2001 Daytona 500
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
The layout of Daytona International Speedway, where the race was held.
|
|||
| Date | February 18, 2001 | ||
| Official name | Daytona 500 by Dodge | ||
| Location |
Daytona International Speedway Daytona Beach, Florida, US |
||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 2.5 mi (4.02336 km) |
||
| Distance | 200 laps, 500 mi (804.672 km) | ||
| Weather | Warm with temperatures reading up to 79 °F (26 °C); wind speeds up to 29.92 miles per hour (48.15 km/h) | ||
| Average speed | 161.783 miles per hour (260.365 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Evernham Motorsports | ||
| Time | 49.029 | ||
| Qualifying race winners | |||
| Duel 1 Winner | Sterling Marlin | Chip Ganassi Racing | |
| Duel 2 Winner | Mike Skinner | Richard Childress Racing | |
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | |
| Laps | 53 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 15 | Michael Waltrip | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | Fox | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, and Larry McReynolds | ||
| Nielsen Ratings | 10.0 | ||
The 2001 Daytona 500, the 43rd running of the event, was the first race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series schedule. It was held on February 18, 2001 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, consisting of 200 laps and 500 miles on the 2.5-mile (4 km) asphalt tri-oval. The race was the first ever Winston Cup telecast shown by the Fox network, which had received broadcasting rights along with NBC at the end of the previous season, replacing the two former NASCAR broadcasting channels CBS and ESPN. Bill Elliott won the pole and Michael Waltrip, in his first race in the No. 15 car for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., won the race. This was the first Winston Cup victory of his career, coming in his 463rd start, the longest wait for a first win. His teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. finished second and Rusty Wallace finished third.
On the final lap, a major accident was triggered by 1998 Daytona 500 winner and seven-time series champion Dale Earnhardt losing control of his car and collecting Ken Schrader in a head-on collision with the outside retaining wall. Three cars were involved in the crash, which caused Earnhardt's death. The race was also marred by an 18-car pileup on lap 173 that began when Ward Burton made contact with Robby Gordon, sending Tony Stewart flipping twice down the backstretch. After Earnhardt's death (as well as other notable deaths of other drivers in other NASCAR national touring series in the previous season), NASCAR implemented rigorous safety improvements in later seasons.
...
Wikipedia