Saturday 10th February 1962

Fireball Roberts started 10th but had the lead by the backstraight and held off a last lap surge by Joe Weatherly to win the 2nd ‘American Challenge Cup’ race by a half car length. The 10 lap special event on the 2.5 mile Daytona International Speedway was open only to winners of 1961 NASCAR GN “superspeedway” events. 19 drivers won GN races in 1961, but only 10 started. Western stars Lloyd Dane and Eddie Gray declined towing 3,000 miles for a race that only paid $1000 first prize, Lee Petty was recovering from injuries and Emanuel Zervakis was without a ride. Rex White, Bob Burdick, Cotton Owens, Junior Johnson and Jack Smith all were on hand but elected to skip the race.