The 1987 Budweiser 400 was the 13th stock car race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, the second race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston West Series, and the 19th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, June 21, 1987, before an audience of 55,000 in Riverside, California, at the short layout of Riverside International Raceway, a 2.62 miles (4.22 km) permanent road course layout at the track. The race took the scheduled 95 laps to complete.

1987 Budweiser 400
Race details
Race 13 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1987 Budweiser 400 program cover.
The 1987 Budweiser 400 program cover.
Date June 21, 1987
Official name 19th Annual Budweiser 400
Location Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California
Course Permanent racing facility
2.62 mi (4.216 km)
Distance 95 laps, 248.9 mi (400.565 km)
Scheduled Distance 95 laps, 248.9 mi (400.565 km)
Average speed 102.183 miles per hour (164.448 km/h)
Attendance 55,000
Pole position
Driver Junior Johnson & Associates
Time 1:20.244
Most laps led
Driver Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 48
Winner
No. 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports
Television in the United States
Network ESPN
Announcers Larry Nuber, Dick Berggren
Radio in the United States
Radio Motor Racing Network

By race's end, Hendrick Motorsports' Tim Richmond managed to dominate the late stages of the race, leading the last 31 of 39 laps to take his 13th and final career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second and final victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Bud Moore Engineering's Ricky Rudd and RahMoc Enterprises' Neil Bonnett finished second and third, respectively.

Background

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The layout of Riverside International Raceway, the venue where the race was held.

Riverside International Raceway (sometimes known as Riverside, RIR, or Riverside Raceway) was a motorsports race track and road course established in the Edgemont area of Riverside County, California, just east of the city limits of Riverside and 50 mi (80 km) east of Los Angeles, in 1957. In 1984, the raceway became part of the newly incorporated city of Moreno Valley. Riverside was noted for its hot, dusty environment and for being somewhat of a complicated and dangerous track for drivers. It was also considered one of the finest tracks in the United States.

Entry list

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  • (R) denotes rookie driver.
# Driver Team Make Sponsor
1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Buick Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce
2 St. James Davis St. James Racing Buick St. James Racing
3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet Wrangler
4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile Kodak
04 Hershel McGriff Gary Smith Racing Pontiac Wershow–Ash–Lewis Auctioneers
5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
6 Ron Esau U.S. Racing Chevrolet U.S. Racing
7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford Zerex
8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller American
9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford Coors
11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet Budweiser
12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Chevrolet Hamby Racing
14 Harry Goularte Goularte Racing Chevrolet Goularte Racing
15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford Motorcraft Quality Parts
17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Tide
18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet Freedlander Financial
21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford Citgo
22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick Miller American
25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick Quaker State
27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac Kodiak
29 George Follmer Midgley Racing Chevrolet Budget Rent a Car
30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet Bahari Racing
32 Ruben Garcia Stoke Racing Chevrolet Suncrest Motorhomes
33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet Skoal Bandit
35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Folgers
41 Jack Sellers Vincent Racing Chevrolet Coca-Cola
43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac STP
44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile Piedmont Airlines
51 Jim Fitzgerald Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet Levi Garrett
52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac Jimmy Means Racing
55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile Copenhagen
62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac AC Spark Plug
64 Rick McCray Langley Racing Ford Sunny King Ford
66 John Krebs Krebs Racing Oldsmobile Skoal Classic
67 Chet Fillip Arrington Racing Ford Pannill Sweatshirts
70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac Rumple Furniture
71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet Helen Rae Special
73 Bill Schmitt Schmitt Racing Chevrolet Tom Bell Chevrolet
75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac Valvoline
76 Roman Calczynski Spears Motorsports Buick Spears Manufacturing
77 Ray Kelly Ray Kelly Racing Pontiac Ray Kelly Racing
78 Jim Robinson Lois Williams Racing Oldsmobile Hammer Security Service
79 Roy Smith Razore Racing Ford Western Peterbilt
90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford Red Baron Frozen Pizza
95 Chad Little George Jefferson Racing Ford Coors

Qualifying

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Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Friday, June 19, at 6:30 PM EST. Each driver had one lap to set a time. During the first round, the top 20 drivers in the round were 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 Saturday, June 20, at 5:00 PM EST. As with the first round, each driver had one lap to set a time. For this specific race, positions 21-40 were decided on time,[3] 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.

