- 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
The 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Season began
February 7 and endedNovember 20 .Bill Elliott ofMelling Racing won the championship.See also:
1988 in NASCAR Busch Series Busch Clash
The
Busch Clash , an invitational event for allBusch Pole winners the previous season, was heldFebruary 7 atDaytona International Speedway .Geoffrey Bodine drew for the pole.Top Ten Results
#
Dale Earnhardt
#Davey Allison
#Bobby Allison
#Geoffrey Bodine
#Bill Elliott
#Rusty Wallace
#Ken Schrader
#Morgan Shepherd
#Terry Labonte
#Harry Gant Gatorade 125s
The
Gatorade 125s , a pair of qualifying races for theDaytona 500 , were heldFebruary 11 atDaytona International Speedway .Ken Schrader andDavey Allison won the poles for both races, respectively.Race One: Top Ten Results
# 12-
Bobby Allison
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 50-Greg Sacks
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 97-Morgan Shepherd
# 4-Rick Wilson
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 14-A. J. Foyt
# 55-Phil Parsons Race Two: Top Ten Results
# 17-
Darrell Waltrip
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 28-Davey Allison
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 83-Lake Speed
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 75-Neil Bonnett
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 88-Buddy Baker
# 33-Harry Gant Daytona 500
Pontiac Excitement 400
The
Pontiac Excitement 400 was heldFebruary 21 atRichmond Fairgrounds Raceway . The #97 ofMorgan Shepherd won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 75-
Neil Bonnett
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 43-Richard Petty
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 83-Lake Speed
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 3-Dale Earnhardt Failed to qualify: 2-
Ernie Irvan , 4-Rick Wilson, 25*-Ken Schrader ,*
Ken Schrader 's team bought the #67 entry (normally driven byBuddy Arrington ) in order to get Schrader into the race.*This was the last race on the old half-mile Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway. After the race, workers got going to convert the track into a more modern-looking 3/4-mile oval.
Goodwrench 500
The
Goodwrench 500 was heldMarch 6 atNorth Carolina Motor Speedway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 75-
Neil Bonnett *
# 83-Lake Speed
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 97-Morgan Shepherd
# 10-Ken Bouchard
# 28-Davey Allison
# 25-Ken Schrader *This Was Neil Bonnett's final
Winston Cup Series win.Motorcraft Quality Parts 500
The
Motorcraft Quality Parts 500 was heldMarch 20 atAtlanta International Raceway . The #5 ofGeoff Bodine won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 3-
Dale Earnhardt
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 88-Buddy Baker
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 15-Brett Bodine
# 4-Rick WilsonTranSouth 500
The
TranSouth 500 was heldMarch 27 atDarlington Raceway . The #25 ofKen Schrader won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 83-
Lake Speed *
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 28-Davey Allison
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 6-Mark Martin
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 12-Bobby Allison
# 88-Buddy Baker *This was
Lake Speed 's only victory in theWinston Cup Series .Valleydale Meats 500
The
Valleydale Meats 500 was heldApril 10 at Bristol International Raceway . The #4 of Rick Wilson won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 6-Mark Martin
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 12-Bobby Allison
# 43-Richard Petty
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 71-Dave Marcis
# 25-Ken Schrader First Union 400
The
First Union 400 was heldApril 17 atNorth Wilkesboro Speedway .Terry Labonte won the pole. Labonte passedDale Earnhardt with 10 laps to go when Earnhardt suffered a slow leak of air from his right rear tire.Top Ten Results
# 11-
Terry Labonte
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 43-Richard Petty
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 28-Davey Allison
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 9-Bill Elliott Failed to Qualify: 00-
Gary Brooks , 04-Bill Meacham , 09-Doug French , 20-Alan Russell, 31-Brad Teague , 46-Glenn Moffat , 67-Rick Jeffrey , 70-Jeff McDuffie , 78- Jay Sommers, 98-Brad Noffsinger Pannill Sweatshirts 500
The Pannill Sweatshirts 500 was held
April 24 atMartinsville Speedway . The #26 ofRicky Rudd won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 3-
Dale Earnhardt
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 28-Davey Allison
# 88-Buddy Baker
# 12-Bobby Allison
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 25-Ken Schrader Failed to qualify: 2-
Ernie Irvan , 52-Jimmy Means Winston 500
The
Winston 500 was heldMay 1 atAlabama International Motor Speedway . The #28 ofDavey Allison won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 55-
