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2001 Dura Lube 400

Second race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

Second race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series

FieldValue
TypeNASWINSTON
Description
Race NameDura Lube 400
Details ref
Year2001
FulldateFebruary 25–26, 2001
Race_No2
Season_No36
Image2001_Dura_Lube_400_program_cover.png
Caption2001 Dura Lube 400 program cover, featuring a tribute to Dale Earnhardt Sr. and Bobby Labonte
LocationNorth Carolina Speedway, Richmond County, North Carolina
Course_mi1.017
Course_km1.637
Distance_laps393
Distance_mi399.681
Distance_km643.224
WeatherTemperatures reaching up to 71.6 F; wind speeds up to 14 mph
Avg111.877 mph
Pole_DriverJeff Gordon
Pole_TeamHendrick Motorsports
Pole_Time23.401
Most_DriverJeff Gordon
Most_TeamHendrick Motorsports
Most_laps180
Car1
First_DriverSteve Park
First_TeamDale Earnhardt, Inc.
NetworkFox Broadcasting Company/FX
AnnouncersMike Joy, Darrell Waltrip, Larry McReynolds
Ratings7.0/10

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 completing 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 renumbered No. 29 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing.

Qualifying

Pos.CarDriverManufacturerTimeAvg. Speed (mph)123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536Provisionals37383940414243Failed to qualify4445WDWD
24Jeff GordonChevrolet23.401156.455
1Steve ParkChevrolet23.410156.395
18Bobby LabontePontiac23.459156.068
28Ricky RuddFord23.484155.902
99Jeff BurtonFord23.534155.571
20Tony StewartPontiac23.550155.465
15Michael WaltripChevrolet23.563155.379
10Johnny Benson Jr.Pontiac23.584155.241
97Kurt BuschFord23.600155.136
11Brett BodineFord23.612155.057
22Ward BurtonDodge23.623154.985
25Jerry NadeauChevrolet23.633154.919
12Jeremy MayfieldFord23.637154.893
9Bill ElliottDodge23.655154.775
36Ken SchraderPontiac23.705154.448
93Dave BlaneyDodge23.705154.448
6Mark MartinFord23.721154.344
88Dale JarrettFord23.729154.292
43John AndrettiDodge23.734154.260
01Jason LefflerDodge23.738154.234
55Bobby HamiltonChevrolet23.742154.208
21Elliott SadlerFord23.750154.156
19Casey AtwoodDodge23.766154.052
4Robby GordonChevrolet23.770154.026
8Dale Earnhardt Jr.Chevrolet23.777153.981
40Sterling MarlinDodge23.779153.968
33Joe NemechekChevrolet23.782153.948
14Ron Hornaday Jr.Pontiac23.799153.838
50Rick MastChevrolet23.805153.800
27Kenny WallacePontiac23.810153.767
77Robert PressleyFord23.811153.761
26Jimmy SpencerFord23.860153.445
2Rusty WallaceFord23.868153.394
7Mike WallaceFord23.873153.362
5Terry LabonteChevrolet23.876153.342
29Kevin HarvickChevrolet23.892153.240
31Mike SkinnerChevrolet24.034152.334
17Matt KensethFord23.928153.009
66Todd BodineFord24.001152.544
92Stacy ComptonDodge23.968152.754
32Ricky CravenFord23.992152.601
44Buckshot JonesDodge23.976152.703
90Hut StricklinFord24.089151.986
96Andy HoustonFord23.909153.009
45Kyle PettyDodge23.970152.741
60Joe BesseyChevrolet0.0000.000
85Carl LongFord0.0000.000

Race recap

Pre-race ceremonies

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. 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. 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. 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. The pole position was left open during the parade lap in tribute to Earnhardt.

Race

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.

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. 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

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. 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. The race took three hours, thirty-four minutes and twenty-one seconds to complete, and the margin of victory was 0.138 seconds.

