Nashville's Sterling Beer Trophy

Nashville's Fairground Speedways opened in 1958, and quickly built a solid reputation for its annual NASCAR Grand National race, the season-ending Southern 300 late model event, and the weekly modified and later late model sportsman programs.

A new tradition began in 1969. Sterling Beer introduced the rotating champion's trophy. The winning driver's name of the track's annual late model sportsman division points title was added to the trophy. The driver apparently retained custody of the trophy for the following season, and it was then returned to be awarded to the new champion. The trophy was to be permanently retired only if a driver won three track championships.

The trophy was first awarded to Dave Sisco who captured the track's LMS title in 1969. Sisco advanced to NASCAR's Cup series in 1971 where he raced as an independent pretty regularly through 1977.

The second recipient of the champion's trophy was Darrell Waltrip in 1970. After a few additional seasons in Nashville, Ol' DW moved up to Cup where his accomplishments are well known.

A few days before the annual awards dinner, Sisco and Waltrip rehearsed the passing of the trophy to the new champion.

Source: The Tennessean

Waltrip celebrated his championship with his wife, parents, and inlaws. A portion of the trophy can be seen on the table at the right edge of this photo.

Coincidentally, Waltrip secured Sterling Beer as his sponsor for the following season. Sterling also sponsored the Sterling Beer 100 late model race in July 1971, and Waltrip used his champion's trophy and postcards to help promote it.

Source: The Tennessean

Flookie Buford earned the honor of hoisting the champion's trophy in 1971. He won 13 LMS races at Nashville from 1969 through 1974. His son, Joe Buford, later became a four-time track champion and is Nashville's all-time win leader.

Buford's promotional photo for the 1972 season included his R.C. Alexander-owned Ford Fairlane and the champion's trophy from '71.

Buford won his second consecutive championship in 1972, and he became the first driver to have his name on the champion's trophy twice.

The 1973 season was another turning point for the track. After three years with banking steeper than Bristol, Nashville lowered its banking to 18 degrees where it remains to this day. Despite the change in configuration, Waltrip captured his second championship in four years. For much of the season, Buford contested Waltrip in an effort to win his third consecutive championship. After going winless, however, Buford's car owner replaced him ending any hope for Flookie to capture the champion's trophy for a third time and permanently.

Before being awarded the champion's trophy for the second time, Waltrip looked it over along with the other hardware with mini-stock division champion Maurice Hassey and limited sportsman division champion George Bennett.

Source: The Tennessean

The 1974 track champion was an out-of-towner. Jimmy Means traveled each week from Alabama, and he outpointed the local contingent of drivers. Interestingly, photos haven't surfaced of Means being awarded the champion's trophy. Perhaps Waltrip wasn't ready to surrender it to the new champion - or maybe he was too busy with first few races of the 1975 Cup season to make the transfer. Nashville's awards dinner was March 1, 1975 - right in the thick of Waltrip's commitment to a three-race stretch of Daytona, Richmond, and Rockingham.

Means did receive his 1974 Winston Racing champion's helmet. Though he didn't receive the rotating champion's trophy, the helmet went into a bit of rotation on its own. Some time later, Jimmy passed along his helmet to his son, Brad. More recently, Brad passed along the helmet to good friend, Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

Future NASCAR inspector, Walter Wallace, won his second track title in 1975 and received the champion's trophy from Don Naman of Alabama International Motor Speedway. Wallace earned his first championship in 1967 - two seasons before the introduction of the champion's trophy.

Courtesy of Russ Thompson

As Jimmy Means did in 1974, Alton Jones traveled from Alabama each week and won the track title in 1976. How he did so is a bit of a mystery. Jones won three feature races as compared to the eleven victories by rookie Mike Alexander. Consistent finishes by Jones helped him in the end, however, as Alexander had some struggles with a few DNFs and injuries.

The ninth and final season to be recognized on the rotating trophy was in 1977. Steve Spencer of Old Hickory, TN, a Nashville suburb, captured the title over drivers such as Alexander, Sterling Marlin, Dennis Wiser, and P.B. Crowell III. Spencer later became the personal pilot for Marlin.

Though Spencer's name is the last one engraved, the champion's trophy rotated once more. Racers and fans returned in 1978 for yet another season of Late Model Sportsman racing. All were stunned when track operator Bill Donoho announced the sale of his rights in the track's lease to Lanny Hester and Gary Baker. The new operators then announced weekly racing would not continue in 1979 as they focused on track improvements and larger events.

