12th race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 12 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1987 Miller High Life 500 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt. | |||
| Date | June 14, 1987 | ||
| Official name | 6th Annual Miller High Life 500 | ||
| Location | Long Pond, Pennsylvania, Pocono Raceway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.0 km) | ||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Average speed | 122.166 miles per hour (196.607 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 90,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Junior Johnson & Associates | ||
| Time | 57.877 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Tim Richmond | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 82 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 25 | Tim Richmond | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | SETN | ||
| Announcers | Eli Gold, Jerry Punch | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The 1987 Miller High Life 500 was the 12th stock car race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season and the sixth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, June 14, 1987, before an audience of 90,000 in Long Pond, Pennsylvania, at Pocono Raceway, a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) triangular permanent course. The race took the scheduled 200 laps to complete.
In his first race back after taking 11 races off due to illness, Hendrick Motorsports' Tim Richmond managed to pull away from the field on the final restart with five laps left to take his 12th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his first victory of the season. To fill out the top three, Melling Racing's Bill Elliott and Wood Brothers Racing's Kyle Petty finished second and third, respectively.
Background
The race was held at Pocono International Raceway, which is a three-turn superspeedway located in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. The track hosts two annual NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races, as well as one Xfinity Series and Camping World Truck Series event. Until 2019, the track also hosted an IndyCar Series race.
Pocono International Raceway is one of a very few NASCAR tracks not owned by either Speedway Motorsports, Inc. or International Speedway Corporation. It is operated by the Igdalsky siblings Brandon, Nicholas, and sister Ashley, and cousins Joseph IV and Chase Mattioli, all of whom are third-generation members of the family-owned Mattco Inc, started by Joseph II and Rose Mattioli.
Outside of the NASCAR races, the track is used throughout the year by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and motorcycle clubs as well as racing schools and an IndyCar race. The triangular oval also has three separate infield sections of racetrack – North Course, East Course and South Course. Each of these infield sections use a separate portion of the tri-oval to complete the track. During regular non-race weekends, multiple clubs can use the track by running on different infield sections. Also some of the infield sections can be run in either direction, or multiple infield sections can be put together – such as running the North Course and the South Course and using the tri-oval to connect the two.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Qualifying
Qualifying was split into two rounds. The first round was held on Saturday, June 13, at 10:00 AM 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, at 3:00 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, 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 were given.
Terry Labonte, driving for Junior Johnson & Associates, managed to win the pole, setting a time of 57.877 and an average speed of 155.502 miles per hour (250.256 km/h) in the first round.
Four drivers failed to qualify.
Full qualifying results
Race results
Standings after the race
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Notes
- Petty was injured in the 1987 Budweiser 500, breaking several ribs. Joe Ruttman relieved him for the race. However, per the rules at the time, Petty is credited with the finishing position as he was in the car for at least one parade lap.
References
- Higgins, Tom (June 15, 1987). "Richmond Returns To NASCAR As Winner". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1B, 3B. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Miegoc, Joe (June 15, 1987). "Richmond is triumphant in comeback". Times Leader. pp. 1C, 6C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "NASCAR Today". The Charlotte Observer. June 13, 1987. pp. 4C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Higgins, Tom (June 14, 1987). "Labonte Starts 1st In Pocono". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1D, 10D. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Miegoc, Joe (June 13, 1987). "Ruttman Optimistic About Relief Role". Times Leader. pp. 1C, 4C. Retrieved October 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Stouch, Rick (May 24, 1987). "Petty family fortunes differ at Miller 500". Times Leader. pp. 6C. Retrieved October 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
| Previous race: 1987 Budweiser 500 |
NASCAR Winston Cup Series 1987 season |
Next race: 1987 Budweiser 400 |