1964 Nashville 400

The 1964 Nashville 400 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on August 2, 1964, at Nashville Speedway (now Fairgrounds Speedway) in Nashville, Tennessee.

1964 Nashville 400

Race details[1][2]
Race 43 of 62 in the 1964 NASCAR Grand National Series season
Date	August 2, 1964
Official name	Nashville 400
Location	Music City Motorplex, Nashville, Tennessee
Course	Permanent racing facility 0.500 mi (0.804 km)
Distance	400 laps, 200.0 mi (321.8 km)
Weather	Extremely hot with temperatures of 93.0 °F (33.9 °C); wind speeds of 12 miles per hour (19 km/h)
Average speed	73.208 miles per hour (117.817 km/h)
Pole position
Driver	Richard Petty	Petty Enterprises
Most laps led
Driver	Richard Petty	Petty Enterprises
Laps	400
Winner
No. 87	Richard Petty	Petty Enterprises
Television in the United States
Network	untelevised
Announcers	none

Background

Nashville Speedway was converted to a half-mile paved oval in 1957, when it began to be a NASCAR series track.

Race report

Four hundred laps took place on a paved oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) for a grand total of 200.0 miles (321.9 km).[2] It took two hours, forty-three minutes, and fifty-five seconds for the race to reach its conclusion; Richard Petty was the winner of the race.[2][3]

Notable crew chiefs for the race were Jimmy Helms, Dale Inman, Wendell Scott, and Herman Beam.[4]

Three cautions were drawn for twenty-six laps in front of 13,128 people.[2] Notable speeds were: 73.208 miles per hour (117.817 km/h) for the average speed and 80.826 miles per hour (130.077 km/h) for the pole position speed.[2] This would be Bud Moore's first official NASCAR Cup Series race. Total winnings for this race were $9,380 in American dollars ($77,325 when adjusted for inflation). Richard Petty would end up receiving the majority of the winnings with a grand total of $2,150 ($17,724 when adjusted for inflation).[2][3]

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.

Qualifying

Grid[2]	No.	Driver	Manufacturer
1	43	Richard Petty	'64 Plymouth
2	1	Billy Wade	'64 Mercury
3	41	Jim Paschal	'64 Plymouth
4	11	Ned Jarrett	'64 Ford
5	6	David Pearson	'64 Dodge
6	5	Earl Balmer	'64 Dodge
7	16	Darel Dieringer	'64 Mercury
8	54	Jimmy Pardue	'64 Plymouth
9	19	Larry Thomas	'64 Ford
10	82	Bunkie Blackburn	'63 Pontiac
11	42	Bill McMahan	'64 Pontiac
12	34	Wendell Scott	'63 Ford
13	78	Buddy Arrington	'63 Dodge
14	49	Doug Moore	'64 Chevrolet
15	88	Neil Castles	'62 Chrysler
16	9	Roy Tyner	'64 Chevrolet
17	20	Jack Anderson	'64 Ford
18	60	Doug Cooper	'63 Ford
19	52	E.J. Trivette	'62 Chevrolet
20	02	Curtis Crider	'63 Mercury
21	32	Mark Hurley	'63 Ford
22	01	Chuck Huckabee	'63 Mercury
23	17	Junior Spencer	'64 Ford
24	92	Rodney Bottinger	'64 Ford
25	86	Steve Young	'62 Chrysler
26	66	Bud Moore	'63 Ford
27	81	Henley Gray	'64 Ford

Finishing order

Section reference:[2]

1. Richard Petty (No. 43)
2. Jim Paschal† (No. 31)
3. David Pearson† (No. 6)
4. Earl Balmer (No. 5)
5. Ned Jarrett (No. 11)
6. Darel Dieringer† (No. 16)
7. Larry Thomas† (No. 19)
8. Jimmy Pardue† (No. 54)
9. Doug Moore (No. 49)
10. Neil Castles (No. 88)
11. Bill McMahan (No. 42)
12. Curtis Crider† (No. 02)
13. Jack Anderson (No. 20)
14. E.J. Trivette (No. 52)
15. Junior Spencer* (No. 81)
16. Wendell Scott*† (No. 34)
17. Roy Tyner*† (No. 9)
18. Bunkie Blackburn*† (No. 82)
19. Billy Wade*† (No. 1)
20. Henley Gray* (No. 81)
21. Doug Cooper* (No. 60)
22. Mark Hurley* (No. 32)
23. Buddy Arrington* (No. 78)
24. Rodney Bottinger* (No. 92)
25. Chuck Huckabee* (No. 01)
26. Steve Young* (No. 86)
27. Bud Moore* (No. 66)

* Driver failed to finish race
† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased

References

1. "1964 Nashville 400 racing weather information". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
2. "1964 Nashville 400 racing results". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2010-11-21.
3. "Richard Petty information (1964 Nashville 400)". Everything Stock Car. Retrieved 2011-03-03.
4. "1964 Nashville 400 crew chiefs information". Racing Reference. Retrieved 2018-08-31.