In that final season, Mike Alexander earned his first Nashville track LMS championship. As with Jimmy Means, Walter Wallace, and others, he was presented a Winston Racing Series commemorative champion's helmet. Because of the change in track operators and cessation of the weekly racing for 1979, the formal awards dinner to recognize the 1978 champions was scuttled. Consequently, Alexander was not presented the champion's trophy.

The trophy, however, had been returned by Spencer - or at least had remained at the track during the year. Knowing what it represented and knowing he earned it, the Sterling Beer Champion's trophy rotated once more to an ... ahem, permanent location.

Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway is now readying for racing again this season under new management. In this writer's opinion, 2020 would be an ideal year to renew the tradition of a rotating champion's trophy. Of course, it would need to be a new trophy as the 1969-1978 one has been retired.

TMC

August 21, 1976 - Friends, Rivals, Wrecked, Resilient

Week to week, the storyline of the 1976 Late Model Sportsman division at Nashville Speedway was the Kiddie Corps. Rookies Mike Alexander, Sterling Marlin and Dennis Wiser along with second year driver P.B Crowell, III grew up quickly and took a shine to Nashville's 18-degree banked track.

Though competitive, Marlin and Wiser needed another season before banking their first wins. As spring turned to summer in '76, however, Alexander and Crowell toted home trophies on a regular basis. Both pushed veteran Alton Jones for the points lead. Jones was twice the age of the quartet and had loads of experience, but the noob drivers went toe to toe with him each Saturday night.

Nashville was long known for its promotions that helped put butts in seats. In mid-August, the slate of double features for mini-stock, limited sportsman, and LMS divisions was accompanied by a performance by Chattanooga's Gene Beene - aka the Human Bomb.

My family went often to the Fairgrounds in the mid 70s, but our attendance wasn't guaranteed. Race nights depended on my father's work obligations, summer trips to grandparents, and alignment of ticket prices with family finances. But that August night, I wanted to be there. I simply had to be there - especially to see some fool blow himself up with dynamite.

Though the mid-show explosion is what caught my eye in the newspaper ad, the racing was still the key to the night. Newport, TN's L.D. Ottinger raced - and won - frequently at Nashville in the 1970s. His trips, however, were generally tied to marquis events such as 200-lap LMS races that awarded points towards NASCAR's national LMS title.

Yet, Ottinger opted to tow to middle Tennessee for a couple of meaningless 25-lap features. (Never mind Nashville hosted a 100-lap national LMS feature the following Saturday - a race in which L.D. planned to participate.) L.D. made quick work of the first 25-lap LMS feature with Alexander finishing second.

Before round two of the night's w races began, it was then time for Gene Beene to cheat death. I was all-in. I clung up to the fence by one hand, fist pumped with the other, let primal screams fly, and dared Gene Beene to blow himself to kingdom come.

Well, that's not exactly true.

When I recently reminded my mother of that night's promotion, she remembered things a bit differently:

Oh yes! I remember! I did not remember his name but remember your reaction. You anticipated going to races that night from the time they first announced it. We went, but you could not bear to watch. You wanted to, but you cringed at the thought. Seems like you went up higher toward the concession stand when it came time for him to do it and kept peeking back. It was rather scary at the thought. I am not sure that I did not close my eyes!

Okay, so perhaps my 11 year-old machismo wasn't well developed. I do, however, recall the the involuntary adrenalin rush following the *KABOOM* once I realized Gene Beene had survived.

After the mini-stock and limited sportsman races on the quarter-mile track, fans soon witnessed another explosive event on Nashville's big track.

Ottinger again set sail in the early stages of the second LMS feature, and Jones followed him in second. Alexander and Crowell raced near one another for third and fourth. On lap seven, however, things turned bad. Alexander cut a right front tire as the duo sailed through the turns. He collected Crowell, and both of them slammed into the wall.

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

Crowell took the brunt of the hit in his rib cage. Alexander suffered knee ligament injuries after initially thinking he had a broken leg. As friends, both tried to get to the other to ensure all was OK.

With Alexander and Crowell's cars on trailers and the drivers transferred to the hospital, the veterans controlled the remaining laps. Jones tried to keep pace, but Ottinger prevailed to capture his second win of the night.

