34°17′50.5″N 79°54′18.4″W / 34.297361°N 79.905111°W
| Race details[1][2] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 23 of 31 in the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season | |||
 1979 Southern 500 program cover | |||
| Date | September 3, 1979 | ||
| Official name | Southern 500 | ||
| Location | Darlington Raceway, Darlington, South Carolina | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.366 mi (2.198 km) | ||
| Distance | 367 laps, 501.3 mi (806.7 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures of 88.9 °F (31.6 °C); with wind speeds of 9.9 miles per hour (15.9 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 126.259 miles per hour (203.194 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Bud Moore Engineering | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Darrell Waltrip | DiGard Motorsports | |
| Laps | 165 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 2 | David Pearson | Osterlund Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | ABC | ||
| Announcers |
Bill Fleming Jackie Stewart | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Universal Radio Network | ||
| Booth Announcers | Dick Jones and Dave Rogers | ||
| Turn Announcers |
Turns 1/2 and Backstreatch: Hill Overton Pit Reporter: Bobby Johns | ||
The 1979 Southern 500, the 30th running of the event, was a NASCAR Winston Cup Series race that took place on September 3, 1979, at Darlington Raceway in Darlington, South Carolina.
This would be the last race without Dale Earnhardt until 2001 Dura Lube 400, and the last in not featuring the name Earnhardt on the starting grid until the 2012 Bank of America 500.
- ^ "1979 Southern 500 weather information". The Old Farmer's Almanac. Retrieved 2011-02-22.
- ^ "1979 Southern 500 racing results". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2010-11-20.