The race took three hours and thirteen minutes to successfully complete; qualifying trials rained out, so Fred Lorenzen got the pole by the luck of the draw.
[3] Fred Lorenzen won the race with an average speed of 77.673 miles per hour (125.003 km/h) and defeated Richard Petty by outlapping him once.
Chrysler's lone entry was with driver Major Melton who had to leave the race after 324 laps due to a problem with his grease seal.
A lot of the team owners in the race were wealthy individuals who had the money to cope with the constant traveling expenses that were expected in a NASCAR season.
[5] Other crew chiefs involved in the race were Crawford Clements, Frank McMillion, Herb Nab, Herman Beam, and Ray Fox.