1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400

The 1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400 was the 15th stock car race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 30th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, July 2, 1988, before an audience of 83,000 in Daytona Beach, Florida at Daytona International Speedway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) permanent triangular-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 160 laps to complete. In one of the closest finishes in NASCAR Winston Cup Series history, Melling Racing driver Bill Elliott was able to beat out Morgan–McClure Motorsports driver Rick Wilson by a distance of 3 feet (0.91 m) to take his 26th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third victory of the season.[1][2][3][4] To fill out the top three, Jackson Bros. Motorsports driver Phil Parsons would finish third.

1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400
Race details
Race 15 of 29 in the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400 program cover, featuring Bobby Allison.
The 1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400 program cover, featuring Bobby Allison.
Date July 2, 1988
Official name 30th Annual Pepsi Firecracker 400
Location Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona International Speedway
Course Permanent racing facility
2.5 mi (4.0 km)
Distance 160 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km)
Scheduled Distance 160 laps, 400 mi (643.737 km)
Average speed 122.866 miles per hour (197.734 km/h)
Attendance 83,000
Pole position
Driver
Hendrick Motorsports
Time 46.435
Most laps led
Driver Bill Elliott Melling Racing
Laps 122
Winner
No. 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing
Television in the United States
Network ABC
Announcers Paul Page, Johnny Rutherford
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

Background
The layout of Daytona International Speedway, the venue where the race was held.

Daytona International Speedway is one of three superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the other two being Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.

Entry list
  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Chevrolet Heywood Grooms Construction
1 Dale Jarrett Ellington Racing Buick Port-A-Lube, Bud Light
2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet Kroger
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet GM Goodwrench Service
4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile Kodak
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford Stroh Light
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Zerex
07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac Hooters, Just Say No!
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors Light
10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford Whitcomb Racing
11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
12 Mike Alexander Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller High Life
14 A. J. Foyt A. J. Foyt Racing Oldsmobile Copenhagen
15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford Crisco
17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile Wayne Paging
25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick Quaker State
27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac Kodiak
28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford Havoline
29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile Hardee's
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac Country Time
31 Joe Ruttman Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile Slender You Figure Salons
32 Philip Duffie Duffie Racing Buick Bob Beard Buick
33 Morgan Shepherd Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
37 Patty Moise Randy Hope Motorsports Buick Crisco Butter Flavor
38 Ricky Woodward Wangerin Racing Ford Wangerin Racing
39 Blackie Wangerin Wangerin Racing Ford Wangerin Racing
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Piedmont Airlines
50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac Dingman Brothers Racing
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Eureka
54 Ronnie Sanders Gray Racing Chevrolet Gray Racing
55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Crown Central Petroleum, Skoal
59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac Gibson Racing
67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Ford Pannill Sweatshirts
68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford Purolator Filters
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Lifebuoy
73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Ford Helen Rae Special
75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac Valvoline
76 Hut Stricklin Jaehne Motorsports Pontiac Jaehne Motorsports
77 Ken Ragan Ragan Racing Ford Circle Bar Truck Stop, Bob Beard Ford
80 Jimmy Horton (R) S&H Racing Ford S&H Racing
83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile Wynn's, Kmart
86 Rick Jeffrey Jeffrey Racing Chevrolet Slenderizers
88 Buddy Baker Baker-Schiff Racing Oldsmobile Red Baron Frozen Pizza
90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
97 Rodney Combs Winkle Motorsports Buick AC Spark Plug
98 Brad Noffsinger (R) Curb Racing Buick Sunoco

Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, June 30, at 10:00 AM 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 Friday, July 1, at 11:00 AM 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,[5] 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 provisionals were given.

Darrell Waltrip, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 46.435 and an average speed of 193.819 miles per hour (311.921 km/h) in the first round.[6][7]

Ten drivers would fail to qualify.

