| Official Race Results | |||||||||
| Southern 500 | Darlington International Raceway | |||||||||
| August 31, 1986 | Race 21 of 29 | |||||||||
| Average Speed: 121.068 mph | |||||||||
| Margin of Victory: 2 seconds | Time of Race: 04:08:27 | ||||||||
| Lead Changes: 16 | |||||||||
| Cautions: 12 for 79 laps. | |||||||||
| Fin | St | Car | Driver | Make | Sponsor | Pts / Bonus | Laps | Status | Winnings |
| 1 | 1 | #25 | Tim Richmond | Chevrolet | Folgers | 185/10 | 367 | Running | $60,005 |
| 2 | 11 | #22 | Bobby Allison | Buick | Miller American | 175/5 | 367 | Running | $31,500 |
| 3 | 14 | #9 | Bill Elliott | Ford | Coors | 170/5 | 367 | Running | $25,625 |
| 4 | 20 | #47 | Morgan Shepherd | Buick | Race Hill Farm | 165/5 | 367 | Running | $11,125 |
| 5 | 10 | #11 | Darrell Waltrip | Chevrolet | Budweiser | 155/0 | 367 | Running | $21,055 |
| 6 | 15 | #15 | Ricky Rudd | Ford | Motorcraft | 150/0 | 367 | Running | $15,735 |
| 7 | 6 | #8 | Bobby Hillin, Jr | Buick | Miller American | 146/0 | 367 | Running | $11,010 |
| 8 | 2 | #5 | Geoffrey Bodine | Chevrolet | Levi Garrett | 147/5 | 367 | Running | $13,215 |
| 9 | 21 | #3 | Dale Earnhardt | Chevrolet | Wrangler Jeans | 143/5 | 366 | Running | $15,735 |
| 10 | 8 | #28 | Cale Yarborough | Ford | Hardee's | 134/0 | 366 | Running | $6,435 |
| 11 | 25 | #71 | Dave Marcis | Chevrolet | Helen Rae Special | 130/0 | 364 | Running | $8,730 |
| 12 | 23 | #35 | Alan Kulwicki * | Ford | Quincy's Steak House | 127/0 | 360 | Running | $5,390 |
| 13 | 22 | #75 | Jim Sauter | Pontiac | Nationwise Auto Parts | 124/0 | 356 | Running | $8,295 |
| 14 | 24 | #7 | Kyle Petty | Ford | 7-Eleven | 121/0 | 356 | Running | $11,070 |
| 15 | 36 | #52 | Jimmy Means | Pontiac | Means Racing | 118/0 | 354 | Running | $8,165 |
| 16 | 27 | #23 | Michael Waltrip | Pontiac | Hawaiian Punch | 115/0 | 354 | Running | $5,605 |
| 17 | 35 | #36 | H.B. Bailey | Pontiac | Almeda Auto Parts | 117/5 | 352 | Running | $3,610 |
| 18 | 31 | #6 | D.k. Ulrich | Chevrolet | Finky's | 109/0 | 350 | Running | $7,140 |
| 19 | 5 | #88 | Buddy Baker | Oldsmobile | Crisco | 111/5 | 340 | Engine Failure | $3,315 |
| 20 | 37 | #67 | Buddy Arrington | Ford | Pannill Knitting | 103/0 | 339 | Running | $7,030 |
| 21 | 7 | #44 | Terry Labonte | Chevrolet | Piedmont Airlines | 100/0 | 337 | Running | $9,910 |
| 22 | 17 | #66 | Phil Parsons | Oldsmobile | Skoal | 97/0 | 326 | Engine Failure | $2,810 |
| 23 | 16 | #27 | Rusty Wallace | Pontiac | Alugard | 94/0 | 316 | Running | $9,710 |
| 24 | 3 | #12 | Neil Bonnett | Chevrolet | Budweiser | 96/5 | 261 | Valve | $11,015 |
| 25 | 28 | #17 | Eddie Bierschwale | Chevrolet | K Care | 88/0 | 261 | Running | $5,825 |
| 26 | 34 | #64 | Connie Saylor | Ford | Sunny King Ford & Honda | 85/0 | 254 | Engine Failure | $5,475 |
| 27 | 4 | #33 | Harry Gant | Chevrolet | Skoal Bandit | 82/0 | 235 | Engine Failure | $10,940 |
| 28 | 12 | #4 | Rick Wilson | Oldsmobile | Kodak Films | 79/0 | 232 | Overheating | $2,245 |
| 29 | 38 | #92 | Jonathan Edwards | Chevrolet | Edwards Racing | 76/0 | 203 | Rear End | $2,155 |
| 30 | 26 | #98 | Ron Bouchard | Pontiac | Valvoline | 73/0 | 177 | Engine Failure | $2,100 |
| 31 | 9 | #55 | Benny Parsons | Oldsmobile | Copenhagen | 70/0 | 167 | Transmission | $1,955 |
| 32 | 39 | #82 | Mark Stahl | Ford | Auto Bell Car Washes | 67/0 | 132 | Too Slow | $1,895 |
| 33 | 30 | #54 | Donnie Allison | Chevrolet | Gray Racing | 64/0 | 131 | Overheating | $1,840 |
| 34 | 33 | #70 | J.D. McDuffie | Pontiac | Rumple Furniture/Winkle | 61/0 | 85 | Tie Rod | $4,565 |
| 35 | 29 | #81 | Chet Fillip | Ford | Circle Bar Truck Corral | 58/0 | 81 | Accident | $1,720 |
| 36 | 32 | #90 | Ken Schrader | Ford | Red Baron Frozen Pizza | 55/0 | 46 | Engine Failure | $5,435 |
| 37 | 13 | #1 | Sterling Marlin | Chevrolet | Bull's Eye Barbecue Sauce | 52/0 | 35 | Battery | $1,620 |
| 38 | 18 | #26 | Joe Ruttman | Buick | Quaker State | 49/0 | 32 | Valve | $4,325 |
| 39 | 40 | #48 | James Hylton | Chevrolet | Fleet Service | 46/0 | 29 | Engine Failure | $4,260 |
| 40 | 19 | #43 | Richard Petty | Pontiac | STP | 43/0 | 6 | Accident | $3,470 |
| * Denotes Rookie | |||||||||