2001 Winston Cup Series

2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series
Jeff Gordon was the 2001 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Champion.
Duration	February 18, 2001 through November 23, 2001
TV	FOX/FX, NBC/TNT
Season Statistics
No. of races	36
First race	2001 Daytona 500
Last race	2001 New Hampshire 300
Drivers' champion	Jeff Gordon
Manufacturers' champion
Rookie of the Year	Kevin Harvick
Most popular driver	Dale Earnhardt
Previous	2000
Next	2002

The 2001 Winston Cup Series was the 53rd season of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series. The season began with the Daytona 500 on at Daytona International Speedway February 18 and ended with the New Hampshire 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway on November 23. Jeff Gordon won his fourth championship in seven years with 5112 points. He won the most races and most poles among drivers during the season.

The season began on a tragic note, with a two-car collision at the Daytona 500 claiming the life of Dale Earnhardt. This began a period of emphasis on safety enhancements and improvements that continue to the present. As the season went on, more and more drivers adopted one of two safety devices- the HANS device or the Hutchens Device, and by October 2001, the use of at least one of those devices were required by NASCAR. It was the first year for a unified television contract with FOX, NBC, and TNT. Dodge returned to the sport for the first time since the 1985 season.

Teams Competing (Full Time)

Car No.	Driver	Sponsor	Make	Team
01	Jason Leffler #	Cingular Wireless		Chip Ganassi Racing
1	Steve Park (24) Kenny Wallace (12)	Pennzoil		Dale Earnhardt Inc.
2	Rusty Wallace	Miller Lite		Roger Penske
3	Dale Earnhardt (1)†	GM Goodwrench		Richard Childress
4	Robby Gordon (5) Kevin Lepage (23) Rich Bickle (1) Bobby Hamilton, Jr. (7)	Kodak		Morgan-McClure Motorsports
5	Terry Labonte	Kellogg's		Rick Hendrick
6	Mark Martin	Viagra		Jack Roush
7	Mike Wallace (25) Ted Musgrave (1) Robby Gordon (2) Kevin Lepage (8)	Nations Rent		Ultra Motorsports
8	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Budweiser		Dale Earnhardt Inc.
9	Bill Elliott	Dodge		Ray Evernham
10	Johnny Benson, Jr.	Valvoline		MB2 Motorsports
11	Brett Bodine	Ralph's		Brett Bodine
12	Jeremy Mayfield (28) Mike Wallace (8)	Mobil 1		Roger Penske
14	Ron Hornaday, Jr. #	Conseco		A.J. Foyt
15	Michael Waltrip	NAPA		Dale Earnhardt Inc.
17	Matt Kenseth	DeWalt		Jack Roush
18	Bobby Labonte	Interstate Batteries		Joe Gibbs
19	Casey Atwood #	Dodge		Ray Evernham
20	Tony Stewart	Home Depot		Joe Gibbs
21	Elliott Sadler	Motorcraft		Wood Brothers Racing
22	Ward Burton	Caterpillar		Bill Davis
24	Jeff Gordon	Dupont		Rick Hendrick
25	Jerry Nadeau	UAW/Delphi		Rick Hendrick
26	Jimmy Spencer	Kmart		Travis Carter
27	Kenny Wallace (16) Mike Bliss (3) Rick Mast (9)	Geico Duke's Mayonnaise		Jack Birmingham
28	Ricky Rudd	Texaco Havoline		Robert Yates
29	Kevin Harvick (35) #	GM Goodwrench		Richard Childress
31	Mike Skinner (23) Robby Gordon (12) Jeff Green (1)	Lowe's		Richard Childress
32	Ricky Craven	Tide		PPI Motorsports
33	Joe Nemechek (31) Bobby Hamilton, Jr (3) Wally Dallenbach, Jr (1) Scott Pruett (1)	Oakwood Homes		Andy Petree
36	Ken Schrader	M&M's		MB2 Motorsports
40	Sterling Marlin	Coors Light		Chip Ganassi Racing
43	John Andretti	Cheerios		Petty Enterprises
44	Buckshot Jones (35) Wally Dallenbach, Jr (1)	Georgia Pacific		Petty Enterprises
45	Kyle Petty	Sprint		Petty Enterprises
55	Bobby Hamilton	Square D		Andy Petree
66	Todd Bodine	Kmart		Travis Carter
77	Robert Pressley (34) Boris Said (2)	Jasper Engines		Jasper Racing
88	Dale Jarrett	UPS		Robert Yates
90	Hut Stricklin (29) Brian Simo (2) Rick Mast (5)	Hills Brothers Coffee		Junie Donlavey
92	Stacy Compton	Kodiak		Melling Racing
93	Dave Blaney	Amoco		Bill Davis
96	Andy Houston #	McDonald's		PPI Motorsports
97	Kurt Busch #	Sharpie / Rubbermaid		Jack Roush
99	Jeff Burton	Citgo		Jack Roush

# - indicates a Rookie of the Year contender

(#) - indicates the number of races if the driver did not run the full season with the team.

