Season Rewind: Bobby Isaac’s 1970 Title

BLAST PAST FROM THE

BY BEN WHITE

• Buddy Baker – 1970 Southern 500

Bobby Isaac and Bobby Allison proved to

be the top championship contenders of the 1970 NASCAR Cup Series season, collecting a combined 14 victories during the 48-race schedule.

After years of success as a short-track racer around his home state of North Carolina, Isaac entered NASCAR’s top division in 1961. In his ninth Cup Series season, Isaac finally found success with a championship-caliber team owned by Nord Krauskopf.

Isaac placed the No. 71 K&K Insurance Dodges on the pole 13 times with the help of such mechanical stars as Hall of Fame crew chiefs Harry Hyde and Buddy Parrott. Chrysler’s winged Dodges and Plymouths were in their second year of competition, but Isaac and Hyde discovered some of their greatest tricks in the square-nosed Dodge used on short tracks.

Amazingly, Isaac won his lone championship by notching all 11 of his victories that season on short tracks. The native of Catawba, North Carolina, native logged 32 top-five finishes in 47 starts.

By season’s end, Isaac accumulated 51 more points than Allison to claim the title.

BEST DRIVER

RICHARD PETTY,

driving the No. 43 Petty Enterprises Plymouth, enjoyed one of his best seasons in 1970 with 18 NASCAR Cup Series victories. The native of Level Cross, North Carolina, led 5,007 of 10,536 laps completed during his 40-race schedule. However, 10 DNFs relegated Petty to fourth in the final standings.

BEST RACE

ON SEPT. 7, 1970,

Buddy Baker wheeled a winged Dodge Charger to victory in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. The son of NASCAR champion Buck Baker led 88 of 367 laps for his third of 19-career victories in a car owned by former driver Cotton Owens.

TOP CARS

BOBBY ISAAC,

driving the No. 71 K&K Insurance Dodge owned by Nord Krauskopf, won 11 short-track races en route to claiming the 1970 NASCAR Cup Series championship. Bobby Allison’s No. 22 Coca-Cola Dodge owned by Mario Rossi was a threetime Cup Series winner that year.

SEASON RECAP

DATE LOCATION

WINNER January 18 Riverside International Raceway A.J. Foyt February 19 Daytona International Speedway Cale Yarborough February 19 Daytona International Speedway Charlies Glotzbach February 22 Daytona International Speedway Pete Hamilton March 1 Richmond Raceway James Hylton March 8 Rockingham Speedway Richard Petty March 15 Savannah Speedway Richard Petty March 29 Atlanta Motor Speedway Bobby Allison April 5 Bristol Motor Speedway Donnie Allison April 12 Talladega Superspeedway Pete Hamilton April 18 North Wilkesboro Speedway Richard Petty April 30 Columbia Speedway Richard Petty May 9 Darlington Speedway David Pearson May 15 Beltsville Speedway Bobby Isaac May 18 Langley Speedway Bobby Isaac May 24 Charlotte Motor Speedway Donnie Allison May 28 Smoky Mountain Raceway Bobby Isaac May 31 Martinsville Speedway Bobby Isaac June 7 Michigan International Speedway Cale Yarborough June 14 Riverside International Raceway Richard Petty June 20 Hickory Motor Speedway Bobby Isaac June 26 Kingsport Speedway Richard Petty June 27 Greenville-Pickens Speedway Bobby Isaac July 4 Daytona International Speedway Donnie Allison July 7 Albany-Saratoga Speedway Richard Petty July 9 Thompson Speedway Bobby Isaac July 12 Trenton Speedway Richard Petty July 19 Bristol Motor Speedway Bobby Allison July 24 Smoky Mountain Raceway Richard Petty July 25 Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway Bobby Isaac August 2 Atlanta Motor Speedway Richard Petty August 6 Columbia Speedway Bobby Isaac August 11 International Raceway Park Richard Petty August 16 Michigan International Speedway Charlie Glotzbach August 23 Talladega Superspeedway Pete Hamilton August 28 Bowman Gray Stadium Richard Petty August 29 South Boston Speedway Richard Petty September 7 Darlington Raceway Buddy Baker September 11 Hickory Motor Speedway Bobby Isaac September 13 Richmond Raceway Richard Petty September 20 Dover International Speedway Richard Petty September 30 State Fairgrounds Speedway Richard Petty October 4 North Wilkesboro Speedway Bobby Isaac October 11 Charlotte Motor Speedway LeeRoy Yarbrough October 18 Martinsville Speedway Richard Petty November 8 Middle Georgia Raceway Richard Petty November 15 Rockingham Speedway Cale Yarborough November 22 Langley Speedway Bobby Allison

PRESIDENT Richard Nixon

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