|| *Comments on the 1983 Daytona 500:* View the most recent comment <#59> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. HomeDepotKid posted: 12.23.2004 - 11:32 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) Cale's win in this race was in a backup car. During qualifying, he ran an extremely impressive lap, a 200.503 mph lap, before on his final lap, in turn 3, he lost control and flipped. His Chevy Monte Carlo was trashed, and he drove a backup Pontiac LeMans to victory. 2. Anonymous posted: 02.21.2005 - 1:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bruce Jacobi was gravely injured in the 125s on Feb. 17 but didn't pass away until Feb. 4 1987 3. Darrell posted: 10.07.2006 - 10:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) First start for Dean Roper. 4. myself posted: 02.14.2007 - 7:22 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Cale's first ride for Harry Ranier. He would prove to be quite tough in that car w/ Waddell Wilson building motors for him! His 3rd Daytona win! 5. Destiny posted: 04.10.2007 - 7:01 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) So I remember Jacobi's crash will fail until his death in 1987. Cale's win became this third Daytona 500. His last came a year later. Great Job, Cale. 6. b4il3y posted: 04.13.2007 - 1:58 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I got to watch a replay of this race on Speed a while back...Joe Ruttman had a very, very fast car that day. 7. biffle16 posted: 07.06.2007 - 12:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Also, Darrell Waltrip had a nasty crash in this race. 8. James W. McLaughlin posted: 08.09.2007 - 2:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) That nasty crash of DW's almost took out Cale Yarborough! Also,wasn't DW knocked out cold in his accident? 9. SK posted: 12.11.2007 - 6:50 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Phil Parsons makes his Winston Cup debut. 10. Mike posted: 02.14.2008 - 6:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Through 2008 now, the last Daytona 500 without a Wallace. Rusty made every 500 from 1984 to 2005, Mike made the race in '06 and '07, and Kenny just raced his way into the '08 race. 11. Clayton posted: 03.09.2008 - 11:31 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cale made an incredible move on the backstrech to pass Buddy Baker! Ruttman went with Yarborough and wound up third! Awesome Bill finished 2nd out of nowhere and it was 3 wide for second behind Yarborough with Bill on the high side, Ruttman in the middle and Baker low! 12. myself posted: 02.13.2009 - 11:57 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) "Through 2008 now, the last Daytona 500 without a Wallace. Rusty made every 500 from 1984 to 2005, Mike made the race in '06 and '07, and Kenny just raced his way into the '08 race. Mike | 02.14.08 - 6:14 pm" 2009 stopped that streak 13. The Ost posted: 04.13.2009 - 4:54 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Great race. Ruttman and Brooks had fast cars, they were right up there in contention the whole race. 14. 18fan posted: 08.27.2009 - 2:11 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) The 58 lead changes in this race was the second and so far last Daytona 500 or 400 with 50 lead changes, behind 59 in 1974. There have been two occurrences of 49 lead changes. 15. 18fan posted: 02.10.2010 - 11:08 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Cale wasn't satisfied with his first lap time and wrecked his primary car, then won in his backup car.` 16. Jim posted: 08.26.2010 - 10:29 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Cale's Pontiac was actually a show car they had to get race ready in a hurry. Tom Sneva's 7th place a Nascar career best. 17. Jim posted: 08.26.2010 - 10:31 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Just realized there were 2 different Pontiac bodies in this race. Cale drove a Lemans and the other Pontiacs were Gran Prix's. 18. Anonymous posted: 12.30.2010 - 9:04 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Tim Richmond's car was a LeMans as well. 19. jlpmghrs posted: 02.28.2011 - 3:39 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) McDuffie's was, too. Anyone know why Delma Cowart ran a #01 in this race? He crashed in his 125, but his qualifying speed was fast enough to get him in. There was no other #01 entered, so he didn't buy a ride, and I'm wondering why they wouldn't use their regular number on their backup car. 20. Walleyewacker posted: 06.09.2011 - 1:21 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) People forget that Bill Elliott was in a back-up car as well driving the 1982 squarebird instead of the far superior 1983 Thunderbird. 21. Flywheel posted: 12.10.2011 - 4:14 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) There was a kids book titled "Stock Car Racing" that featured pictures from this race. Couldn't get away showing Levi Garrett in a kids book these days! 22. 