† - indicates the #3 was renumbered to the #29 following the death of Dale Earnhardt

Schedule

Round	Date	Race Name	Track	TV
	February 11, 2001	Budweiser Shootout	Daytona International Speedway	FOX
	February 15, 2001	Gatorade 125s	Daytona International Speedway	FOX SportsNet
1	February 18, 2001	Daytona 500	Daytona International Speedway	FOX
2	February 25, 2001	Dura Lube 400	North Carolina Speedway	FX
3	March 4, 2001	UAW-Daimler Chrysler 400 #	Las Vegas Motor Speedway	FOX
4	March 11, 2001	Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway	FOX
5	March 18, 2001	Carolina Dodge Dealers 400	Darlington Raceway	FOX
6	March 25, 2001	Food City 500	Bristol Motor Speedway	FOX
7	April 1, 2001	Harrah's 500	Texas Motor Speedway	FOX
8	April 8, 2001	Virginia 500	Martinsville Speedway	FOX
9	April 22, 2001	Talladega 500	Talladega Superspeedway	FOX
10	April 29, 2001	NAPA Auto Parts 500	California Speedway	FOX
11	May 5, 2001	Pontiac Excitement 400	Richmond International Raceway	FX
	May 19, 2001	The Winston	Lowe's Motor Speedway	FX
12	May 27, 2001	Coca-Cola 600 #	Lowe's Motor Speedway	FOX
13	June 3, 2001	MBNA Platinum 400	Dover Downs International Speedway	FX
14	June 10, 2001	Kmart 400	Michigan Speedway	FOX
15	June 17, 2001	Pocono 500	Pocono Raceway	FOX
16	June 24, 2001	Dodge / Save Mart 350	Sears Point Raceway	FOX
17	July 7, 2001	Pepsi 400 #	Daytona International Speedway	NBC
18	July 15, 2001	Tropicana 400	Chicagoland Speedway	NBC
19	July 22, 2001	New England 300	New Hampshire International Speedway	TNT
20	July 29, 2001	Pennsylvania 500 Presented by Pep Boys	Pocono Raceway	TNT
21	August 5, 2001	Brickyard 400	Indianapolis Motor Speedway	NBC
22	August 12, 2001	Global Crossing at the Glen	Watkins Glen International	NBC
23	August 19, 2001	Pepsi 400 Presented by Meijer	Michigan Speedway	TNT
24	August 25, 2001	Sharpie 500	Bristol Motor Speedway	TNT
25	September 2, 2001	Mountain Dew Southern 500	Darlington Raceway	TNT
26	September 8, 2001	Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400 #	Richmond International Raceway	TNT
27	September 23, 2001	MBNA Cal Ripken, Jr. 400	Dover Downs International Speedway	NBC
28	September 30, 2001	Protection One 400	Kansas Speedway	NBC
29	October 7, 2001	UAW-GM Quality 500	Lowe's Motor Speedway	TNT
30	October 15, 2001	Old Dominion 500	Martinsville Speedway	TNT
31	October 21, 2001	EA Sports 500 #	Talladega Superspeedway	NBC
32	October 28, 2001	Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil	Phoenix International Raceway	NBC
33	November 4, 2001	Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400	North Carolina Speedway	TNT
34	November 11, 2001	Pennzoil Freedom 400	Homestead-Miami Speedway	NBC
35	November 18, 2001	NAPA 500	Atlanta Motor Speedway	NBC
36	November 23, 2001	New Hampshire 300	New Hampshire International Speedway	NBC

