The 1982 Virginia National Bank 500 was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series racing event that was set on April 25, 1982, at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Virginia.
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 A starting grid of 31 drivers competed for three and a half hours in this 500-lap race. D.K. Ulrich was involved in a crash on lap 14; leading to his last-place finish. An audience of 36,500 saw Harry Gant defeat Butch Lindley by a distance of slightly more than a lap.Race information for the 1982 Virginia National Bank 500 at Racing Reference
The majority of the field was driving Buick vehicles. Terry Labonte and Ricky Rudd would dominate the first one hundred laps of this race while Harry Gant would monopolize the closing laps of this race with a 1-lap lead over everyone else. Joe Ruttman would be the lowest finishing driver to complete the race; albeit more than 50 laps behind the only driver on the lead lap, Gant. This would be his first victory ever in the NASCAR Cup Series.Racing information for the 1982 Virginia National Bank 500 at Race Database
The pole position was won by Terry Labonte with his a qualifying speed of ; racing speeds for this event averaged . Brad Teague's 11th place finish in this race was also the highest finishing position in the Cup series for team owner, Charlie Henderson. Winnings for this event ranged from the winner's share of $26,795 ($ when adjusted for inflation) to the last-place finisher's share of $1,300 ($ when adjusted for inflation). The overall prize purse for this race was $170,500 ($ when adjusted for inflation).Racing information for the 1982 Virginia National Bank 500 at Fantasy Racing Cheat Sheet
Qualifying Grid Driver Manufacturer Owner 1 44 Terry Labonte Chevrolet Billy Hagan 2 28 Benny Parsons Pontiac Harry Ranier 3 33 Harry Gant Buick Hal Needham 4 3 Ricky Rudd Pontiac Richard Childress 5 50 Geoffrey Bodine Pontiac Cliff Stewart 6 98 Morgan Shepherd Buick Ron Benfield 7 88 Bobby Allison Chevrolet DiGard Racing 8 2 Tim Richmond Buick Jim Stacy 9 21 Neil Bonnett Ford Wood Brothers 10 02 Mark Martin Pontiac Bud Reeder 11 75 Joe Ruttman Buick RahMoc Enterprises 12 11 Darrell Waltrip Buick Junior Johnson 13 47 Ron Bouchard Buick Jack Beebe 14 01 Butch Lindley Buick Emanuel Zervakis 15 15 Dale Earnhardt Ford Bud Moore
Top 10 finishers Pos Grid Driver Manufacturer Time/Status 1 3 33 Harry Gant Buick 500 167 185 3:30:01 2 14 01 Butch Lindley Buick 499 163 175 +1 lap and 1 second 3 9 21 Neil Bonnett Ford 497 0 165 +3 laps 4 4 3 Ricky Rudd Pontiac 496 55 165 +4 laps 5 12 11 Darrell Waltrip Buick 496 25 160 +4 laps 6 16 71 Dave Marcis Chevrolet 494 0 150 +4 laps 7 10 02 Mark Martin Pontiac 492 0 146 +8 laps 8 24 67 Buddy Arrington Dodge 489 0 142 +11 laps 9 21 40 Jimmy Hensley Buick 485 0 138 +15 laps 10 28 48 Slick Johnson Pontiac 484 0 134 +16 laps
Standings after the race Pos Driver Points Differential 1 Terry Labonte 1235 0 2 Darrell Waltrip 1155 -80 3 Benny Parsons 1134 -101 4 Harry Gant 1122 -113 5 Bobby Allison 1069 -139 6 Dale Earnhardt 1039 -199 7 Morgan Shepherd 1029 -206 8 Richard Petty 1019 -216 9 Buddy Arrington 1015 -220 10 Dave Marcis 950 -285
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