By Rick Houston
Dave Marcis is a proud man, and loyal to his friends.
Very, very loyal.
In 1978, Marcis was driving for team owner Rod Osterlund. Although he hadn’t yet won, he was doing well enough that he collected a $10,000 bonus for leading the point standings at the end of the first 10 races of the season. But then, late in the season, Marcis’ friend and crew chief Dewey Livengood was fired by Osterlund.
It came as a shock to Marcis, and when the circuit headed to Atlanta, Marcis promptly announced that he was leaving the team. The Wisconsin native was so angry, in fact, he would later say that he intentionally lifted off the throttle in order to allow Richard Petty to claim the victory rather than putting Osterlund on the Winner’s Circle program.
The Marcis saga was chaotic enough, but then Donnie Allison was eventually named the winner’s winner after a lengthy and highly controversial scoring recheck. This is Marcis’ story.
For more than 32 years, Grand National/Winston Cup/NASCAR Scene writers and photographers were there to record NASCAR history as it was being made. Join hosts Rick Houston and Steve Waid each week on The Scene Vault Podcast Presented by Q Ware as they take a look back at the extraordinary people, places and events woven into the rich tapestry that is our sport.
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