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2001 Dura Lube 400

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2001 Dura Lube 400
Race details[1]
Race 2 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
2001 Dura Lube 400 program cover, featuring a tribute to Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Bobby Labonte
2001 Dura Lube 400 program cover, featuring a tribute to Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Bobby Labonte
Date February 25 (February 25)–26, 2001
Location North Carolina Speedway, Richmond County, North Carolina
Course Permanent racing facility
1 mi (1.637 km)
Distance 393 laps, 399.681 mi (643.224 km)
Weather Temperatures reaching up to 71.6 °F (22.0 °C); wind speeds up to 14 miles per hour (23 km/h)[2]
Average speed 111.877 mph
Pole position
Driver Hendrick Motorsports
Time 23.401
Most laps led
Driver Jeff Gordon Hendrick Motorsports
Laps 180
Winner
No. 1 Steve Park Dale Earnhardt, Inc.
Television in the United States
Network Fox Broadcasting Company/FX
Announcers Mike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds
Nielsen Ratings 7.0/10

The 2001 Dura Lube 400 was the second stock car race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series. It was held on February 25, 2001 but ended on February 26 due to a rain delay at North Carolina Speedway, in Richmond County, North Carolina and was the first race to take place after the death of seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt on the last lap of the Daytona 500, and he was commemorated in various ways throughout the race weekend.

The race was delayed for more than 90 minutes before only competing for 52 laps when it was stopped due to rain falling on the race track. The race restarted the next day under sunny conditions. The race was won by Steve Park in the No.1 Chevrolet for Dale Earnhardt, Inc.; this was DEI's first win after Earnhardt's death in the previous race. This was also Kevin Harvick's debut in the Cup Series, as he replaced Earnhardt in the #3 (renumbered 29) Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing.

Qualifying

[edit]
Pos.[3][4] Car Driver Manufacturer Time Avg. Speed (mph)
1 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 23.401 156.455
2 1 Steve Park Chevrolet 23.410 156.395
3 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac 23.459 156.068
4 28 Ricky Rudd Ford 23.484 155.902
5 99 Jeff Burton Ford 23.534 155.571
6 20 Tony Stewart Pontiac 23.550 155.465
7 15 Michael Waltrip Chevrolet 23.563 155.379
8 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Pontiac 23.584 155.241
9 97 Kurt Busch Ford 23.600 155.136
10 11 Brett Bodine Ford 23.612 155.057
11 22 Ward Burton Dodge 23.623 154.985
12 25 Jerry Nadeau Chevrolet 23.633 154.919
13 12 Jeremy Mayfield Ford 23.637 154.893
14 9 Bill Elliott Dodge 23.655 154.775
15 36 Ken Schrader Pontiac 23.705 154.448
16 93 Dave Blaney Dodge 23.705 154.448
17 6 Mark Martin Ford 23.721 154.344
18 88 Dale Jarrett Ford 23.729 154.292
19 43 John Andretti Dodge 23.734 154.260
20 01 Jason Leffler Dodge 23.738 154.234
21 55 Bobby Hamilton Chevrolet 23.742 154.208
22 21 Elliott Sadler Ford 23.750 154.156
23 19 Casey Atwood Dodge 23.766 154.052
24 4 Robby Gordon Chevrolet 23.770 154.026
25 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 23.777 153.981
26 40 Sterling Marlin Dodge 23.779 153.968
27 33 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet 23.782 153.948
28 14 Ron Hornaday Jr. Pontiac 23.799 153.838
29 50 Rick Mast Chevrolet 23.805 153.800
30 27 Kenny Wallace Pontiac 23.810 153.767
31 77 Robert Pressley Ford 23.811 153.761
32 26 Jimmy Spencer Ford 23.860 153.445
33 2 Rusty Wallace Ford 23.868 153.394
34 7 Mike Wallace Ford 23.873 153.362
35 5 Terry Labonte Chevrolet 23.876 153.342
36 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 23.892 153.240
Provisionals
37 31 Mike Skinner Chevrolet 24.034 152.334
38 17 Matt Kenseth Ford 23.928 153.009
39 66 Todd Bodine Ford 24.001 152.544
40 92 Stacy Compton Dodge 23.968 152.754
41 32 Ricky Craven Ford 23.992 152.601
42 44 Buckshot Jones Dodge 23.976 152.703
43 90 Hut Stricklin Ford 24.089 151.986
Failed to qualify
44 96 Andy Houston Ford 23.909 153.009
45 45 Kyle Petty Dodge 23.970 152.741
WD 60 Joe Bessey Chevrolet 0.000 0.000
WD 85 Carl Long Ford 0.000 0.000

Race recap

[edit]

Pre-race ceremonies

[edit]