Credit: Marchman Family Collection / Nashville Farigrounds Racing History

Despite their disclosed injuries (and likely undisclosed concussions), both bruised but not broken racers returned the following Saturday to compete in the Bob Hunley 100. Returned bruised but not broken the next Saturday for the Bob Hunley 100. After pocketing two 25-lap wins on August 21, Ottinger returned and nabbed the Hunley race as well.

Article sources: The Tennessean archives

TMC

July 10, 1976 - Nashville racers tie one on

On July 15, 2018, Michael House edged Willie Allen to win a 100-lap Pro Late Model feature at Nashville's Fairgrounds Speedway.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: @WillieAllen26 and Michael House battle back to the checker on the last lap of the PLM race. Don’t miss the next race on August 4th. Admission will be $5! pic.twitter.com/C503qlToFQ

— Fairgrounds Speedway (@FGSpeedway) July 18, 2018

Forty-five years earlier in 1973, Jimmy Means won his first Nashville Late Model Sportsman race by edging past Bob Burcham to capture the Frank Reed Memorial 100 by an unmeasured yet generally accepted even closer margin of victory.

Neither finish, however, matched the outcome of an LMS feature on July 10, 1976.

Track promoter Bill Donoho did his best on Saturday, July 3, 1976, to juggle racing and bicentennial fireworks while also tackling intermittent showers. Fans got to ooh and ahh over exploding shells and colors and during a handful of races. Most of the second half of the night's events, however, were postponed because of the rain.

As an aside, a day later on the 4th of July - the USA's bicentennial - the track hosted a double-bill of Gary Wright (♫ Dream Weaver ♫) and England's Peter Frampton. Several years later, Frampton became a Music City resident where he remains today.

A week later on July 10, the track's racing slate included a bonus - the remaining laps of a limited sportsman race and the additional LMS race nixed the previous Saturday.

About a month earlier, Alexander wrecked his Mercury Cougar on June 13th. Alexander lost the handle in turn 3 as he pursued race leader and friend, P.B. Crowell, III late in a 30-lap feature. He tried to gather it back, but he popped the wall in turn 4 and came to rest against the inside guard rail.

After a couple of weeks of repairs, Alexander had the Cougar back at the Fairgrounds - albeit without a fresh coat of paint. The primer grey car with a crudely sketched 84 on the sides looked better suited for off-season testing than Saturday night racing.

Alabama's Alton Jones took the lead on the fourth lap of the opening 25-lap feature. Alexander raced in his tire tracks as he looked for a way around the track's points leader. Finally, on the last corner of the last lap, Alexander dove to the inside of Jones. As Larry Warren displayed the checkered flag, Alexander drew even with Jones.

The finish was too close to call, and track officials officially declared it as a tie between the two drivers. Both parked at the start-finish line after the cool down lap as fans were told about the result. 

Crowell won the next two 25-lap features that evening. In the second of three races, Alexander popped the wall in his recently repaired but unpainted Cougar. 

Cup regular Bobby Allison was coincidentally injured in a wreck during a late model race in Elko, Minnesota the same evening Alexander scored his tying win and P1 in a four-driver match race. A dozen years later, Alexander was chosen as the driver of the #12 Miller High Life Buick when Allison suffered a career-ending head injury in a Cup race at Pocono.

TMC

Racing, Drinking, Protesting - and there's more!

Lumberman A.J. King, Jr. of Sevierville, TN joined NASCAR as a car owner in 1967. Over the next couple of years, he fielded Mopars for drivers such as Paul Lewis, Li'l Bud Moore, and Pete Hamilton.

By 1970, however, King folded his tent and exited the Grand National ranks. Though little is known about King's arrival or departure, it's likely he experienced the racing truism of: The way to end up with a small fortune in racing is to start with a big one. (King did return as an owner/sponsor for one race in 1975. Sadly, Tiny Lund was killed in the Talladega 500 in King's Dodge.)

Though King got out of Grand National / Cup racing, Dave Marcis modified one of King's 1969 Dodge Chargers. Marcis raced it as a winged Dodge Daytona in 1970 and then returned the car to its 1969 Charger body for 1971 and 1972.

The car found new life in 1973 in NASCAR's Late Model Sportsman division. In February, Alabama's Alton Jones raced the Charger to a fifth place finish in Daytona's Permatex 300 with King Enterprises on the quarter panel as the sponsor.

