The 1955 Wilkes 160 was a NASCAR Grand National Series event that was held on October 23, 1955, at the North Wilkesboro Speedway in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

Summary

One hundred and sixty laps were competed on a dirt oval track spanning .625 mi. There were three cautions delivered down by NASCAR officials and the race lasted exactly one hour, twenty-one minutes, and sixteen seconds. Buck Baker defeated Lee Petty by a time of three seconds. Ford would make its first Grand National Series win at this speedway; making it a viable competitor against Dodge, Chevrolet and Chrysler. The average speed was 72.347 mi/h while the pole position speed was 79.815 mi/h. Ten thousand people attended this autumn race. This race would produce Joe Weatherly's first finish in the top five. Most of the drivers in this racing event were driver-owners who owned their own racing vehicle and drove their vehicle directly to the races instead of towing it from hundreds of miles away. All the drivers in this event were racing for a prize purse that totalled $4,285 ($0 when adjusted for inflation). Only 20 of the 28 competing drivers would gain financially from this race; with individual earnings that ranged from $1,110 ($0 when adjusted for inflation) to a paltry $50 for the NASCAR drivers who finished in 13th place through 20th place ($0 when adjusted for inflation). No financial compensation was given to the participants who finished in the bottom 9 due to NASCAR's limited budget for prize winnings in an era prior to "big money" sponsors like Sprint Nextel and the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. Carl Kiekhaefer was one of the notable crew chiefs on attendance for this race; he helped to service Tim Flock's racing vehicle.

Qualifying

Results

† signifies that the driver is known to be deceased

Race summary

Timeline

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