18fan posted: 12.27.2011 - 2:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Amazingly this was the first time David Pearson was running at the finish of a Daytona 500 since his dramatic 1976 victory. 23. Jim posted: 10.27.2012 - 12:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I thought I remember Bobby Allison wrecking 2 of his SS's and he had to go to a Buick backup, maybe not. 24. autryvilleracefan posted: 11.27.2012 - 4:55 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Flywheel: I remember that book too! It is definitely a children's book, but the Levi-Garrett car is prominently pictured all over the book. 25. RaceFanX posted: 12.26.2012 - 1:54 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Number correction: Delma Cowart's '#01' was actually just his regular #0. 26. RaceFanX posted: 02.12.2013 - 5:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DNQ cars/sponsors/owners: Blackie Wangerin- #39 Wangerin Racing Ford- Blackie Wangerin Rick Newsom- #20 Chevrolet- Rick Newsom Ronnie Sanders- #19 Buick- Henley Gray Joe Millikan- #18 Buick- Satterfield Racing Bobby Hillin, Jr.- #8 B.J. Racing Buick- Bobby Hillin, Sr. Connie Saylor- #4 Spencer Racing Oldsmobile- G.C. Spencer Bill Scott- #07 Verda Coal Buick- Spencer Brown Bruce Jacobi- #05 Colonial Motors Pontiac- Dennis Taylor Morgan Shepherd- #02 Chevrolet- Bud Reeder Slick Johnson- #42 Buick- Billy Matthews Alan West- #61 Fogg Trucking Co. Buick- Ken Fogg Bobby Wawak- #94 Superior Piping Buick- Bobby Wawak Philip Duffie- #99 Duffie Sand & Gravel Buick- Philip Duffie Lowell Cowell- #24 Chrysler- Gordon-Arrington Laurent Rioux- #38 Rioux Racing Chevrolet- Laurent Rioux Jocko Maggiacomo- #63 Oldsmobile- Jim Rosenblum Mike Potter- #76 Cam Farm Oldsmobile- Mike Potter Ralph Jones- #74 Bridgetender Inn Buick- Bobby Wawak Steve Moore- #73 Franklin City Music Park Pontiac- Steve Moore Rusty Wallace- #72 Buick Mike Kempton- #69 KRC Pontiac- Mike Kempton Joe Booher- #65 Ford- Ron Spohn Rick Wilson- #62 Buick- Rick Wilson Jerry Bowman- #58 Ford- Grimes Holcomb David Simko- #54 Mound Steel Oldsmobile- Elmer Simko Travis Tiller- #46 Morgan-McClure Chevrolet sponsored Buick- Travis Tiller Dick Skillen- #78 Pontiac- Tom Goff Ferrel Harris- #40 Iron Peddlers Buick- Baxter Price / D.K. Ulrich Darryl Sage- #86 Sage Racing Chevrolet- Lee Sage 27. myself posted: 05.24.2013 - 10:04 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) 23. Jim posted: 10.27.2012 - 12:23 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) I thought I remember Bobby Allison wrecking 2 of his SS's and he had to go to a Buick backup, maybe not. Vice Versa, Jim. He wrecked both Buicks & raced a Chevy. 28. zuel660 posted: 12.20.2013 - 11:00 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Very enjoyable & competitive race from start to finish, as all makes of cars in contention seemed very evenly matched. I'd rank this race as one of the greatest 500's ever run. 29. cjs3872 posted: 01.11.2014 - 2:10 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) One thing about this race was that it was a wild race. There were six cautions in this race (I can list what they were for, but not exact lap numbers for all of them at this time), including the one that resulted in Darrell Waltrip's crash (the caution there was actually for Dale Earnhardt's blown engine), but Joe Ruttman's car was not driving that good for most of the day, despite the fact that Ruttman led the most laps, at 57 laps led. One notable incident was when he got together with Dick Brooks at the very front of the field. Another wild incident was when Mark Martin crashed Jim Stacy's car, a crash made more serious when he turned his car back to the right to avoid Ron Bouchard's car, which was inside of Mark when Mark hit the wall. And of course, there was the wild run to the caution that followed in which Joe Rutmman was weaving through cars to keep Neil Bonnett a lap down. In addition, there was Bosco Lowe's crash in the pits during the first round of pit stops in which his car briefly rode the top of the fencing that separated the pit road from the mechanics. Another reason this race was so wild was that this was one of those magical anniversary races that everyone wanted to win, as this was the 25th Daytona 500. As a result, it seemed that for most of the race, everyone wanted to lead every lap, resulting in there being 58 lead changes, with some of the hottest action coming in the one segment of the race that has not resurfaced yet, the restart on lap 76 after Darrell Waltrip's crash through the 90th lap. A.J. Foyt ran well in this race, but had radio problems, which resulted in a long pit stop just before the halfway point that trapped him a lap down when Delma Cowart crashed (possibly in oil from the engines of Kyle Petty, Dave Marcis, and/or Geoff Bodine), bringing out the third caution period around lap 110. 