|| *Comments on the 1986 Miller American 400:* View the most recent comment <#24> | Post a comment <#post> Tweet 1. Matt posted: 07.05.2005 - 1:32 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Rick Baldwin in the #67 who was subbing for the injured Buddy Arrington suffered serious head injuries in a qualifying wreck that put him into a coma until his deat almost exactly 11 years later on 6/12/97. 2. MegaRacer posted: 10.08.2006 - 7:26 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Richard Petty's 1000th race. 3. myself posted: 03.15.2007 - 2:24 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Was this the "Deddy, start your engine" race?! 4. MegaRacer posted: 04.08.2007 - 9:17 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) More like "Deddy, staht yo aynjin!" 5. nascarman posted: 04.17.2007 - 8:09 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGFPeG6ElTE 6. Destiny posted: 02.02.2008 - 3:21 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) That's Richard's three daughters Sharon, Lisa and Rebecca said "Deddy Start Your Engine." 7. Patrick posted: 08.15.2008 - 3:56 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) first winston cup race led by the late Alan Kulwicki. 8. RaceFanX posted: 04.09.2009 - 1:16 pm Rate this comment: (0) (1) 1985 Indy 500 polesitter Pancho Carter scores his best Cup finish, 17th 9. Anonymous posted: 04.09.2009 - 1:18 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Last Cup race for Willy T. Ribbs. He'd go on to a decent career in CART before returning to NASCAR in 2001 to run a full-season in the Truck series as part of the Dodge Diversity program 10. Walleyewacker posted: 05.26.2011 - 3:35 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Off year for the Elliott team considering they had to wait this long in the year for a win and would only win one other point race at the August MIS event for the whole year. Was the balance off the 1986 Thunderbird due to the small air dam allowed on the 1986 cars? Ricky Rudd had a better year in the #15 Bud Moore Thunderbird. 11. RaceFanX posted: 08.21.2012 - 12:30 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Mike Joy called this race for CBS...over 25 years later in 2012 he drove Bill Elliott's winning car from this race in the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion historic races at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. (He finished 21st out of 22 cars that started the main event) 12. wrank fakefield posted: 09.02.2013 - 2:03 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) Re: Wallyawacker: The Elliott's slump in 86 was due to several factors, one of which you have mentioned. Also, Ernie Elliott was absent for a substantial portion of the year suffering from mono. This seemed to directly cost the Elliotts at least one victory, as Bill seemed to have the Winston 500 in hand before blowing an engine (not one of Ernie's) in the latter stages; the Elliott's first blown engine in 2 years. Also, 86 was the year the GM teams redesigned the rear windows, replacing the chopped off opera windows of 1985 with sleeker bubble windows, allowing for greater downforce in the turns, equalizing the Elliott's biggest advantage in 85. Some have called NASCAR shennanigans on this, but the GM teams produced the newly designed cars for sale in showrooms by the deadline required for gm teams to run them in the cup series, so it was all above board, though definitely a case of the tail wagging the dog.The thunderbird design that the Elliott's dominated with in 85 had an inefficient nose, with inset headlights that produced much more drag than the GM product's super sleek noses. With the rear end advantage they had in 85, it didn't matter, but once that advantage was erased, the front end became a hinderance. in 87 ford redesigned the nose of the thunderbird, eliminating the inset headlights, and the Elliotts were back in business, winning 12 races over the next 2 years and the championship in 88. 13. SRT posted: 11.13.2013 - 2:47 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Another DNQ is Mark Stahl, he crashed in his qualifying run. Also, I'm wondering if Rick Baldwin should be added as a DNQ? His crash was during qualifying. 14. Nascar Lead Lap Points posted: 07.18.2014 - 2:29 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) DNQ Update Mark Stahl drove a #82 owned by Mark Stahl (Sponsor was Auto Bell Car Wash and Car was a Ford) Jimmy Means drove a #52 owned by Jimmy Means (Sponsor was Means Racing and car was a Pontiac) Jerry Holden drove a #68 owned by Jerry Holden (Sponsor was Holden Racing and car was a Ford Jonathan Lee Edwards drove a #92 owned by Jonathan Lee Edwards (Sponsor was Edwards Racing) WD 67 Rick Baldwin Pannill Knitting Ford Buddy Arrington (Fatal Crash) #67 Crew Chief was Joey Arrington 15. Jim posted: 08.13.2014 - 3:42 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) In victory lane I dont think Bill realized they had stuck a Miller Beer cap on his head, but it was the race sponsor. Great job by Handsome Harry to finish 2nd as sore as he was. 16. saltsburgtrojanfan posted: 08.17.2014 - 4:24 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) Caution 1: Lap 19-22: #27 accident turns 1/2 Caution 2: Lap 49-53: debris Caution 3: Lap 66-71: #30 spin turns 1/2 Caution 4: Lap 80-83: #98 engine failure Caution 5: Lap 87-92: #75 engine failure Caution 6: Lap 134-139: #28 accident turn 4 Caution 7: Lap 175-178: debris Caution 8: Lap 183-186: #12,27,84 accident turn 4 17. Opie posted: 02.11.2016 - 1:15 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Richard's 1000th start was actually the following week at Daytona. 