In the 1978 Old Dominion 500 at Martinsville Speedway on September 24, a 30-car field drew 20,000 fans under mild weather. Lennie Pond won the pole with a speed of 86.558 mph in his #54 Ranier Racing Chevrolet. Cale Yarborough took the victory in his #11 Junior Johnson Oldsmobile, beating Darrell Waltrip by three car lengths after making the decisive pass with 13 laps remaining. Benny Parsons finished third, Neil Bonnett fourth, and pole-sitter Lennie Pond fifth.
Yarborough led 372 of the 500 laps and averaged 79.185 mph in a relatively clean race slowed by only four cautions for 19 laps. He earned $24,950 for the win—his sixth and final Cup victory at Martinsville. The triumph, part of a strong late-1970s run at the track, increased his points lead to 486 over the field as he dominated the championship chase.
Additional notes include Harry Gant leading laps for the first time in his career (45 laps) before an engine failure, and Terry Labonte scoring another top-10 in just his third career start. Satch Worley retired from NASCAR following his 14th place finish in this event.