Source: Alabama Auto Racing Pioneers

King and Marcis then partnered to run several short track LMS races. Marcis worked them in between his Cup schedule as he raced mostly for himself and part-time for Roger Penske.

One of the first races selected was the Permatex 200 on April 21, 1973 - the season opener on Nashville's newly reconfigured Fairgrounds Speedway. The big ol' Dodge was impressive. Marcis won the pole, dominated the first third of the race, and finished fourth.

Having fared pretty well in his first visit, Marcis returned to Nashville for another shot on Friday, May 12. He brought the '69 Charger to race in the 30-lap LMS feature that accompanied the first round of qualifying for the Music City 420 Cup race.

Though Darrell Waltrip was running for Winston Cup Rookie of the Year, he also ran a full LMS schedule at Nashville. Waltrip had been the Fairgrounds' king of the hill since 1970, and he planned to continue to laissez les bon temps rouler.

After qualifying eighth for the Cup race in his 1971 Dodge, Marcis saddled up in the '69 Charger for the short LMS race. Marcis went to the point on the seventh lap - just about the time a caution flew. On the restart, Waltrip (likely smirking) outfoxed Marcis and grabbed the lead. Just past the halfway point, Marcis regained the top spot.

And so it continued for the next ten laps. Marcis' Hemi launched down the straightaways, but Waltrip's #48 Falls City Beer Chevelle had the edge through the corners. On the last lap, Marcis found just enough oomph and pulled ahead of Waltrip to win by a couple of car lengths.

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

Source: The Tennessean

The Cup schedule had open dates the next two weekends following Nashville's race. No Dover, Kansas, Richmond, or All-Star Race - just the World 600 on May 27. As a result, Marcis figured he'd return to Music City for yet another go at a trophy.

He and the Dodge returned for another 30-lap feature on Saturday, May 19. Neither Waltrip or Marcis contended for the win that night. Mother Nature scored the W as rain postponed the slate of races to Sunday afternoon, May 20.

A week earlier, Marcis and Waltrip battled tooth and nail under Nashville's Friday night lights. The same pattern held true the following week on a bright, Sunday afternoon.

Waltrip won the pole, and Marcis timed right alongside him. As was the case in the previous race, Marcis' Hemi could haul the mail down the straights, but the car's weight made it more of a handful through the turns. Waltrip's Chevelle, on the other hand, had the perfect set-up to handle the corners, but he surrendered HP to Marcis after they both got back in the gas. 

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

Waltrip rapped Marcis a time or two in an attempt to rattle his cage. Marcis, however, was unfazed and maintained his rhythm. The two weaved around traffic, took alternate lines every couple of laps, yet still managed to stay together until the final lap.

Source: Nashville Area Racing History

Over the final couple of laps, Marcis again found the little extra he needed. He cleared Waltrip and won for the second week in a row. After the race, however, Waltrip's team had a bit of a surprise for Marcis.

Doc Brewington, Waltrip's mechanic, chose to protest Marcis' Dodge. He wanted the big Hemi stripped down bolt by bolt. Brewington even opted to protest the fuel cell. The car only needed a handful of gallons to run the short feature, but Brewington wanted the tear down to be as painful as possible.

With plenty of afternoon sun remaining, the tear-down began as a crowd gathered to watch. In time, Brewington and Marcis got to joking and placing side bets on what may have been legal or illegal. Meanwhile, as the tear-down continued, someone brought in a cooler of Waltrip's sponsor product supplied by his car owner and local beer distributor, Ellis Cook. 

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

Around 9:30 PM, the evaluation was completed. Joe Carver led the inspection and concluded Marcis' Dodge was legal. Carver was the PR director for the Fairgrounds and later became the promoter at Langley Speedway in Virginia.

Marcis hastily loaded his car and gear and headed for a long, late night drive back to North Carolina. Though Brewington and Waltrip lost the protest, they figured a modest win may have been earned. Marcis arrived and won with an intact car, but he headed home with a tub of parts that would need plenty of time to re-assemble.

Source: The Tennessean

Marcis and Waltrip delighted in recapping the sequence of events during a gathering of many of NASCAR's legends at the now-gone NASCAR Cafe in Nashville.

Source: The Tennessean

Despite having to re-assemble his Hemi (or paying someone to do it), Marcis was back yet again in mid-June for the Uniroyal 100 on June 16, 1973. The duo picked up pretty much where they left off a month earlier.

