# 1991 DieHard 500

The 1991 DieHard 500 was the 17th stock car race of the 1991 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 23rd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, July 28, 1991, before an audience of 95,000 in Lincoln, Alabama at Talladega Superspeedway, a 2.66 miles (4.28 km) permanent triangle-shaped superspeedway. The race took the scheduled 188 laps to complete. In the final laps of the race, Richard Childress Racing driver Dale Earnhardt would manage to fend off the field, leading the final 28 laps of the race to take his 51st career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his third victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Melling Racing driver Bill Elliott and Roush Racing driver Mark Martin would finish second and third, respectively.

## Background

Talladega Superspeedway, originally known as Alabama International Motor Superspeedway (AIMS), is a motorsports complex located north of Talladega, Alabama. It is located on the former Anniston Air Force Base in the small city of Lincoln. The track is a tri-oval and was constructed in the 1960s by the International Speedway Corporation, a business controlled by the France family. Talladega is most known for its steep banking and the unique location of the start/finish line that's located just past the exit to pit road. The track currently hosts the NASCAR series such as the NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series and the Camping World Truck Series. Talladega is the longest NASCAR oval, a 2.66-mile-long (4.28 km) tri-oval like the Daytona International Speedway, which also is a 2.5-mile-long (4.0 km) tri-oval.

### Entry list

* (R) denotes rookie driver.
| # | Driver | Team | Make | Sponsor |
| 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | Skoal |
| 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | Miller Genuine Draft |
| 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | GM Goodwrench Service Plus |
| 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodak |
| 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Tide |
| 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | Folgers |
| 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | Hooters |
| 8 | Rick Wilson | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | Snickers |
| 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | Coors Light |
| 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | Purolator Filters |
| 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Budweiser |
| 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | Raybestos |
| 14 | Mike Chase | A. J. Foyt Racing | Oldsmobile | Copenhagen |
| 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | Motorcraft |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | Western Auto |
| 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | Tyson Foods |
| 20 | Buddy Baker | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | Rob Moroso Memorial |
| 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | Citgo |
| 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | Maxwell House |
| 24 | Dick Trickle | Team III Racing | Pontiac | Team III Racing |
| 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kodiak |
| 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | Quaker State |
| 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | Texaco, Havoline |
| 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | Pennzoil |
| 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Skoal Bandit |
| 41 | Larry Pearson | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | Kellogg's Frosted Flakes |
| 42 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | Mello Yello |
| 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | STP |
| 47 | Greg Sacks | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | Kanawha Insurance |
| 49 | Stanley Smith (R) | BS&S Motorsports | Buick | Interstate Batteries |
| 51 | Jeff Purvis (R) | Phoenix Racing | Oldsmobile | Phoenix Construction |
| 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | Alka-Seltzer |
| 55 | Ted Musgrave (R) | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | U.S. Racing |
| 59 | Mark Gibson | Gibson Racing | Pontiac | Gibson Racing |
| 66 | Lake Speed | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | Phillips 66 TropArtic |
| 68 | Bobby Hamilton (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Oldsmobile | Country Time |
| 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | Big Apple Market |
| 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | X-1R |
| 75 | Joe Ruttman | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | Dinner Bell Foods |
| 90 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | Orkin |
| 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | Sunoco |
| 95 | Eddie Bierschwale | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | Texaco |
| 98 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | Banquet Foods |

## Qualifying

Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Thursday, July 24, at 4:30 PM EST. Each driver would have one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 15 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, July 25, at 4:30 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver would have one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 16-40 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 but were high enough in owner's points; up to two provisionals were given. If needed, a past champion who did not qualify on either time or provisionals could use a champion's provisional, adding one more spot to the field.
Sterling Marlin, driving for Junior Johnson & Associates, would win the pole, setting a time of 49.853 and an average speed of 192.085 miles per hour (309.131 km/h) in the first round.
Two drivers would fail to qualify.

