May 8 1976: An 18-year-old kid named Sterling Marlin gets his first Cup start and finishes 29th in the field of 30 drivers in the Music City USA 420 at Nashville (Tenn.) Speedway. Marlin gets the start, replacing his father, Coo Coo, who misses the race because of a broken shoulder. Cale Yarborough wins the race, leading 398 laps of the 250-mile race. Marlin will go on to win three consecutive track championships (1980-82) at Nashville before his Cup career kicks in later in the decade.
