Seven-time NASCAR champion Richard Petty will serve as the honorary starter and seven-time Dover NASCAR Cup Series race winner Bobby Allison will present the winner’s gold Monster Trophy for the “Gander RV 400” Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race on Sunday, May 5, part of the Monster Mile’s 50th Anniversary celebration, track officials shared today.
Petty, also a seven-time Dover NASCAR Cup Series race winner, will wave the flag on the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series field to start their engines for the “Gander RV 400” (2 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1), the 99th NASCAR Cup Series race in track history. Petty won Dover’s first NASCAR event, the “Mason-Dixon 300” on July 6, 1969.
Following the race, Allison, the 1983 NASCAR Cup Series champion, will present the winner with the golden Monster Trophy on behalf of Gander RV in Sunoco Victory Lane.
The NASCAR Hall of Famers are tied for second on Dover’s all-time NASCAR Cup Series victory list, trailing only Jimmie Johnson (11 wins). Petty’s last Dover victory came in the “Budweiser 500” on May 20, 1984, the NASCAR Hall of Famer’s 199th career NASCAR Cup Series win, while Allison’s last Dover triumph was in the “Budweiser 500” on Sept. 18, 1983.
“Richard Petty and Bobby Allison are legends in our sport. They embody NASCAR and their careers on and off the race track paved the way for what this sport has become,” said Mike Tatoian, Dover International Speedway’s president and CEO. “As Dover marks its 50th Anniversary season, there’s no better duo to participate in the excitement of a Dover Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race than Richard Petty and Bobby Allison.”
Petty and Allison will be making multiple separate appearances surrounding the May 3-5 NASCAR tripleheader weekend, which also includes the “Allied Steel Buildings 200” NASCAR Xfinity Series Dash 4 Cash race on Saturday, May 4 and “JEGS 200” NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series on Friday, May 3. The appearances include:
Richard Petty
• 50th Anniversary Bash on Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza, May 4, 3:45 p.m.
• Q&A on Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza, May 5, 11 a.m.
• On stage for Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver introductions, May 5, 1 p.m.
Bobby Allison
• Q&A with fans on Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza, May 4, 11 a.m.
• 50th Anniversary Bash on Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza, May 4, 4:15 p.m.
• Q&A with fans on Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza, May 5, 10:30 a.m.
• On stage for Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver introductions, May 5, 1 p.m.
In addition to the special gold Monster trophies given to the race winners and free 1:64-scale Dover diecast cars to the first 15,000 guests on May 5, fans can also enjoy multiple free performances by the famous Harlem Globetrotters in the 8-acre FanZone (May 5), a free Charlie Daniels Band concert on the Xfinity Stage in Victory Plaza (May 5), free appearances by country music star John Rich (May 4-5), as well as Micro Wrestling Federation matches (May 4-5), Del Rods Car Club car shows (May 4-5), a Winston Cup Mobile Museum display, on-site NASCAR and sports betting and much more.
Dover Speedway PR