Race results

Pos.St#DriverMakeTeamLapsLedStatusPoints123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445WDWD
21Steve ParkChevroletDale Earnhardt, Inc.393167running180/5
318Bobby LabontePontiacJoe Gibbs Racing39332running175/5
124Jeff GordonChevroletHendrick Motorsports393180running175/10
620Tony StewartPontiacJoe Gibbs Racing3930running160
4132Ricky CravenFordPPI Motorsports3930running155
810Johnny Benson Jr.PontiacMBV Motorsports3930running150
332Rusty WallaceFordPenske Racing South3930running146
2640Sterling MarlinDodgeChip Ganassi Racing3931running147
1693Dave BlaneyDodgeBill Davis Racing3930running138
1888Dale JarrettFordRobert Yates Racing3930running134
2221Elliott SadlerFordWood Brothers Racing3930running130
3177Robert PressleyFordJasper Motorsports3930running127
2155Bobby HamiltonChevroletAndy Petree Racing3930running124
3629Kevin HarvickChevroletRichard Childress Racing3920running121
1225Jerry NadeauChevroletHendrick Motorsports3920running118
1122Ward BurtonDodgeBill Davis Racing3920running115
2733Joe NemechekChevroletAndy Petree Racing3920running112
2319Casey AtwoodDodgeEvernham Motorsports3920running109
715Michael WaltripChevroletDale Earnhardt, Inc.3921running111
176Mark MartinFordRoush Racing3921running108
1943John AndrettiDodgePetty Enterprises3910running100
1536Ken SchraderPontiacMBV Motorsports3910running97
149Bill ElliottDodgeEvernham Motorsports3910running94
3731Mike SkinnerChevroletRichard Childress Racing3910running91
2814Ron Hornaday Jr.PontiacA.J. Foyt Racing3900running88
244Robby GordonChevroletMorgan-McClure Motorsports3900running85
1011Brett BodineFordBrett Bodine Racing3900running82
3817Matt KensethFordRoush Racing3890running79
355Terry LabonteChevroletHendrick Motorsports3890running76
3226Jimmy SpencerFordHaas-Carter Motorsports3891running78
4390Hut StricklinFordDonlavey Racing3890running70
2950Rick MastChevroletMidwest Transit Racing3880running67
2001Jason LefflerDodgeChip Ganassi Racing3870running64
3966Todd BodineFordHaas-Carter Motorsports3870running61
4244Buckshot JonesDodgePetty Enterprises3831running63
997Kurt BuschFordRoush Racing3830running55
599Jeff BurtonFordRoush Racing3790running52
1312Jeremy MayfieldFordPenske Racing South3640running49
428Ricky RuddFordRobert Yates Racing3553running51
347Mike WallaceFordUltra Motorsports3550running43
4092Stacy ComptonDodgeMelling Racing2956engine45
3027Kenny WallacePontiacEel River Racing1180crash37
258Dale Earnhardt Jr.ChevroletDale Earnhardt, Inc.00crash34
96Andy HoustonFordPPI Motorsports
45Kyle PettyDodgePetty Enterprises
60Joe BesseyChevroletJoe Bessey Motorsports
85Carl LongFordMansion Motorsports
Source:

Standings after the race

PosDriverPoints
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 21Rusty Wallace
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 42Sterling Marlin
[[File:1downarrow red.svg10px]] 23Michael Waltrip
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 44Bobby Hamilton
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 265Steve Park
[[File:1downarrow red.svg10px]] 16Bill Elliott
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 227Jeff Gordon
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 158Ricky Craven
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 69Robert Pressley
[[File:1uparrow green.svg10px]] 210Joe Nemechek

References

References

  1. "The Race: Dura-Lube 400". ESPN Internet Ventures.
  2. "Weather information for the ''2001 KMart/Dura Lube 400''". The Old Farmers' Almanac.
  3. (2001-02-24). "NASCAR Starting line up: Dura Lube 400.".
  4. "rpm.espn.com: Dura Lube 400 qualifying results".
  5. Shontz, Lori. (February 26, 2001). "Dura Lube 400 opening-lap crash by Earnhardt Jr. mars rain-delayed race". Post-Gazette.
  6. (February 26, 2001). "Park Does It For Boss At Dura Lube". CBS News (CBS).
  7. (2001). "[[NASCAR on Fox]]". Fox Broadcasting Company.
  8. (February 26, 2001). "Rain-delayed Dura-Lube 400 to resume today at 11 a.m.". The Post and Courier.
  9. (February 26, 2001). "Earnhardt honored at track". Sun Journal.
  10. (February 27, 2001). "Victory dedicated to Earnhardt". BBC Sport (BBC).
  11. Harris, Mike. (February 25, 2001). "Earnhardt Jr. crashes at start of Dura Lube 400". USA Today.
  12. (February 25, 2001). "Rain postpones Dura Lube 400". crash.net.
  13. (February 27, 2001). "A win in the memory of Earnhardt". Gadsden Times.
  14. Associated Press. (February 27, 2001). "Parks wins Dura Lube 400". The Augusta Chronicle.
  15. "2001 Official Race Results : Dura Lube 400". NASCAR.com.
  16. "2001 Dura Lube 400 - The Third Turn".
  17. "2001 Dura Lube 400 race results".
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