1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Short description|15th race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}
{{Infobox NASCAR race report|Type=NASWINSTON|Official_name=30th Annual Pepsi Firecracker 400|Caption=The 1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400 program cover, featuring Bobby Allison.|Date=July 2|Avg={{convert|122.866|mph|km/h}}|Season_No=29|Race_No=15|Scheduled_laps=160|Course_km=4.0|Distance_laps=160|Distance_km=643.737|Course_mi=2.5|Scheduled_km=643.737|Scheduled_mi=400|Race_Name=Pepsi Firecracker 400|Location=Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona International Speedway|Announcers=Paul Page, Johnny Rutherford|Radio=Motor Racing Network|Network=ABC|First_Team=Melling Racing|First_Driver=Bill Elliott|Pole_Team=Hendrick Motorsports|Most_Team=Melling Racing|Pole_Driver=Darrell Waltrip|Most_Driver=Bill Elliott|Most_laps=122|Car=9|Year=1988|Distance_mi=400|Pole_Time=46.435|Image=1988_Pepsi_Firecracker_400.jpeg|Attendance=83,000}}
The 1988 Pepsi Firecracker 400 was the 15th stock car race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 30th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, July 2, 1988, before an audience of 83,000 in Daytona Beach, Florida at Daytona International Speedway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) permanent triangular-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 160 laps to complete. In one of the closest finishes in NASCAR Winston Cup Series history, Melling Racing driver Bill Elliott was able to beat out Morgan–McClure Motorsports driver Rick Wilson by a distance of {{Convert|3|ft|m}} to take his 26th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third victory of the season.{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 3, 1988 |title=Elliott Nips Wilson At Firecracker 400 Finish (Part 1) |pages=25 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-elliott-nips-wils/128041084/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 3, 1988 |title=Elliott Nips Wilson At Firecracker 400 Finish (Part 2) |pages=33 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-elliott-nips-wils/128041105/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Coble |first=Done |date=July 3, 1988 |title=Bang-up victory for Elliott (Part 1) |pages=29 |work=Florida Today |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/florida-today-bang-up-victory-for-elliot/128070182/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Coble |first=Done |date=July 3, 1988 |title=Bang-up victory for Elliott (Part 2) |pages=30 |work=Florida Today |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/florida-today-bang-up-victory-for-elliot/128070195/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} To fill out the top three, Jackson Bros. Motorsports driver Phil Parsons would finish third.
Background
File:Daytona_International_Speedway.svg, the venue where the race was held.]]
Daytona International Speedway is one of three superspeedways to hold NASCAR races, the other two being Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. The standard track at Daytona International Speedway is a four-turn superspeedway that is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) long. The track's turns are banked at 31 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at 18 degrees.
= Entry list =
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!# !Driver !Team !Make !Sponsor |
| 0 |
| 1 |
| 2
|Ernie Irvan (R) |
| 3 |
| 4 |
| 5 |
| 6
|Ford |
| 7
|Ford |
| 07 |
| 8 |
| 9
|Ford |
| 10
|Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |
| 11 |
| 12 |
| 14 |
| 15
|Ford |
| 17
|Tide |
| 21
|Ford |
| 23 |
| 25 |
| 26 |
| 27 |
| 28
|Ford |
| 29 |
| 30 |
| 31 |
| 32 |
| 33 |
| 37 |
| 38
|Ford |
| 39
|Ford |
| 43
|STP |
| 44 |
| 50 |
| 52 |
| 54 |
| 55 |
| 59 |
| 67
|Ford |
| 68
|Ford |
| 71 |
| 73
|Ford |
| 75 |
| 76 |
| 77
|Ford |
| 80
|Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford |
| 83 |
| 86 |
| 88 |
| 90
|Ford |
| 97 |
| 98
|Brad Noffsinger (R) |
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, June 30, at 10:00 AM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Friday, July 1, at 11:00 AM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time,{{Cite news |date=June 30, 1988 |title=NASCAR Today |pages=34 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-nascar-today/128070265/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}} and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified but were high enough in owner's points; up to two provisionals were given.
Darrell Waltrip, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would win the pole, setting a time of 46.435 and an average speed of {{Convert|193.819|mph|km/h}} in the first round.{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 1, 1988 |title=Waltrip Takes His First Pole At Daytona (Part 1) |pages=61 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-waltrip-takes-his/128070314/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}{{Cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tom |date=July 1, 1988 |title=Waltrip Takes His First Pole At Daytona (Part 2) |pages=68 |work=The Charlotte Observer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-waltrip-takes-his/128070336/ |access-date=July 11, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Open access}}
Ten drivers would fail to qualify.
