First NASCAR Race Poster

Bill France’s brainchild for a formalized and centralized series for stock cars had its roots in 1947, and NASCAR – National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing – held its first ever “Strictly Stock” race at a dusty three-quarter-mile oval in Charlotte, North Carolina, on June 19, 1949. Bill Blair led the majority of the way in a ’49 Lincoln, until its engine succumbed to overheating which allowed Glenn Dunnaway’s ’47 Ford to hit the front. He appeared to have the race bought and paid for, with a three lap lead over Jim Roper’s ’49 Lincoln when he completed the 200 lap event. However, NASCAR’s technical inspectors found that the rear suspension of Dunnaway’s Ford was definitely not “strictly stock”. Instead, it had stiffened springs for carrying crates of moonshine whiskey at high speed, which partly explained why its handling had appeared so superior to that of other cars in the race.

Thus runner-up Roper – shown here leading two more Lincolns – was declared the winner, despite having completed only 197 of the allotted 200, and earned his place in history as NASCAR’s first race winner.

Museum-quality posters made on thick matte paper.

• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 189 g/m²
• Opacity: 94%
• ISO brightness: 104%
• Paper is sourced from Japan