The 2001 Pepsi 400 was a

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...

stock car race held on July 7, 2001, at

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NA ...

Daytona Beach Daytona Beach, or simply Daytona, is a coastal resort-city in east-central Florida. Located on the eastern edge of Volusia County near the Atlantic coastline, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 census. Daytona Beach is approximately nort ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

as the 17th of the

2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series The 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series was the 53rd season of professional stock car racing in the United States, the 30th modern-era Cup series. It began on February 11, 2001, at Daytona International Speedway and ended on November 23, 2001, at N ...

season. It was the first race held at Daytona since the

2001 Daytona 500 The 2001 Daytona 500, the 43rd running of the Daytona 500, 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& ...

, in which

Dale Earnhardt Ralph Dale Earnhardt Sr. (; April 29, 1951February 18, 2001) was an American professional stock car driver and team owner, who raced from 1975 to 2001 in the former NASCAR Winston Cup Series (now called the NASCAR Cup Series), most notably dri ...

was killed on the final lap. Sterling Marlin of

Chip Ganassi Racing Chip Ganassi Racing, LLC (CGR), also sometimes branded as Chip Ganassi Racing Teams, is an American auto racing organization with teams competing in the IndyCar Series, NTT IndyCar Series, International Motor Sports Association, IMSA WeatherTech ...

won the

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the rac ...

Dale Earnhardt Jr. Ralph Dale Earnhardt Jr. (born October 10, 1974) is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, team owner, author, and an analyst for ''NASCAR on NBC''. He currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving t ...

Dale Earnhardt, Inc. Dale Earnhardt, Inc. (DEI) was a race team founded by Dale Earnhardt and his wife, Teresa Earnhardt, to compete in the NASCAR series, the highest level of competition for professional stock car racing in the United States. From 1998 to 2009, t ...

won the race, while DEI teammate

Michael Waltrip Michael Curtis Waltrip (born April 30, 1963) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, racing commentator, and published author. He competes full time in the Camping World Superstar Racing Experience. He is the younger brother o ...

and

Elliott Sadler Elliott William Barnes Sadler (born April 30, 1975) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He last competed part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing. Sadler is one of 36 dr ...

finished second and third, respectively.

Entry List

(R) denotes rookie driver

Qualifying

Qualifying was scheduled for Thursday, July 5, but was rained out. As a result, it was held the following day, but was delayed for 3 hours, 12 minutes due to rain. On the ten-year anniversary of his first career pole position, Sterling Marlin clinched the pole with a lap speed of .

Dodge Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...

drivers claimed the first four spots, with

Ward Burton John Edward Burton III (born October 25, 1961) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He has five career wins in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, including the 2002 Daytona 500 and the 2001 Southern 500. He is the older brothe ...

(), Stacy Compton () and

Casey Atwood Casey Lee Atwood (born August 25, 1980) is an American former stock car racing driver. A former competitor in NASCAR competition, he is the youngest pole winner in Busch Series history, earning a pole start at the age of 17. Atwood had his most s ...

().

Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ous ...

driver and Cup points leader

Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...

qualified fifth at . Buckshot Jones,

Ron Hornaday Jr. Ronald Lee Hornaday Jr. (born June 20, 1958) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He is the father of former NASCAR driver Ronnie Hornaday and son of the late Ron Hornaday Sr., a two-time Winston West Champion. Hornaday is ...

, Hut Stricklin,

Mike Bliss Michael Duane Bliss (born April 5, 1965) is an American professional stock car racing driver. A journeyman NASCAR competitor and the 2002 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series champion, he has run in all three national series. Racing career Bliss began ...

and Andy Hillenburg failed to qualify.

Race

The Rev. Hal Marchman gave the traditional invocation, Edwin McCain sang the National Anthem, and Pop singer

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

gave the command to start the engines.

took the lead from Sterling Marlin on lap one, but relinquished it to Marlin on lap three. After Kevin Harvick, Marlin and

shared the lead from laps 10 to 26,

took the lead on lap 27, leading 22 laps. Matt Kenseth and Todd Bodine would lead for a combined seven laps, before Earnhardt reclaimed the lead and led 33 more laps. The first caution of the race flew on lap 89, when Andy Houston crashed in turn 4. Robert Pressley took the lead on lap 90, which Earnhardt reclaimed the following lap. With 18 laps to go, cars entered pit road for final stops, but ten cars ( Mike Skinner, Pressley, Sterling Marlin, Jeff Gordon,

Kurt Busch Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American professional auto racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. He is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the ...

