1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Series (Start Your Engines!)
The 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Season was the 40th season of professional stock car racing in the United States and the 17th modern-era Cup series. The season began on February 7 at Daytona International Speedway and ended on November 20 at the Atlanta International Speedway.
The 1988 season was notable for hosting the first of two tire wars between Goodyear and Hoosier. It also saw the return of Chrysler to NASCAR. Chrysler had left the sport in 1984 after Pacific Coast Racing’s disastrous campaign that year, with PCR running without factory support from 1985-87.
Drivers and teams
Complete schedule
| Make | Team | No. | Driver | Crew Chief |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buick | Curb Racing | 98 | Brad Noffsinger | |
| King Racing | 26 | Ricky Rudd | Larry MacReynolds | |
| Stavola Brothers Racing | 8 | Bobby Hillin Jr. | ||
| 12 | Bobby Allison | Jimmy Fennig | ||
| Winkle Motorsports | 97 | Rodney Combs | ||
| Chevrolet | Hendrick Motorsports | 5 | Geoffrey Bodine | Waddell Wilson |
| 17 | Darrell Waltrip | Jeff Hammond | ||
| 25 | Tim Richmond | Harry Hyde | ||
| 35 | Benny Parsons | Ray Evernham | ||
| Junior Johnson & Associates | 11 | Terry Labonte | Tim Brewer | |
| Mach 1 Racing | 33 | Harry Gant | Travis Carter | |
| Marcis Auto Racing | 71 | Dave Marcis | ||
| Richard Childress Racing | 3 | Dale Earnhardt | Kirk Shelmerdine | |
| Whitcomb Racing | 10 | Ken Bouchard (R) | ||
| Chrysler | Bahari Racing | 30 | Michael Waltrip | Mike Beam |
| Donlavey Racing | 90 | Ken Schrader | Doug Richert | |
| Hagan Motorsports | 44 | Sterling Marlin | ||
| Jackson Brothers Motorsports | 55 | Phil Parsons | Andy Petree | |
| Kelman Racing | 86 | Ryan Kelman (R) | Scott Searle | |
| Means Racing | 52 | Jimmy Means | ||
| Pacific Coast Racing | 80 | Tim Johnson (R) | Lyle White | |
| Petty Enterprises | 43 | Richard Petty | Dale Inman | |
| Speed Racing | 83 | Lake Speed | Darrell Bryant | |
| Ford | AK Racing | 7 | Alan Kulwicki | Paul Andrews |
| Bud Moore Engineering | 15 | Brett Bodine | Bud Moore | |
| Melling Racing | 9 | Bill Elliott | Ernie Elliott | |
| Ranier-Lundy Racing | 28 | Davey Allison | Robert Yates | |
| Roush Racing | 6 | Mark Martin | Robin Pemberton | |
| Shepherd Racing | 57 | Morgan Shepherd | ||
| Testa Racing | 68 | Derrike Cope | Dave Fuge | |
| Wood Brothers Racing | 21 | Kyle Petty | Leonard Wood | |
| Oldsmobile | B&B Racing | 23 | Eddie Bierschwale | |
| Cale Yarborough Motorsports | 29 | Cale Yarborough (10) | Elmo Langley | |
| Dale Jarrett (19) | ||||
| Bob Clark Motorsports | 31 | Brad Teague | ||
| Morgan-McClure Motorsports | 4 | Rick Wilson | Tony Glover | |
| Pontiac | Baker-Schiff Racing | 88 | Buddy Baker | Joey Knuckles |
| Blue Max Racing | 28 | Rusty Wallace | Barry Dodson | |
| Kennedy Racing | 03 | Melvin Kennedy (R) | Mark Cutter | |
| RahMoc Enterprises | 75 | Neil Bonnett | Bob Rahilly | |
| U.S. Racing | 2 | Ernie Irvan (R) | Bob Johnson |
Schedule
| No. | Race Title | Track | Date | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Busch Clash | Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach | February 7 | CBS | |
| Twin 125 Qualifiers | February 11 | |||
| 1 | Daytona 500 | February 14 | ||
| 2 | Pontiac Excitement 400 | Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, Richmond | February 21 | TBS |
| Goodyear NASCAR 500 | Calder Park Thunderdome, Melbourne | February 28 | ESPN | |
| 3 | Goodwrench 500 | North Carolina Motor Speedway, Rockingham | March 6 | |
| 4 | Motorcraft Quality Parts 500 | Atlanta International Speedway, Hampton | March 20 | ABC |
| 5 | TranSouth 500 | Darlington Raceway, Darlington | March 27 | ESPN |
| 6 | Valleydale Meats 500 | Bristol International Raceway, Bristol | April 10 | |
| 7 | First Union 400 | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro | April 17 | |
| 8 | Pannill Sweatshirts 500 | Martinsville Speedway, Ridgeway | April 24 | SETN |
| 9 | Winston 500 | Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega | May 1 | ESPN |
| 10 | Diet Coke 500 | Coca-Cola Superspeedway, Denver | May 7 | CBS |
| Winston Open | Charlotte Motor Speedway, Charlotte | May 22 | ABC | |
| The Winston | ||||
| 11 | Coca-Cola 600 | May 29 | TBS | |
| 12 | Budweiser 500 | Dover Downs International Speedway, Dover | June 5 | ESPN |
| 13 | Budweiser 400 | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside | June 12 | |
| 14 | Miller High Life 500 | Pocono International Raceway, Long Pond | June 19 | SCORE |
| 15 | Miller High Life 400 | Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn | June 26 | CBS |
| 16 | Pepsi Firecracker 400 | Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach | July 2 | ABC |
| 17 | Diet Coke 500 | Coca-Cola Superspeedway, Denver | July 10 | CBS |
| 18 | AC Spark Plug 500 | Pocono International Raceway, Long Pond | July 24 | Showtime |
| 19 | Talladega DieHard 500 | Alabama International Motor Speedway, Talladega | July 31 | CBS |
| 20 | Budweiser at the Glen | Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen | August 14 | ESPN |
| 21 | Champion Spark Plug 400 | Michigan International Speedway, Brooklyn | August 21 | |
| 22 | Busch 500 | Bristol International Raceway, Bristol | August 27 | |
| 23 | Southern 500 | Darlington Raceway, Darlington | September 4 | |
| 24 | Miller Hight Life 500 | Richmond International Raceway, Richmond | September 11 | TBS |
| 25 | Delaware 500 | Dover Downs International Speedway, Dover | September 18 | ESPN |
| 26 | Goody's 500 | Martinsville Raceway, Ridgeway | September 25 | |
| 27 | Oakwood Homes 500 | Charlotte Motor Speedway, Concord | October 9 | SCORE |
| 28 | Holly Farms 400 | North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro | October 16 | ESPN |
| 29 | AC Delco 500 | North Carolina Motor Speedway, Rockingham | October 23 | |
| 30 | Checker 500 | Phoenix International Speedway, Avondale | November 6 | |
| 31 | Atlanta Journal 500 | Atlanta International Speedway, Hampton | November 20 |
Cars Used in 1988
-
Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS Aerocoupe (final full year)
-
Pontiac Grand Prix 2+2 (final year for this particular variant)
-
Ford Thunderbird (final year for this nose)
-
Buick Regal (RETURNING)
-
Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme
-
Chrysler LeBaron (NEW)
Work-In-Progress