1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 - NASCAR Race
| Name of Race: | 1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 |
| Name of Track: | Michigan International Speedway |
| Date: | August 19th |
Michigan International Speedway is a two-mile, moderate-banked, tri-oval superspeedway.
This NASCAR sanctioned race track is located off U.S. Highway 12 on more than 1,200 acres near Brooklyn, in the scenic Irish Hills area of southeastern Michigan. It is used for NASCAR and high-level open wheel motor racing events.
One Of NASCAR's Fastest TracksMichigan is now one of the fastest tracks in NASCAR due to its wide, sweeping corners and long straightaways; typical qualifying speeds are in excess of 190 mph and corner entry speeds easily exceed 200.
The track opened in 1968 and is owned by International Speedway Corporation (ISC). Michigan International Speedway is recognized as one of motorsports' premier facilities because of its wide racing surface and high banking (to open-wheel standards; the 18-degree banking is modest to stock car standards).
From 1996 to 2000, the track was referred to as Michigan Speedway. This was to keep consistency with other tracks owned by Roger Penske's Motorsports International before its merger with ISC.
Courtesy of Wikipedia.1979 Champion Spark Plug 400 NASCAR Race Results
Below are the race results for 1979 Champion Spark Plug 400, in order of finishing place.
| Fin | Driver | Num | Start | Money | Laps | Pts | Status | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richard Petty | 43 | 5 | $21,100 | 200 | 0 | running | STP |
| 2 | Buddy Baker | 28 | 11 | $12,425 | 200 | 0 | running | W.I.N. |
| 3 | Benny Parsons | 27 | 6 | $12,820 | 200 | 0 | running | Melling Tool |
| 4 | David Pearson | 2 | 1 | $10,215 | 199 | 0 | running | Rod Osterlund |
| 5 | John Anderson | 8 | 20 | $4,355 | 199 | 0 | running | Draime Race Engines |
| 7 | Ricky Rudd | 90 | 16 | $5,320 | 199 | 0 | running | Truxmore |
| 10 | Richard Childress | 3 | 12 | $4,550 | 197 | 0 | running | CRC Chemicals |
| 11 | Bill Elliott | 17 | 13 | $4,120 | 195 | 0 | running | Knutsons RV |
| 12 | James Hylton | 48 | 31 | $3,850 | 195 | 0 | running | Palatine Automotive Parts |
| 13 | Kyle Petty | 42 | 34 | $1,675 | 195 | 0 | running | STP |
| 14 | Tommy Gale | 64 | 18 | $3,130 | 193 | 0 | running | Sunny King Ford & Honda |
| 15 | John Kennedy | 0 | 29 | $1,490 | 188 | 0 | running | Avanti CB |
| 17 | Cale Yarborough | 11 | 8 | $6,270 | 185 | 0 | engine | Busch |
| 18 | Cecil Gordon | 24 | 35 | $2,300 | 183 | 0 | running | Gordon Racing |
| 19 | Darrell Waltrip | 88 | 10 | $4,775 | 173 | 0 | running | Gatorade |
| 20 | Buddy Arrington | 67 | 22 | $1,965 | 150 | 0 | engine | Hills Racing |
| 23 | Bobby Allison | 15 | 2 | $4,935 | 141 | 0 | engine | Hodgdon / Moore |
| 24 | Ronnie Thomas | 25 | 32 | $2,785 | 131 | 0 | heating | Stone's Cafeteria |
| 25 | Harry Gant | 47 | 9 | $875 | 129 | 0 | clutch | Race Hill Farm |
| 26 | Terry Labonte | 44 | 4 | $1,475 | 108 | 0 | engine | Stratagraph |
| 29 | Dick Brooks | 5 | 14 | $785 | 81 | 0 | exhaust | Bearfinder |
| 30 | Dave Marcis | 71 | 21 | $765 | 67 | 0 | engine | Transmissions Unlimited |
| 31 | Lennie Pond | 19 | 24 | $1,250 | 57 | 0 | heating | Belden Asphalt |
| 33 | Neil Bonnett | 21 | 3 | $1,405 | 28 | 0 | ignition | Purolator |
| 34 | Earle Canavan | 1 | 36 | $720 | 23 | 0 | engine | Scope Mount |
| 35 | H.B. Bailey | 36 | 25 | $710 | 2 | 0 | crash | Caldwell Knapp Cadillac |