Terry Labonte, driving for Junior Johnson & Associates, managed to win the pole, setting a time of 1:20.244 and an average speed of 117.541 miles per hour (189.164 km/h) in the first round.[4]

Five drivers failed to qualify.

Full qualifying results

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Pos. # Driver Team Make Time Speed
1 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 1:20.244 117.541
2 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:20.343 117.397
3 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:20.391 117.327
4 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 1:20.587 117.041
5 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:20.671 116.919
6 26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick 1:20.775 116.769
7 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 1:20.859 116.647
8 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 1:20.968 116.490
9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 1:21.046 116.378
10 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 1:21.324 115.978
11 35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:21.334 115.966
12 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 1:21.414 115.852
13 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 1:21.555 115.652
14 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 1:21.770 115.348
15 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 1:22.034 114.977
16 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet 1:22.038 114.971
17 79 Roy Smith Razore Racing Ford 1:22.107 114.874
18 04 Hershel McGriff Gary Smith Racing Pontiac 1:22.384 114.488
19 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 1:22.410 114.452
20 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 1:22.423 114.434
Failed to lock in Round 1
21 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 1:22.504 114.322
22 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 1:22.505 114.320
23 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 1:22.623 114.157
24 64 Rick McCray Langley Racing Ford 1:22.689 114.066
25 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 1:22.738 113.998
26 1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Chevrolet 1:23.013 113.621
27 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 1:23.096 113.507
28 12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Oldsmobile 1:23.320 113.202
29 95 Chad Little George Jefferson Racing Ford 1:23.328 113.191
30 66 John Krebs Krebs Racing Oldsmobile 1:23.381 113.119
31 67 Chet Fillip Arrington Racing Ford 1:23.442 113.037
32 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 1:23.462 113.010
33 29 George Follmer Midgley Racing Chevrolet 1:23.546 112.896
34 73 Bill Schmitt Schmitt Racing Chevrolet 1:23.847 112.491
35 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 1:24.154 112.080
36 14 Harry Goularte Goularte Racing Chevrolet 1:24.158 112.075
37 51 Jim Fitzgerald Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 1:24.168 112.062
38 78 Jim Robinson Lois Williams Racing Oldsmobile 1:24.220 111.992
39 6 Ron Esau U.S. Racing Chevrolet 1:24.319 111.861
40 32 Ruben Garcia Stoke Racing Chevrolet 1:24.460 111.674
41 18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet 1:24.917 111.073
Failed to qualify (results unknown)
42 2 St. James Davis St. James Racing Buick -* -*
43 41 Jack Sellers Vincent Racing Chevrolet -* -*
44 62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac -* -*
45 76 Roman Calczynski Spears Motorsports Buick -* -*
46 77 Ray Kelly Ray Kelly Racing Pontiac -* -*
Official first round qualifying results
Official starting lineup

