On March 5, 1978, the Carolina 500 was held at North Carolina Motor Speedway in Rockingham as the fourth race of the 30-race 1978 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, drawing an estimated attendance of 35,000 for a 36-car field contesting 492 laps on the 1.017-mile track.
Neil Bonnett captured the pole in the #5 Jim Stacy Armor All Dodge with a speed of 141.940 mph. David Pearson, starting ninth in the #21 Purolator Mercury for Wood Brothers Racing, scored the victory by 1.3 seconds over Bobby Allison. Benny Parsons finished third, followed by Richard Petty and Lennie Pond. Pearson collected $16,665 for the win—his 100th career Grand National/Winston Cup victory—and led 219 laps. He averaged 116.681 mph in a race slowed by eight cautions for 62 laps.
