- 1981 Busch 500 Results Stock Car Online Results Reference
- 1981 Busch 500 Results Stock Car Online Results Reference
| fin | qual | driver | team | laps led | car | sponsor | pts | laps | status | earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Darrell Waltrip | 251 | #11 Buick | Mountain Dew | 185 | 500 | Finish | $18,800 | |
| 2 | 3 | Ricky Rudd | 92 | #88 Chevy | Gatorade | 175 | 499 | Finish | $12,375 | |
| 3 | 16 | Terry Labonte | 0 | #44 Buick | Stratagraph | 165 | 498 | Finish | $8,800 | |
| 4 | 6 | Bobby Allison | 4 | #28 Buick | Hardee's | 165 | 497 | Finish | $7,075 | |
| 5 | 7 | Ron Bouchard | 0 | #47 Buick | J.D. Stacy | 155 | 497 | Finish | $5,670 | |
| 6 | 8 | Benny Parsons | 0 | #15 Ford | Melling Tool | 150 | 497 | Finish | $6,250 | |
| 7 | 15 | Lake Speed | 0 | #66 Oldsmobile | Speed Racing | 146 | 493 | Finish | $4,170 | |
| 8 | 9 | Tim Richmond | 0 | #12 Oldsmobile | UNO | 142 | 488 | Accident | $1,315 | |
| 9 | 5 | Dave Marcis | 0 | #71 Buick | Bowlin Coal | 138 | 487 | Finish | $3,600 | |
| 10 | 20 | Buddy Arrington | 0 | #67 Dodge | Hills Racing | 134 | 486 | Finish | $3,780 | |
| 11 | 2 | Harry Gant | 0 | #33 Pontiac | Skoal Bandit | 130 | 485 | Finish | $3,695 | |
| 12 | 22 | Jimmy Means | 0 | #52 Pontiac | Broadway Motors | 127 | 480 | Finish | $3,035 | |
| 13 | 23 | J.D. McDuffie | 0 | #70 Pontiac | Bailey Excavating | 124 | 479 | Finish | $2,875 | |
| 14 | 26 | Lennie Pond | 0 | #68 Buick | Bekaert | 121 | 478 | Finish | $1,000 | |
| 15 | 25 | Tommy Gale | 0 | #64 Ford | Sunny King Ford & Honda | 118 | 471 | Finish | $2,615 | |
| 16 | 28 | James Hylton | 0 | #48 Pontiac | Palatine Auto Parts | 115 | 464 | Finish | $2,475 | |
| 17 | 18 | Joe Millikan | 0 | #5 Pontiac | Performance Connection | 112 | 434 | Finish | $4,965 | |
| 18 | 21 | Ronnie Thomas | 0 | #25 Pontiac | Thomas Racing | 109 | 392 | Finish | $2,255 | |
| 19 | 13 | Morgan Shepherd | 104 | #24 Buick | Gordon Racing | 111 | 339 | Rear End | $1,905 | |
| 20 | 4 | Jody Ridley | 0 | #90 Ford | Truxmore / Sunny King | 103 | 317 | Sway Bar | $2,875 | |
| 21 | 12 | Joe Ruttman | 49 | #2 Pontiac | J.D. Stacy | 105 | 302 | Oil Pan | $5,100 | |
| 22 | 29 | Rick Newsom | 0 | #20 Chevy | Newsom Racing | 97 | 248 | Handling | $635 | |
| 23 | 24 | Elliott Forbes-Robinson | 0 | #99 Buick | Ulrich Racing | 0 | 246 | Brakes | $870 | |
| 24 | 10 | Richard Petty | 0 | #43 Buick | STP | 91 | 73 | Cylinder Head | $5,060 | |
| 25 | 17 | Mike Alexander | 0 | #37 Buick | Rogers Auto Leasing | 88 | 49 | Accident | $595 | |
| 26 | 27 | Mike Potter | 0 | #17 Chevy | Kings Inn Daytona | 0 | 32 | Steering | $1,130 | |
| 27 | 14 | Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | 0 | #3 Pontiac | Wrangler | 82 | 31 | Accident | $2,620 |
| 28 | 11 | Kyle Petty | 0 | #42 Buick | STP | 79 | 28 | Transmission | $860 | |
| 29 | 30 | Joel Stowe | 0 | #08 Pontiac | 0 | 14 | Too Slow | $540 | ||
| 30 | 19 | Cecil Gordon | 0 | #40 Buick | Dixie Engineering | 73 | 3 | Quit | $530 |