The 1956 Virginia 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on May 20, 1956, at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia. As the inaugural event for the NASCAR Grand National Series in Martinsville, this race would set a precedent for all other 500-lap races to follow on this newly paved short track.

Background

Martinsville Speedway is one of five short tracks to hold NASCAR races. The standard track at Martinsville Speedway is a four-turn short track oval that is long. The track's turns are banked at eleven degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at zero degrees. The back stretch also has a zero degree banking.

Race report Five hundred laps took place on a paved oval track spanning for a grand total of . The time of the race was four hours and three minutes while there were seven cautions for twenty laps. The average speed was while the pole position speed was .

Buck Baker defeated Speedy Thompson by half a lap. Other notable drivers in the race included Arden Mounts, Cotton Owens, Fireball Roberts, Tiny Lund, Paul Goldsmith, and Lee Petty. The winning vehicle was a 1956 Dodge Coronet. Thirty-five American drivers started the race. It would be the first time that a driver with the number 502 would win a race. Joe Bill O'Dell crashed on lap 37 causing his vehicle to have all four wheels off the ground.

A vehicle made by the Packard Motor Car Company qualified for the race; eventually finishing in 34th place due to a tire problem. Years later, the Packard Motor Company would be victimized by the "Big Three" automobile manufacturers and would close due to lack of sales.

Shorty Johns and Carl Kiekhaefer were the two most notable crew chiefs to attend this race.

Twenty thousands fans were on hand to watch the race. The total winnings of the race was $10,275 ($ when considering inflation). Buck Baker received $3,100 for the victory. ($ when considering inflation).

Qualifying According to the official lineup sheet from the official program, the first 20 cars would qualify based on speed. Then, positions 21-30 would be based on their positions on a 10 lap qualifying race. Positions 31-40, those who would DNQ on Saturday, would be decided on who got to the track first, i.e. the first driver would get 31st, the second would get 32nd, etc. Buck Baker would win the pole with a 27.230. Grid Driver Manufacturer OwnerTimeAvg. Speed 1 502 Buck Baker '56 Dodge Carl Kiekhaefer27.23066.125 2 500 Speedy Thompson '56 Dodge Carl Kiekhaefer27.29065.930 3 92 Herb Thomas '56 Chevrolet Herb Thomas27.54065.450 4 75 Jim Paschal '56 Mercury Frank Hayworth27.55065.115 5 42 Lee Petty '56 Dodge Petty Enterprises27.59065.103 6 7A Bobby Johns '56 Chevrolet Shorty Johns27.84064.745 7 X Rex White '56 Chevrolet Max Welborn27.89064.515 8 3 Paul Goldsmith '56 Chevrolet Smokey Yunick28.04064.285 9 2 Gwyn Staley '56 Chevrolet Hubert Westmoreland28.09064.055 10 285 Don Carr '56 Pontiac Jim Stephens28.11064.053 11 286 Cotton Owens '56 Pontiac Jim Stephens28.22063.825 12 1 Bobby Myers '55 Chevrolet unknown28.36063.600 13 14 Billy Myers '56 Mercury Bill Stroppe28.38063.380 14 150 Fred Lorenzen '56 Chevrolet Fred Lorenzen28.41063.371 15 12 Ralph Moody '56 Ford Pete DePaolo28.42063.368 16 11 Tim Flock '56 Chevrolet Mauri Rose28.48063.255 17 6 Ralph Liguori '56 Dodge Ralph Liguori28.49063.201 18 22 Fireball Roberts '56 Ford Pete DePaolo28.56062.935 19 418 Sherman Utsman '56 Chevrolet unknown28.67062.715 20 95 Bob Duell '56 Ford Julian Buesink28.68062.712 21 91 Jack Smith '56 Chevrolet Ted Chester29.18061.640 22 55 Tiny Lund '56 Pontiac A.L. Bumgarner28.91062.265 23 204 Darvin Randahl '56 Ford Darvin Randahl29.33061.143 24 32 Ted Cannady '56 Chevrolet Ted Cannady29.01062.065 25 9 Pee Wee Jones '56 Ford unknown29.01062.065 26 264 Johnny Allen '55 Plymouth Spook Crawford29.71060.605 27 195 Jim Rhoades '55 Packard Jim Rhoades33.42053.890 28 18 Arden Mounts '56 Pontiac Arden Mounts34.47052.170 29 209 Pete Stewart '56 Plymouth Pete Stewart30.60058.820 30 16 Ray Chaike '56 Chevrolet Gus Holzmueller0.0000.000 31 59 Blackie Pitt '56 Plymouth Fury Brownie Pitt0.0000.000 32 211 George Cork '55 Plymouth unknown0.0000.000 33 19 Harvey Henderson '56 Ford Harvey Henderson0.0000.000 34 240 Reitzel Darner '56 Ford Rat Garner0.0000.000 35 35 Joe Bill O'Dell '55 Rambler Joe Gilliam0.0000.000

