1969 Daytona 500; New Car Old Engine; February 23, 1969
At the 1969 Daytona 500 the Ford Talladega was they only Blue Oval aero car approved for racing and the new Boss 429 was not yet on the NASCAR approved list. That meant that Ford had to go back and pull out the old 1968 427 race engine and put it into the new bodies. Not only that but Mercury contract drivers Cale Yarborough and LeeRoy Yarborough found themselves driving Fords! Since Mercury did not have the Spoier II cars homologated for racing those cars could not enter the Daytona 500. How could that combination beat the Dodge Charger 500 and its Hemi?
Watch this video to the very end for some excellent racing the way it use to be Back in the Day.
Lee Roy Yarbrough and his Ford Talladega by Junior Johnson were the top combination at Daytona in 1969.
Here is how they finished.
| Fin. Pos. | Str. Car Pos. | Car No. | Driver | Laps | Money | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | 98 | LeeRoy Yarbrough | 200 | $38,950 | Ford |
| 2 | 4 | 6 | Charlie Glotzbach | 200 | $18,425 | Dodge |
| 3 | 7 | 27 | Donnie Allison | 199 | $13,275 | Ford |
| 4 | 9 | 11 | A.J. Foyt | 199 | $5,800 | Ford |
| 5 | 1 | 3 | Buddy Baker | 198 | $10,050 | Dodge |
| 6 | 3 | 17 | David Pearson | 198 | $5,600 | Ford |
| 7 | 11 | 88 | Benny Parsons | 197 | $3,000 | Ford |
| 8 | 12 | 43 | Richard Petty | 196 | $3,150 | Ford |
| 9 | 50 | 58 | Andy Hampton | 191 | $2,500 | Dodge |
| 10 | 16 | 96 | Ray Elder | 190 | $2,935 | Dodge |
| 11 | 23 | 8 | Vic Elford | 188 | $2,650 | Dodge |
| 12 | 21 | 3 | Richard Brickhouse | 188 | $3,560 | Plymouth |
| 13 | 31 | 39 | Friday Hassler | 187 | $3,460 | Chevrolet |
| 14 | 14 | 25 | Jabe Thomas | 187 | $2,495 | Plymouth |
| 15 | 15 | 48 | James Hylton | 185 | $2,445 | Dodge |
| 16 | 20 | 6 | Neil Castles | 185 | $2,385 | Plymouth |
| 17 | 44 | 30 | Dave Marcis | 181 | $2,260 | Chevrolet |
| 18 | 22 | 45 | Bill Seifert | 179 | $2,335 | Ford |
| 19 | 39 | 80 | Frank Warren | 178 | $2,245 | Chevrolet |
| 20 | 29 | 64 | Elmo Langley | 178 | $2,285 | Ford |
| 21 | 43 | 75 | George Bauer | 176 | $2,205 | Dodge |
| 22 | 26 | 44 | Dub Simpson | 176 | $1,420 | Dodge |
| 23 | 30 | 10 | Bill Champion | 176 | $1,395 | Ford |
| 24 | 38 | 19 | Henley Gray | 173 | $1,355 | Ford |
| 25 | 47 | 0 | Don Tarr | 172 | $1,345 | Chevrolet |
| 26 | 37 | 8 | E.J. Trivette | 171 | $1,345 | Chevrolet |
| 27 | 34 | 47 | Cecil Gordon | 170 | $1,360 | Ford |
| 28 | 13 | 67 | Buddy Arrington | 170 | $1,610 | Dodge |
| 29 | 48 | 34 | Wendell Scott | 168 | $1,105 | Ford |
| 30 | 7 | 1 | Bobby Isaac | 150 | $3,400 | Dodge |
| 31 | 32 | 33 | Wayne Smith | 148 | $1,350 | Chevrolet |
| 32 | 33 | 32 | Dick Brooks | 140 | $1,345 | Plymouth |
| 33 | 18 | 29 | Ramo Stott | 139 | $1,410 | Plymouth |
| 34 | 24 | 76 | Ben Arnold | 133 | $1,370 | Ford |
| 35 | 39 | 26 | Earl Brooks | 130 | $1,275 | Ford |
| 36 | 10 | 41 | Swede Savage | 123 | $2,520 | Mercury |
| 37 | 27 | 18 | Dick Johnson | 104 | $1,345 | Ford |
| 38 | 5 | 21 | Cale Yarborough | 103 | $2,560 | Mercury |
| 39 | 35 | 70 | J.D. McDuffie | 87 | $2,290 | Buick |
| 40 | 42 | 7 | Bobby Johns | 67 | $1,205 | Chevrolet |
| 41 | 6 | 99 | Paul Goldsmith | 62 | $1,600 | Dodge |
| 42 | 8 | 13 | Bobby Unser | 56 | $1,400 | Ford |
| 43 | 40 | 22 | Bobby Allison | 45 | $1,160 | Dodge |
| 44 | 17 | 1 | Pete Hamilton | 44 | $1,885 | Dodge |
| 45 | 41 | 4 | John Sears | 41 | $965 | Ford |
| 46 | 45 | 69 | Bill Kimmel | 30 | $900 | Chevrolet |
| 47 | 25 | 36 | H.B. Bailey | 24 | $1,940 | Pontiac |
| 48 | 28 | 53 | Billy Taylor | 20 | $870 | Pontiac |
| 49 | 46 | 82 | Dick Poling | 19 | $760 | Dodge |
| 50 | 36 | 57 | Roy Mayne | 19 | $725 | Dodge |
Great video!