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.
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.
The attrition back during the 1960s was high; half the field would sometimes be knocked out of the race with mechanical issues. In the current Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, an engine blowing is rare because of all the technological advancements years after NASCAR's heydays of the 1950s and 1960s.

Background

Charlotte Motor Speedway, a quad-oval track located in Concord, North Carolina, was the location for the race. The track's turns were banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, was five degrees. The back stretch, opposite of the front, also had a five degree banking. 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 with a time of five hours, twenty-two minutes, and twenty-nine seconds. 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. He and Richard Petty would both acquire wins in what is now called the Coca-Cola 600. There were fifty-five competitors; Cafe Burgundy, Daytona Kennel, and Holly Farms were the main sponsors for some of the drivers. 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 while the pole position speed was. The qualifying races only set the front row. A lot of drivers chose not to participate in qualifying.
Attendance for this race was 46,538 and the top prize was $24,280. The last place competitor received $200. Competitors for this race included: Ralph Earnhardt, Ned Jarrett, Tiny Lund, Junior Johnson, Joe Weatherly, Richard Petty, and Roy Tyner. While Ralph Earnhardt was very competitive early in the race and was the odds-on favorite to be the winner; he gave up the lead four times and had to settle for 11th.
A terrible crash occurred in this race to driver Reds Kagle; he would lose a leg in this race when his car penetrated the outside guard rail.
Notable crew chiefs for the race were Ray Fox, Bud Allman, Smokey Yunick, Mario Rossi, Roy Burdick, Shorty Johns and Joseph Meyer.

Qualifying

Finishing order

Section reference:
  1. David Pearson
  2. Fireball Roberts
  3. Rex White
  4. Ned Jarrett
  5. Jim Paschal
  6. Tiny Lund
  7. Jack Smith
  8. Bob Welborn
  9. Junior Johnson
  10. Joe Weatherly
  11. Ralph Earnhardt
  12. Paul Lewis
  13. Joe Eubanks
  14. T.C. Hunt
  15. Emanuel Zervakis
  16. Lee Reitzel
  17. Elmo Langley
  18. Friday Hassler
  19. Bobby Johns
  20. Tommy Irwin *
  21. Bobby Waddell
  22. Ed Markstellar
  23. Doug Yates
  24. Herman Beam
  25. Wes Morgan
  26. Buddy Baker*
  27. Bob Burdick*
  28. Banjo Matthews*
  29. Tubby Gonzales*
  30. Richard Petty*
  31. G.C. Spencer
  32. Bob Barron*
  33. Johnny Allen*
  34. Reds Kagle*
  35. Fred Lorenzen*
  36. Roy Tyner*
  37. Tim Flock
  38. Ed Livingston*
  39. Jimmy Pardue*
  40. Curtis Crider*
  41. Speedy Thompson*
  42. Buck Baker*
  43. Marvin Panch*
  44. Curtis Turner*
  45. Marvin Porter*
  46. Nelson Stacy*
  47. Jimmy Thompson*
  48. Gene Stokes*
  49. Jim Reed*
  50. Roscoe Thompson*
  51. Bobby Allison*
  52. Joe Lee Johnson*
  53. Larry Frank*
  54. Doug Cox*
  55. E.J. Trivette*
Note: * denotes that the driver failed to finish the race.''

Timeline

Section reference: