The 1980 NASCAR Winston Cup Series began on Sunday, January 13 and ended on Sunday, November 15. Dale Earnhardt won his first Winston Cup championship, winning by 19 points over Cale Yarborough. Jody Ridley was crowned NASCAR Rookie of the Year.
Daytona 500 – Buddy Baker ended a career-long drought in the 500 as he dominated. Darrell Waltrip blew his engine early and angrily ripped the DiGard Racing team in postrace interviews.
Atlanta 500 – Cale Yarborough, Bobby Allison, and Donnie Allison dominated the first 300 miles of the race as sophomore Dale Earnhardt clawed from 31st into contention; Allison and Earnhardt were side by side for the lead when Allison was hit by Terry Labonte and hit the wall in Turn Three. Cale broke in the final 60 laps as Earnhardt took the win; finishing second was rookie Rusty Wallace.
Rebel 500 – Rain shortened the race after halfway as David Pearson, replacing Donnie Allison in Hoss Ellington's car, took his 105th career win.
Winston 500 – On a newly repaved surface Buddy Baker ran down Dale Earnhardt with two laps to go for the win, but was informed on his way to postrace interviews he would be replaced in the Ranier Racing car in 1981.
World 600 – The race ran over seven hours thanks to fourteen yellows for crashes on the newly paved surface and two rain delays lasting two hours. The lead changed 47 times as Benny Parsons outdueled Darrell Waltrip; they swapped the lead eight times in the final twenty laps. Dale Earnhardt's crash at Lap 275 with David Pearson and Cale Yarborough combined with Richard Petty's fourth cut Earnhardt's point lead to under 50.
Firecracker 400 – Bobby Allison edged Earnhardt and Pearson before a scary crash erupted off Turn Four as Phil Finney plowed into an earthen bank and flew twenty feet into the air before landing at the pit road entrance. The lead changed 41 times.
Summer 500 – At Pocono RacewayNeil Bonnett survived a physical last lap with Buddy Baker and Yarborough, but the story of the race was a bad wreck on Lap 57 as Richard Petty, holding the lead, broke a wheel entering the track's Tunnel Turn, shot into the wall, and bounced into the path of traffic; Petty suffered a broken neck and his title chances ended.
Southern 500 – In a wild final five laps David Pearson rocketed from midpack into the lead and held off Dale Earnhardt and Benny Parsons, then with two to go all three crashed in Turn Two in oil from a backmarker's blown engine; Pearson limped to the race-deciding yellow, but Terry Labonte raced from nowhere and edged Pearson by a bumper for the win, his first career win.
National 500 – Dale Earnhardt edged Cale Yarborough and Buddy Baker amid an increasingly bitter public contract battle between Darrell Waltrip and his team owner, Bill Gardner.
Dixie 500 – An early accident eliminated the Allison brothers and Cale Yarborough dominated to the win. Dale Earnhardt lost a lap and crowded Cale for a prolonged stretch.
LA Times 500 – Earnhardt lost a lap but made it up and despite taking off from a late green-flag stop with unsecured lug nuts on his tires finished fifth with Yarborough third and Benny Parsons the race winner. The race was switched from Sunday to Saturday to accommodate live CBS Sports coverage. Earnhardt's fifth allowed him to win the driving title by 19 points over Yarborough.
