1964 Atlanta 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 13 of 62 in the 1964 NASCAR Grand National Series season | |||
Fred Lorenzen, in victory circle, after winning the 1964 Atlanta 500
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| Date | April 5, 1964 | ||
| Official name | Atlanta 500 | ||
| Location | Atlanta International Raceway, Hampton, Georgia | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 1.500 mi (2.414 km) |
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| Distance | 334 laps, 501.000 mi (806.281 km) | ||
| Weather | Cold with temperatures reaching a maximum of 57.9 °F (14.4 °C); wind speeds up to 17.1 miles per hour (27.5 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 134.137 miles per hour (215.873 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 50,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Holman Moody | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Fred Lorenzen | Holman Moody | |
| Laps | 206 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 28 | Fred Lorenzen | Holman Moody | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | CBS | ||
| Announcers | unknown | ||
The 1964 Atlanta 500 was a NASCAR Grand National Series (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) event that was held on April 5, 1964, at Atlanta International Raceway in Hampton, Georgia. As the fifth annual race in the history of the Atlanta 500 series of racing events, it was a milestone race in NASCAR Cup Series history.
Even by 1964 standards, this race was rather brutal with only ten vehicles surviving to the finish. Many of top NASCAR teams suffered from engine failure along with the non-contenders. Ford and Chevrolet used this race as a major "battleground" to determine whose vehicle was the most innovative and had the best endurance. Five terminal crashes were recorded in this event; with some footage of the event being used for the drive-in movie Speed Lovers.
Atlanta International Raceway (now Atlanta Motor Speedway) is one of ten current intermediate track to hold NASCAR races; the others are Charlotte Motor Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Homestead Miami Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, and Texas Motor Speedway. However, at the time, only Charlotte and Darlington were built.
The layout at Atlanta International Speedway at the time was a four-turn traditional oval track that is 1.54 miles (2.48 km) long. The track's turns are banked at twenty-four degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, and the back stretch are banked at five.
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