Race: Wrangler Jeans Indigo 400
Date: September 13, 1987
Track: Richmond Fairgrounds Raceway
Broadcast Affiliate: SETN
Pole Winner: Alan Kulwicki
Race Winner: Dale Earnhardt
Race Results: https://www.racing-reference.info/race/1987_Wrangler_Jeans_Indigo_400/W
Competitiveness Rating: 7
If you're looking for a race with a ton of lead changes, this is not it. There were only 13 total lead changes, the final coming on lap 245 when eventual race winner Dale Earnhardt passed Jimmy Means (!). Dale Earnhardt led the most laps with 220 while runner up Darrell Waltrip led the second most with 86. Means led an impressive 21 laps driving for his own underfunded team and finished ninth. It was easily Means' best race in his entire Winston Cup career.
Being a heavily edited one hour SETN broadcast, most of the action was not shown which makes it difficult to truly gauge how competitive this race truly was. The lack of lead changes truly don't tell the story of the battle between Earnhardt and Waltrip. The two raced nose-to-tail for the better part of the final 150 laps of the race and even though their wasn't an exchange of the lead, who would win was up in the air until the finish.
Finish Rating: 10
The final 10 laps or what I love for as a race fan. This race featured two of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history going for it while they were still in their prime, although Waltrip still had yet to win in 1987 while Earnhardt was in the midst of the greatest season in his career. This event was the kind of racing you never see in NASCAR anymore where it's all about driver skill and ability and aerodynamics have zero factor.
Most fans associate Earnhardt with being aggressive and using his bumper but this race showed just how talented he was and just how savvy he was as a racer. Waltrip was clearly faster and rode in Earnhardt's mirror in the final 10 laps but Earnhardt never made a mistake and Waltrip couldn't find the grip necessary to get his car completely under Earnhardt in the corners. It wasn't a rough-and-tumble, beat-and-bang finish but it's the kind of racing that makes you want to watch NASCAR and part of why it eventually rose substantially in popularity.
Race Broadcast Rating: 7.5
This race had the unique pairing of Eli Gold and Jerry Punch in the commentary booth while Pat Patterson served as pit reporter. I have always enjoyed Gold as a lead commentator. Punch doing color commentary is fine but he was best fit as a pit reporter and really is the gold standard when it comes to doing that job. Pat Patterson did his job well. Suffice to say, the only thing I wish is that this broadcast was longer than it was.
Memorability: 9
Though the years, I've read articles from veteran NASCAR media who were at this race and described it as being one of the best ever. Based on that and the finish, I would think that fans who were at the track and those who were able to get SETN syndicated at home remember this event well. (If you don't know what SETN was, you should read its Wikipedia page.) However, when it comes to all-time great races, the 1987 Wrangler Jeans Indigo 400 is never mentioned these days. This is a race that fans need to go out of their way to watch. Once you watch this race, you will remember it.
Race Rating: 9
If someone asked me why I watch racing when it's cars going around in circles, this race is an example of why. It's competition in its purest form and it's the kind of racing you rarely see in NASCAR anymore. The final quarter is a display on both ends defending a position and trying to pass for one. You see Earnhardt do everything he can to use the high line to his advantage and hold off Waltrip. You see Waltrip do everything he can to use the low line to his advantage to get under Earnhardt. It's what racing is all about to me and that back-and-forth on-track tactical aspect is part of why I love auto racing.
Do you agree? Do you disagree? Leave your comments and personal ratings.