Phil Parsons *
# 12-Bobby Allison
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 27-Rusty Wallace Failed to qualify: 10-
Ken Bouchard *This was
Phil Parsons ' only win in theWinston Cup Series .Coca-Cola 600
The
Coca-Cola 600 was heldMay 29 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.Davey Allison won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 17-
Darrell Waltrip
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 15-Brett Bodine
# 28-Davey Allison
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 26-Ricky Rudd *
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 50-Greg Sacks *
Ricky Rudd was relieved during the race by Mike Alexander (Rudd had suffered injuries earlier in the season).Budweiser 500
The
Budweiser 500 was heldJune 5 atDover Downs International Speedway .Alan Kulwicki won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 33-Morgan Shepherd *
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 83-Lake Speed
# 28-Davey Allison
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 4-Rick Wilson
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 6-Mark Martin
# 12-Bobby Allison *
Morgan Shepherd was subbing forHarry Gant , who had been injured during theBusch Grand National race the previous day.Budweiser 400
The final
Budweiser 400 was heldJune 12 atRiverside International Raceway .Ricky Rudd won the pole. It was the last NASCAR race held at Riverside.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 43-Richard Petty
# 6-Mark Martin
# 29-Dale Jarrett
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 75-Neil Bonnett Failed to qualify: 10-
Ken Bouchard Miller High Life 500
The
Miller High Life 500 was heldJune 19 atPocono Raceway . The #7 ofAlan Kulwicki won the pole. On the opening lap of this race,Bobby Allison suffered career-ending injuries when he spun and was T-boned by the #63 ofJocko Maggiacomo .Top Ten Results
# 5-
Geoff Bodine
# 30-Michael Waltrip
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 6-Mark Martin
# 28-Davey Allison
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 88-Buddy Baker
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 9-Bill Elliott Miller High Life 400
The
Miller High Life 400 was heldJune 26 atMichigan International Speedway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 29-Cale Yarborough
# 12-Mike AlexanderPepsi Firecracker 400
The Pepsi Firecracker 400 was held
July 2 atDaytona International Speedway .Darrell Waltrip won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 4-Rick Wilson
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 88-Buddy Baker
# 33-Morgan Shepherd
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 83-Lake Speed
# 50-Greg Sacks AC Spark Plug 500
The
AC Spark Plug 500 was heldJuly 24 atPocono Raceway .Morgan Shepherd won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 28-Davey Allison
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 75-Morgan Shepherd *
# 6-Mark Martin
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 33-Harry Gant **
Morgan Shepherd drove the #75 in place ofNeil Bonnett for this race and Talladega.
*Harry Gant 's first race back from injury.Talladega DieHard 500
The
Talladega DieHard 500 was heldJuly 31 atAlabama International Motor Speedway . The #17 ofDarrell Waltrip won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 25-
Ken Schrader *
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 4-Rick Wilson
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 6-Mark Martin
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 29-Cale Yarborough
# 88-Buddy Baker *This was
Ken Schrader 's 1st careerWinston Cup Series win.The Budweiser at the Glen
The Budweiser at the Glen was heldAugust 14 atWatkins Glen International Raceway .Geoff Bodine won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 26-
Ricky Rudd
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 12-Mike Alexander
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 88-Morgan Shepherd *
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 31-Joe Ruttman *
# 25-Ken Schrader *
Morgan Shepherd was subbing forBuddy Baker , who had suffered a blood clot in his brain in a crash in theCoca-Cola 600 earlier in the season.*This was the best finish in the
Winston Cup Series for Bob Clark's #31Slender You Figure Salons team.Champion Spark Plug 500
The
Champion Spark Plug 500 was heldAugust 21 atMichigan International Speedway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 28-
Davey Allison
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 88-Morgan Shepherd
# 83-Lake Speed
# 15-Brett Bodine
# 30-Michael Waltrip
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 4-Rick Wilson
# 5-Geoff Bodine Busch 500
The
Busch 500 was heldAugust 27 at Bristol International Raceway.Alan Kulwicki won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 3-
Dale Earnhardt
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 28-Davey Allison
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 33-Harry Gant
