The 1979 Carolina 500, the third race of the NASCAR Winston Cup season, was held on March 4 at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham. A 35-car field contested 492 laps in front of roughly 40,000 fans. Bobby Allison sat on the pole in the #15 Bud Moore Ford with a speed of 136.790 mph and dominated, leading 311 laps to win by a full lap over Joe Millikan. Dick Brooks finished third, followed by Tighe Scott and Richard Childress. The race was slowed by seven cautions for 39 laps and produced an average speed of 122.727 mph; Allison earned $21,555 for the victory.
Early drama struck on lap 9 when Donnie Allison and Cale Yarborough made contact while racing for the lead, triggering a multi-car accident that eliminated or damaged several expected contenders. Millikan, in only his fourth career start, received relief help from Richard Petty (who had been involved in the early wreck) and held on for second place after leading 50 laps himself.