# indicates a Winston No Bull 5 Race.

Results

Round	Race	Pole Winner	Winner	Make	Cautions	Caution Laps	Average Speed	Number of Lead Changes
	2001 Budweiser Shootout	Ken Schrader	Tony Stewart		0	0	181.036	19
	2001 Gatorade 125 (Race #1)	Bill Elliott	Sterling Marlin		3	8	147.493	10
	2001 Gatorade 125 (Race #2)	Stacy Compton	Mike Skinner		1	4	162.338	11
1	2001 Daytona 500	Bill Elliott	Michael Waltrip		3	14	161.783	49
2	2001 Dura Lube 400	Jeff Gordon	Steve Park		4	52	111.877	20
3	2001 UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400	Dale Jarrett	Jeff Gordon		6	25	135.546	20
4	2001 Cracker Barrel Old Country Store 500	Dale Jarrett	Kevin Harvick		8	42	143.273	25
5	2001 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400	N/A	Dale Jarrett		7	38	126.557	12
6	2001 Food City 500	Mark Martin	Elliott Sadler		13	87	86.949	18
7	2001 Harrah's 500	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Dale Jarrett		10	44	141.804	18
8	2001 Virginia 500	Jeff Gordon	Dale Jarrett		12	98	70.799	15
9	2001 Talladega 500	Stacy Compton	Bobby Hamilton		0	0	184.003	37
10	2001 NAPA Auto Parts 500	Bobby Labonte	Rusty Wallace		6	29	143.118	23
11	2001 Pontiac Excitement 400	Mark Martin	Tony Stewart		8	58	95.872	12
	2001 The Winston	Rusty Wallace	Jeff Gordon		5	0	185.022	8
12	2001 Coca-Cola 600	Ryan Newman	Jeff Burton		6	45	138.107	28
13	2001 MBNA Platinum 400	N/A	Jeff Gordon		5	31	120.361	16
14	2001 Kmart 400	Jeff Gordon	Jeff Gordon		8	34	134.203	17
15	2001 Pocono 500	Ricky Rudd	Ricky Rudd		7	26	134.389	13
16	2001 Dodge/Save Mart 350	Jeff Gordon	Tony Stewart		5	16	75.889	10
17	2001 Pepsi 400	Sterling Marlin	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.		3	15	157.601	14
18	2001 Tropicana 400	Todd Bodine	Kevin Harvick		10	56	121.200	14
19	2001 New England 300	Jeff Gordon	Dale Jarrett		10	51	102.131	10
20	2001 Pennsylvania 500	Todd Bodine	Bobby Labonte		6	24	134.590	20
21	2001 Brickyard 400	Jimmy Spencer	Jeff Gordon		7	28	130.790	18
22	2001 Global Crossing at the Glen	Dale Jarrett	Jeff Gordon		5	13	89.081	13
23	2001 Pepsi 400 Presented by Meijer	Ricky Craven	Sterling Marlin		3	18	140.513	16
24	2001 Sharpie 500	Jeff Green	Tony Stewart		16	93	85.106	11
25	2001 Mountain Dew Southern 500	Kurt Busch	Ward Burton		11	51	122.773	19
26	2001 Chevrolet Monte Carlo 400	Jeff Gordon	Ricky Rudd		12	80	95.146	8
27	2001 MBNA Cal Ripken, Jr. 400	Dale Jarrett	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.		11	71	101.559	13
28	2001 Protection One 400	Jason Leffler	Jeff Gordon		13	70	110.576	19
29	2001 UAW-GM Quality 500	Jimmy Spencer	Sterling Marlin		8	40	139.006	19
30	2001 Old Dominion 500	Todd Bodine	Ricky Craven		13	81	75.750	19
31	2001 EA Sports 500	Stacy Compton	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.		3	16	164.185	32
32	2001 Checker Auto Parts 500 Presented by Pennzoil	Casey Atwood	Jeff Burton		7	45	102.613	15
33	2001 Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn 400	Kenny Wallace	Joe Nemechek		2	16	128.941	15
34	2001 Pennzoil Freedom 400	Bill Elliott	Bill Elliott		6	41	117.449	19
35	2001 NAPA 500	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	Bobby Labonte		5	28	151.756	23
36	2001 New Hampshire 300	N/A	Robby Gordon		7	43	103.594	10

