1969 Talladega 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 44 of 54 in the 1969 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
|
1969 Talladega 500 program cover | |||
| Date | September 14, 1969 | ||
| Official name | Talladega 500 | ||
| Location | Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega, Alabama | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.660 miles (4.280 km) | ||
| Distance | 188 laps, 500.1 mi (804.8 km) | ||
| Weather | Very hot with temperatures approaching 82.9 °F (28.3 °C); wind speeds up to 5.1 miles per hour (8.2 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 153.778 miles per hour (247.482 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 62,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | K&K Insurance Racing | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Jim Vandiver | Ray Fox Racing | |
| Laps | 102 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 99 | Richard Brickhouse | Nichels Engineering | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | untelevised | ||
| Announcers | none | ||
The inaugural race in the Talladega 500 (now Yellawood 500) series was held on September 14, 1969, at Alabama International Motor Speedway in Talladega, Alabama, USA. The race is noted for the unusual series of events leading up to and during it, seeing most Grand National Series drivers pulling out amidst a boycott of the event over safety concerns and a scoring error in its finish creating a disputed victory for Richard Brickhouse. As a result, the race has been remarked as the worst in NASCAR's history.