1971 West Virginia 500

Race report

Five hundred laps took place on a paved oval track spanning 0.455 mi. The total time of the race was two hours and fifty-seven minutes. The average speed of the race was 83.805 mph while the qualifying speed for the pole position was 84.053 mph. Ten thousand people would attend the live race to see Richard Petty defeat Bobby Allison by more than two laps. It was quite the battle between Petty and Allison during the course of the race. Petty beat on Allison all night and at one point pinned Allison against the wall so hard that both cars came to a stop. There was a grid of 32 competitors; only 14 of them were counted as finishing the race.

Notable crew chiefs to participate in this race were Dale Inman, Vic Ballard, and Lee Gordon.

Jerry Churchill decided to quit the race after the first lap; giving him a meager $300 paycheck ($ in current US dollars). Bill Shirey would also quit on lap 31; earning the same amount that Churchill did. Bill Seifert would leave the race on lap 187 due to a legitimate illness brought on by dehydration in the West Virginia summertime heat.

No replacement was found and he brought home $330 from his hard day of racing ($ in today's American dollars).

Qualifying

Finishing order

1. Richard Petty (No. 43)
2. Bobby Allison (No. 49)
3. James Hylton† (No. 48)
4. Tiny Lund† (No. 55)
5. Cecil Gordon† (No. 24)
6. Jim Paschal*† (No. 14)
7. Gary Myers (No. 41)
8. Walter Ballard (No. 30)
9. Bill Champion† (No. 10)
10. Jabe Thomas† (No. 25)
11. Earl Brooks† (No. 26)
12. J.D. McDuffie† (No. 70)
13. Wendell Scott† (No. 34)
14. David Ray Boggs (No. 86)
15. Joe Dean Huss (No. 33)
16. Buck Baker*† (No. 87)
17. Randy Hutchinson* (No. 2)
18. Neil Castles* (No. 06)
19. Jimmy Vaughn* (No. 7)
20. John Sears*† (No. 4)
21. Gordon Birkett* (No. 50)
22. Ed Negre*† (No. 8)
23. Wayne Andrews* (No. 15)
24. Bill Seifert* (No. 45)
25. Elmo Langley*† (No. 64)
26. Junior Spencer* (No. 11)
27. Charlie Glotzbach* (No. 3)
28. Pee Wee Wentz* (No. 5)
29. Raymond Williams* (No. 47)
30. Al Straub* (No. 94)
31. Frank Warren* (No. 79)
32. Bill Shirey* (No. 74)
33. Henley Gray* (No. 19)
34. Paul Tyler* (No. 78)
35. Jerry Churchill*† (No. 73) ** Driver failed to finish race*

† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased

Timeline

Section reference:

• Start of race: Bobby Allison lead the starting grid as the green flag was waved.
• Lap 1: Jerry Churchill chose to quit the race.
• Lap 11: Paul Tyler's engine stopped working properly.
• Lap 30: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 31: Bill Shirey chose to quit the race.
• Lap 53: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Richard Petty.
• Lap 55: Tiny Lund took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 75: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Tiny Lund.
• Lap 100: Pee Wee Wentz' engine stopped working properly.
• Lap 112: Ignition problems took Junior Spencer out of the race.
• Lap 141: Ignition problems took Elmo Langley out of the race.
• Lap 148: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 187: A sudden medical issue forced Bill Seifert out of the event prematurely.
• Lap 206: Wayne Andrews managed to overheat his vehicle.
• Lap 214: Carburetor problems forced Ed Negre into a 22nd-place finish.
• Lap 224: Ignition problems took John Sears out of the race.
• Lap 234: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Richard Petty.
• Lap 298: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 300: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Richard Petty.
• Lap 312: Neil Castles' engine stopped working properly.
• Lap 316: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 349: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Richard Petty.
• Lap 362: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 413: Buck Baker's engine stopped working properly.
• Lap 420: Bobby Allison took over the lead from Richard Petty.
• Lap 424: Richard Petty took over the lead from Bobby Allison.
• Lap 477: Jim Paschal's engine stopped working properly.
• Finish: Richard Petty was officially declared the winner of the event.

References

before = 1971 Myers Brothers 250 | after = 1971 Yankee 400| title = NASCAR Winston Cup Season| years = 1971 |

before = 1971 Dixie 500 | after = 1971 Sandlapper 200| title = Richard Petty's Career Wins| years = 1960-1984 |

References

1. "1971 West Virginia 500 weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac.
2. "1971 West Virginia 500 information". Racing Reference.
3. "1971 West Virginia 500 information (second reference)". Ultimate Racing History.
4. "Petty Laps Allison To Win West Virginia 500". West Virginia Culture.
5. "1971 West Virginia 500 crew chiefs". Racing Reference.
6. "1971 West Virginia 500 information (third reference)". Everything Stock Car.