1962 Daytona 500

1962 Daytona 500

Race details
Race 5 of 53 in the 1962 NASCAR Grand National Series season
1962 Daytona 500 program cover
Date	February 18, 1962 (1962-02-18)
Location	Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S.
Course	Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.023 km)
Distance	200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km)
Weather	Mild with temperatures approaching 78.1 °F (25.6 °C); wind speeds up to 13.8 miles per hour (22.2 km/h)
Average speed	152.529 miles per hour (245.472 km/h)
Attendance	58,070
Pole position
Driver	Fireball Roberts	Jim Stephens
Qualifying race winners
Duel 1 Winner	Fireball Roberts	Jim Stephens
Duel 2 Winner	Joe Weatherly	Bud Moore Engineering
Most laps led
Driver	Fireball Roberts	Jim Stephens
Laps	144
Winner
No. 22 Pontiac	Fireball Roberts	Jim Stephens
Television in the United States
Network	ABC's WWOS
Announcers	Jim McKay and Stirling Moss

The 1962 Daytona 500, was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on February 18, 1962, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida.

It was won by Fireball Roberts driving a 1962 Pontiac. Roberts drove his famous number 22 to victory in three hours and 10 minutes. The race was run in its entirety without a single caution flag. Roberts dominated the event by leading 144 of the 200 laps. The win was Roberts' second victory of the season.

Speedweeks

This year's Speedweeks followed a familiar pattern, Fireball was the class of the field. he won the pole for his qualifying race in his Smokey Yunick prepared 1962 Pontiac and again led from flag to flag, averaging 156.999 mph (252.665 km/h) over the 40 laps to set the all-time Grand National race speed record.

The Indy Invasion

For the top Indianapolis drivers, including the three previous winners of the Indianapolis 500--A. J. Foyt, Rodger Ward and Jim Rathmann—this was irresistible. They clamored to get the United States Auto Club (which had replaced the AAA as the nation's leading auto racing sanctioned body) to lift its ban on racing at Daytona, but USAC, which sanctioned the Indy 500, would not budge. It wanted the drivers to focus on its own stock car racing series. The Indy drivers would have to wait another year.

Race Day

A furious battle erupted right from the green flag. Five different drivers traded the lead during the first 50 laps, including Joe Weatherly, who had won his qualifying race. Few, if anyone, paid attention when the no. 52 Ford dropped out of the race on lap four with electrical problems. Behind the wheel was 22-year-old Cale Yarborough of Timmonsville, South Carolina, destined to finish last in the 48-car field.

The pitched battle at the front saw Roberts lead the 15th lap, Cotton Owens lead on lap 16, Junior Johnson on lap 17 and Roberts again on lap 18. The blistering pace allowed the front-runners to lap nearly the entire field. But Yunick's flat-out strategy caused Roberts to run out of gas twice in the early going. During pit stops, Roberts pulled down his window by hand, just like a passenger car driver, to accept a drink.

Not far behind the front-runners was Richard Petty. He took the lead for the first time on lap 42. Petty was in a Plymouth that had started 10th, but his car was at least 10 mph (16 km/h) slower than Roberts' Pontiac. Petty's team decided to try Junior Johnson's 1960 race-winning strategy and stay with Roberts at all costs, to draft him incessantly and pit when he did. Lee Petty, still limping from his devastating 1961 crash, stalked the pits during the last 125 miles (201 km), placed his hands on his lips, his cigar in his mouth, with his intention on watching the battle on the track.

But this time, Roberts would not be denied. His nerves were frayed by the fear of yet another late race calamity, but he nonetheless turned laps at more than 155 miles per hour (249 km/h) in the late going and gradually distanced himself from Petty. Roberts won by 27 seconds. Petty finished second, becoming the only other driver on the lead lap.

It was Fireball's only Daytona 500 victory. He would die two years later from a fiery crash in the World 600.