Although Joe Carver was the technical inspector during Waltrip's protest of Marcis, he was still the publicity director at his core. And he drummed up some for the 100-lap event by having the two competitors race bicycles! 

Marcis once again won the pole - although L.D. Ottinger flanked him on the front row. Waltrip started eighth but had a nose for the front as usual. The usual suspects were again at the top of the field along with Alton Jones who had piloted Marcis' Dodge back in February.

Credit: Russ Thompson

When the race concluded, Waltrip returned to his customary victory lane location. Alton Jones placed second followed by Marcis. Perhaps as a case of turnabout is fair play, Marcis protested Jones and Waltrip. Jones' team refused to be torn down and was DQ'd as a result. Waltrip's car passed inspection as Marcis' car did a month earlier, and he retained the win with Marcis elevated to second.

* * * * *

A.J. King left racing but continued with the lumber business started by his father, A.J. King, Sr. He and his wife were the first patrons of a new Sevier County, TN library in 1966 - shortly before he entered NASCAR as an owner. King passed away in 1978, and his son Danny continued the family business. In 2010, the county's library moved into an even larger facility - the King Family Library. The King family contributed $2 million of the project's $11.5 million cost, and the library opened on the same spot as the original family lumber business.

* * * * *

Marcis raced the old Dodge a few more times including the 1974 Permatex 200 at Nashville. As his Cup career progressed, however, he moved on from LMS runs with the Charger. The car ended up in a private collector's hands who then restored it to a winged Dodge Daytona as Marcis had raced it.

In the late 80s / early 90s, the car was repainted to resemble Richard Petty's 1970 Plymouth Superbird. The car toured as a promotional showcar for Goody's Headache Powders.

1992 Charlotte Motor Speedway - TMC Archives

The car then found yet another life in 2003 when it was re-purposed for Winston's final season as the title sponsor of NASCAR's top series. Before the final race of the season at Homestead, King Richard drove the car that originally began as a Charger fielded by A.J. King.

Source: Getty Images

Thanks to Dave Fulton for his assistance in background research on A.J. King, Jr. and SuperbirdClub.com for its post regarding the A.J. King / Marcis Dodge .

TMC

Nashville's 1977 Winston 200

Nashville Speedway at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds opened its 1977 season with the Winston Salute To America 200 on April 16th. The 200-lap race was sanctioned as a NASCAR national late model sportsman event.

Times were tough for racers in the mid 1970s - locally and on the national level. L.D. Ottinger, NASCAR's two-time national Late Model Sportsman champion, had done enough barnstorming to accumulate points.

Ottinger continued to race and win, but he longer had the hunger to bounce all over the eastern and southern U.S. to bank points. Jack Ingram reached the same decision after winning his third consecutive LMS title in 1974.

Locally, Nashville's 1976 LMS champion, Alton Jones, didn't return to defend his title. Jones was from Alabama, but he'd raced off and on at Nashville since the early 1970s. He raced the full schedule in 1976 and won the title over rookie Mike Alexander. Because of a lack of sponsorship, however, Jones opted not to return to Music City in 1977.

With Jones gone along with some of the late model veterans of the early 1970s, most expected the storyline of Nashville's 1977 season to be the further maturation of the Kiddie Corps.

Mike Alexander, P.B. Crowell III, Sterling Marlin and Dennis Wiser

All four up-and-comer drivers were second generation racers.

• Mike Alexander, Nashville's 1976 LMS rookie of the year, was the son of R.C. Alexander, a long-time owner for winning drivers dating back to the late 1950s. 
• P.B. Crowell III, Nashville's 1975 LMS rookie of the year, was the son of P.B. Crowell, Jr. a former winning driver who became a prominent owner in the late 1960s when he hired a kid from Owensboro, Kentucky: Darrell Waltrip.
• Sterling Marlin was the son of four-time Nashville track champ and Cup independent, Coo Coo Marlin. Before he began his driving career, Sterling worked as a crewman and mechanic on his father's Cup cars.
• Dennis Wiser was the son of Kenneth Wiser, a long-time noted car builder and mechanic. Among his other accomplishments, Kenneth built the car raced by 1967 track champ and future NASCAR official, Walter Wallace

Source: The Tennessean

Though many expected the young guns to win their share of races, experienced drivers still planned to have a say in the outcome and leave town with the trophy and the loot. Several big names helped pack the stands for the season opener.

