1986 Miller High Life 400
The 1986 Miller High Life 400 was the second stock car race of the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 32nd iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, February 23, 1986, before an audience of 30,000 in Richmond, Virginia, at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway, a 0.542 miles (0.872 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 2 of 29 in the 1986 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
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The 1986 Miller High Life 400 program cover, featuring Dale Earnhardt. | |||
| Date | February 23, 1986 | ||
| Official name | 32nd Annual Miller High Life 400 | ||
| Location | Richmond, Virginia, Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 0.542 mi (0.872 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 216.8 mi (348.905 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 400 laps, 216.8 mi (348.905 km) | ||
| Average speed | 71.078 miles per hour (114.389 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 30,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Time | Set by 1986 owner's points | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Laps | 299 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 7 | Kyle Petty | Wood Brothers Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier, Benny Parsons | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
In what is considered to be one of the most controversial finishes in NASCAR history, Junior Johnson & Associates' Darrell Waltrip and Richard Childress Racing's Dale Earnhardt engaged in a battle for the victory. With four laps left, Waltrip made a pass on Earnhardt in the second turn, passing him on the left. However, Waltrip did not fully clear Earnhardt by the third turn. In the third turn, Earnhardt spun out Waltrip, sending the two into a crash that included numerous other cars behind them. As a result, the next driver behind the two who managed to avoid the wreck, Wood Brothers Racing's Kyle Petty, was declared the winner in improbable fashion. The victory was Petty's first career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his only victory of the season. To fill out the top three, King Racing's Joe Ruttman and the aforementioned Earnhardt finished second and third, respectively.