# 1988 Southern 500

The 1988 Southern 500 was the 21st stock car race of the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the 39th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, September 4, 1988, before an audience of 50,000 in Darlington, South Carolina, at Darlington Raceway, a 1.366 miles (2.198 km) permanent egg-shaped oval racetrack. The race took the scheduled 367 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Melling Racing's Bill Elliott would manage to fend off Blue Max Racing's Rusty Wallace to the finish to take his 28th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his fifth victory of the season. To fill out the top three, the aforementioned Rusty Wallace and Richard Childress Racing's Dale Earnhardt would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Darlington Raceway is a race track built for NASCAR racing located near Darlington, South Carolina. It is nicknamed "The Lady in Black" and "The Track Too Tough to Tame" by many NASCAR fans and drivers and advertised as "A NASCAR Tradition." It is of a unique, somewhat egg-shaped design, an oval with the ends of very different configurations, a condition which supposedly arose from the proximity of one end of the track to a minnow pond the owner refused to relocate. This situation makes it very challenging for the crews to set up their cars' handling in a way that is effective at both ends.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 2 | Ernie Irvan (R) | U.S. Racing | Chevrolet | Kroger |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service |
| 4 | Rick Wilson | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Kodak |
| 04 | Hershel McGriff | McGriff Racing | Pontiac | U.S. Bank |
| 5 | Geoff Bodine | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Levi Garrett |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Stroh Light |
| 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | Zerex |
| 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | Miller High Life |
| 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | Coors Light |
| 10 | Ken Bouchard (R) | Whitcomb Racing | Ford | Whitcomb Racing |
| 11 | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | Chevrolet | Budweiser |
| 12 | Mike Alexander | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | Miller High Life |
| 15 | Brett Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Crisco |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Tide |
| 21 | Kyle Petty | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | Wayne Paging |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Folgers |
| 26 | Ricky Rudd | King Racing | Buick | Quaker State |
| 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | Kodiak |
| 28 | Davey Allison | Ranier-Lundy Racing | Ford | Havoline |
| 29 | Dale Jarrett | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Hardee's |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Country Time |
| 31 | Jim Sauter | Bob Clark Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Slender You Figure Salons |
| 32 | Philip Duffie | Duffie Racing | Buick | Bob Beard Buick |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Mach 1 Racing | Chevrolet | Skoal Bandit |
| 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | Almeda Auto Parts |
| 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 44 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | Piedmont Airlines |
| 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | Eureka |
| 55 | Phil Parsons | Jackson Bros. Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Crown Central Petroleum, Skoal Classic |
| 57 | Morgan Shepherd | Osterlund Racing | Buick | Heinz Ketchup |
| 68 | Derrike Cope | Testa Racing | Ford | Purolator Filters |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Lifebuoy |
| 75 | Neil Bonnett | RahMoc Enterprises | Pontiac | Valvoline |
| 77 | Ken Ragan | Ragan Racing | Ford | Bob Beard Ford |
| 80 | Jimmy Horton (R) | S&H Racing | Ford | S&H Racing |
| 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | Wynn's, Kmart |
| 87 | Randy Baker | Buck Baker Racing | Oldsmobile | Sony Magnetic Products |
| 88 | Rick Mast | Baker-Schiff Racing | Oldsmobile | Red Baron Frozen Pizza |
| 90 | Benny Parsons | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce |
| 97 | Rodney Combs | Winkle Motorsports | Buick | AC Spark Plug |
| 98 | Brad Noffsinger (R) | Curb Racing | Buick | Sunoco |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, September 1, at 3:00 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round would be guaranteed a starting spot in the race. If a driver was not able to guarantee a spot in the first round, they had the option to scrub their time from the first round and try and run a faster lap time in a second round qualifying run, held on Friday, September 2, at 2:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 would be decided on time and depending on who needed it, a select amount of positions were given to cars who had not otherwise qualified on time but were high enough in owner's points; up to two provisionals were given.
Bill Elliott, driving for Melling Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 30.577 and an average speed of 160.827 miles per hour (258.826 km/h) in the first round.
