# 1963 Daytona 500

The 1963 Daytona 500, the 5th running of the event held on February 24, 1963, was won by Tiny Lund driving a 1963 Ford. Lund drove his number 21 to victory in three hours and 17 minutes. There were 2 cautions flags which slowed the race for 10 laps.
Weather played a critical role in Tiny Lund winning this race; with temperatures reaching up to 75 °F (24 °C) and wind speeds up to 20 miles per hour (32 km/h). Lund won by making only four pit stops, but he would not have been able to make the distance on four pit stops had the first ten laps not been run under caution to dry the track from earlier rains. Had the race not started under caution, Lund would have had to make five pit stops, just as Fred Lorenzen and Ned Jarrett did. He was able to win on four pit stops alone because of the slow start time.

## Race report

Lund filled in for an injured Marvin Panch, who suffered injuries after a crash in a Maserati. Panch was to drive a Wood Brothers car in the 500. The win was Lund's first victory of the season.
Jim Cushman, Bubba Farr, Dick Good, Ted Hairfield, and John Rogers retired from professional stock car racing after this event. Drivers who failed to qualify for the race were: Bobby Isaac (#99), Buck Baker (#87), Pete Stewart (#57), Cale Yarborough (#52), Larry Thomas (#36), Roy Mayne (#33), Chuck Daigh (#25), Rodger Ward (#16), Al Terrell (#9) and Bill Foster (#2).
First Daytona 500 starts for LeeRoy Yarbrough, H. B. Bailey, Stick Elliott, Wendell Scott, A. J. Foyt, Jim Hurtubise, and Bob Cooper. Only Daytona 500 starts for Troy Ruttman, Bob James, Red Foote, Len Sutton, Floyd Powell, Frank Graham, John Rogers, Dick Good, Bubba Farr, and Ted Hairfield. Last Daytona 500 starts for Nelson Stacy, Joe Weatherly, Tommy Irwin, Rex White, Ed Livingston, Jim Cushman, Herman Beam, Jim McGuirk, and Jack Smith.
Parnelli Jones, at the wheel of Bill Stroppe's factory-backed Mercury, comes home 15th in the second of his three Daytona 500 appearances. While a great finish wasn't in the cards here about three months later Jones would go on to win the Indianapolis 500.
The transition to purpose-built racecars 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.
This race marked the first time that ABC's Wide World of Sports covered the race. It also helped to dispel the long-standing stereotypes of the Southern United States after the rest of the United States witnessed an emotional inspiring win.