Race results

Pos	Grid	No.	Driver	Entrant	Manufacturer	Laps	Winnings	Laps led	Time/Status
1	1	22	Fireball Roberts	Jim Stephens	1962 Pontiac	200	$24,190	144	3:10:41
2	10	43	Richard Petty	Petty Enterprises	1962 Plymouth	200	$10,250	32	+27 seconds
3	4	8	Joe Weatherly	Bud Moore Engineering	1962 Pontiac	199	$7,100	1	+1 Lap
4	3	47	Jack Smith	Jack Smith	1962 Pontiac	199	$4,025	0	+1 Lap
5	34	28	Fred Lorenzen	Holman-Moody	1962 Ford	199	$2,975	0	+1 Lap
6	2	39	David Pearson	Ray Fox	1962 Pontiac	198	$2,075	0	+2 Laps
7	8	4	Rex White	Rex White	1962 Chevrolet	197	$1,550	0	+3 Laps
8	35	94	Banjo Matthews	Banjo Matthews	1962 Pontiac	197	$1,050	0	+3 Laps
9	38	11	Ned Jarrett	B. G. Holloway	1962 Chevrolet	196	$850	0	+4 Laps
10	17	44	Bob Welborn	Julian Petty	1962 Pontiac	194	$750	0	+6 Laps
11	36	32	Bill Wimble	Dave McCredy	1961 Pontiac	193	$600	0	+7 Laps
12	16	84	Ernie Gahan	Rocky Hinton	1961 Ford	192	$500	0	+8 Laps
13	24	42	Bunkie Blackburn	Petty Enterprises	1962 Plymouth	192	$500	0	+8 Laps
14	28	2	Jim Paschal	Cliff Stewart	1961 Pontiac	186	$475	0	+14 Laps
15	42	95	Jim Cushman	Jack Russell	1961 Plymouth	186	$475	0	+14 Laps
16	12	7	Johnny Allen	B. G. Holloway	1962 Chevrolet	183	$450	0	+17 Laps
17	33	15	Speedy Thompson	Holman-Moody	1962 Ford	182	$450	0	Engine
18	45	01	Billy Wade	Luther Costales	1962 Ford	182	$425	0	+18 Laps
19	46	98	Paul Burrow	Ronald Hawk	1962 Ford	181	$425	0	+19 Laps
20	47	60	Tom Cox	Ray Herlocker	1960 Plymouth	180	$425	0	+20 Laps
21	43	9	Art Brady	Wildcat Williams	1962 Ford	176	$400	0	+24 Laps
22	29	19	Herman Beam	Herman Beam	1962 Ford	175	$400	0	+25 Laps
23	27	62	Curtis Crider	Curtis Crider	1961 Mercury	173	$400	0	+27 Laps
24	26	31	Jim McGuirk	–	1961 Ford	157	$400	0	Engine
25	44	92	Gerald Duke	Don Harrison	1962 Ford	150	$400	0	Engine
26	19	63	George Alsobrook	Ratus Walters	1961 Ford	144	$400	0	+56 Laps
27	7	0	Dan Gurney	Holman-Moody	1962 Ford	134	$400	0	Engine
28	31	87	Buck Baker	Buck Baker	1962 Chrysler	89	$400	0	Crash
29	15	86	Buddy Baker	Buck Baker	1962 Chrysler	83	$400	0	Overheating
30	30	72	Bobby Johns	Shorty Johns	1962 Pontiac	81	$400	0	Transmission
31	40	36	Larry Thomas	Wade Younts	1962 Dodge	76	$400	0	Distributor
32	25	68	Ed Livingston	Ed Livingston	1961 Ford	75	$400	0	Oil pressure
33	5	6	Cotton Owens	Cotton Owens	1962 Pontiac	73	$400	1	Clutch
34	9	27	Junior Johnson	Rex Lovette	1962 Pontiac	72	$400	22	Engine
35	13	53	Bob Burdick	Roy Burdick	1962 Pontiac	55	$400	0	Crankshaft
36	20	75	Ralph Earnhardt	Robert Smith	1961 Pontiac	54	$400	0	Engine
37	14	37	Wally Dallenbach	Don House	1961 Ford	53	$400	0	Engine
38	22	14	Charley Griffith	Joe Lee Johnson	1962 Chevrolet	53	$400	0	Rocker arm
39	41	88	Sal Tovella	Tom Hawkins	1961 Ford	41	$400	0	Head gasket
40	23	23	Red Farmer	Frank Rhoads	1961 Ford	34	$400	0	Spindle
41	18	25	Jim Bennett	Thurman Wilkes	1961 Ford	31	$400	0	Head gasket
42	32	85	Tommy Irwin	Monroe Shook	1962 Chevrolet	26	$400	0	Piston
43	6	29	Nelson Stacy	Holman-Moody	1962 Ford	25	$400	0	Engine
44	37	90	Marvin Panch	Bob Osiecki	1962 Dodge	19	$400	0	Rear end
45	48	38	G. C. Spencer	Matt DeMatthews	1961 Ford	15	$400	0	Clutch
46	11	66	Larry Frank	Ratus Walters	1962 Ford	14	$400	0	Engine
47	39	77	Elmo Langley	Ratus Walters	1961 Ford	4	$400	0	Engine
48	21	52	Cale Yarborough	Julian Buesink	1961 Ford	4	$400	0	Electrical
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