Two drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 30.577 | 160.827 |
| 2 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 30.697 | 160.198 |
| 3 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 30.704 | 160.162 |
| 4 | 5 | Geoff Bodine | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.750 | 159.922 |
| 5 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 30.781 | 159.761 |
| 6 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 30.803 | 159.647 |
| 7 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 30.929 | 158.996 |
| 8 | 15 | Brett Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 30.989 | 158.689 |
| 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Mach 1 Racing | Chevrolet | 31.007 | 158.596 |
| 10 | 57 | Morgan Shepherd | Osterlund Racing | Buick | 31.085 | 158.198 |
| 11 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | 31.115 | 158.046 |
| 12 | 44 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 31.124 | 158.000 |
| 13 | 97 | Rodney Combs | Winkle Motorsports | Buick | 31.145 | 157.894 |
| 14 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 31.165 | 157.792 |
| 15 | 28 | Davey Allison | Ranier-Lundy Racing | Ford | 31.172 | 157.757 |
| 16 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 31.190 | 157.666 |
| 17 | 2 | Ernie Irvan (R) | U.S. Racing | Chevrolet | 31.213 | 157.550 |
| 18 | 29 | Dale Jarrett | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 31.222 | 157.504 |
| 19 | 4 | Rick Wilson | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 31.247 | 157.378 |
| 20 | 77 | Ken Ragan | Ragan Racing | Ford | 31.251 | 157.358 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 55 | Phil Parsons | Jackson Bros. Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 31.256 | 157.333 |
| 22 | 88 | Rick Mast | Baker–Schiff Racing | Oldsmobile | 31.265 | 157.288 |
| 23 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | Chevrolet | 31.296 | 157.132 |
| 24 | 75 | Neil Bonnett | RahMoc Enterprises | Pontiac | 31.328 | 156.971 |
| 25 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 31.333 | 156.946 |
| 26 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 31.343 | 156.896 |
| 27 | 90 | Benny Parsons | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 31.350 | 156.861 |
| 28 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 31.391 | 156.656 |
| 29 | 26 | Ricky Rudd | King Racing | Buick | 31.415 | 156.537 |
| 30 | 12 | Mike Alexander | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 31.419 | 156.517 |
| 31 | 68 | Derrike Cope | Testa Racing | Ford | 31.432 | 156.452 |
| 32 | 31 | Jim Sauter | Bob Clark Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 31.493 | 156.149 |
| 33 | 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | 31.539 | 155.921 |
| 34 | 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | 31.582 | 155.709 |
| 35 | 21 | Kyle Petty | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 31.602 | 155.610 |
| 36 | 10 | Ken Bouchard (R) | Whitcomb Racing | Ford | 31.617 | 155.537 |
| 37 | 87 | Randy Baker | Buck Baker Racing | Oldsmobile | 31.733 | 154.968 |
| 38 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 31.748 | 154.896 |
| 39 | 32 | Philip Duffie | Duffie Racing | Buick | 31.886 | 154.224 |
| 40 | 80 | Jimmy Horton (R) | S&H Racing | Ford | 31.922 | 154.050 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 41 | 98 | Brad Noffsinger (R) | Curb Racing | Buick | -* | -* |
| 42 | 04 | Hershel McGriff | McGriff Racing | Pontiac | 32.292 | 152.285 |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 1 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 367 | 154 | running | 185 | $75,800 |
| 2 | 5 | 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | Pontiac | 367 | 50 | running | 175 | $38,850 |
| 3 | 2 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 367 | 85 | running | 170 | $31,375 |
| 4 | 6 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 367 | 5 | running | 165 | $19,850 |
| 5 | 12 | 44 | Sterling Marlin | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 367 | 21 | running | 160 | $21,130 |
| 6 | 21 | 55 | Phil Parsons | Jackson Bros. Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 366 | 0 | running | 150 | $12,950 |
