1961 Greenville 200
| Race details[1] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 10 of 52 in the 1961 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
| Date | April 1, 1961 | ||
| Official name | Greenville 200 | ||
| Location | Greenville-Pickens Speedway (Greenville, South Carolina) | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.500 mi (0.804 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 100 mi (160 km) | ||
| Weather | Chilly with temperatures approaching 62.1 °F (16.7 °C); wind speeds up to 20 miles per hour (32 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 52.189 miles per hour (83.990 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 5,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Rex Lovette | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Rex White | Rex White | |
| Laps | 106 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 85 | Emanuel Zervakis | Monroe Shook | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The Greenville 200 was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Sprint Cup Series) event that was held on April 1, 1961 at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in Greenville, South Carolina.
Summary
After nearly two hours of racing 200 laps, Emanuel Zervakis emerged as the winner as he managed to defeat Richard Petty by an unknown margin in front of a crowd of 5000 people.[2] All 21 of the drivers on the grid were American-born males.[2] Doug Yates would receive the last-place finish due to a driveshaft issue on the eighth lap.[2] Other notable names who competed were: Junior Johnson, Roy Tyner, and Ned Jarrett.[2] Johnson would qualify for the pole position with speeds up to 62.09 miles per hour (99.92 km/h) during the qualifying sessions.[2] Four cautions were given out by NASCAR officials for 20 laps; there was only one crash during the entire race.[2]
Zervakis would make his first win in his NASCAR career at this racing event.[3]
The race car drivers still had to commute to the races using the same stock cars that competed in a typical weekend's race through a policy of homologation (and under their own power). This policy was in effect until roughly 1975. By 1980, NASCAR had completely stopped tracking the year model of all the vehicles and most teams did not take stock cars to the track under their own power anymore.
Top ten finishers
- Emanuel Zervakis – #85
- Richard Petty – #43
- Rex White – #4
- G.C. Spencer – #48
- Buck Baker – #86
- Jimmy Pardue – #54
- Fred Harb – #17
- George Green – #35
- Bobby Waddell – #0
- David Pearson – #67
Timeline
- Start of race: Junior Johnson started the race with the pole position
- Lap 8: Doug Yates had troubles with his driveshaft; making him the last-place finisher
- Lap 33: Paul Lewis suffered a terminal crash; forcing him to leave the event prematurely
- Lap 49: Jack Smith's engine blew in his racing vehicle
- Lap 68: Tommy Irwin's problematic steering caused him to exit the race prematurely
- Lap 69: Junior Johnson developed fuel pump problems on this lap; ending his day on the track
- Lap 70: Rex White takes over the lead from Junior Johnson
- Lap 99: Roy Tyner had to leave the race due to transmission issues
- Lap 100: Ned Jarrett managed to overheat his vehicle; causing his early departure from the race
- Lap 176: Emanuel Zervakis takes over the lead from Rex White
- Lap 181: David Pearson ran out of gasoline; causing him to exit the race
- End of race: Emanuel Zervakis wins the race
References
- ^ Weather information for the 1961 Greenville 200 at The Old Farmers' Almanac
- ^ a b c d e f 1961 Greenville 200 racing information at Racing Reference
- ^ 1961 Greenville 200 racing information at Race-Database
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