1964 Nashville 400
# 1964 Nashville 400

The 1964 Nashville 400 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on August 2, 1964, at Nashville Speedway (now Fairgrounds Speedway) in Nashville, Tennessee.

## Background

Nashville Speedway was converted to a half-mile paved oval in 1957, when it began to be a NASCAR series track.

## Race report

Four hundred laps took place on a paved oval track spanning 0.500 miles (0.805 km) for a grand total of 200.0 miles (321.9 km). It took two hours, forty-three minutes, and fifty-five seconds for the race to reach its conclusion; Richard Petty was the winner of the race.

Notable crew chiefs for the race were Jimmy Helms, Dale Inman, Wendell Scott, and Herman Beam.

Three cautions were drawn for twenty-six laps in front of 13,128 people. Notable speeds were: 73.208 miles per hour (117.817 km/h) for the average speed and 80.826 miles per hour (130.077 km/h) for the pole position speed. This would be Bud Moore's first official NASCAR Cup Series race. Total winnings for this race were $9,380 in American dollars ($88,506 when adjusted for inflation). Richard Petty would end up receiving the majority of the winnings with a grand total of $2,150 ($20,287 when adjusted for inflation).

The transition to purpose-built racecars began in the early 1960s and occurred gradually over that decade. Changes made to the sport by the late 1960s brought an end to the "strictly stock" vehicles of the 1950s.

### Qualifying

| Grid | No. | Driver | Manufacturer |
| - | - | - | - |
| 1 | 43 | Richard Petty | '64 Plymouth |
| 2 | 1 | Billy Wade | '64 Mercury |
| 3 | 41 | Jim Paschal | '64 Plymouth |
| 4 | 11 | Ned Jarrett | '64 Ford |
| 5 | 6 | David Pearson | '64 Dodge |
| 6 | 5 | Earl Balmer | '64 Dodge |
| 7 | 16 | Darel Dieringer | '64 Mercury |
| 8 | 54 | Jimmy Pardue | '64 Plymouth |
| 9 | 19 | Larry Thomas | '64 Ford |
| 10 | 82 | Bunkie Blackburn | '63 Pontiac |
| 11 | 42 | Bill McMahan | '64 Pontiac |
| 12 | 34 | Wendell Scott | '63 Ford |
| 13 | 78 | Buddy Arrington | '63 Dodge |
| 14 | 49 | Doug Moore | '64 Chevrolet |
| 15 | 88 | Neil Castles | '62 Chrysler |
| 16 | 9 | Roy Tyner | '64 Chevrolet |
| 17 | 20 | Jack Anderson | '64 Ford |
| 18 | 60 | Doug Cooper | '63 Ford |
| 19 | 52 | E.J. Trivette | '62 Chevrolet |
| 20 | 02 | Curtis Crider | '63 Mercury |
| 21 | 32 | Mark Hurley | '63 Ford |
| 22 | 01 | Chuck Huckabee | '63 Mercury |
| 23 | 17 | Junior Spencer | '64 Ford |
| 24 | 92 | Rodney Bottinger | '64 Ford |
| 25 | 86 | Steve Young | '62 Chrysler |
| 26 | 66 | Bud Moore | '63 Ford |
| 27 | 81 | Henley Gray | '64 Ford |

## Finishing order

Section reference:

* Richard Petty (No. 43)
* Jim Paschal† (No. 31)
* David Pearson† (No. 6)
* Earl Balmer (No. 5)
* Ned Jarrett (No. 11)
* Darel Dieringer† (No. 16)
* Larry Thomas† (No. 19)
* Jimmy Pardue† (No. 54)
* Doug Moore (No. 49)
* Neil Castles (No. 88)
* Bill McMahan (No. 42)
* Curtis Crider† (No. 02)
* Jack Anderson (No. 20)
* E.J. Trivette (No. 52)
* Junior Spencer* (No. 81)
* Wendell Scott*† (No. 34)
* Roy Tyner*† (No. 9)
* Bunkie Blackburn*† (No. 82)
* Billy Wade*† (No. 1)
* Henley Gray* (No. 81)
* Doug Cooper* (No. 60)
* Mark Hurley* (No. 32)
* Buddy Arrington* (No. 78)
* Rodney Bottinger* (No. 92)
* Chuck Huckabee* (No. 01)
* Steve Young* (No. 86)
* Bud Moore* (No. 66)
* Driver failed to finish race † signifies that the driver is known to be deceased