= Full qualifying results =
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!Pos. !# !Driver !Team !Make !Time !Speed |
| 1
|17 |46.435 |193.819 |
|---|
| 2
|21 |Ford |46.959 |191.657 |
| 3
|28 |Ford |47.072 |191.196 |
| 4
|25 |47.102 |191.075 |
| 5
|75 |47.145 |190.900 |
| 6
|55 |47.157 |190.852 |
| 7
|44 |47.384 |189.938 |
| 8
|33 |47.388 |189.921 |
| 9
|88 |47.465 |189.613 |
| 10
|5 |47.540 |189.314 |
| 11
|8 |47.548 |189.282 |
| 12
|26 |47.671 |188.794 |
| 13
|31 |47.715 |188.620 |
| 14
|11 |47.718 |188.608 |
| 15
|12 |47.734 |188.545 |
| 16
|52 |47.769 |188.407 |
| 17
|1 |47.802 |188.277 |
| 18
|14 |47.847 |188.100 |
| 19
|27 |47.890 |187.931 |
| 20
|3 |47.890 |187.931 |
| colspan="7" |Failed to lock in Round 1 |
| 21
|7 |Ford |48.012 |187.453 |
| 22
|6 |Ford |48.020 |187.422 |
| 23
|67 |48.114 |187.056 |
| 24
|23 |48.131 |186.990 |
| 25
|29 |48.145 |186.935 |
| 26
|4 |48.150 |186.916 |
| 27
|43 |48.293 |186.362 |
| 28
|90 |Ford |48.364 |186.089 |
| 29
|10 |Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |48.416 |185.889 |
| 30
|30 |48.578 |185.269 |
| 31
|2 |Ernie Irvan (R) |48.586 |185.239 |
| 32
|50 |48.629 |185.075 |
| 33
|37 |48.659 |184.961 |
| 34
|07 |48.670 |184.919 |
| 35
|68 |Ford |48.689 |184.847 |
| 36
|77 |Ford |48.707 |184.778 |
| 37
|83 |48.721 |184.725 |
| 38
|9 |Ford |48.780 |184.502 |
| 39
|71 |48.781 |184.498 |
| 40
|86 |48.866 |184.177 |
| colspan="7" |Provisionals |
| 41
|15 |Ford |48.922 |183.966 |
| 42
|97 |48.974 |183.771 |
| colspan="7" |Failed to qualify |
| 43
|80 |Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford |48.902 |184.042 |
| 44
|59 |48.926 |183.951 |
| 45
|32 |49.134 |183.173 |
| 46
|76 |49.190 |182.964 |
| 47
|73 |Ford |49.357 |182.345 |
| 48
|98 |Brad Noffsinger (R) |49.543 |181.660 |
| 49
|54 |49.670 |181.196 |
| 50
|38 |Ford |50.360 |178.713 |
| 51
|39 |Ford |50.454 |178.380 |
| 52
|0 |51.264 |175.562 |
| colspan="7" |[https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-palm-beach-post-firecracker-400-qual/128016454/ Official first round qualifying results] |
| colspan="7" |[https://www.newspapers.com/article/citizen-register-firecracker-400/128016579/ Official starting lineup] |
Race results
| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%"
!Fin !St !# !Driver !Team !Make !Laps !Led !Status !Pts !Winnings |
| 1
|38 |9 |Ford |160 |23 |running |180 |$63,500 |
|---|
| 2
|26 |4 |160 |19 |running |175 |$45,825 |
| 3
|6 |55 |160 |17 |running |170 |$22,250 |
| 4
|20 |3 |160 |53 |running |170 |$22,825 |
| 5
|1 |17 |160 |13 |running |160 |$25,430 |
| 6
|9 |88 |160 |8 |running |155 |$14,185 |
| 7
|8 |33 |160 |0 |running |146 |$12,835 |
| 8
|4 |25 |160 |10 |running |147 |$16,435 |
| 9
|37 |83 |159 |0 |running |138 |$8,660 |
| 10
|32 |50 |159 |0 |running |134 |$7,535 |
| 11
|13 |31 |159 |0 |running |130 |$7,325 |
| 12
|19 |27 |159 |0 |running |127 |$13,940 |
| 13
|11 |8 |159 |0 |running |124 |$8,720 |
| 14
|17 |1 |159 |0 |running |121 |$4,705 |
| 15
|15 |12 |159 |0 |running |0 |$12,090 |
| 16
|10 |5 |159 |0 |running |115 |$7,885 |
| 17
|22 |6 |Ford |159 |0 |running |117 |$5,380 |
| 18
|5 |75 |159 |0 |running |109 |$10,930 |
| 19
|14 |11 |159 |0 |running |106 |$10,680 |
| 20
|27 |43 |159 |0 |running |103 |$7,230 |
| 21
|30 |30 |158 |0 |running |100 |$6,380 |
| 22
