May 1, 2016 – Brad Keselowski scored his fourth Talladega Superspeedway win in a crash-filled GEICO 500 NASCAR Cup Series race. Keselowski was ahead of the field as another of the many multi-car accidents of the day broke out behind him and went on to win for the second time that season. He wound up leading five times for 46 laps, including the final 17.
May 1, 2010 – Kyle Busch dominated the first half of the race but had to rally back with a pass by Jeff Gordon on the night’s final restart to win the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Crown Royal Presents the Heath Calhoun 400 at Richmond Raceway. Sam Hornish Jr.’s crash on the backstretch set up a five lap dash to the finish with leader Gordon lined up with Busch on the outside. When the green flag reappeared Busch drove by Gordon for the top spot and pulled away as the final laps wound down to score his second straight win in the May Richmond race. Busch led 226 of 400 laps to Gordon’s 144.
May 1, 2009 – Kyle Busch outran Carl Edwards on a late race restart to win the NASCAR Xfinity (Nationwide) Series Lipton Tea 250 at Richmond Raceway. Busch had worked his way around Edwards for the top spot with 20 laps to go and survived a flurry of late race caution flags and restarts to take the win. It marked Busch’s 24th career win.
May 1, 2006 – Jimmie Johnson scored another restrictor-plate race win in the rain-delayed Aaron’s 499 at Talladega Superspeedway. Johnson held off Tony Stewart and Brian Vickers to win his second straight plate race of the season after winning the Daytona 500. Johnson’s Chevrolet crossed the finish line just ahead of a hard-charging Stewart with a swarming pack of cars in their rear view mirrors including Vickers, Jeff Burton and Jamie McMurray, who rounded out the top five. Johnson got by his Hendrick Motorsports teammate Vickers on the final lap. On lap earlier, Vickers got by Hendrick teammate Jeff Gordon, who led a race-high 62 laps. Gordon then got shuffled out of the lead draft and went from possibly winning his third straight spring Talladega race to a 15th-place finish. The race featured eight cautions for 34 laps.
May 1, 2005 – Jeff Gordon survived an accident-filled day and scored his second straight win in the Aaron’s 499 NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. Gordon held off Tony Stewart and Michael Waltrip on a green-white-checkered finish to win his third race of the season and score his second restrictor-plate triumph of 2005 to go along with his Daytona 500 victory. Gordon led 139 of the 188 lap race for his 72nd career win. With only two cautions in the first 100 laps for “minor” incidents, the second half of the race featured two multi-car crashes, including a massive 25-car pile-up on Lap 132.
May 1, 2004 – Greg Biffle overcame several obstacles to win the NASCAR Xfinity (Busch) Series Stater Bros. 300 at Auto Club (California) Speedway. Biffle was able to outlast his competitors who were running out of fuel as the 150-lap chase around the two-mile oval came to a conclusion to score his second win of the season. After suffering through on early race brush with Ashton Lewis Jr., as well as mechanical problems, Biffle was able to pick-up the win.
May 1, 1999 – Matt Kenseth scored his fifth (of 29) career Xfinity Series wins in the Auto Club 300 at Auto Club (California Speedway). The win was one of 12 driving a Chevrolet for Robbie Reiser. Kenseth got by Elliott Sadler after a Lap 133 restart and went on to take the checkered flag under caution over Jeff Burton. Dale Earnhardt Jr. led 81 laps and finished third with Adam Petty in fourth.
May 1, 1994 – Dale Earnhardt held off Ernie Irvan to win the Winston Select 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Earnhardt got by Jimmy Spencer with five laps to go and then had to hold off challenges by Spencer, Michael Waltrip and then Irvan, who came from fourth to second on the last lap. Earnhardt (64) and Irvan (78) combined to lead 142 of the 188 laps.
May 1, 1993 – Ward Burton earned his second career Xfinity (Busch) Series win in the Roses Stores 300 at the Orange County Speedway. Burton dominated the day by leading 259 of 300 laps to take the checkered flag in the seventh race of the season. He went on to win two more races in 1993 at Martinsville and Atlanta.
May 1, 1983 – Richard Petty picked up career win number 197 in the Winston 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway. On Lap 165 Petty took the lead and led the final 24 laps to take home the checkered flag ahead of Benny Parsons. Petty started 15th and led a total of 52 laps and was able to avoid an 11-car crash on Lap
Other winners on this date: 1977 – Darrell Waltrip (Talladega); LeeRoy Yarbrough (Savannah Speedway); 1955 – Buck Baker (Charlotte)
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