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 43-Richard Petty
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr. Failed to qualify: 10-
Ken Bouchard , 90-Benny Parsons Southern 500
The
Southern 500 was heldSeptember 4 atDarlington Raceway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 28-Davey Allison
# 26-Ricky Rudd Miller High Life 400
The
Miller High Life 400 was heldSeptember 11 atRichmond International Raceway .Davey Allison won the pole. This race was the first on the new 3/4-mile Richmond International Raceway.Top Ten Results
# 28-
Davey Allison
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 6-Mark Martin
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 75-Neil Bonnett
# 71-Dave Marcis Failed to qualify: 68-
Derrike Cope Delaware 500
The
Delaware 500 was heldSeptember 18 atDover International Speedway . The #6 of Mark Martin won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 9-
Bill Elliott
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 28-Davey Allison
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 12-Mike Alexander
# 75-Neil Bonnett
# 83-Lake Speed
# 26-Ricky Rudd Goody's 500
The
Goody's 500 was heldSeptember 25 atMartinsville Speedway .Rusty Wallace won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 17-
Darrell Waltrip
# 7-Alan Kulwicki
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 6-Mark Martin
# 15-Brett Bodine Failed to qualify: 68-
Derrike Cope Oakwood Homes 500
The
Oakwood Homes 500 was heldOctober 9 atCharlotte Motor Speedway . The #7 ofAlan Kulwicki won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 15-Brett Bodine
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 44-Sterling Marlin
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 6-Mark Martin
# 11-Terry Labonte Failed to qualify: 2-
Ernie Irvan Holly Farms 400
The
Holly Farms 400 was heldOctober 16 atNorth Wilkesboro Speedway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 12-Mike Alexander
# 88-Greg Sacks *Failed to qualify: 68-
Derrike Cope *Greg Sacks subbed for the still recovering
Buddy Baker .AC Delco 500
The
AC Delco 500 was heldOctober 23 atNorth Carolina Motor Speedway .Bill Elliott won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 3-Dale Earnhardt
# 12-Mike Alexander
# 33-Harry Gant
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 21-Kyle Petty
# 75-Neil Bonnett Checker 500
The inaugural
Checker 500 was heldNovember 6 atPhoenix International Raceway .Geoff Bodine won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 7-
Alan Kulwicki *
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 28-Davey Allison
# 9-Bill Elliott
# 27-Rusty Wallace
# 5-Geoff Bodine
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 90-Benny Parsons
# 55-Phil Parsons
# 44-Sterling Marlin *This was
Alan Kulwicki 's 1st careerWinston Cup Series win.Atlanta Journal 500
The
Atlanta Journal 500 was heldNovember 20 atAtlanta International Raceway .Rusty Wallace won the pole.Top Ten Results
# 27-
Rusty Wallace
# 28-Davey Allison
# 12-Mike Alexander
# 26-Ricky Rudd
# 17-Darrell Waltrip
# 25-Ken Schrader
# 30-Michael Waltrip
# 11-Terry Labonte
# 8-Bobby Hillin, Jr.
# 29-Cale Yarborough *Failed to qualify: 10-
Ken Bouchard *
Bill Elliott finished 11th to clinch his first and onlyWinston Cup .
*Cale Yarborough 's andBenny Parsons 's final career starts in theWinston Cup Series .Final points standings
#
Bill Elliott - 4488
#Rusty Wallace - 4464
#Dale Earnhardt - 4256
#Terry Labonte - 4007
#Ken Schrader - 3858
#Geoff Bodine - 3799
#Darrell Waltrip - 3764
#Davey Allison - 3631
#Phil Parsons - 3630
#Sterling Marlin - 3621
#Ricky Rudd - 3547
#Bobby Hillin, Jr. - 3446
#Kyle Petty - 3296
#Alan Kulwicki - 3176
#Mark Martin - 3142
#Neil Bonnett - 3040
#Lake Speed - 2984
#Michael Waltrip - 2949
#Dave Marcis - 2854
#Brett Bodine - 2828
#Rick Wilson - 2762
#Richard Petty - 2644
#Dale Jarrett - 2622
#Benny Parsons - 2559
#Ken Bouchard - 2378
#Ernie Irvan - 2319
#Harry Gant - 2266
#Morgan Shepherd - 2193
#Buddy Baker - 2056
#Jimmy Means - 2045
#Derrike Cope - 1985
#Mike Alexander - 1931
#Bobby Allison - 1654
#Eddie Bierschwale - 1481
#Rodney Combs - 1468
#Brad Noffsinger - 1316
#Greg Sacks - 1237
#Cale Yarborough - 940
#Joe Ruttman - 803
#Brad Teague - 802
#Jimmy Horton - 647
#A. J. Foyt - 523
#H.B. Bailey - 478
#Jim Sauter - 463
#Chad Little - 405
#Buddy Arrington - 352
#Ken Ragan - 314
#Dana Patten - 313
#Rick Jeffrey - 307
#Mickey Gibbs - 283Rookie of the Year
Ken Bouchard defeatedErnie Irvan by 59 points to win the Rookie of the Year title in 1988, driving forBob Whitcomb . Bouchard won only eight more starts in the Cup series over his career, while Irvan won fifteen races over the next twelve years. The only other contenders were USAC driverBrad Noffsinger andJimmy Horton , both of whom ran part-time schedules that season.External links
* [http://www.racing-reference.info/raceyear?yr=1988&series=W Winston Cup Standings and Statistics for 1988]
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