## Race results

| Pos | Grid | No. | Driver | Entrant | Manufacturer | Laps | Winnings | Laps led | Time/Status |
| 1 | 12 | 21 | Tiny Lund | Wood Brothers Racing | 1963 Ford | 200 | $24,550 | 17 | 3:17:56 |
| 2 | 2 | 28 | Fred Lorenzen | Holman-Moody | 1963 Ford | 200 | $15,540 | 77 | +24 seconds |
| 3 | 8 | 11 | Ned Jarrett | Charles Robinson | 1963 Ford | 200 | $8,700 | 26 | Lead lap under green flag |
| 4 | 10 | 29 | Nelson Stacy | Holman-Moody | 1963 Ford | 199 | $8,275 | 0 | +1 Lap |
| 5 | 11 | 0 | Dan Gurney | Holman-Moody | 1963 Ford | 199 | $3,550 | 0 | +1 Lap |
| 6 | 23 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | 1963 Plymouth | 198 | $2,500 | 0 | +2 Laps |
| 7 | 14 | 7A | Bobby Johns | Shorty Johns | 1963 Pontiac | 198 | $2,600 | 10 | +2 Laps |
| 8 | 26 | 8 | Joe Weatherly | Bud Moore Engineering | 1963 Pontiac | 197 | $1,500 | 0 | +3 Laps |
| 9 | 4 | 13 | Johnny Rutherford | Smokey Yunick | 1963 Chevrolet | 196 | $1,250 | 0 | +4 Laps |
| 10 | 13 | 44 | Tommy Irwin | Stewart McKinney | 1963 Ford | 195 | $1,000 | 0 | +5 Laps |
| 11 | 9 | 06 | Larry Frank | Holman-Moody | 1963 Ford | 195 | $1,500 | 5 | +5 Laps |
| 12 | 15 | 14 | Troy Ruttman | Bill Stroppe | 1963 Mercury | 195 | $1,000 | 0 | +5 Laps |
| 13 | 22 | 39 | LeeRoy Yarbrough | E. A. McQuagg | 1962 Pontiac | 194 | $1,000 | 0 | +6 Laps |
| 14 | 6 | 4 | Rex White | Rex White | 1963 Chevrolet | 194 | $1,100 | 4 | +6 Laps |
| 15 | 16 | 15 | Parnelli Jones | Bill Stroppe | 1963 Mercury | 194 | $1,000 | 0 | +6 Laps |
| 16 | 18 | 26 | Darel Dieringer | Bill Stroppe | 1963 Mercury | 192 | $675 | 0 | +8 Laps |
| 17 | 25 | 80 | Sal Tovella | Tom Hawkins | 1963 Ford | 192 | $675 | 0 | +8 Laps |
| 18 | 27 | 32 | Bob James | Roscoe Sanders | 1963 Plymouth | 191 | $675 | 0 | +9 Laps |
| 19 | 49 | 04 | H. B. Bailey | H. B. Bailey | 1961 Pontiac | 188 | $675 | 0 | +12 Laps |
| 20 | 30 | 18 | Stick Elliott | Toy Bolton | 1962 Pontiac | 188 | $675 | 0 | +12 Laps |
| 21 | 1 | 22 | Fireball Roberts | Banjo Matthews | 1963 Pontiac | 182 | $650 | 11 | Engine |
| 22 | 42 | 56 | Ed Livingston | Mamie Reynolds | 1962 Ford | 180 | $550 | 0 | +20 Laps |
| 23 | 47 | 95 | Jim Cushman | Jack Russell | 1963 Plymouth | 176 | $550 | 0 | +24 Laps |
| 24 | 45 | 19 | Herman Beam | Herman Beam | 1963 Ford | 175 | $550 | 0 | +25 Laps |
| 25 | 39 | 54 | Jimmy Pardue | Pete Stewart | 1962 Pontiac | 169 | $550 | 0 | Transmission |
| 26 | 41 | 34 | Wendell Scott | Wendell Scott | 1962 Chevrolet | 168 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 27 | 7 | 02 | A. J. Foyt | Ray Nichels | 1963 Pontiac | 143 | $550 | 6 | Spin out |
| 28 | 37 | 41 | Jim Hurtubise | Petty Enterprises | 1963 Plymouth | 113 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 29 | 35 | 84 | Red Foote | Rocky Hinton | 1963 Ford | 113 | $550 | 0 | Con rod |
| 30 | 17 | 69 | Johnny Allen | Lou Sidoit | 1963 Mercury | 111 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 31 | 33 | 07 | Len Sutton | Ray Nichels | 1963 Pontiac | 97 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 32 | 21 | 03 | G. C. Spencer | Ray Fox | 1963 Chevrolet | 95 | $1,550 | 21 | Engine |
| 33 | 29 | 70 | Floyd Powell | Paul Clayton | 1962 Pontiac | 94 | $550 | 0 | Wheel studs |
| 34 | 44 | 68 | Frank Graham | Ed Livingston | 1961 Ford | 93 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 35 | 36 | 58 | John Rogers | John Rogers | 1961 Pontiac | 72 | $550 | 0 | Handling |
| 36 | 34 | 42 | Jim Paschal | Petty Enterprises | 1963 Plymouth | 72 | $550 | 0 | Ignition |
| 37 | 19 | 81 | Dick Good | Romy Hammes | 1963 Ford | 68 | $550 | 0 | Spin out |
| 38 | 43 | 05 | Jim McGuirk | Ray Nichels | 1962 Pontiac | 67 | $550 | 0 | Fumes |
| 39 | 28 | 51 | Bob Cooper | Bob Cooper | 1962 Pontiac | 53 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 40 | 5 | 01 | Paul Goldsmith | Ray Nichels | 1963 Pontiac | 39 | $1,250 | 11 | Piston |
| 41 | 46 | 5 | Billy Wade | Cotton Owens | 1963 Dodge | 32 | $550 | 0 | Valves |
| 42 | 3 | 3 | Junior Johnson | Ray Fox | 1963 Chevrolet | 26 | $1,750 | 12 | Distributor |
| 43 | 31 | 71 | Bubba Farr | W. M. Harrison | 1963 Chevrolet | 22 | $550 | 0 | Fuel pump |
| 44 | 38 | 47 | Jack Smith | Jack Smith | 1963 Chrysler | 19 | $550 | 0 | Flywheel |
| 45 | 20 | 10 | Bunkie Blackburn | Jim Stephens | 1962 Pontiac | 18 | $550 | 0 | Water pump |
| 46 | 40 | 67 | Reb Wickersham | Reb Wickersham | 1962 Pontiac | 18 | $550 | 0 | Engine |
| 47 | 32 | 73 | Ralph Earnhardt | Acey Taylor | 1962 Pontiac | 15 | $550 | 0 | Fuel pump |
| 48 | 50 | 6 | David Pearson | Cotton Owens | 1963 Dodge | 12 | $550 | 0 | Handling |
| 49 | 24 | 72 | Ted Hairfield | Parker Snead | 1963 Ford | 11 | $550 | 0 | Clutch |
| 50 | 48 | 62 | Curtis Crider | Curtis Crider | 1962 Mercury | 4 | $550 | 0 | Handling |