1977 season recap

Cale Yarborough won his second straight NASCAR Winston Cup Series championship in 1977. The second of three straight championship seasons from Yarborough, many consider the 1977 season one of the best performances in NASCAR history. The champion had 27 top ten finishes in 30 starts and won nine times.

While Cale Yarborough was untouchable all season, the second, third, and fourth positions in the standings was up for grabs through the last race of the season.

FIVE RACES TO GO: North Wilkesboro, NC - Defending champion Cale Yarborough all but wrapped up his title defense with a runner-up finish to Darrell Waltrip at North Wilkesboro. Richard Petty was involved in an accident and came home in 24th place, stretching Yarborough's lead in the standings to 293 points. Waltrip was caught up in a battle with 1973 champion Benny Parsons for third in the standings, and at North Wilkesboro Parsons finished fifth. Buddy Baker was trying to make his name heard in the title chase, and his ninth place finish kept him close to the top contenders.

FOUR RACES TO GO: Charlotte, NC - Benny Parsons held off the defending champion, Cale Yarborough, and took the checkered flag at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Richard Petty had another poor performance, finishing 32nd and dashing his title hopes. Buddy Baker and Darrell Waltrip kept the rest of the point standings interesting, however, as they finished fourth and fifth respectively.

THREE RACES TO GO: Rockingham, NC - Behind another solid top five finish, Cale Yarborough clinched his second consecutive championship. Richard Petty finished second in the race and maintained his grasp on second place in the standings. Benny Parsons was not far behind, however, after finishing in seventh at Rockingham. Darrell Waltrip was also gunning for second in the standings as he finished in third place.

TWO RACES TO GO: Hampton, GA - Darrell Waltrip sought to ride his victory at Atlanta International Raceway to a second place position in the point standings, however the other contenders all finished in the top seven. Benny Parsons was third, newly anointed champion Cale Yarborough was fifth, Richard Petty was sixth, and Buddy Baker was seventh.

FINAL RACE: Ontario, CA - Cale Yarborough's third place finish in the Los Angeles Times 500 gave him a successful title defense and a 386 point margin over six-time champion Richard Petty, who came in second at Ontario to Neil Bonnett. The rest of the top five in the standings stayed put, as Benny Parsons finished 12th and Darrell Waltrip finished 29th. Waltrip was safely ahead of Buddy Baker, who completed the race in fourth.