Full qualifying results
Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 46.435 193.819
2 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 46.959 191.657
3 28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 47.072 191.196
4 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 47.102 191.075
5 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 47.145 190.900
6 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 47.157 190.852
7 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 47.384 189.938
8 33 Morgan Shepherd Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 47.388 189.921
9 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 47.465 189.613
10 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 47.540 189.314
11 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 47.548 189.282
12 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 47.671 188.794
13 31 Joe Ruttman Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile 47.715 188.620
14 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 47.718 188.608
15 12 Mike Alexander Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 47.734 188.545
16 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 47.769 188.407
17 1 Dale Jarrett Ellington Racing Buick 47.802 188.277
18 14 A. J. Foyt A. J. Foyt Racing Oldsmobile 47.847 188.100
19 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 47.890 187.931
20 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 47.890 187.931
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 48.012 187.453
22 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 48.020 187.422
23 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Chevrolet 48.114 187.056
24 23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile 48.131 186.990
25 29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 48.145 186.935
26 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 48.150 186.916
27 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 48.293 186.362
28 90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford 48.364 186.089
29 10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford 48.416 185.889
30 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 48.578 185.269
31 2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet 48.586 185.239
32 50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac 48.629 185.075
33 37 Patty Moise Randy Hope Motorsports Buick 48.659 184.961
34 07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac 48.670 184.919
35 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford 48.689 184.847
36 77 Ken Ragan Ragan Racing Ford 48.707 184.778
37 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 48.721 184.725
38 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 48.780 184.502
39 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 48.781 184.498
40 86 Rick Jeffrey Jeffrey Racing Chevrolet 48.866 184.177
Provisionals
41 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 48.922 183.966
42 97 Rodney Combs Winkle Motorsports Buick 48.974 183.771
Failed to qualify
43 80 Jimmy Horton (R) S&H Racing Ford 48.902 184.042
44 59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac 48.926 183.951
45 32 Philip Duffie Duffie Racing Buick 49.134 183.173
46 76 Hut Stricklin Jaehne Motorsports Pontiac 49.190 182.964
47 73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Ford 49.357 182.345
48 98 Brad Noffsinger (R) Curb Racing Buick 49.543 181.660
49 54 Ronnie Sanders Gray Racing Chevrolet 49.670 181.196
50 38 Ricky Woodward Wangerin Racing Ford 50.360 178.713
51 39 Blackie Wangerin Wangerin Racing Ford 50.454 178.380
52 0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Chevrolet 51.264 175.562
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results
Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 38 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 160 23 running 180 $63,500
2 26 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 160 19 running 175 $45,825
3 6 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 160 17 running 170 $22,250
4 20 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 160 53 running 170 $22,825
5 1 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 13 running 160 $25,430
6 9 88 Buddy Baker Baker–Schiff Racing Oldsmobile 160 8 running 155 $14,185
7 8 33 Morgan Shepherd Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 160 0 running 146 $12,835
8 4 25 Ken Schrader Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 160 10 running 147 $16,435
9 37 83 Lake Speed Speed Racing Oldsmobile 159 0 running 138 $8,660
10 32 50 Greg Sacks Dingman Brothers Racing Pontiac 159 0 running 134 $7,535
11 13 31 Joe Ruttman Bob Clark Motorsports Oldsmobile 159 0 running 130 $7,325
12 19 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 159 0 running 127 $13,940
13 11 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 159 0 running 124 $8,720
14 17 1 Dale Jarrett Ellington Racing Buick 159 0 running 121 $4,705
15 15 12 Mike Alexander Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 159 0 running 0 $12,090
16 10 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 159 0 running 115 $7,885
17 22 6 Mark Martin Roush Racing Ford 159 0 running 117 $5,380
18 5 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 159 0 running 109 $10,930
19 14 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 159 0 running 106 $10,680
20 27 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 159 0 running 103 $7,230
21 30 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Pontiac 158 0 running 100 $6,380
22 12 26 Ricky Rudd King Racing Buick 158 2 running 102 $6,230
23 39 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 158 0 running 94 $6,005
24 2 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 158 0 running 91 $10,555
25 31 2 Ernie Irvan (R) U.S. Racing Chevrolet 156 0 running 88 $3,805
26 33 37 Patty Moise Randy Hope Motorsports Buick 156 0 running 85 $2,905
27 16 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 155 0 running 82 $5,480
28 23 67 Buddy Arrington Arrington Racing Chevrolet 153 0 running 79 $4,630
29 40 86 Rick Jeffrey Jeffrey Racing Chevrolet 152 0 running 76 $2,805
30 36 77 Ken Ragan Ragan Racing Ford 150 0 running 73 $2,980
31 24 23 Eddie Bierschwale B&B Racing Oldsmobile 150 0 running 70 $2,380
32 34 07 Larry Moyer Stark Racing Pontiac 148 0 running 67 $2,355
33 42 97 Rodney Combs Winkle Motorsports Buick 141 0 running 64 $2,330
34 7 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 130 15 crash 66 $5,755
35 28 90 Benny Parsons Donlavey Racing Ford 123 0 running 58 $5,655
36 29 10 Ken Bouchard (R) Whitcomb Racing Ford 82 0 running 55 $2,355
37 18 14 A. J. Foyt A. J. Foyt Racing Oldsmobile 72 0 engine 52 $2,230
38 3 28 Davey Allison Ranier-Lundy Racing Ford 43 0 engine 49 $11,865
39 35 68 Derrike Cope Testa Racing Ford 2 0 crash 46 $4,840
40 21 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 1 0 engine 43 $4,790
41 25 29 Cale Yarborough Cale Yarborough Motorsports Oldsmobile 1 0 crash 40 $2,765
42 41 15 Brett Bodine Bud Moore Engineering Ford 1 0 crash 37 $10,765
Failed to qualify
43 80 Jimmy Horton (R) S&H Racing Ford
44 59 Mark Gibson Gibson Racing Pontiac
45 32 Philip Duffie Duffie Racing Buick
46 76 Hut Stricklin Jaehne Motorsports Pontiac
47 73 Phil Barkdoll Barkdoll Racing Ford
48 98 Brad Noffsinger (R) Curb Racing Buick
49 54 Ronnie Sanders Gray Racing Chevrolet
50 38 Ricky Woodward Wangerin Racing Ford
51 39 Blackie Wangerin Wangerin Racing Ford
52 0 Delma Cowart H. L. Waters Racing Chevrolet
Official race results

Standings after the race

References
  1. Higgins, Tom (July 3, 1988). "Elliott Nips Wilson At Firecracker 400 Finish (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 25. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  2. Higgins, Tom (July 3, 1988). "Elliott Nips Wilson At Firecracker 400 Finish (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 33. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  3. Coble, Done (July 3, 1988). "Bang-up victory for Elliott (Part 1)". Florida Today. p. 29. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  4. Coble, Done (July 3, 1988). "Bang-up victory for Elliott (Part 2)". Florida Today. p. 30. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  5. "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. June 30, 1988. p. 34. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  6. Higgins, Tom (July 1, 1988). "Waltrip Takes His First Pole At Daytona (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 61. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  7. Higgins, Tom (July 1, 1988). "Waltrip Takes His First Pole At Daytona (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 68. Retrieved July 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com. open access
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