The 1961 Volunteer 500 was a Grand National (now Nextel Cup) event held at Bristol Motor Speedway on July 29, 1961. Jack Smith dominated the race in route to his second and final win of the year, leading 243 of the 500 laps in route to a two-lap, twenty-two second victory on Fireball Roberts. Eventual season champ Ned Jarrett finished 3rd. Stats