| 7 | 4 | 5 | Geoff Bodine | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 366 | 7 | running | 151 | $11,310 |
| 8 | 23 | 11 | Terry Labonte | Junior Johnson & Associates | Chevrolet | 366 | 0 | running | 142 | $13,260 |
| 9 | 15 | 28 | Davey Allison | Ranier-Lundy Racing | Ford | 366 | 9 | running | 143 | $15,105 |
| 10 | 29 | 26 | Ricky Rudd | King Racing | Buick | 366 | 6 | running | 139 | $13,130 |
| 11 | 25 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 366 | 0 | running | 130 | $10,980 |
| 12 | 11 | 83 | Lake Speed | Speed Racing | Oldsmobile | 366 | 0 | running | 127 | $6,815 |
| 13 | 27 | 90 | Benny Parsons | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 365 | 25 | running | 129 | $19,305 |
| 14 | 30 | 12 | Mike Alexander | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 365 | 2 | running | 126 | $11,495 |
| 15 | 3 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 365 | 0 | running | 118 | $8,735 |
| 16 | 24 | 75 | Neil Bonnett | RahMoc Enterprises | Pontiac | 364 | 0 | running | 115 | $11,195 |
| 17 | 8 | 15 | Brett Bodine | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 363 | 2 | running | 117 | $12,635 |
| 18 | 36 | 10 | Ken Bouchard (R) | Whitcomb Racing | Ford | 360 | 0 | running | 109 | $6,240 |
| 19 | 7 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 358 | 0 | running | 106 | $5,040 |
| 20 | 17 | 2 | Ernie Irvan (R) | U.S. Racing | Chevrolet | 358 | 0 | running | 103 | $4,985 |
| 21 | 13 | 97 | Rodney Combs | Winkle Motorsports | Buick | 357 | 0 | running | 100 | $3,320 |
| 22 | 38 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 355 | 0 | running | 97 | $6,320 |
| 23 | 32 | 31 | Jim Sauter | Bob Clark Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 351 | 0 | running | 0 | $4,120 |
| 24 | 28 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 350 | 0 | running | 91 | $5,000 |
| 25 | 14 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 343 | 0 | running | 88 | $5,955 |
| 26 | 33 | 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | B&B Racing | Oldsmobile | 340 | 0 | running | 85 | $2,815 |
| 27 | 34 | 36 | H. B. Bailey | Bailey Racing | Pontiac | 340 | 0 | running | 82 | $2,725 |
| 28 | 35 | 21 | Kyle Petty | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 337 | 1 | running | 84 | $9,630 |
| 29 | 39 | 32 | Philip Duffie | Duffie Racing | Buick | 332 | 0 | running | 76 | $2,540 |
| 30 | 16 | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 317 | 0 | oil pressure | 73 | $5,335 |
| 31 | 20 | 77 | Ken Ragan | Ragan Racing | Ford | 308 | 0 | accident | 70 | $2,340 |
| 32 | 22 | 88 | Rick Mast | Baker–Schiff Racing | Oldsmobile | 305 | 0 | running | 0 | $5,530 |
| 33 | 26 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 266 | 0 | engine | 64 | $4,925 |
| 34 | 18 | 29 | Dale Jarrett | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 239 | 0 | engine | 61 | $2,850 |
| 35 | 31 | 68 | Derrike Cope | Testa Racing | Ford | 203 | 0 | accident | 58 | $4,755 |
| 36 | 37 | 87 | Randy Baker | Buck Baker Racing | Oldsmobile | 135 | 0 | engine | 55 | $2,055 |
| 37 | 40 | 80 | Jimmy Horton (R) | S&H Racing | Ford | 114 | 0 | engine | 52 | $2,005 |
| 38 | 19 | 4 | Rick Wilson | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 82 | 0 | engine | 49 | $2,580 |
| 39 | 10 | 57 | Morgan Shepherd | Osterlund Racing | Buick | 53 | 0 | engine | 46 | $1,910 |
| 40 | 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Mach 1 Racing | Chevrolet | 50 | 0 | engine | 43 | $4,450 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 41 | | 98 | Brad Noffsinger (R) | Curb Racing | Buick | | | | | |
| 42 | | 04 | Hershel McGriff | McGriff Racing | Pontiac | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Bill Elliott | 3,212 |
| | 2 | Rusty Wallace | 3,186 (-26) |
| | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | 3,071 (-141) |
| | 4 | Ken Schrader | 2,832 (–380) |
| | 5 | Terry Labonte | 2,796 (–416) |
| | 6 | Geoff Bodine | 2,791 (–421) |
| | 7 | Sterling Marlin | 2,704 (–508) |
| 1 | 8 | Darrell Waltrip | 2,669 (–543) |
| 1 | 9 | Phil Parsons | 2,661 (–551) |
| 1 | 10 | Davey Allison | 2,509 (–703) |
| Official driver's standings ||||