On September 10, 1978, the Capital City 400 was held at Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway as the 23rd race of the 30-race 1978 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, drawing an estimated attendance of 18,000 for a 30-car field contesting 400 laps on the 0.542-mile track.
Darrell Waltrip captured the pole with a qualifying speed of 91.964 mph in the #88 Gatorade Chevrolet for DiGard Motorsports. Waltrip scored the victory by one second over Bobby Allison. Neil Bonnett finished third (after leading a race-high 276 laps), followed by Cale Yarborough and Dick Brooks. Waltrip collected $13,800 for the win and led 65 laps. He averaged 79.568 mph in a race that featured 16 lead changes and was slowed by five cautions for 27 laps.
