The 1953 Grand National Series was the 5th season of the NASCAR Grand National Series. The season began at Palm Beach Speedway on February 1 and ended at Lakewood Speedway on November 1.
Herb Thomas won his second Grand National Championship, becoming the first two-time champion in NASCAR. He won 12 races in 1953, setting a record for the most wins in a season at the time. Between May 17 and September 7, He had a streak of 20 consecutive top-five finishes, and finished in the Top 10 in 31 out of his 37 starts.
The season was notable for seeing the debut of Glen Wood, driving for his family operation which would go on to become the Wood Brothers Racing team. Future champion Ned Jarrett also debuted at Hickory in August. Hudson continued to dominate the Grand National series, scoring 22 wins in the season.
Schedule[]
Round | Date | Race Name | Track |
---|---|---|---|
1 | February 1, 1953 | 1953-01 | Palm Beach Speedway |
2 | February 15, 1953 | 1953-02 | Daytona Beach Road Course |
3 | March 8, 1953 | 1953-03 | Harnett Speedway |
4 | March 29, 1953 | Wilkes County 200 | North Wilkesboro Speedway |
5 | April 5, 1953 | 1953-05 | Charlotte Speedway |
6 | April 19, 1953 | Richmond 200 | Richmond Fairgrounds |
7 | April 26, 1953 | 1953-07 | Central City Speedway |
8 | May 3, 1953 | 1953-08 | Langhorne Speedway |
9 | May 9, 1953 | 1953-09 | Columbia Speedway |
10 | May 16, 1953 | 1953-10 | Hickory Speedway |
11 | May 17, 1953 | 1953-11 | Martinsville Speedway |
12 | May 24, 1953 | 1953-12 | Powell Motor Speedway |
13 | May 30, 1953 | Raleigh 300 | Raleigh Speedway |
14 | June 7, 1953 | 1953-14 | Louisiana Fairgrounds |
15 | June 14, 1953 | 1953-15 | Five Flags Speedway |
16 | June 21, 1953 | International 200 | Langhorne Speedway |
17 | June 26, 1953 | 1953-17 | Tri-City Speedway |
18 | June 28, 1953 | 1953-18 | Wilson Speedway |
19 | July 3, 1953 | 1953-19 | Monroe County Fairgrounds |
20 | July 4, 1953 | 1953-20 | Piedmont Interstate Fairgrounds |
21 | July 10, 1953 | 1953-21 | Morristown Speedway |
22 | July 12, 1953 | 1953-22 | Lakewood Speedway |
23 | July 22, 1953 | 1953-23 | Rapid Valley Speedway |
24 | July 26, 1953 | 1953-24 | Lincoln City Fairgrounds |
25 | August 2, 1953 | 1953-25 | Davenport Speedway |
26 | August 9, 1953 | 1953-26 | Occoneechee Speedway |
27 | August 16, 1953 | 1953-27 | Asheville-Weaverville Speedway |
28 | August 23, 1953 | 1953-28 | Princess Anne Speedway |
29 | August 29, 1953 | 1953-29 | Hickory Speedway |
30 | September 7, 1953 | Southern 500 | Darlington Raceway |
31 | September 13, 1953 | 1953-31 | Central City Speedway |
32 | September 20, 1953 | 1953-32 | Langhorne Speedway |
33 | October 3, 1953 | 1953-33 | Bloomsburg Fairgrounds |
34 | October 4, 1953 | 1953-34 | Wilson Speedway |
35 | October 11, 1953 | Wilkes 160 | North Wilkesboro Speedway |
36 | October 18, 1953 | 1953-36 | Martinsville Speedway |
37 | November 1, 1953 | 1953-37 | Lakewood Speedway |
Results[]
Final Points Standings[]
Pos. | Driver | Races | Wins | Top 5s | Top 10s | Poles | Points | Difference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Herb Thomas | 37 | 12 | 27 | 31 | 12 | 8460 | |
2 | Lee Petty | 36 | 5 | 26 | 32 | 0 | 7814 | -646 |
3 | Dick Rathmann | 35 | 5 | 21 | 24 | 3 | 7362 | -1,098 |
4 | Buck Baker | 33 | 4 | 16 | 25 | 5 | 6713 | -1,747 |
5 | Fonty Flock | 33 | 4 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 6174 | -2,286 |
6 | Tim Flock | 26 | 1 | 11 | 18 | 3 | 5011 | -3,449 |
7 | Jim Paschal | 23 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 1 | 4211 | -4,249 |
8 | Joe Eubanks | 24 | 0 | 7 | 15 | 2 | 3603 | -4,857 |
9 | Jimmie Lewallen | 22 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 3508 | -4,952 |
10 | Curtis Turner | 19 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 3373 | -5,087 |
11 | Speedy Thompson | 7 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 2958 | -5,502 |
12 | Slick Smith | 23 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 2670 | -5,790 |
13 | Elton Hildreth | 25 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2625 | -5,835 |
14 | Gober Sosebee | 17 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 2525 | -5,935 |
15 | Bill Blair | 21 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 2457 | -6,003 |
16 | Fred Dove | 20 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1997 | -6,463 |
17 | Bub King | 14 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1624 | -6,836 |
18 | Gene Comstock | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1519 | -6,941 |
19 | Donald Thomas | 17 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1408 | -7,052 |
20 | Ralph Liguori | 12 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1336 | -7,124 |
21 | Pop McGinnis | 13 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1113 | -7,347 |
22 | Otis Martin | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1068 | -7,392 |
23 | Andy Winfree | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 954 | -7,506 |
24 | Bob Welborn | 11 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 761 | -7,699 |
25 | Johnny Patterson | 11 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 753 | -7,707 |
26 | Ted Chamberlain | 9 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 738 | -7,722 |
27 | Neil Roberts | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 738 | -7,722 |
28 | Buddy Shuman | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 713 | -7,747 |
29 | Arden Mounts | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 644 | -7,816 |
30 | Bobby Myers | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 644 | -7,816 |
Manufacturer's Championship[]
With 22 wins, Hudson won the 1953 Manufacturer's Championship.
Position | Make | Race Wins |
---|---|---|
1 | Hudson | 22 |
2 | 9 | |
3 | 6 | |
4 | 0 | |
5 | Nash | 0 |
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