2001 Pontiac Excitement 400
11th race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
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The 2001 Pontiac Excitement 400 was the 11th stock car race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series and the 47th iteration of the event. The race was held on Saturday, May 5, 2001, in Richmond, Virginia, at Richmond International Raceway, a 0.750 mi (1.207 km) D-shaped oval. The race took the scheduled 400 laps to complete. At race's end, Tony Stewart, driving for Joe Gibbs Racing, would hold off the field on the final restart with two to go to win his 10th career NASCAR Winston Cup Series win and his first of the season.[1][2] To fill out the podium, Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, and Rusty Wallace, driving for Penske Racing South, would finish 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 11 of 36 in the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series | |||
|
The 2001 Pontiac Excitement 400 program cover, with artwork by Garry Hill. | |||
| Date | May 5, 2001 | ||
| Official name | 47th Annual Pontiac Excitement 400 | ||
| Location | Richmond, Virginia, Richmond International Raceway | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.750 miles (1.207 km) | ||
| Distance | 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 400 laps, 300 mi (482.803 km) | ||
| Average speed | 95.872 miles per hour (154.291 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Roush Racing | ||
| Time | 21.667 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | |
| Laps | 276 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | FX | ||
| Announcers | Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds, Darrell Waltrip | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | Motor Racing Network | ||
Background
Richmond International Raceway (RIR) is a 0.750 mi (1.207 km), D-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in Henrico County.
Entry list
- (R) denotes rookie driver.
Practice
First practice
The first practice session was held on Friday, May 4, at 12:00 PM EST. 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 21.580 and an average speed of 125.116 mph (201.355 km/h).[4]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 21.580 | 125.116 |
| 2 | 33 | Joe Nemechek | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 21.593 | 125.041 |
| 3 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing | Ford | 21.638 | 124.780 |
| Full first practice results | ||||||
Final practice
The final practice session was held on Friday, May 4, at 5:50 PM EST. The session would last for one hour and 30 minutes.[3] Jeff Gordon, driving for Hendrick Motorsports, would set the fastest time in the session, with a lap of 22.114 and an average speed of 122.095 mph (196.493 km/h).[5]
| Pos. | # | Driver | Team | Make | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 22.114 | 122.095 |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 22.145 | 121.924 |
| 3 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 22.169 | 121.792 |
| Full Final practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
Qualifying was held on Friday, May 4, at 3:30 PM EST. 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]
Mark Martin, driving for Roush Racing, would win the pole, setting a time of 21.667 and an average speed of 124.613 mph (200.545 km/h).[7]
Three drivers would fail to qualify: Buckshot Jones, Hermie Sadler, and Hut Stricklin.
Full qualifying results
Race results
| Fin[8] | St | # | Driver | Team | Make | Laps | Led | Status | Pts | Winnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | 20 | Tony Stewart | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 400 | 93 | running | 180 | $150,175 |
| 2 | 6 | 24 | Jeff Gordon | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 400 | 0 | running | 170 | $133,827 |
| 3 | 2 | 2 | Rusty Wallace | Penske Racing South | Ford | 400 | 276 | running | 175 | $117,740 |
| 4 | 4 | 1 | Steve Park | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 400 | 0 | running | 160 | $95,493 |
| 5 | 3 | 28 | Ricky Rudd | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 27 | running | 160 | $93,297 |
| 6 | 11 | 10 | Johnny Benson Jr. | MBV Motorsports | Pontiac | 400 | 0 | running | 150 | $57,350 |
| 7 | 14 | 8 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 400 | 1 | running | 151 | $75,348 |
