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1964 Jacksonville 200

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1964 Jacksonville 200
Race details
Race 3 of 62 in the 1964 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Date December 1, 1963; 61 years ago (1963-12-01)
Official name 1964 Jacksonville 200
Location Speedway Park in Jacksonville, Florida
Course 0.500 mi (0.805 km)
Distance 202 laps, 101 mi (162.5 km)
Scheduled Distance 200 laps, 100 mi (160.9 km)
Weather Temperatures ranging between 37.9 °F (3.3 °C) and 54.0 °F (12.2 °C); average wind speeds of 7.48 miles per hour (12.04 km/h)[1]
Average speed 58.252 mph (93.748 km/h)
Pole position
Driver
  • Jack Smith
Archie Smith
Time 25.38
Most laps led
Driver Richard Petty Petty Enterprises
Laps 103
Winner
No. 34 Wendell Scott Scott Racing
Television in the United States
Network Not televised

The 1964 Jacksonville 200[2][N 1] was the third race of the 1964 NASCAR Grand National Series calendar, held on December 1, 1963. It was won by the first African-American driver ever to win a NASCAR top tier race, Wendell Scott.

Background

Speedway Park was a 0.5-mile (0.80 km) dirt oval auto racing track, located in Jacksonville, Florida[4] at the intersection of Lenox Avenue and Plymouth Street.[5] It operated between 1945 and 1969, and would be renamed Jacksonville Speedway in early 1964, months after this race. The track permanently closed in August of 1969 after significant concerns were raised about its safety features.[6]

NASCAR Grand National Series races were held at this track during the 1951, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1961 and 1964 seasons.[7]

Summary

Jack Smith started from the pole position.[8] Ned Jarrett drove to a substantial lead early in the event, but a damaged wheel hub caused him to fall 20 laps behind while it was repaired. Richard Petty led the most laps, 103, before having his steering break due to the rough track conditions.[9] Scott, driving a car formerly owned by Jarrett,[10] took the lead with 275 laps remaining, and led to the scheduled finish of the event; however, after 200 laps, the checkered flag was not waved.[9]

Two laps later, second-place finisher Buck Baker took the checkered flag and was declared the winner.[9] Scott protested the results; two hours later, following a review of the scoring, Scott was declared the winner by two laps.[9] Some, including Scott's family, stated that the victory was awarded to Baker, with the results being altered after the crowd had left the speedway, due to racism;[11] others, including two-time NASCAR champion Ned Jarrett, believe it was simply a scoring error, which was very common in the pre-electronic scoring system.[9] Four weeks later at Savannah Speedway, Scott was given his first-place prize check and a replica trophy; the genuine trophy has never resurfaced,[9] however in October 2010 the Jacksonville Stock Car Racing Hall of Fame gave a more accurate replica trophy to Scott's family.[11] It was not until 2013 that another African American driver won a NASCAR national touring series race, when Darrell Wallace, Jr. won the 2013 Kroger 200 at Martinsville Speedway.[12]

Maurice Petty failed to qualify for the race.[13]

Notable crew chiefs for the race were Jimmy Helms, Dale Inman, Wendell Scott, and Ralph Gray.[14]

The transition to purpose-built race cars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.

Stats

The race officially lasted a duration of one hour and forty-three minutes. The average speed was 58.252 miles per hour (93.748 km/h). Jack Smith won the pole at 70.921 miles per hour (114.136 km/h). The margin of victory was over two laps after the correction of the scoring error, resulting in an addition of two laps to the race. Five thousand people attended the race.[8]

Results

Pos Grid No. Driver Manufacturer Laps Status Led
1 15 34 Wendell Scott Chevrolet 202 Running 27
2 14 87 Buck Baker Pontiac 200 Running 0
3 1 47 Jack Smith Plymouth 199 Running 20
4 18 68 Ed Livingston Ford 195 Running 0
5 2 42 Richard Petty Plymouth 193 Running 103
6 17 86 Neil Castles Chrysler 190 Running 0
7 5 11 Ned Jarrett Ford 183 Wheel bolts 52
8 20 78 Buddy Arrington # Dodge 182 Running 0
9 19 92 Johnny Allen Ford 179 Running 0
10 4 5 Billy Wade Dodge 163 Differential 0
11 21 05 Possum Jones Pontiac 156 Running 0
12 10 32 Tiny Lund Ford 124 Differential 0
13 7 20 Jack Anderson Ford 121 Radiator 0
14 22 61 Joe Weatherly Ford 120 Running 0
15 16 9 Roy Tyner Chevrolet 99 Axle 0
16 9 6 David Pearson Dodge 70 Oil pan 0
17 6 03 G. C. Spencer Chevrolet 60 Differential 0
18 13 36 Larry Thomas Dodge 60 Accident 0
19 3 90 Jimmy Lee Capps Plymouth 50 Accident 0
20 11 39 LeeRoy Yarbrough Pontiac 23 Axle 0
21 12 62 Curtis Crider Ford 8 Engine 0
22 8 2 Jimmy Pardue Pontiac 6 Axle 0

References

Notes
  1. ^ The race has also been called the "Turkey Day 200" in some sources.[3]
Citations
  1. ^ "Weather History: Past Weather Reports". Almanac.com. 2014-04-23. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  2. ^ Pierce, Rodney D. (February 18, 2003). "Wendell Scott overcame the odds through talent and determination". The Daily Herald. Roanoke Rapids, NC. Retrieved 2014-05-01.
  3. ^ "Quick Laps". Sports Illustrated. June 26, 2006. Retrieved 2014-05-01.
  4. ^ "Auto Race Tracks". The Billboard, April 13, 1957, page 81.
  5. ^ Coble, Don. "Yarbrough lived and raced fast, fell even faster". June 27, 2011. Brainerd, MN: Brainerd Dispatch. Accessed 2014-05-01.
  6. ^ "Jacksonville Speedway to Close". The Tampa Tribune. 1969-07-29. Retrieved 2019-07-23. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  7. ^ "Race Results at Speedway Park". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. Accessed 2014-05-01. Archived 2016-04-01 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ a b "1964-03". Racing-Reference. USA Today Sports Media Group. 1963-12-01. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "1963 NASCAR controversy: Racing or race?". The Florida Times-Union. Jacksonville, FL. June 27, 2010. Archived from the original on March 6, 2014. Retrieved 2014-04-30. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "Wendell Scott Gets Chevy ride". Spartanburg Herald. Spartanburg, SC. October 6, 1965. p. 20. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  11. ^ a b "Wendell Scott's family gets long-lost trophy, and closure". The Florida Times-Union. Jacksonville, FL. October 18, 2010. Archived from the original on April 27, 2014. Retrieved 2014-04-30. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |dead-url= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Jensen, Tom (October 27, 2013). "Won from above: Wendell Scott's sons reflect on Darrell Wallace Jr.'s historic win". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2014-04-30.
  13. ^ Qualifying information at Racing Reference
  14. ^ 1964 Jacksonville 200 crew chiefs information at Racing Reference
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference RR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
Previous race:
1964 The First 510
Grand National Series
1964 season
Next race:
1964 Sunshine 200