Final Points Standings

Pos.	Driver	Races	Wins	Top 5s	Top 10s	Poles	Points	Difference
1	Jeff Gordon	36	6	18	24	6	5112
2	Tony Stewart	36	3	15	22	0	4763	-349
3	Sterling Marlin	36	2	12	20	1	4741	-371
4	Ricky Rudd	36	2	14	22	1	4706	-406
5	Dale Jarrett	36	4	12	19	4	4612	-500
6	Bobby Labonte	36	2	9	20	1	4561	-551
7	Rusty Wallace	36	1	8	14	0	4481	-631
8	Dale Earnhardt, Jr.	36	3	9	15	2	4460	-652
9	Kevin Harvick	35	2	6	16	0	4406	-706
10	Jeff Burton	36	2	8	16	0	4394	-718
11	Johnny Benson, Jr.	36	0	6	14	0	4152	-960
12	Mark Martin	36	0	3	15	2	4095	-1017
13	Matt Kenseth	36	0	4	9	0	3982	-1130
14	Ward Burton	36	1	6	10	0	3846	-1266
15	Bill Elliott	36	1	5	9	2	3824	-1288
16	Jimmy Spencer	36	0	3	8	2	3782	-1330
17	Jerry Nadeau	36	0	4	10	0	3675	-1437
18	Bobby Hamilton	36	1	3	7	0	3575	-1537
19	Ken Schrader	36	0	0	5	0	3480	-1632
20	Elliott Sadler	36	1	2	2	0	3471	-1641
21	Ricky Craven	36	1	4	7	1	3379	-1733
22	Dave Blaney	36	0	0	6	0	3303	-1809
23	Terry Labonte	36	0	1	3	0	3280	-1832
24	Michael Waltrip	36	1	3	3	0	3159	-1953
25	Robert Pressley	34	0	1	5	0	3156	-1956
26	Casey Atwood	35	0	1	3	1	3132	-1980
27	Kurt Busch	35	0	3	6	1	3081	-2031
28	Joe Nemechek	31	1	1	4	0	2994	-2118
29	Todd Bodine	35	0	2	2	3	2960	-2152
30	Brett Bodine	36	0	0	2	0	2948	-2164
31	John Andretti	35	0	1	2	0	2943	-2169
32	Steve Park	24	1	5	12	0	2859	-2253
33	Stacy Compton	34	0	0	1	2	2752	-2360
34	Mike Wallace	29	0	1	6	0	2693	-2419
35	Jeremy Mayfield	28	0	5	7	0	2651	-2461
36	Kevin Lepage	29	0	0	1	0	2461	-2651
37	Jason Leffler	30	0	0	1	1	2413	-2699
38	Ron Hornaday, Jr.	32	0	0	1	0	2305	-2807
39	Kenny Wallace	24	0	1	2	1	2054	-3058
40	Mike Skinner	23	0	0	1	0	2029	-3083
41	Buckshot Jones	30	0	0	0	0	1939	-3173
42	Hut Stricklin	22	0	0	1	0	1770	-3342
43	Kyle Petty	24	0	0	0	0	1673	-3439
44	Robby Gordon	17	1	2	3	0	1552	-3560
45	Rick Mast	17	0	0	0	0	1187	-3925
46	Andy Houston	17	0	0	0	0	1123	-3989
47	Bobby Hamilton, Jr.	10	0	0	0	0	748	-4364
48	Jeff Green	8	0	0	1	1	539	-4573
49	Ryan Newman	7	0	2	2	1	497	-4615
50	Boris Said	2	0	0	1	0	272	-4840

Complete statistics can be found at Racing-Reference.info.

Rookie of the Year

Kevin Harvick won the Raybestos Rookie of the Year Award for 2001.

Rookie of the Year Standings

Position	Driver	Points	Race Wins
1	Kevin Harvick	320	2
2	Kurt Busch	243	0
3	Casey Atwood	232	0
4	Jason Leffler	200	0
5	Ron Hornaday, Jr.	196	0
6	Andy Houston	151	0

Manufacturer Championship

With 16 wins, Chevrolet won the manufacturer's championship.

Position	Make	Points	Race Wins
1		248	16
2		217	11
3		169	5
4		158	4

Other Season Awards

• Most Popular Driver: Dale Earnhardt
• True Value Man-Of-The-Year Award: Jeff Gordon
• Gatorade Front Runner Award: Jeff Gordon
• Clevite Engine Builder of the Year Award: Rick Wetzel, Hendrick Motorsports
• 76 Oil Contingency Award: Sterling Marlin
• 76 Gasoline Contingency Award: Jeff Gordon
• Plasti-Kote Quality Finish Award: Robby Loomis, Hendrick Motorsports (Jeff Gordon's Crew Chief)
• Bud Pole Award: Jeff Gordon
• Goodyear Tire Award: Jeff Gordon
• Union-76 World Pit Crew Championship: #17 Roush Racing Ford Pit Crew, led by Robbie Reiser

References

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