| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 28 of 29 in the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 1987 Winston Western 500 program cover, featuring Tim Richmond and Dale Earnhardt. | |||
| Date | November 8, 1987 | ||
| Official name | 27th Annual Winston Western 500 | ||
| Location | Riverside International Raceway, Riverside, California | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 2.62 mi (4.216 km) | ||
| Distance | 119 laps, 311.78 mi (501.761 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 119 laps, 311.78 mi (501.761 km) | ||
| Average speed | 95.503 miles per hour (153.697 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 64,500 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Hendrick Motorsports | ||
| Time | 1:19.977 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Geoff Bodine | Hendrick Motorsports | |
| Laps | 92 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 27 | Rusty Wallace | Blue Max Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | TBS | ||
| Announcers | Ken Squier, Buddy Baker, Johnny Hayes | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
The 1987 Winston Western 500 was the 28th and penultimate stock car race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season, the eighth and the final race of the 1987 NASCAR Winston West Series, and the 27th iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, November 8, 1987, before an audience of 64,500 in Riverside, California, at the short layout of Riverside International Raceway, a 2.62 miles (4.22 km) permanent road course layout at the track. The race took the scheduled 119 laps to complete.
Taking advantage of misfortune caused by an aggressive battle for the lead in the closing laps between Dale Earnhardt and Geoff Bodine, Blue Max Racing's Rusty Wallace was able to pull ahead when Bodine blew a tire and Earnhardt blew his engine. Wallace was able to score his fourth career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second and final victory of the season.[1][2] To fill out the top three, Hendrick Motorsports' Benny Parsons and Wood Brothers Racing's Kyle Petty finished second and third, respectively.
- ^ Higgins, Tom (November 9, 1987). "Wallace Snatches Victory From Geoff Bodine". The Charlotte Observer. pp. 1D, 6D. Retrieved November 21, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Glick, Shav (November 9, 1987). "Wallace Gets the Win, but Not the Cheers". The Los Angeles Times. pp. III-2, III-4. Retrieved October 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