Before the start, the race was delayed for 1 hour and 33 minutes. During this time, Darrell Waltrip led an invocation that commemorated Dale Earnhardt.[5] Waltrip asked for all spectators to hold the hand of the person that sat next to them to bond and remember Earnhardt. Waltrip also performed a prayer asking for strength, pray for the Earnhardt family and asked for sadness to be turned for celebration towards Earnhardt's life.[6][7] The invocation was joined by Staff Sgt. Joseph Hunter of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base who performed the national anthem which was to have been followed by three F-15 Strike Eagles from the 333rd Fighter Squadron of Seymour Johnson AFB that would have performed the missing man formation over the racetrack with the No. 3 missing man aircraft absent from the proceedings. This did not occur due to heavy cloud cover.[8] During the national anthem, the three crews from Dale Earnhardt, Inc. stood atop their pit walls and raised their caps in the air and this continued when the drivers entered their cars.[9] The pole position was left open during the parade lap in tribute to Earnhardt.[10]

Race

[edit]

On the first lap, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was bumped from behind by Ron Hornaday Jr. heading into turn 3 and sent it into Kenny Wallace's path, crashing at 150 mph at an angle with Earnhardt Jr. suffering bruising and a limp in his leg.[6] Other cars involved were Jimmy Spencer, Mike Wallace and Hut Stricklin. Despite this, Earnhardt Jr. was taken by an ambulance to the medical center.[11]

On lap 44, Park passed Gordon for the lead. Two laps later, the yellow flag was waved when rain started to fall on the track. The race was eventually stopped with Stacy Compton leading when everyone made their scheduled pit stops.[12] The race was red flagged, and eventually postponed to Monday, February 26 at 11 am Eastern Standard Time. The next day, the race restarted on lap 56, and Gordon took the lead from Compton, who did not make a pit stop before the red flag, and led 18 laps before Park took over the top spot. The race went 188 laps green until Mike Skinner spun out on the backstretch, bringing out the third caution of the event. The race restarted once more, and went 52 more laps before the fourth and final caution came out for oil on the track. The race restarted with 85 laps to go. Gordon led the next thirty, before Park took the lead. With less than 10 laps to go, Bobby Labonte was closing in on Park. Park held off Labonte for his second and to date, most recent Cup win.

Post-race

[edit]

After crossing the finishing line, Park raised a No. 3 Earnhardt hat that hung on his gearshift lever and thrust it out of the car to holding it high in tribute to Earnhardt. Park also performed a spin, drove towards Michael Waltrip and made a brief stop with the exchanging a high-five.[13] As Park celebrated, he received a call from Earnhardt's wife Teresa Earnhardt who watched the race at the Dale Earnhardt, Inc. shop in Mooresville, North Carolina. According to Park, Teresa was emotional, but happy.[14] The race took three hours, thirty-four minutes and twenty-one seconds to complete, and the margin of victory was 0.138 seconds.[15]