, Terry Labonte, Bobby Hamilton, Kevin Harvick, John Andretti, Mark Martin,

Dave Marcis David Alan Marcis (born March 1, 1941) is an American former professional stock car racing driver on the NASCAR Winston Cup circuit whose career spanned five decades. Marcis won five times over this tenure, twice at Richmond, including his final ...

, Jason Leffler) were involved in a crash in turn 4. Earnhardt would surrender the lead again to

Johnny Benson Jr. Jonathan Thomas Benson Jr. (born June 27, 1963) is an American retired stock car racing driver and the son of former Michigan modified driver John Benson Sr. Benson has raced across NASCAR's three national series (Cup, Busch, Truck), and his c ...

, who had made a late-race gamble to pull ahead. Dale Jr had to deal with lap traffic on the restart, but the Caution flew for the final time when Jeff Gordon's oil line cut. The race restarted with six laps to go with Johnny Benson still leading. But with five laps remaining, Earnhardt took back the lead, and with drafting assistance from Waltrip, claimed the victory.

and Bobby Labonte finished in the top five.

Tony Stewart Anthony Wayne Stewart (born May 20, 1971), nicknamed Smoke, is an American semi-retired professional stock car racing driver, current NASCAR team co-owner of Stewart-Haas Racing, and current co-owner of the Superstar Racing Experience. He is a ...

crossed the line in sixth, but officially classified in 26th, had his finishing spot taken by Jerry Nadeau; Rusty Wallace,

Jeff Burton Jeffrey Tyler Burton (born June 29, 1967), nicknamed The Mayor, is an American former professional stock car racing driver and current racing commentator. He scored 21 career victories in the NASCAR Cup Series, including two Coca-Cola 600s in ...

, Brett Bodine and

Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...

rounded out the top ten.

Post-race

To celebrate, Earnhardt climbed onto his car's roof, and shared an embrace with Waltrip (who had been unable to celebrate his victory in the

500 500 may refer to: * 500 (number) * 500 BC * AD 500 Buildings and places * 500 Boylston Street of Boston * 500 Brickell in Miami * 500 Capitol Mall in Sacramento * 500 Fifth Avenue * 500 Renaissance Center, one of seven buildings in the GM Renai ...

that February because of Dale Earnhardt's fatal crash) before diving into his pit crew. After the race, Tony Stewart, who ignored orders to return to pit road due to passing Dave Blaney below the track's yellow line, knocked a

tape recorder An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present- ...

away from a '' Winston-Salem Journal'' reporter and kicked it under a hauler, and attempted to confront Cup director Gary Nelson, but was restrained by owner Joe Gibbs and crew chief Greg Zipadelli. Stewart argued that he had been forced below the yellow line by Johnny Benson, Bobby Labonte and Jeremy Mayfield. Stewart was later fined $10,000, had his probation (dating back to spinning out Jeff Gordon at Bristol Motor Speedway) extended and was penalized 65 points.

Race Results

Failed to Qualify

*44 - Buckshot Jones *14 -

(R) *90 - Hut Stricklin *27 -

*49 - Andy Hillenburg

Standings after the race

Broadcasting

The 2001 Pepsi 400 was broadcast by NBC, as the first race broadcast by the network under a new centralized NASCAR contract which gave a consortium of

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...

and

Turner Sports Warner Bros. Discovery Sports (WBD Sports) is the division of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) that is responsible for sports broadcasting, sports broadcasts on its parent company's various channels in the United States, including TBS (American TV ch ...

rights to broadcast the second half of the season. 25 million viewers watched the race, setting a viewership record for night races.

References

{{NASCAR on NBC/TNT Pepsi 400 Pepsi 400 NASCAR races at Daytona International Speedway