1990 Tyson Holly Farms 400
The 1990 Tyson Holly Farms 400 was the 25th stock car race of the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 41st iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, September 30, 1990, before an audience of 39,000 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina at the North Wilkesboro Speedway, a 0.625 miles (1.006 km) oval short track. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Roush Racing driver Mark Martin would manage to mount a late-race charge to maintain his driver's championship lead over second-place finisher and driver in the driver's championship, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt. The victory was Martin's fourth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and third and final victory of the season.[1][2][3][4]
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 25 of 29 in the 1990 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1990 Tyson Holly Farms 400 program cover, featuring Geoff Bodine. | |||
| Date | September 30, 1990 | ||
| Official name | 41st Annual Tyson Holly Farms 400 | ||
| Location | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, North Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.625 mi (1.006 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 250 mi (402.336 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 400 laps, 250 mi (402.336 km) | ||
| Average speed | 93.818 miles per hour (150.985 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 39,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | SABCO Racing | ||
| Time | 19.332 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 291 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ESPN | ||
| Announcers | Bob Jenkins, Ned Jarrett, Benny Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Hours after the race, 1990 NASCAR Rookie of the Year contender Rob Moroso was killed in a drunk-driving crash, with Moroso speeding into another car at around 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) according to The Charlotte Observer, killing Moroso and nursing assistant Tammy Williams. Moroso's blood alcohol content at the time of the crash was found to be over twice the North Carolina legal limit of 0.1, with Moroso's BAC coming in as a 0.22.[5][6]
Background
North Wilkesboro Speedway is a short oval racetrack located on U.S. Route 421, about five miles east of the town of North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, or 80 miles north of Charlotte. It measures 0.625 mi (1.006 km) and features a unique uphill backstretch and downhill frontstretch. It has previously held races in NASCAR's top three series, including 93 Winston Cup Series races. The track, a NASCAR original, operated from 1949, NASCAR's inception, until the track's original closure in 1996. The speedway briefly reopened in 2010 and hosted several stock car series races before closing again in the spring of 2011. It was re-opened in August 2022 for grassroots racing.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, September 28, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top ten 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 Saturday, September 29, at 12:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 11-30 would be decided on time,[7] 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 were given.
Kyle Petty, driving for SABCO Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 19.332 and an average speed of 116.387 miles per hour (187.307 km/h) in the first round.[8][9]
Five drivers would fail to qualify.
Full qualifying results
Race results
Standings after the race
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References
- Higgins, Tom (October 1, 1990). "Martin Dials Right Numbers To Shake Earnhardt, Keep Lead (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 21. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (October 1, 1990). "Martin Dials Right Numbers To Shake Earnhardt, Keep Lead (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 28. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- King, Randy (October 1, 1990). "Martin gets Holly Farms 400 win (Part 1)". The Roanoke Times. p. 14. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- King, Randy (October 1, 1990). "Martin gets Holly Farms 400 win (Part 2)". The Roanoke Times. p. 16. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (October 2, 1990). "Speeding Rookie Loses Control, Killing Woman (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 1. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (October 2, 1990). "Speeding Rookie Loses Control, Killing Woman (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 10. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "NASCAR today". The Charlotte Observer. September 28, 1990. p. 57. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (September 29, 1990). "K. Petty On Pole At N. Wilkesboro (Part 1)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 29. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (September 29, 1990). "K. Petty On Pole At N. Wilkesboro (Part 2)". The Charlotte Observer. p. 32. Retrieved April 8, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.