| 8 | 19 | 17 | Matt Kenseth | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 142 | $52,475 |
| 9 | 21 | 36 | Ken Schrader | MB2 Motorsports | Pontiac | 400 | 0 | running | 138 | $61,235 |
| 10 | 9 | 18 | Bobby Labonte | Joe Gibbs Racing | Pontiac | 400 | 0 | running | 134 | $98,152 |
| 11 | 15 | 40 | Sterling Marlin | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | Dodge | 400 | 0 | running | 130 | $62,995 |
| 12 | 42 | 19 | Casey Atwood (R) | Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 400 | 0 | running | 127 | $38,950 |
| 13 | 1 | 6 | Mark Martin | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 3 | running | 129 | $87,126 |
| 14 | 17 | 99 | Jeff Burton | Roush Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 121 | $84,521 |
| 15 | 20 | 88 | Dale Jarrett | Robert Yates Racing | Ford | 400 | 0 | running | 118 | $85,712 |
| 16 | 5 | 26 | Jimmy Spencer | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 115 | $55,911 |
| 17 | 32 | 29 | Kevin Harvick (R) | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 | running | 112 | $82,427 |
| 18 | 31 | 97 | Kurt Busch (R) | Roush Racing | Ford | 399 | 0 | running | 109 | $48,650 |
| 19 | 37 | 33 | Joe Nemechek | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 399 | 0 | running | 106 | $68,195 |
| 20 | 22 | 50 | Rick Mast | Midwest Transit Racing | Chevrolet | 398 | 0 | running | 103 | $39,575 |
| 21 | 10 | 22 | Ward Burton | Bill Davis Racing | Dodge | 398 | 0 | running | 100 | $72,185 |
| 22 | 16 | 45 | Kyle Petty | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 398 | 0 | running | 97 | $35,725 |
| 23 | 36 | 21 | Elliott Sadler | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 398 | 0 | running | 94 | $61,215 |
| 24 | 24 | 31 | Mike Skinner | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 398 | 0 | running | 91 | $70,699 |
| 25 | 33 | 7 | Mike Wallace | Ultra Motorsports | Ford | 397 | 0 | running | 88 | $49,600 |
| 26 | 28 | 01 | Jason Leffler (R) | Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates | Dodge | 397 | 0 | running | 85 | $46,400 |
| 27 | 27 | 4 | Kevin Lepage | Morgan–McClure Motorsports | Chevrolet | 397 | 0 | running | 82 | $37,675 |
| 28 | 26 | 55 | Bobby Hamilton | Andy Petree Racing | Chevrolet | 396 | 0 | running | 79 | $45,450 |
| 29 | 40 | 92 | Stacy Compton | Melling Racing | Dodge | 396 | 0 | running | 76 | $37,225 |
| 30 | 43 | 66 | Todd Bodine | Haas-Carter Motorsports | Ford | 396 | 0 | running | 73 | $37,600 |
| 31 | 41 | 14 | Ron Hornaday Jr. (R) | A. J. Foyt Enterprises | Pontiac | 394 | 0 | running | 70 | $36,550 |
| 32 | 23 | 77 | Robert Pressley | Jasper Motorsports | Ford | 393 | 0 | running | 67 | $42,000 |
| 33 | 38 | 93 | Dave Blaney | Bill Davis Racing | Dodge | 388 | 0 | crash | 64 | $33,950 |
| 34 | 39 | 43 | John Andretti | Petty Enterprises | Dodge | 387 | 0 | running | 61 | $68,927 |
| 35 | 12 | 15 | Michael Waltrip | Dale Earnhardt, Inc. | Chevrolet | 364 | 0 | running | 58 | $43,850 |
| 36 | 35 | 12 | Jeremy Mayfield | Penske Racing South | Ford | 359 | 0 | running | 55 | $73,084 |
| 37 | 8 | 9 | Bill Elliott | Evernham Motorsports | Dodge | 342 | 0 | running | 52 | $58,473 |
| 38 | 30 | 5 | Terry Labonte | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 329 | 0 | rear end | 49 | $66,430 |
| 39 | 18 | 11 | Brett Bodine | Brett Bodine Racing | Ford | 327 | 0 | running | 46 | $33,625 |
| 40 | 25 | 27 | Kenny Wallace | Eel River Racing | Pontiac | 322 | 0 | engine | 43 | $33,550 |
| 41 | 29 | 25 | Jerry Nadeau | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 257 | 0 | crash | 40 | $41,500 |
| 42 | 34 | 96 | Andy Houston (R) | PPI Motorsports | Ford | 206 | 0 | engine | 37 | $33,455 |
| 43 | 13 | 32 | Ricky Craven | PPI Motorsports | Ford | 165 | 0 | crash | 34 | $33,654 |
| Official race results | ||||||||||
Standings after the race
| Pos | Driver | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
1 | Dale Jarrett | 1,559 |
|
2 | Jeff Gordon | 1,545 (–14) |
 1 |
3 | Rusty Wallace | 1,497 (–62) |
 1 |
4 | Johnny Benson Jr. | 1,480 (–79) |
|
5 | Sterling Marlin | 1,421 (–138) |
|
6 | Ricky Rudd | 1,411 (–148) |
| 2 |
7 | Tony Stewart | 1,392 (–167) |
|
8 | Steve Park | 1,387 (–172) |
| 2 |
9 | Bobby Hamilton | 1,309 (–250) |
|
10 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | 1,302 (–257) |