30. Nascarman posted: 02.20.2014 - 10:42 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Crew chiefs 14 Foyt - Dick Hutcherson 75 Bonnett - Jake Elder 31. Aframe43 posted: 04.28.2014 - 4:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) What race doesn't a driver want to lead every lap? More spewing from our resident overblown moron. 32. WardBurtonfan posted: 10.01.2014 - 1:24 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) I was born 11 hours before start of this race!!!! 02/19/1983 33. jon posted: 10.05.2014 - 12:41 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) #65 sponsor was Spohn's Body Shop 34. Schroeder51 posted: 03.13.2015 - 1:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Add to DNQS: Ken Kalla-#57 K&K Enterprises Buick-Owned by: Ken Kalla He participated in the consolation race for drivers who failed to qualify. 35. Paul posted: 04.09.2015 - 6:59 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Withdraw: #00 Jim Hurlbert Sponsor: Hurlbert Racing / Owner: Jim Hurlbert / Make: Buick #5 Rodney Combs Sponsor: J.D Stacy / Owner: Jim Stacy / Make: Buick #06 Al Loquasto Sponsor: Ulrich Racing / Owner: D.K Ulrich / Make: Buick #13 Chet Fillip Sponsor: Circle Bar Truck Corral / Owner: Earle Canavan / Make: Buick #45 John Haver Sponsor: Kothera Racing / Owner: Edwin Kothera / Make: Buick #49 N/A Sponsor: Palantine Auto Parts / Owner: James Hylton / Make: Chevrolet #68 Howard Mark Sponsor: N/A / Owner: Jim Fowler / Make: Oldsmobile #80 John Callis Sponsor: Callis Racing / Owner: John Callis / Make: Pontiac #93 Morgan Shepherd Sponsor: Jim Tunstal / Owner: Junie Donlavey / Make: Ford #96 N/A Sponsor: Cronkrite Racing / Owner: Will Cronkrite / Make: Buick Source: http://beta.industrydocuments.library.ucsf.edu/docs/#id=rpfd0044 http://beta.industrydocuments.library.ucsf.edu/docs/#id=qhgw0044 36. TeamDCR fan posted: 12.21.2015 - 9:34 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The one DNQ of Rusty Wallaces cup career 37. Six posted: 01.24.2016 - 5:56 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) This race was the official start of Kyle Petty's 7/11 sponsorship that he would have till 86. 38. Jaws_Fan posted: 02.10.2016 - 9:55 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) After Cale wrecked in qualifying his team had to scramble to find a backup car (backup cars were not the norm back then). They remembered a nearby Hardee's had one of the old Pontiac's that was converted to a show car, and (as they say) the rest is history. 39. KW posted: 03.04.2016 - 8:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Other races run during speedweeks included: The ARCA 200 won by Ferrell Harris in a 77 Oldsmobile Elliott Forbes-Robinson was second followed by Scott Stovall, Duane Pierson, and Vaughn Brune. Davey Allison was 34th. The Florida 200 for the Dash series won by G.W. Gibson in a Chevrolet, followed by Fred Turner, Mike Swaim, Rhett Vandiver and Michael Waltrip. Davey Allison was 25th. 40. robby burns posted: 06.01.2016 - 8:58 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) During Darrell Waltrip's nasty lap 62 wreck Davis Hobbs made it a point to say how dangerous it was to see DW's car prone on the race how dangerous it was the have the field coming at him at full speed and silly it was to race back to the line, don't worry Davis Nascar got right on that 20 years later. 41. myself posted: 01.12.2017 - 11:47 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Got it right my butt! 42. TeamDCR fan posted: 12.19.2017 - 8:37 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Bosco Lowe spun on pit road. Luckily nobody was in the pits where he spun 43. Jolly Mean Giant posted: 06.02.2018 - 11:24 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) First Daytona 500 starts for Phil Parsons, Dean Roper, and Clark Dwyer. Only Daytona 500 starts for Ronnie Hopkins, Rick Baldwin, and Bosco Lowe. Last Daytona 500 starts for Ronnie Thomas and James Hylton. 44. Anonymous posted: 04.03.2019 - 9:16 am Rate this comment: (1) (0) Dean Roper's best career finish. 45. LJTolitoYouTuber posted: 04.03.2019 - 9:35 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) A race never to forget 46. zuel660 posted: 04.03.2019 - 1:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @20 I don't believe Elliott was in a backup car, I think they simply didn't have a 1983 T-Bird ready to go yet at the beginning of the season. Either way, running the 'square' Bird wasn't much of a hinderance for him, as he led and ran well throughout the week at Daytona, as well as elsewhere. They even continued to run the '82 car for a few short track races in 1984. 