Timeline Section reference: Start of race: Speedy Thompson started the race with the pole position. Lap 8: Piston issues caused Ralph Liguori to become the last-place finisher. Lap 25: Jim Rhoades' "road to success" came to a dead end with tire problems. Lap 29: Bob Duell had a terminal crash, forcing him out of the race. Lap 37: Joe Bill O'Dell had a terminal crash, he was forced to exit the race. Lap 69: Tim Flock had a terminal crash, forcing him to exit the race. Lap 149: A non-functioning piston crushed Darvin Randahl's hopes of winning the race. Lap 156: Transmission issues brought down Ted Cannady. Lap 216: Buck Baker took over the lead from Speedy Thompson. Lap 222: Herb Thomas takes over the lead from Buck Baker. Lap 243: Cotton Owen's race weekend was devastated by a troublesome right front hub. Lap 252: Blackie Pitt's vehicle had a faulty right front hub. Lap 293: Bearing issues caused Jim Paschal to exit the event early. Lap 304: Lug bolt problems ended Don Carr's weekend on the track. Lap 338: Speedy Thompson took over the lead from Herb Thomas. Lap 356: Pete Stewart's vehicle had a faulty right rear axle. Lap 377: Herb Thomas's vehicle had a problematic engine that kept him from finishing the race. Lap 382: Buck Baker takes over the lead from Speedy Thompson. Lap 436: Bobby Myers developed a faulty right front hub in his vehicle. Lap 441: Reitzel Darner developed a faulty right front hub in his vehicle. Finish: Buck Baker was officially declared the winner of the event.

Finishing order Section reference: FinSt#DriverMakeTeam/OwnerSponsorLapsLedStatusPtsWinnings11502Buck Baker'56 DodgeCarl Kiekhaefer500125running$3,10022500Speedy Thompson'56 DodgeCarl Kiekhaefer500259running$1,5003542Lee Petty'56 DodgePetty Enterprises4970running$1,025483Paul Goldsmith'56 ChevroletSmokey Yunick4960running$750592Gwyn Staley'56 ChevroletHubert Westmoreland4910running$60067XRex White'56 ChevroletMax Welborn4830running$450719418Sherman Utsman'56 Chevroletunknown4770running$35081314Billy Myers'56 MercuryBill Stroppe4750running$30092191Jack Smith'56 ChevroletTed Chester4750running$200101512Ralph Moody'56 FordPete DePaoloSoutheastern Dealers4670running$175113319Harvey Henderson'56 FordHarvey Henderson4640running$150122255Tiny Lund'56 PontiacA. L. Bumgartner4630running$1001367ABobby Johns'56 ChevroletShorty Johns4580running$1001434240Reitzel Darner'56 FordRat Garner4410rf hub$10015121Bobby Myers'55 Chevroletunknown4360rf hub$100161822Fireball Roberts'56 FordPete DePaoloDePaolo Engineering4350running$75173016Ray Chaike'56 Chevrolet4300running$7518259Pee Wee Jones'56 Fordunknown4190running$751932211George Cork'55 Plymouthunknown4050running$7520392Herb Thomas'56 ChevroletHerb Thomas377116engine$752129209Pete Stewart'56 PlymouthPete Stewart3560rr axle$60222818Arden Mounts'56 PontiacArden Mounts3380running$602310285Don Carr'56 PontiacJim Stephens3040lug bolt$602414150Fred Lorenzen'56 ChevroletFred Lorenzen2930running$6025475Jim Paschal'56 MercuryFrank HayworthC U Later Alligator2930bearing$60263159Blackie Pitt'56 BuickBrownie Pitt2520rf hub$60277286Cotton Owens'56 PontiacJim Stephens2430rf hub$60282432Ted Cannady'56 ChevroletTed Cannady1560transmission$602923204Darvin Randahl'56 FordDarvin Randahl1490piston$60301611Tim Flock'56 ChevroletMauri RoseMauri Rose Engineering690crash$603126264Johnny Allen'55 PlymouthSpook Crawford370transmission$60323535Joe Bill O'Dell'55 RamblerJoe Gilliam370crash$60332095Bob Duell'56 FordJulian Buesink290crash$603427195Jim Rhoades'55 PackardJim Rhoades250tire$6035176Ralph Liguori'56 DodgeRalph Liguori80piston$60 † signifies that the driver is known to be deceased * Driver failed to finish race

References