• Cup regular and two-time Nashville LMS champion, Darrell Waltrip, flew between Bristol and Nashville to balance practice and qualifying for the Southeastern 500 Cup race and his #88 Gatorade Nova in Nashville. 
• Ottinger still came to Music City even though he wasn't chasing points. 
• Ingram finished second in a Friday night late model race in Kingsport, TN before towing to Nashville for its Saturday night feature.
• Randy Tissot wrecked his car in the Kingsport race. He came to Nashville anyway with a generous offer by Ingram to race his backup car.

Other out-of-towners included Neil Bonnett, Harry Gant, Morgan Shepherd, and the son of late model legend Ralph Earnhardt.

Mike Alexander, Steve Spencer, Darrell Waltrip, Sterling Marlin, & Dale Earnhardt

Dale Earnhardt arranged to race Waltrip's white #17 in his second ever Nashville start. Later, Waltrip had the car painted orange-and-white. The Robert Gee-painted Nova matched the colors of Crowell's #47.

Though he was young, third-year racer Crowell was already a track veteran. He won the pole by matching the track record of 20.01 seconds. Gant lined up alongside him on the front row.

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

Nashville hosted three main divisions of weekly racing in 1977: mini-stocks, limited sportsman, and late model sportsman. The track also featured a demolition derby division. The Winston 200 wasn't part of that schedule, but it may as well have been with the way the race unfolded.

Earnhardt's night in his borrowed ride didn't last even a quarter of the race. He spun on lap 40 and collected Marlin with him.

Wiser, another one of the young'uns, popped the wall shortly after halfway, and he too was done - as was Steve Spencer. Fortunately for Spencer, the night did not start a trend for him. He won frequently during the year and captured the 1977 LMS title.

Cup independent and 1969 Nashville LMS champion, Dave Sisco, tangled with Shepherd to end both their nights. And with about 20 laps to go, Crowell's pole-winning car laid down sending his car to the trailer.

With five to go and Ingram leading, Benny Kerley apparently hit a patch of fluid and spun in turn three. Ingram was already past Kerley, but second-place running Gant also hit the oil and clipped Kerley as he tried to avoid him.

As Gant slowed and twitched, he was then drilled in the right side by local racers Ricky Marlin and and Dave Hill. Fast approaching Waltrip and Tissot took evasive action to dodge the three-car wreck.

As Gant's totaled car was towed to the garage, it was apparent to all the roll cage wasn't nearly as strong as required. Handsome Harry was fortunate to return to North Carolina without injury.

Source: Nashville Fairgrounds Racing History

On the restart, Waltrip went high in turn one in hopes of getting momentum to launch past Ingram. His car stumbled, however, and he immediately faded. Ottinger had issues too - at the very moment he didn't need them.

Feeling no pressure from the others, Ingram and Tissot clicked off the remaining laps to finish 1-2. Waltrip and Ottinger remained on track and finished third and fourth.

Fans saw a remarkable and perhaps exasperating 11 cautions totaling 65 laps. Of the 28 starters, only nine cars made it to the end. With so many cars out of the race or many laps down to the leaders, Kerley and Gant still managed to finish fifth and sixth despite their DNFs!

Ingram captured his fifth national LMS win at Nashville and eighth victory overall. He won three more times at the Fairgrounds - a 250-lap national LMS race in 1979 and a Busch Grand National race in 1984.

Source: The Tennessean

Finishing order:

1. Jack Ingram
2. Randy Tissot 
3. Darrell Waltrip 
4. L.D. Ottinger 
5. Benny Kerley 
6. Harry Gant 
7. Gary Sircy 
8. Ricky Marlin 
9. Buzzy Reynolds 
10. Dorris Vaughn 
11. David Panter 
12. P.B. Crowell 
13. Thomas Mount 
14. David Hill 
15. Mike Alexander 
16. David Rogers 
17. Jerry Sisco 
18. Dennis Wiser 
19. Steve Spencer 
20. Carl Langford 
21. Terry Vickers 
22. Dale Earnhardt 
23. Art Sommers 
24. Sterling Marlin 
25. Morgan Shepherd 
26. David Sisco
27. Marvin Joyner 
28. Charlie Whitefield

TMC