### Full qualifying results

| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
| 1 | 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 49.853 | 192.085 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 49.896 | 191.919 |
| 3 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 49.964 | 191.658 |
| 4 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 50.138 | 190.993 |
| 5 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 50.140 | 190.985 |
| 6 | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | 50.188 | 190.803 |
| 7 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 50.208 | 190.727 |
| 8 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | 50.333 | 190.253 |
| 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 50.353 | 190.177 |
| 10 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 50.374 | 190.098 |
| 11 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 50.501 | 189.620 |
| 12 | 66 | Lake Speed | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 50.541 | 189.470 |
| 13 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 50.604 | 189.234 |
| 14 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.647 | 189.073 |
| 15 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 50.822 | 188.422 |
| 16 | 68 | Bobby Hamilton (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 50.878 | 188.215 |
| 17 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 50.885 | 188.189 |
| 18 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 50.919 | 188.063 |
| 19 | 75 | Joe Ruttman | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 50.948 | 187.956 |
| 20 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 51.012 | 187.721 |
| Failed to lock in Round 1 |||||||
| 21 | 42 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 50.821 | 188.426 |
| 22 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 51.082 | 187.463 |
| 23 | 49 | Stanley Smith (R) | BS&S Motorsports | Buick | 51.184 | 187.090 |
| 24 | 24 | Dick Trickle | Team III Racing | Pontiac | 51.201 | 187.028 |
| 25 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.243 | 186.874 |
| 26 | 90 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 51.299 | 186.670 |
| 27 | 55 | Ted Musgrave (R) | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 51.328 | 186.565 |
| 28 | 41 | Larry Pearson | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 51.346 | 186.499 |
| 29 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 51.396 | 186.318 |
| 30 | 8 | Rick Wilson | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 51.434 | 186.180 |
| 31 | 14 | Mike Chase | A. J. Foyt Racing | Oldsmobile | 51.464 | 186.072 |
| 32 | 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 51.478 | 186.021 |
| 33 | 47 | Greg Sacks | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | 51.543 | 185.787 |
| 34 | 20 | Buddy Baker | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 51.583 | 185.643 |
| 35 | 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 51.629 | 185.477 |
| 36 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 51.700 | 185.222 |
| 37 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 51.706 | 185.201 |
| 38 | 98 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 51.769 | 184.976 |
| 39 | 95 | Eddie Bierschwale | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | 51.795 | 184.883 |
| 40 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 51.799 | 184.868 |
| Provisional |||||||
| 41 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 53.358 | 179.467 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||
| 42 | 51 | Jeff Purvis (R) | Phoenix Racing | Oldsmobile | -* | -* |
| 43 | 59 | Mark Gibson | Gibson Racing | Pontiac | -* | -* |
| Official first round qualifying results |||||||
| Official starting lineup |||||||