|12 |26 |158 |2 |running |102 |$6,230 |
| 23
|39 |71 |158 |0 |running |94 |$6,005 |
| 24
|2 |21 |Ford |158 |0 |running |91 |$10,555 |
| 25
|31 |2 |Ernie Irvan (R) |156 |0 |running |88 |$3,805 |
| 26
|33 |37 |156 |0 |running |85 |$2,905 |
| 27
|16 |52 |155 |0 |running |82 |$5,480 |
| 28
|23 |67 |153 |0 |running |79 |$4,630 |
| 29
|40 |86 |152 |0 |running |76 |$2,805 |
| 30
|36 |77 |Ford |150 |0 |running |73 |$2,980 |
| 31
|24 |23 |150 |0 |running |70 |$2,380 |
| 32
|34 |07 |148 |0 |running |67 |$2,355 |
| 33
|42 |97 |141 |0 |running |64 |$2,330 |
| 34
|7 |44 |130 |15 |crash |66 |$5,755 |
| 35
|28 |90 |Ford |123 |0 |running |58 |$5,655 |
| 36
|29 |10 |Ken Bouchard (R) |Ford |82 |0 |running |55 |$2,355 |
| 37
|18 |14 |72 |0 |engine |52 |$2,230 |
| 38
|3 |28 |Ford |43 |0 |engine |49 |$11,865 |
| 39
|35 |68 |Ford |2 |0 |crash |46 |$4,840 |
| 40
|21 |7 |Ford |1 |0 |engine |43 |$4,790 |
| 41
|25 |29 |1 |0 |crash |40 |$2,765 |
| 42
|41 |15 |Ford |1 |0 |crash |37 |$10,765 |
| colspan="11" |Failed to qualify |
| 43
! rowspan="10" | |80 |Jimmy Horton (R) |Ford ! colspan="5" rowspan="10" | |
| 44
|59 |
| 45
|32 |
| 46
|76 |
| 47
|73 |Ford |
| 48
|98 |Brad Noffsinger (R) |
| 49
|54 |
| 50
|38 |Ford |
| 51
|39 |Ford |
| 52
|0 |
| colspan="11" |[https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-saturdays-result/128018701/ Official race results] |
Standings after the race
{{col-start}}
{{col-2}}
;Drivers' Championship standings
| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;" |
| ! Pos
! Driver ! Points |
|---|
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 1 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,272 |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 2 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,185 (-87) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 3 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,175 (-97) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 4 | style="text-align:center;"| 2,045 (–227) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 5 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,976 (–296) |
| align="left"| 10px 2
| style="text-align:center;"| 6 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,932 (–340) |
| align="left"| 10px 1
| style="text-align:center;"| 7 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,929 (–343) |
| align="left"| 10px 1
| style="text-align:center;"| 8 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,894 (–378) |
| align="left"| 10px 2
| style="text-align:center;"| 9 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,874 (–398) |
| align="left"| 10px
| style="text-align:center;"| 10 | style="text-align:center;"| 1,847 (–425) |
| class="sortbottom"
!colspan="9"|[https://www.newspapers.com/article/fort-worth-star-telegram-nascar-winston/128019722/ Official driver's standings] |
- Note: Only the first 10 positions are included for the driver standings.
{{col-end}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{NASCAR next race|Previous_race=1988 Miller High Life 400 (Michigan)|Next_race=1988 AC Spark Plug 500|Monsteryear=1988|Series=NASCAR Winston Cup Series}}
{{1988 Winston Cup}}
{{NASCAR on ESPN}}
Category:1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Category:NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway