The 1976 Daytona 500, held on February 15 at Daytona International Speedway, drew 125,000 fans for a 42-car field. Ramo Stott sat on the pole at 183.456 mph after the three fastest qualifying times (by A.J. Foyt, Darrell Waltrip, and Dave Marcis) were disallowed for illegal equipment; Waltrip and Marcis won the Thursday qualifying races.
David Pearson started seventh in the Wood Brothers Mercury and won by about 50 yards over Richard Petty in one of NASCAR’s most famous finishes. On the final lap Pearson passed Petty on the backstretch; Petty dove low exiting Turn 4, the cars made contact and both spun into the infield grass just short of the line. Petty’s stalled Dodge sat helpless while Pearson kept his engine running, limped across the finish, and claimed the victory. Benny Parsons finished third, followed by Lennie Pond and Neil Bonnett. Pearson averaged 152.181 mph in a race slowed by seven cautions for 35 laps, collected $46,800, and benefited from 36 lead changes among 11 drivers—A.J. Foyt led the most with 66 laps.