## Race results

| Fin | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
| 1 | 4 | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 188 | 101 | running | 185 | $88,670 |
| 2 | 5 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Melling Racing | Ford | 188 | 1 | running | 175 | $51,185 |
| 3 | 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 188 | 3 | running | 170 | $46,390 |
| 4 | 18 | 5 | Ricky Rudd | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 188 | 2 | running | 165 | $29,400 |
| 5 | 1 | 22 | Sterling Marlin | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 188 | 33 | running | 160 | $27,075 |
| 6 | 8 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Pontiac | 188 | 1 | running | 155 | $16,250 |
| 7 | 13 | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Bahari Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 4 | running | 151 | $16,050 |
| 8 | 40 | 21 | Dale Jarrett | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 188 | 8 | running | 147 | $14,400 |
| 9 | 7 | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 188 | 12 | running | 143 | $19,120 |
| 10 | 19 | 75 | Joe Ruttman | RahMoc Enterprises | Oldsmobile | 188 | 0 | running | 134 | $15,800 |
| 11 | 21 | 42 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | SABCO Racing | Pontiac | 188 | 0 | running | 130 | $16,330 |
| 12 | 6 | 19 | Chad Little | Little Racing | Ford | 188 | 7 | running | 132 | $8,250 |
| 13 | 34 | 20 | Buddy Baker | Moroso Racing | Oldsmobile | 188 | 0 | running | 124 | $9,930 |
| 14 | 22 | 15 | Morgan Shepherd | Bud Moore Engineering | Ford | 188 | 0 | running | 121 | $14,860 |
| 15 | 14 | 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Darrell Waltrip Motorsports | Chevrolet | 188 | 1 | running | 123 | $10,135 |
| 16 | 10 | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | AK Racing | Ford | 187 | 0 | running | 115 | $14,550 |
| 17 | 28 | 41 | Larry Pearson | Larry Hedrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 187 | 0 | running | 112 | $7,385 |
| 18 | 20 | 43 | Richard Petty | Petty Enterprises | Pontiac | 187 | 0 | running | 109 | $10,880 |
| 19 | 33 | 47 | Greg Sacks | Close Racing | Oldsmobile | 186 | 0 | running | 106 | $7,100 |
| 20 | 24 | 24 | Dick Trickle | Team III Racing | Pontiac | 186 | 0 | running | 103 | $9,160 |
| 21 | 41 | 71 | Dave Marcis | Marcis Auto Racing | Chevrolet | 186 | 0 | running | 100 | $9,980 |
| 22 | 32 | 73 | Phil Barkdoll | Barkdoll Racing | Oldsmobile | 185 | 0 | running | 97 | $6,625 |
| 23 | 36 | 52 | Jimmy Means | Jimmy Means Racing | Pontiac | 185 | 0 | running | 94 | $6,370 |
| 24 | 35 | 94 | Terry Labonte | Hagan Racing | Oldsmobile | 184 | 0 | running | 91 | $9,215 |
| 25 | 31 | 14 | Mike Chase | A. J. Foyt Racing | Oldsmobile | 184 | 0 | running | 88 | $6,110 |
| 26 | 27 | 55 | Ted Musgrave (R) | U.S. Racing | Pontiac | 182 | 0 | running | 85 | $7,635 |
| 27 | 39 | 95 | Eddie Bierschwale | Sadler Brothers Racing | Chevrolet | 181 | 0 | running | 82 | $5,865 |
| 28 | 17 | 1 | Rick Mast | Precision Products Racing | Oldsmobile | 166 | 10 | crash | 84 | $8,645 |
| 29 | 15 | 12 | Hut Stricklin | Bobby Allison Motorsports | Buick | 150 | 5 | crash | 81 | $8,475 |
| 30 | 11 | 11 | Geoff Bodine | Junior Johnson & Associates | Ford | 150 | 0 | crash | 73 | $14,455 |
| 31 | 23 | 49 | Stanley Smith (R) | BS&S Motorsports | Buick | 147 | 0 | oil pressure | 70 | $5,985 |
| 32 | 29 | 26 | Brett Bodine | King Racing | Buick | 146 | 0 | oil pressure | 67 | $8,215 |
| 33 | 3 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 146 | 0 | crash | 64 | $13,645 |
| 34 | 16 | 68 | Bobby Hamilton (R) | TriStar Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 130 | 0 | running | 61 | $5,400 |
| 35 | 37 | 10 | Derrike Cope | Whitcomb Racing | Chevrolet | 117 | 0 | oil pan | 58 | $13,755 |
| 36 | 12 | 66 | Lake Speed | Cale Yarborough Motorsports | Pontiac | 109 | 0 | axle | 55 | $7,995 |
| 37 | 38 | 98 | Jimmy Spencer | Travis Carter Enterprises | Chevrolet | 102 | 0 | engine | 52 | $7,945 |
| 38 | 30 | 8 | Rick Wilson | Stavola Brothers Racing | Buick | 102 | 0 | crash | 49 | $7,895 |
| 39 | 9 | 33 | Harry Gant | Leo Jackson Motorsports | Oldsmobile | 90 | 0 | crash | 46 | $7,815 |
| 40 | 25 | 25 | Ken Schrader | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 77 | 0 | valve | 43 | $7,150 |
| 41 | 26 | 90 | Wally Dallenbach Jr. (R) | Donlavey Racing | Ford | 2 | 0 | crash | 40 | $5,150 |
| Failed to qualify |||||||||||
| 42 | | 51 | Jeff Purvis (R) | Phoenix Racing | Oldsmobile | | | | | |
| 43 | | 59 | Mark Gibson | Gibson Racing | Pontiac | | | | | |
| Official race results |||||||||||

## Standings after the race

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| | 1 | Dale Earnhardt | 2,635 |
| | 2 | Ricky Rudd | 2,475 (-160) |
| 1 | 3 | Davey Allison | 2,393 (-242) |
| 1 | 4 | Ernie Irvan | 2,359 (–276) |
| 1 | 5 | Mark Martin | 2,330 (–305) |
| 1 | 6 | Ken Schrader | 2,279 (–356) |
| | 7 | Darrell Waltrip | 2,259 (–376) |
| 1 | 8 | Sterling Marlin | 2,156 (–479) |
| 1 | 9 | Harry Gant | 2,131 (–504) |
| | 10 | Rusty Wallace | 2,126 (–509) |
| Official driver's standings ||||