Race results

[edit]
Pos. St # Driver Make Team Laps Led Status Points
1 2 1 Steve Park Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 393 167 running 180/5
2 3 18 Bobby Labonte Pontiac Joe Gibbs Racing 393 32 running 175/5
3 1 24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 393 180 running 175/10
4 6 20 Tony Stewart Pontiac Joe Gibbs Racing 393 0 running 160
5 41 32 Ricky Craven Ford PPI Motorsports 393 0 running 155
6 8 10 Johnny Benson Jr. Pontiac MBV Motorsports 393 0 running 150
7 33 2 Rusty Wallace Ford Penske Racing South 393 0 running 146
8 26 40 Sterling Marlin Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 393 1 running 147
9 16 93 Dave Blaney Dodge Bill Davis Racing 393 0 running 138
10 18 88 Dale Jarrett Ford Robert Yates Racing 393 0 running 134
11 22 21 Elliott Sadler Ford Wood Brothers Racing 393 0 running 130
12 31 77 Robert Pressley Ford Jasper Motorsports 393 0 running 127
13 21 55 Bobby Hamilton Chevrolet Andy Petree Racing 393 0 running 124
14 36 29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing 392 0 running 121
15 12 25 Jerry Nadeau Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 392 0 running 118
16 11 22 Ward Burton Dodge Bill Davis Racing 392 0 running 115
17 27 33 Joe Nemechek Chevrolet Andy Petree Racing 392 0 running 112
18 23 19 Casey Atwood Dodge Evernham Motorsports 392 0 running 109
19 7 15 Michael Waltrip Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 392 1 running 111
20 17 6 Mark Martin Ford Roush Racing 392 1 running 108
21 19 43 John Andretti Dodge Petty Enterprises 391 0 running 100
22 15 36 Ken Schrader Pontiac MBV Motorsports 391 0 running 97
23 14 9 Bill Elliott Dodge Evernham Motorsports 391 0 running 94
24 37 31 Mike Skinner Chevrolet Richard Childress Racing 391 0 running 91
25 28 14 Ron Hornaday Jr. Pontiac A.J. Foyt Racing 390 0 running 88
26 24 4 Robby Gordon Chevrolet Morgan-McClure Motorsports 390 0 running 85
27 10 11 Brett Bodine Ford Brett Bodine Racing 390 0 running 82
28 38 17 Matt Kenseth Ford Roush Racing 389 0 running 79
29 35 5 Terry Labonte Chevrolet Hendrick Motorsports 389 0 running 76
30 32 26 Jimmy Spencer Ford Haas-Carter Motorsports 389 1 running 78
31 43 90 Hut Stricklin Ford Donlavey Racing 389 0 running 70
32 29 50 Rick Mast Chevrolet Midwest Transit Racing 388 0 running 67
33 20 01 Jason Leffler Dodge Chip Ganassi Racing 387 0 running 64
34 39 66 Todd Bodine Ford Haas-Carter Motorsports 387 0 running 61
35 42 44 Buckshot Jones Dodge Petty Enterprises 383 1 running 63
36 9 97 Kurt Busch Ford Roush Racing 383 0 running 55
37 5 99 Jeff Burton Ford Roush Racing 379 0 running 52
38 13 12 Jeremy Mayfield Ford Penske Racing South 364 0 running 49
39 4 28 Ricky Rudd Ford Robert Yates Racing 355 3 running 51
40 34 7 Mike Wallace Ford Ultra Motorsports 355 0 running 43
41 40 92 Stacy Compton Dodge Melling Racing 295 6 engine 45
42 30 27 Kenny Wallace Pontiac Eel River Racing 118 0 crash 37
43 25 8 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet Dale Earnhardt, Inc. 0 0 crash 34
Failed to Qualify
44 96 Andy Houston Ford PPI Motorsports
45 45 Kyle Petty Dodge Petty Enterprises
WD 60 Joe Bessey Chevrolet Joe Bessey Motorsports
WD 85 Carl Long Ford Mansion Motorsports
Source:[15][16][17]

Standings after the race

[edit]
Pos Driver Points
2 1 Rusty Wallace 311
4 2 Sterling Marlin 298 (–13)
2 3 Michael Waltrip 291 (–20)
4 4 Bobby Hamilton 266 (–45)
26 5 Steve Park 255 (–56)
1 6 Bill Elliott 254 (–57)
22 7 Jeff Gordon 253 (–58)
15 8 Ricky Craven 249 (–62)
6 9 Robert Pressley 248 (–63)
2 10 Joe Nemechek 242 (–69)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "The Race: Dura-Lube 400". Jayski's Silly Season Site. ESPN Internet Ventures. Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  2. ^ "Weather information for the 2001 KMart/Dura Lube 400". The Old Farmers' Almanac. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  3. ^ "NASCAR Starting line up: Dura Lube 400". Crash. 2001-02-24. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  4. ^ "rpm.espn.com: Dura Lube 400 qualifying results". www.espn.com. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  5. ^ Shontz, Lori (February 26, 2001). "Dura Lube 400 opening-lap crash by Earnhardt Jr. mars rain-delayed race". Post-Gazette. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Park Does It For Boss At Dura Lube". CBS News (CBS). February 26, 2001. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  7. ^ NASCAR on Fox (Television Production). Richmond County, North Carolina: Fox Broadcasting Company. 2001.
  8. ^ "Rain-delayed Dura-Lube 400 to resume today at 11 a.m." The Post and Courier. February 26, 2001. p. 6C.
  9. ^ "Earnhardt honored at track". Sun Journal. February 26, 2001. p. C1.
  10. ^ "Victory dedicated to Earnhardt". BBC Sport (BBC). February 27, 2001. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  11. ^ Harris, Mike (February 25, 2001). "Earnhardt Jr. crashes at start of Dura Lube 400". USA Today. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  12. ^ "Rain postpones Dura Lube 400". crash.net. February 25, 2001. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  13. ^ "A win in the memory of Earnhardt". Gadsden Times. February 27, 2001. p. B1.
  14. ^ Associated Press (February 27, 2001). "Parks wins Dura Lube 400". The Augusta Chronicle. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  15. ^ a b "2001 Official Race Results : Dura Lube 400". NASCAR.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2004. Retrieved December 2, 2012.
  16. ^ "2001 Dura Lube 400 - The Third Turn". www.thethirdturn.com. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  17. ^ "2001 Dura Lube 400 race results". Racing-Reference. Archived from the original on 2021-04-28.


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2001 Daytona 500
Winston Cup Series
2001 season
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2001 UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400