Race results

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Fin St # Driver Team Make Laps Led Status Pts Winnings
1 5 25 Tim Richmond Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 95 48 running 185 $36,450
2 4 15 Ricky Rudd Bud Moore Engineering Ford 95 5 running 175 $28,450
3 14 75 Neil Bonnett RahMoc Enterprises Pontiac 95 0 running 165 $17,005
4 1 11 Terry Labonte Junior Johnson & Associates Chevrolet 95 28 running 165 $19,125
5 9 9 Bill Elliott Melling Racing Ford 95 0 running 155 $13,850
6 15 43 Richard Petty Petty Enterprises Pontiac 95 0 running 150 $7,795
7 8 3 Dale Earnhardt Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 95 0 running 146 $13,500
8 13 22 Bobby Allison Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 95 0 running 142 $9,650
9 21 44 Sterling Marlin Hagan Racing Oldsmobile 95 0 running 138 $8,625
10 19 90 Ken Schrader Donlavey Racing Ford 95 0 running 134 $8,790
11 23 55 Phil Parsons Jackson Bros. Motorsports Oldsmobile 95 3 running 135 $2,150
12 18 04 Hershel McGriff Gary Smith Racing Pontiac 94 0 running 127 5,005
13 22 8 Bobby Hillin Jr. Stavola Brothers Racing Buick 94 0 running 124 $9,450
14 27 4 Rick Wilson Morgan–McClure Motorsports Oldsmobile 94 0 running 121 $1,850
15 29 95 Chad Little George Jefferson Racing Ford 94 0 running 118 $4,035
16 20 71 Dave Marcis Marcis Auto Racing Chevrolet 93 0 running 115 $6,125
17 37 51 Jim Fitzgerald Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 93 0 running 112 $1,675
18 41 18 Dale Jarrett (R) Freedlander Motorsports Chevrolet 93 0 running 109 $5,765
19 40 32 Ruben Garcia Stoke Racing Chevrolet 92 0 running 106 $2,755
20 36 14 Harry Goularte Goularte Racing Chevrolet 92 0 running 103 $3,095
21 31 67 Chet Fillip Arrington Racing Ford 91 0 running 100 $4,225
22 39 6 Ron Esau U.S. Racing Chevrolet 90 0 running 0 $4,165
23 32 52 Jimmy Means Jimmy Means Racing Pontiac 90 0 running 94 $4,080
24 10 21 Kyle Petty Wood Brothers Racing Ford 90 0 running 91 $8,300
25 12 33 Harry Gant Mach 1 Racing Chevrolet 89 0 ignition 88 $4,085
26 24 64 Rick McCray Langley Racing Ford 88 0 running 85 $3,200
27 2 5 Geoff Bodine Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 86 11 engine 87 $8,175
28 25 7 Alan Kulwicki AK Racing Ford 84 0 running 79 $4,150
29 30 66 John Krebs Krebs Racing Oldsmobile 80 0 engine 76 $1,125
30 3 17 Darrell Waltrip Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 77 0 running 73 $1,100
31 28 12 Jim Bown Hamby Racing Oldsmobile 70 0 engine 70 $3,050
32 16 30 Michael Waltrip Bahari Racing Chevrolet 64 0 engine 67 $3,025
33 34 73 Bill Schmitt Schmitt Racing Chevrolet 63 0 engine 64 $1,000
34 11 35 Benny Parsons Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet 57 0 transmission 61 $10,175
35 6 26 Morgan Shepherd King Racing Buick 44 0 transmission 58 $2,900
36 38 78 Jim Robinson Lois Williams Racing Oldsmobile 39 0 engine 55 $900
37 35 70 J. D. McDuffie McDuffie Racing Pontiac 17 0 oil leak 52 $900
38 26 1 Brett Bodine Ellington Racing Chevrolet 7 0 oil pressure 49 $900
39 17 79 Roy Smith Razore Racing Ford 6 0 clutch 46 $900
40 33 29 George Follmer Midgley Racing Chevrolet 5 0 steering 43 $875
41 7 27 Rusty Wallace Blue Max Racing Pontiac 5 0 engine 40 $8,875
Failed to qualify (results unknown)
42 2 St. James Davis St. James Racing Buick
43 41 Jack Sellers Vincent Racing Chevrolet
44 62 Steve Christman (R) Winkle Motorsports Pontiac
45 76 Roman Calczynski Spears Motorsports Buick
46 77 Ray Kelly Ray Kelly Racing Pontiac
Official race results

Standings after the race

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References

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  1. ^ Higgins, Tom (June 22, 1987). "Richmond Takes Riverside For 2nd Straight". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1D, 4D. Retrieved October 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  2. ^ Glick, Shav (June 22, 1987). "Richmond Wins Again at Riverside". The Los Angeles Times. pp. III-1, III-6. Retrieved October 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  3. ^ "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. June 19, 1987. pp. 3C. Retrieved October 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  
  4. ^ Higgins, Tom (June 20, 1987). "Labonte Charges To Pole". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1C, 4C. Retrieved October 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.  


Previous race:
1987 Miller High Life 500
NASCAR Winston Cup Series
1987 season
Next race:
1987 Miller American 400