18. Zachary posted: 02.13.2017 - 8:24 pm Rate this comment: (2) (0) First ever race for the famed #4 to have Kodak sponsorship. MMM and Kodak will maintain a strong relationship until the end of 2003. 19. @Statscrash posted: 09.10.2018 - 8:03 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) Who is the "84" in the last caution? There is no 84 in the race. 20. Jimnsimforever posted: 11.23.2018 - 7:30 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) You're right opie, this was Richard Petty's 999th start. His 1,000th start was next cup race 3 weeks later at firecracker 400 at daytona (they took 2 weeks off after this race). I saw before the pocono race the week before this one they interviewed Petty talking about that race being #999. Then in this race at Michgan they dedicated the entire race broadcast to it being Petty's 1,000th cup race. It would've been a much better story if they had gotten it right and celebrated #1,000 when it was supposed to be, at the firecracker 400, with that being the race he won his 200th (and what would be final) race just 2 years before. I wonder if they ever acknowledged this huge mistake. 21. Spen posted: 11.24.2018 - 10:10 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) I'm guessing they were counting his DNS at Beltsville in '65. It's the 1000th race he qualified for at least. 22. RaceFanX posted: 11.24.2018 - 10:33 am Rate this comment: (0) (0) IIRC the mixup was because NASCAR and the organizers counted one of King Richard's Convertible series races toward his total by mistake. 23. SweetRich posted: 02.15.2020 - 8:11 pm Rate this comment: (0) (0) The Commentators For The Race Were Ken Squier And Ned Jarrett. The Pit Road Reporters Were Mike Joy And Chris Economaki. 24. NewGuyOnTheBlock posted: 06.09.2020 - 4:55 pm Rate this comment: (1) (0) CBS broadcast this race. Ken Squier and Ned Jarrett were in the booth with Mike Joy and Chris Economaki in the pits. Richard Petty, Dale Earnhardt, and Geoffrey Bodine carried in-car cameras. Bill Elliott finally shook the monkey off his back, winning his first race of the 1986 season after a late-race duel with a bruised and battered Harry Gant. To put Elliott's performance during the first half of 1986 into perspective, at this point in the season a year earlier, he had already won six times. Qualifying was marred by the fatal crash of Rick Baldwin. Baldwin, a rookie on the tour, was filling in for the injured Buddy Arrington in the #67 Ford after Arrington was injured in a violent crash at Pocono the week prior. During his qualifying run, Baldwin got loose entering turn 1 and hit the wall driver's side first. Baldwin's head made contact with the concrete, resulting in massive head injuries that placed him in a coma for 11 years. He died in 1997 as a result of the injuries. Tim Richmond went on to win the pole, shattering the track record set a year earlier by Bill Elliott by a full 6mph. While they were still a young team, Hendrick Motorsports were putting the NASCAR world on notice as this was their eighth pole of the season. A new track surface had fans, drivers, and media members on edge as speeds were expected to be well above 170mph. Pack racing, similar to that of Daytona and Talladega, was also expected due to the new pavement. Both turned out to be true: The opening laps saw 25 cars battling it out in a single pack while speeds were around 170mph all day. Tire concerns were everywhere in the garage, as drivers and teams were unsure of how their Goodyears would react to the fresh surface. These factors, combined with cool temperatures during the race, led to one of the most exciting races of the season. Tim Richmond led at the start, while outsider polesitter Benny Parsons fell back quickly due to mechanical problems, eventually dropping out with a blown engine after just a few laps. The new surface did not allow Richmond to pull away as he had at Pocono the week prior, and his teammate Geoff Bodine was able to take the lead after 7 laps. The Hendrick teammates, along with Harry Gant, began to slowly pull away from the field as the drivers began to get a feel for the surface and find their lines through the corners. Rusty Wallace brought out the day's first caution on lap 19 when he brushed the wall in turns 1 and 2, the victim of a cut tire. Under yellow, the entire field pitted for fresh tires, except for Morgan Shepherd and J.D. McDuffie. McDuffie led the field back to green, but quickly faded as his privately-owned Pontiac didn't have the speed that the rest of the field did. A fierce scrap for the lead broke out as the top 9 drivers all ran together in the main pack. After jostling the lead with Shepherd and Richmond, Dale Earnhardt emerged as the race leader, though not by much. Geoff Bodine reclaimed the lead from Earnhardt on lap 35 as the top 12 cars continued to run in a single pack. The drafting aspect of the new surface allowed for some drivers who had qualified well back in the field to move towards the front early: For example, Cale Yarborough found himself 6th early on despite qualifying 28th. Harry Gant, nursing a bruised heart and deflated lung after his violent crash at Pocono a week earlier, became the next leader after working the outside line around Bodine. Meanwhile, Richard Petty made an unscheduled pitstop due to a blistering tire. He was not alone, as a number of frontrunners hit the pits in the next few laps to address tire issues. Debris brought out the days second caution on lap 