47. zuel660 posted: 06.26.2019 - 8:25 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) @27 wrong, Allison had Monte Carlo's for all of Daytona Speedweeks, wrecking 1 in the Clash and another in practice....they ran Chevys for the first 3 races of the season, before switching to Buick for the remainder of the year at Atlanta. 48. GGDC posted: 12.04.2019 - 8:23 am Rate this comment: (2) (0) If you ever watched this race and noticed weird noises during Cale Yarborough's incar camera segments. According to David Hobbs the weird static noise was caused by Cale mimicking engine noises while he raced. 49. GuidoFan posted: 03.30.2020 - 12:48 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) J.D. McDuffie's sponsor was Wilder's. 50. Jordan posted: 03.31.2020 - 9:29 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Not sure if Richard had the engine in the #43 turned way up or not, but he sure had a fast ride before it blew. 51. Indycar1 posted: 06.07.2020 - 12:00 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Caution Flag Reasons: Laps 53-57 Car #66 Spun Tri-Oval Laps 65-76 Oil on Track Laps 109-114 Car #0 Accident Turn 2 Laps 138-140 Car #2 Accident Turn 4 Laps 145-149 Car #04, #26, #70 Spun Turn 1 Laps 163-167 Oil on Track 52. Jimmie4life posted: 07.18.2020 - 4:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Seeing Dale Earnhardt in a Ford is still one of the weirdest things as a fan to think about. I think he drove ford because of how Aerodynamically advanced it was supposed to be in 1983, but got beaten out by Bobby Allison that same year. 53. Jimmie4life posted: 07.18.2020 - 4:12 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) *Buick, not Chevrolet. 54. zuel660 posted: 08.25.2020 - 7:37 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @53 Earnhardt drove for Bud Moore, a long time Ford team, in '82 & '83, so the fact that he was in a Ford then is not strannge at all. While a very aero car for its time, it took a little while to get the '83 T-Bird figured out as a race car, & by then, Earnhardt had moved on to RCR & Chevy. Allison was definitely in a Chevy for all of Speedweeks '83 as well: Busch clash: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghTYasPcxls Daytona 500: http://www.floridastockcars.com/gallery3/v/Daytona/Bobby+Allison+races+ Ricky+Rudd+during+the+1983+Daytona+500___.jpg.html 55. RaceFanX posted: 11.24.2020 - 2:27 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Footage of Cale Yarborough's big qualifying blowover crash at more than 200 miles per hour would actually get featured in a Public Service Announcement featuring Cale promoting seat belt use (something that was indeed rarer than one would have hoped in the early 1980s). Yarborough credited seat belts with saving his life in the crash and said he always wore one on the road too. 56. Rich posted: 01.03.2021 - 7:45 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Ken Squier and David Hobbs were the commentators. Ned Jarrett and Larry Nuber were the pit road reporters. Ken Squier was the studio host. 57. RaceFanX posted: 01.26.2021 - 1:40 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The #28 Pontiac LeMans Cale Yarborough won this race certainly proved itself again with Harry Ranier and the team taking the ex-show car and cutting the body off to rebuild this car into a more modern Chevrolet Monte Carlo for future races afterward. Yarborough's race-winning LeMans body was sold to Johnny Hayes and repainted green and white for driver Phil Parsons and his #66 team to use at speedway races later in the season only for it to end up written off after Parsons' big flip at Talladega later in the year. 58. Ryan posted: 02.10.2021 - 7:26 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) @47 It has to be one of the coolest things I've seen or heard. Cale carried the in car camera that day and CBS was puzzled wondering what the "weird" noise was when they would go to the in car camera. In the turns and on the backstretch when Cale was making a pass he would mimic the engine or makes engine sounds. It was great. You can go watch this race on youtube and of course people have hyperlinked the exact second when he was doing it. He did it throughout the race and can hear it. I crack up every time I hear him doing it. Legend. They didn't show him doing it on the last lap, I bet he was doing it as he went by Baker on the last lap. Some people consider this as an ADD condition that Cale had and believe he was really tuned in with the engine, lol. As mentioned, David Hobbs mentioned it on the Dale Jr. Download, episode #281. Dale Jr. and his co-hosts loved it. 59. TeamDCRfan posted: 03.05.2021 - 6:43 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) During the first 125 when Bruce Jacobi crashed, Ken Squier mentioned that Jacobi had been rideless and was talking with the CBS crew about being a member of the Television Broadcast. Then he landed in the 05 car. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: