Barron '60 Dodge 291 0 flagged
33 21 69 Johnny Allen '61 Chevrolet 283 0 rear end
34 29 2 Reds Kagle '61 Ford 277 0 crash
35 5 28 Fred Lorenzen '61 Ford 274 0 a frame
36 50 9 Roy Tyner '60 Ford 266 0 crash
37 24 15 Tim Flock '61 Ford 255 0 engine
38 45 68 Ed Livingston '60 Ford 254 0 engine
39 35 54 Jimmy Pardue '60 Chevrolet 221 0 bell housing
40 46 62 Curtis Crider '61 Mercury 203 0 crankshaft
41 9 16 Speedy Thompson '61 Ford 186 0 camshaft
42 15 87 Buck Baker '61 Chrysler 147 0 overheating
43 4 20 Marvin Panch '60 Pontiac 140 0 crash
44 20 21 Curtis Turner '61 Ford 139 0 crash
45 31 44 Marvin Porter '60 Plymouth 136 0 engine
46 22 29 Nelson Stacy '61 Ford 128 0 bearing
47 34 66 Jimmy Thompson '60 Ford 113 0 axle
48 53 31 Gene Stokes '61 Studebaker 95 0 oil pressure
49 27 7 Jim Reed '61 Chevrolet 93 0 valve spring
50 16 24 Roscoe Thompson '60 Pontiac 70 0 clutch
51 47 40 Bobby Allison '60 Chevrolet 53 0 axle
52 28 89 Joe Lee Johnson '61 Chevrolet 40 0 crash
53 40 75 Larry Frank '61 Pontiac 10 0 timing
54 51 51 Doug Cox '59 T-Bird 6 0 engine
55 52 35 E.J. Trivette '59 Plymouth 3 0 axle

Timeline

Section reference: [2]

  • Start: Joe Weatherly was leading the pack as the cars officially crossed the start/finish line.
  • Lap 2: David Pearson took over the lead from Joe Weatherly.
  • Lap 3: Joe Weatherly took over the lead from David Pearson; E.J. Trivette's vehicle suddenly developed problems with its axle.
  • Lap 6: Doug Cox fell out with engine failure.
  • Lap 10: The timing on Larry Frank's vehicle became abnormal.
  • Lap 16: Ralph Earnhardt took over the lead from Joe Weatherly.
  • Lap 34: Jack Smith took over the lead from Ralph Earnhardt.
  • Lap 37: Ralph Earnhardt took over the lead from Jack Smith.
  • Lap 40: Joe Lee Johnson inflicted terminal vehicle damage.
  • Lap 49: David Pearson took over the lead from Ralph Earnhardt.
  • Lap 53: Ralph Earnhardt took over the lead from David Pearson; the axle on Bobby Allison's vehicle developed problems.
  • Lap 70: David Pearson took over the lead from Ralph Earnhardt; the clutch on Roscoe Thompson's vehicle started acting abnormally.
  • Lap 81: Ned Jarrett took over the lead from David Pearson.
  • Lap 93: The valve spring on Jim Reed's vehicle started acting strangely.
  • Lap 95: The oil pressure on Gene Stokes' vehicle suddenly became abnormal.
  • Lap 111: Ralph Earnhardt took over the lead from Ned Jarrett.
  • Lap 113: Axle problems took Jimmy Thompson out of the race.
  • Lap 128: Problems with the vehicle's bearing took Nelson Stacy out of the race.
  • Lap 136: Marvin Porter fell out with engine failure.
  • Lap 139: David Pearson took over the lead from Ralph Earnhardt; Curtis Turner inflicted terminal vehicle damage.
  • Lap 140: Marvin Panch inflicted terminal vehicle damage.
  • Lap 147: Buck Baker managed to overheat his vehicle.
  • Lap 178: Richard Petty took over the lead from David Pearson.
  • Lap 201: Fireball Roberts took over the lead from Richard Petty.
  • Lap 207: David Pearson took over the lead from Fireball Roberts.
  • Lap 248: Richard Petty took over the lead from David Pearson.
  • Lap 254: Ed Livingston managed to overheat his vehicle.
  • Lap 255: Tim Flock managed to overheat his vehicle.
  • Lap 272: David Pearson took over the lead from Richard Petty.
  • Lap 277: Reds Kagle inflicted terminal vehicle damage.
  • Lap 283: The rear end of Johnny Allen's vehicle became dangerously loose.
  • Lap 291: Bob Barron was disqualified from the race by the virtue of the black flag.
  • Lap 332: Richard Petty fell out with engine failure.
  • Lap 336: Tubby Gonzales's vehicle developed a dangerously loose rear end; Banjo Matthews fell out with engine failure.
  • Lap 338: Bob Burdick fell out with engine failure.
  • Lap 342: The rear end of Buddy Baker's vehicle became dangerously loose.
  • Finish: David Pearson was officially declared the winner of the event.

References
  1. "Weather information for the 1961 World 600". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2012-09-05.
  2. "Racing information for the 1961 World 600". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2012-09-05.
  3. "NASCAR Race Tracks". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group. Archived from the original on June 3, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  4. "NASCAR Tracks—The Charlotte Motor Speedway". Charlotte Motor Speedway. Archived from the original on April 28, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2016.
  5. "Reds Kagle crashes in 1961 World 600 at Charlotte". Daily Motion. Retrieved 2012-09-06.
  6. "1961 World 600 crew chiefs information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
  7. "1961 World 600 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
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