The 2001 Harrah's 500 was the seventh stock car race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the fifth iteration of the event. The race was held on Sunday, April 1, 2001, in Fort Worth, Texas at Texas Motor Speedway, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km) permanent tri-oval shaped racetrack. The race took the scheduled 334 laps to complete. A call for four tires for Robert Yates Racing driver Dale Jarrett would prove to be instrumental as he would slice his way through the field on the final restart with 18 to go to win the race.[1][2] The win was Jarrett's 27th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series victory and his second of the season. To fill out the podium, Steve Park, driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., and Johnny Benson Jr., driving for MBV Motorsports, would finish second and third, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 7 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
 The 2001 Harrah's 500 program cover, with artwork from Sam Bass. The cover celebrates Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s first ever win at the 2000 DirecTV 500. The painting is called "A Texas Sized Win!" | |||
| Date | April 1, 2001 | ||
| Official name | 5th Annual Harrah's 500 | ||
| Location | Fort Worth, Texas, Texas Motor Speedway | ||
| Course |
Permanent racing facility 1.5 mi (2.41 km) | ||
| Distance | 334 laps, 501 mi (806.281 km) | ||
| Scheduled Distance | 334 laps, 501 mi (806.281 km) | ||
| Average speed | 141.804 miles per hour (228.211 km/h) | ||
| Attendance | 211,000 | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | ||
| Time | 28.320 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Laps | 122 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | FOX | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds, Darrell Waltrip | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Performance Racing Network | ||
| Booth Announcers | Doug Rice, Mark Garrow | ||
| Turn Announcers | Chuck Carland, Rob Albright | ||
Background
edit
Texas Motor Speedway is a speedway located in the northernmost portion of the U.S. city of Fort Worth, Texas – the portion located in Denton County, Texas. The track measures 1.5 miles (2.4 km) around and is banked 24 degrees in the turns, and is of the oval design, where the front straightaway juts outward slightly. The track layout is similar to Atlanta Motor Speedway and Charlotte Motor Speedway (formerly Lowe's Motor Speedway). The track is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., the same company that owns Atlanta and Charlotte Motor Speedway, as well as the short-track Bristol Motor Speedway.
Entry list
edit- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
editFirst practice
editThe first practice session was held on Friday, March 30, at 11:45 AM CST. The session would last for two hours.[3] Steve Park, driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.266 and an average speed of 191.042 miles per hour (307.452 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 28.266 | 191.042 |
| 2 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 28.302 | 190.799 |
| 3 | 55 | Bobby Hamilton | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 28.334 | 190.584 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Second and final practice
editThe final practice session, sometimes referred to as Happy Hour, was held on Saturday, March 31, at 10:00 AM CST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes.[3] Johnny Benson Jr., driving for MBV Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 28.927 and an average speed of 186.677 miles per hour (300.428 km/h).[5]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | MBV Motorsports | Pontiac | 28.927 | 186.677 |
| 2 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 29.014 | 186.117 |
| 3 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 29.020 | 186.079 |
| Full Happy Hour practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on Friday, March 30, at 3:00 PM CST. Each driver would have two laps to set a fastest time; the fastest of the two would count as their official qualifying lap.[3] Positions 1-36 would be decided on time, while positions 37-43 would be based on provisionals. Six spots are awarded by the use of provisionals based on owner's points. The seventh is awarded to a past champion who has not otherwise qualified for the race. If no past champ needs the provisional, the next team in the owner points will be awarded a provisional.[6]
Dale Earnhardt Jr., driving for Dale Earnhardt, Inc., would win the pole, setting a time of 28.320 and an average speed of 190.678 miles per hour (306.866 km/h).[7]
Two drivers would fail to qualify: Kyle Petty and Rick Mast.
Full qualifying results
editRace results
editStandings after the race
edit| Pos | Driver | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1 | Dale Jarrett | 1,056 |
|
|
2 | Jeff Gordon | 981 (–75) |
 1
|
3 | Johnny Benson Jr. | 946 (–110) |
| 1
|
4 | Steve Park | 933 (–123) |
 2
|
5 | Sterling Marlin | 889 (–167) |
|
|
6 | Rusty Wallace | 879 (–177) |
| 1
|
7 | Bobby Hamilton | 825 (–231) |
| 1
|
8 | Elliott Sadler | 824 (–232) |
| 1
|
9 | Bill Elliott | 822 (–234) |
| 3
|
10 | Kevin Harvick | 811 (–245) |
References
edit- ^ David, Poole (April 1, 2001). "4 tires the right choice for Jarrett". ThatsRacin. The Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on October 6, 2001. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "Advice from crew chief leads Jarrett to victory". The Daily Journal. April 2, 2001. p. 10. Retrieved July 14, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 2001 Texas Race Info Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on February 13, 2002. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "Friday's Winston Cup practice speeds". ThatsRacin. March 30, 2001. Archived from the original on October 8, 2001. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "Friday's Winston Cup practice speeds". ThatsRacin. March 31, 2001. Archived from the original on October 8, 2001. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "Jayski's Silly Season Site - 2002 Provisional/Owners Points Page". Jayski's Silly Season Site. Archived from the original on February 5, 2005. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
- ^ Harris, Mike (March 30, 2001). "Earnhardt Jr. wins Texas pole". ThatsRacin. Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 15, 2001. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "2001 Harrah's 500 - The Third Turn". The Third Turn. Retrieved July 12, 2022.