| Official Race Results | |||||||||
| Atl. Journal 500 | Atlanta Motor Speedway | |||||||||
| November 08, 1981 | Race 30 of 31 | |||||||||
| Average Speed: 130.391 mph | |||||||||
| Margin of Victory: one half car length | Time of Race: 03:49:43 | ||||||||
| Lead Changes: 36 | |||||||||
| Cautions: 7 for 50 laps | |||||||||
| Fin | St | Car | Driver | Make | Sponsor | Pts / Bonus | Laps | Status | Winnings |
| 1 | 5 | #21 | Neil Bonnett | Ford | Hodgdon/National Engineering | 185/10 | 328 | Running | $31,500 |
| 2 | 2 | #11 | Darrell Waltrip | Buick | Mountain Dew | 175/5 | 328 | Running | $17,350 |
| 3 | 21 | #27 | Cale Yarborough | Buick | Valvoline | 170/5 | 328 | Running | $8,800 |
| 4 | 6 | #28 | Bobby Allison | Buick | Hardee's | 160/0 | 328 | Running | $12,090 |
| 5 | 26 | #90 | Jody Ridley | Ford | Truxmore/Sunny King | 160/5 | 328 | Running | $11,700 |
| 6 | 4 | #9 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Mell-Gear Tuning Components | 150/0 | 328 | Running | $6,200 |
| 7 | 12 | #44 | Terry Labonte | Buick | J.D. Stacy Racing | 151/5 | 328 | Running | $9,630 |
| 8 | 19 | #42 | Kyle Petty | Buick | STP | 147/5 | 328 | Running | $6,155 |
| 9 | 13 | #1 | Buddy Baker | Buick | Uno | 143/5 | 328 | Running | $3,040 |
| 10 | 15 | #5 | Joe Millikan | Pontiac | Performance Connection | 134/0 | 327 | Running | $7,820 |
| 11 | 32 | #62 | Rick Wilson | Oldsmobile | Florida Equipment & Service | 135/5 | 327 | Running | $3,000 |
| 12 | 33 | #4 | Connie Saylor | Oldsmobile | Spencer Racing | 127/0 | 323 | Running | $2,550 |
| 13 | 28 | #13 | Dick Brooks | Ford | Carolina Tool & Equipment | 124/0 | 323 | Running | $2,350 |
| 14 | 18 | #66 | Lake Speed | Buick | Ron Steele | 121/0 | 321 | Running | $4,900 |
| 15 | 26 | #16 | Chuck Bown | Buick | Rose Auto Wrecking | 118/0 | 320 | Engine Failure | $2,125 |
| 16 | 39 | #17 | John Anderson | Chevrolet | Kings Inn/Busch | PE | 316 | Running | $4,545 |
| 17 | 34 | #67 | Buddy Arrington | Dodge | Kyle Petty's Boot Barn | 112/0 | 315 | Running | $4,310 |
| 18 | 40 | #0 | Delma Cowart | Buick | Coastal Transmission | 109/0 | 315 | Running | $1,940 |
| 19 | 24 | #48 | James Hylton | Buick | Palatine Automotive | 106/0 | 303 | Running | $4,045 |
| 20 | 1 | #33 | Harry Gant | Pontiac | Skoal Bandit | 108/5 | 291 | Engine Failure | $5,565 |
| 21 | 16 | #37 | Tim Richmond | Buick | Roger's Auto Leasing | 100/0 | 287 | Engine Failure | $2,945 |
| 22 | 35 | #64 | Tommy Gale | Ford | Sunny King Ford & Honda | 97/0 | 277 | Running | $3,300 |
| 23 | 37 | #70 | J.D. McDuffie | Pontiac | Bailey Excavating | 94/0 | 259 | Water Pump | $3,035 |
| 24 | 9 | #3 | Dale Earnhardt | Pontiac | Wrangler Jeans | 91/0 | 222 | Engine Failure | $4,290 |
| 25 | 8 | #2 | Joe Ruttman | Buick | J.D. Stacy Racing | 92/5 | 207 | Engine Failure | $6,420 |
| 26 | 3 | #43 | Richard Petty | Buick | STP | 89/5 | 207 | Engine Failure | $6,380 |
| 27 | 30 | #99 | D.k. Ulrich | Buick | Ulrich Racing | 81/0 | 198 | Engine Failure | $2,195 |
| 28 | 22 | #71 | Dave Marcis | Buick | J.D. Stacy Racing | 79/0 | 174 | Broken Valve Spring | $2,175 |
| 29 | 31 | #72 | Rusty Wallace | Buick | Kangaroos | PE | 156 | Oil Pressure | $1,900 |
| 30 | 10 | #01 | Geoffrey Bodine | Buick | Downey's Auto Parts | PE | 143 | Engine Failure | $890 |
| 31 | 20 | #96 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick | Levi Garrett | 70/0 | 123 | Oil Pump | $860 |
| 32 | 38 | #46 | Travis Tiller | Chevrolet | Ring Enterprises | 67/0 | 111 | Engine Failure | $850 |
| 33 | 7 | #55 | Tommy Ellis | Chevrolet | Industrial Boilers | 64/0 | 97 | Engine Failure | $840 |
| 34 | 17 | #75 | Gary Balough | Buick | Chaparral Trailers | 61/0 | 89 | Accident | $2,085 |
| 35 | 36 | #52 | Jimmy Means | Pontiac | Broadway Motors | 58/0 | 66 | Engine Failure | $2,055 |
| 36 | 11 | #15 | Benny Parsons | Ford | Melling Tool Company | 55/0 | 42 | Steering | $6,250 |
| 37 | 27 | #98 | Johnny Rutherford | Buick | Levi Garrett | 52/0 | 39 | Transmission | $640 |
| 38 | 14 | #88 | Ricky Rudd | Buick | Gatorade | 49/0 | 36 | Engine Failure | $6,070 |
| 39 | 23 | #47 | Ron Bouchard * | Buick | J.D. Stacy Racing | 46/0 | 23 | Engine Failure | $1,065 |
| 40 | 29 | #36 | H.B. Bailey | Pontiac | Almeda Auto Parts | PE | 1 | Accident | $550 |
| * Denotes Rookie | |||||||||