49, bringing the whole field into the pits. Nobody was willing to take chances; tires had to be changed based on the blistering seen just before the caution. Neil Bonnett would win the race off of pit road and lead the field back to green. Once again, the first few laps after the restart were hectic, with Harry Gant emerging as the race leader. Gant, Earnhardt, and Shepherd shuffled around in the lead pack for several laps, with Earnhardt taking the lead back on lap 61. Cale Yarborough's impressive run saw him aggressively take second from Shepherd, then go low around Earnhardt for the lead. Willy T. Ribbs brought out the third caution of the day on lap 66 after his engine expired, sending him spinning into the infield. Jim Sauter narrowly avoided striking Ribbs' car, evading through the turn 2 grass. Once again, the entire field pitted for fresh rubber, with Morgan Shepherd inheriting the lead off of pit road. The restart again saw intense racing at the front, with Shepherd and Gant trading the lead back-and-forth. A pair of quick yellows for Ron Bouchard and Jody Ridley blowing their engines managed to break up the field as drivers staggered their pitstops (Gant and Earnhardt pitted immediately after the Ridley caution, while Bobby Allison and Geoff Bodine stayed out an extra lap before pitting). The second half of the race would prove to be much calmer than the first, with the cars beginning to spread out more instead of bunching up. Geoff Bodine led the field back to green and pulled away, helped by a number of lapped cars that broke up the main pack. By the halfway point, Bodine had nearly a five-second lead over the field. Back in the pack, at least 27 cars ran together, with three and four-wide racing happening every lap. After restarting deep in the field, Dale Earnhardt moved his way up to third, then passed Ricky Rudd for second shortly after halfway. With a long green-flag run finally developing, Bodine continued to extend his lead, now pacing the field by a full eight seconds. Harry Gant was the man on the move: After restarting deep in the field, Gant moved up to second by lap 115 and began pulling away from the pack. However, nobody seemed to be able to catch Bodine. They wouldn't have to as Bodine was the first driver to pit on lap 123, kicking off a round of green-flag pitstops. Gant took over the top spot as the majority of the field pitted for fuel and tires. The routine cycle of stops was rudely interrupted on lap 134 when Cale Yarborough blew a tire and slammed into the turn 4 wall, bringing out the sixth caution of the day. The caution came at an opportune time, as many drivers had reported blistering tires during the pitstop cycle. Dale Earnhardt took over the lead under caution and led the field back to green. His time at the front was shortlived, as the lapped car of Tommy Ellis clipped Earnhardt entering turn 1, causing him to lose his momentum and the lead to Harry Gant. Meanwhile, many of the early race leaders had been trapped a lap down due to the caution coming out during pitstops, resulting in several new faces at the front. This included Bill Elliott, who had been a non-factor much of the day. Now with 50 laps to go, Elliott made his move. The #9 made a daring move around Dale Earnhardt and Bobby Allison into turn 1, then quickly reeled in Gant for the race lead. Another long green-flag run saw Elliott and Gant steadily pull away from the rest of the leaders as they dueled for first. Dale Earnhardt's chances for victory came to an end around lap 160, when he was forced to pit for a flat tire. As the leaders battled through lapped traffic, Harry Gant managed to get around Elliott by using Terry Labonte's lapped car as a pick. With green flag pitstops expected in the coming laps, track position became key. Debris on track would end any chance of a strategy race, as the whole field entered the pits for fresh rubber under the day's seventh caution. Harry Gant would win the race off pit road ahead of Elliott, while third-place Buddy Baker lost numerous positions due to a slow stop. Gant led the field back to green, with the lapped cars of Terry Labonte and Tim Richmond diving below Gant into turn 1 to get their laps back. Gant was able to get around both drivers to keep them a lap down, giving himself some cover from Elliott. Further back, Rusty Wallace and Ricky Rudd made contact and spun through turn 4. Trying to avoid the accident, Neil Bonnett slowed dramatically. Rookie Chet Fillip was unable to slow in time, slamming into the rear of Bonnett's Chevy. Fillip had been having a career day, running as high as sixth before the accident. He suffered an injured foot in the incident. Gant and Elliott resumed their battle on the restart, joined by Geoff Bodine who had fought back to third after getting mired down in traffic. Elliott briefly wrestled the lead away from Gant on the restart, but the #33 was back out front a lap later. With ten laps to go, Gant led by less than a car length over Elliott, who was lying in wait for his moment to strike. That moment came with five laps to go: Gant got loose entering turn 3 and moved up the track, opening the door for Elliott to charge past into the race lead. Gant tried to position himself for a slingshot move on the last lap, but he was unable to get close enough to Elliott in the final laps as Awesome Bill from Dawsonville held on to win his first race of the season. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Post a comment:* Your comment may not appear immediately - all comments must be approved by the moderator. Name: Comment: